The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Häussler ovens

PastryKid's picture
PastryKid

Häussler ovens

I see a lot of posts usually on Rofco ovens but not much on Häussler.   Can anyone give feedback on these ovens?  

 

Thanks in advance,

 

 

 

 

 

jimbtv's picture
jimbtv

Lots of Haussler ovens in Europe but very few in the US. It appears there is one distributor (Pleasant Hill Grain) and they were awful at providing me with any upfront information and support. Haussler went from my primary choice to my nil-choice over a few months of inattention from PHG.

If I remember correctly the oven is actually manufactured by a company called IME and sold under several names. If you are located outside of the US maybe you will have better luck with your local Haussler rep.

 

Jim

PastryKid's picture
PastryKid

they look like nice ovens.  

 

I'm in the U.S. so I guess I'm out of luck. 

deblacksmith's picture
deblacksmith

I never had any problems dealing with Pleasant Hill - my experience a good outlet.

Baekerin's picture
Baekerin

My experiences have always been great and I have purchased many high end products from them.

PastryKid's picture
PastryKid

To be fair... I spoke with them today.  They (Charlene) answered whatever questions I had, sent me a video showcasing the oven, and provided me with an operator's manual.  

Good experience so far.   I'm not sure though I would want this oven.  Mainly due to lack of steam injection for the price.

So far, on a professional level, Polin seems to be the best deal per deck with steam injection.  Just can't afford that right now.  So it's either buy cheap to get started or wait until I can afford a Polin.

jimbtv's picture
jimbtv

If time is not the driving factor then start watching Craigslist and the local auctions. Nothing depreciates much faster than restaurant equipment and there really isn't a crossover market for the stuff. I purchased my oven, steam generator (2), proofer, mixer, working bench, stainless tables, Cambro containers, fermenting tubs and much much more, all through Craigslist and auctions.

There's some junk out there too but if you can be patient, you can score some really good deals on quality equipment.

jimbtv's picture
jimbtv

To be clear, I continue to do business with Pleasant Hill and I think, overall, they are a good company. I purchased my Ankarsrum mixer from them and will probably source some attachments through them someday soon. I have purchased bulk grains and many other items too.

If I can surmise a fault in the Haussler representation by PHG, before I spend upwards of $5,000 for an oven , and spend another couple of thousand modifying my kitchen to accommodate the beast, I need to know if it can bake artisan breads to my standards. Developing the heat to bake a quality loaf wasn't an obstacle, it was whether their drip steam system would produce enough steam.

I asked about the steam and they sent me a manual, which I had already downloaded from the web. I asked again about the steam and they told me to send them some pictures of my breads, examples of what I would expect from the Haussler. A month went by with no response so I emailed them again, explaining my frustration in their very slow response and apparent lack of interest.

I was told that a manager/owner at PHG had to reach out to the rep in Germany for answers and that the rep was not all that forthcoming with information. They then told me to send them my formulas and they would see if they could bake some samples. Hmmm... there's a little more to duplicating my bread than duplicating a formula so that is when I backed away.

My point was simple. If a company cannot respond to serious sales inquiries with good information in a timely manner, I would then conclude that they would have about the same response to any service issues. Why would I give $5,000 + to a company that has demonstrated a lack of sales commitment, with the hopes that their service division would be so much better.

Now PHG can point to Haussler in Germany as the problem but the result is the same to the end user - poor customer support. There are many other companies that are eager to provide very specific information on the performance of their ovens.

 

Jim

 

deblacksmith's picture
deblacksmith

Jim, Thank you for the additional comments on PHG and Haussler.