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alumina hydrate warning!

updated mon 30 jun 97

 

Jonathan Blitz on thu 12 jun 97

On this topic I want to send an URGENT WARNING to the list!

Don't use alumina hydrate in electric kilns.

Skutt sent a notice to all dealers that the use of alumina hydrate in kiln
washing electric kiln shelves RADICALLY SHORTENS THE LIFE OF THE ELEMENTS!

Please don't use it in your kilns unless absolutely necessary.

Jonathan Blitz
President
Applied Aluminosilicates, Ltd.
aal@inlink.com
http://www.iwc.com/krueger/aalhome.html
8153 Big Bend
St. Louis, MO 63119
314.963.0180

Roeder on fri 13 jun 97

This is not happy news. I always mix a little into my wax resist to wax the
feet of porcelain pots. Would this little bit be damaging? I've been using
it in my Skutt for 5 years, so whatever damage there is is probably done.

Candice



>On this topic I want to send an URGENT WARNING to the list!
>
>Don't use alumina hydrate in electric kilns.
>
>Skutt sent a notice to all dealers that the use of alumina hydrate in kiln
>washing electric kiln shelves RADICALLY SHORTENS THE LIFE OF THE ELEMENTS!
>
>Please don't use it in your kilns unless absolutely necessary.
>
>Jonathan Blitz
>President
>Applied Aluminosilicates, Ltd.
>aal@inlink.com
>http://www.iwc.com/krueger/aalhome.html
>8153 Big Bend
>St. Louis, MO 63119
>314.963.0180
>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Candice Roeder
Livin' in the sticks.....in Michigan
CRoeder@worldnet.att.net

Peggy Heer on fri 13 jun 97

> alumina hydrate in kiln washing<

Thanks for the warning Johnathan. Now I am wondering if just putting Al.
Hyd. without mixing it into a kiln wash will have the same effect on
elements. I WAS going to use it alone, dry, sprinkled on my shelves rather
than a kiln wash, as I have done for many yrs. in my old gas kiln. Any
warnings with using it dry??
Thanks. As Always in Clay Peggy


>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>On this topic I want to send an URGENT WARNING to the list!
>
>Don't use alumina hydrate in electric kilns.
>
>Skutt sent a notice to all dealers that the use of alumina hydrate in kiln
>washing electric kiln shelves RADICALLY SHORTENS THE LIFE OF THE ELEMENTS!
>
>Please don't use it in your kilns unless absolutely necessary.
>
>Jonathan Blitz
>President
>Applied Aluminosilicates, Ltd.
>aal@inlink.com
>http://www.iwc.com/krueger/aalhome.html
>8153 Big Bend
>St. Louis, MO 63119
>314.963.0180

Peggy Heer / Heer Pottery E-Mail p4337@connect.ab.ca
52120 Range Road 223
Sherwood Park, AB. Canada T8C 1A7
Phone (403) 922-6270
http://www.ffa.ucalgary.ca/artists/pheer/

Vince Pitelka on fri 13 jun 97

>On this topic I want to send an URGENT WARNING to the list!
>
>Don't use alumina hydrate in electric kilns.
>
>Skutt sent a notice to all dealers that the use of alumina hydrate in kiln
>washing electric kiln shelves RADICALLY SHORTENS THE LIFE OF THE ELEMENTS!
>
>Please don't use it in your kilns unless absolutely necessary.
>
>Jonathan Blitz

Jonathan -
Would you or someone else on the list please elaborate on this. Did Skutt
explain what the specific problem is?? I get very good element life, and I
have used alumina in kiln wash in electric kilns for decades.
- Vince

Vince Pitelka - vpitelka@DeKalb.net
Home 615/597-5376, work 615/597-6801, fax 615/597-6803
Appalachian Center for Crafts
1560 Craft Center Drive, Smithville TN 37166

Bill Walker on fri 13 jun 97

>
>Skutt sent a notice to all dealers that the use of alumina hydrate in kiln
washing electric kiln shelves RADICALLY SHORTENS THE LIFE OF THE ELEMENTS!
>

Did they say why?

Ron Roy on sat 14 jun 97

>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>On this topic I want to send an URGENT WARNING to the list!
>
>Don't use alumina hydrate in electric kilns.
>
>Skutt sent a notice to all dealers that the use of alumina hydrate in kiln
>washing electric kiln shelves RADICALLY SHORTENS THE LIFE OF THE ELEMENTS!
>
>Please don't use it in your kilns unless absolutely necessary.
>
>Jonathan Blitz
>President
>Applied Aluminosilicates, Ltd.
>aal@inlink.com
>http://www.iwc.com/krueger/aalhome.html
>8153 Big Bend
>St. Louis, MO 63119
>314.963.0180

Hi Jonathan,

Why not?

