Christopher Rose on tue 4 mar 97
Hello CLAYARTers,
I was intrigued by Sam Wainford's posting of Feb 21 which
included a recipe for a castable refractory he has used to
build a kiln. Does anybody have good references in this
regard (different recipes, advice/instructions on how to
build a kiln entirely from these materials, experiences to
share, or cost comparisons)? I looked in THE KILN BOOK
but didn't find a great deal of info. Thanks in advance.
(And Mr. Wainford, have you tried it out yet?)
A big HELLO to all the folks out at the Baltimore Clayworks!
Christopher M. Rose
in Baltimore, MD (where it is now rainy and a bit chilly -
good weather for starin' out the window and thinkin')
LOWELL BAKER on wed 5 mar 97
I have built over twenty cast kilns of various sizes and
descriptions, all over the world. I can help you with specific
questions but to give you the whole avacado would require a book.
Jack troy's book on salt has some good pictures and ideas, I have
written some articles that were published in CM, others have written
the same for CM. Castables very based on the materials. I have been
called to tasak by someone who changed two of the ingredients in one
of my formula and had to haul the kiln to the dump in a truck.
I teach workshops on the subject and would