Ron Roy
Toronto, Canada
Evenings, call 416 439 2621
Fax, 416 438 7849
Studio: 416-752-7862.
Email ronroy@astral.magic.ca
Home page http://digitalfire.com/education/ronroy.htm

Gavin Stairs on sat 14 jun 97

....
>>Don't use alumina hydrate in electric kilns.
>>Jonathan Blitz
....
>Would you or someone else on the list please elaborate on this. Did Skutt
>explain what the specific problem is?? I get very good element life, and I
>have used alumina in kiln wash in electric kilns for decades.
....
>Vince Pitelka - vpitelka@DeKalb.net

I don't understand this either. If the warning had been about painting
kiln wash OVER the elements, I would have understood (even though it is my
understanding that ITC says to paint the whole kiln, including the
elements, with their stuff). But on shelves? As far as I know, alumina
hydrate (bauxite, essentially) is pretty inert, and doesn't release
anything but some water into the kiln. The reflectance will change, but
this can only have a bad effect when it covers the elements. What gives?

Gavin


=================================
Gavin Stairs
http://isis.physics.utoronto.ca/

stevemills on sat 14 jun 97


I have to come in on this.
At BPS we have used a batt wash mix as per my previous post of 2 parts
by weight Alumina Hydrate, 1 part Kaolin (china clay). We wash the base
of the kiln and all shelves. Shelves are re-washed when the coating
starts to look thin. For suspect glazes we use a sifted coating of 30s
molochite to catch the "runs".The elements are and always have been
Kanthal wire and PROVIDED they are fired in in an empty kiln when new
they last a heck of a long time. Our kilns are used almost daily for our
firing service, they are for the record 2 Olympics and a Kilns &
Furnaces, all top loaders.The formerwere installed in 1979/81, the
latter in 1990.
What element wire do Skutt use, and what batt wash receipe?
Steve.
In message , Jonathan Blitz writes
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>On this topic I want to send an URGENT WARNING to the list!
>
>Don't use alumina hydrate in electric kilns.
>
>Skutt sent a notice to all dealers that the use of alumina hydrate in kiln
>washing electric kiln shelves RADICALLY SHORTENS THE LIFE OF THE ELEMENTS!
>
>Please don't use it in your kilns unless absolutely necessary.
>
>Jonathan Blitz
>President
>Applied Aluminosilicates, Ltd.
>aal@inlink.com
>http://www.iwc.com/krueger/aalhome.html
>8153 Big Bend
>St. Louis, MO 63119
>314.963.0180
>

--
Steve Mills
@Bath Potters Supplies
Dorset Close
Bath
BA2 3RF
UK
Tel:(44) (0)1225 337046
Fax:(44) (0)1225 462712

Liz Willoughby on sun 15 jun 97

Hello Jonathan, I'm confused too. I've used alumina hydrate lightly sifted
on my shelves in my electric kiln for years. My elements lasted a LONG
time. Why does the use of alumina hydrate shorten the life of the
elements? Didn't for me. Regards, Liz


>>>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>>On this topic I want to send an URGENT WARNING to the list!
>>
>>Don't use alumina hydrate in electric kilns.
>>
>>Skutt sent a notice to all dealers that the use of alumina hydrate in kiln
>>washing electric kiln shelves RADICALLY SHORTENS THE LIFE OF THE ELEMENTS!
>>
>>Please don't use it in your kilns unless absolutely necessary.
>>
>>Jonathan Blitz
>>President
>>Applied Aluminosilicates, Ltd.
>>aal@inlink.com
>>http://www.iwc.com/krueger/aalhome.html
>>8153 Big Bend
>>St. Louis, MO 63119
>>314.963.0180
>>
>

Liz Willoughby
R.R. 1
Grafton, Ontario
K0K 2G0
e-mail lizwill@cyberion.ca

stevemills on sun 15 jun 97

In message , Bill Walker writes
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>>
>>Skutt sent a notice to all dealers that the use of alumina hydrate in kiln
>washing electric kiln shelves RADICALLY SHORTENS THE LIFE OF THE ELEMENTS!
>>
>
>Did they say why?
>
Presumably the driving off of the chemically combined water at around
500 - 600 deg. C. leads to corrosion of the elements. However, this also
happens when firing our pots (exclamation mark). The proportion of H2O
coming from the Alumina Hydrate in comparison with the amount coming out
of our clay must be very small.

Yes, like everyone else, I'm intrigued to hear their reasoning behind
this.


--
Mike Bailey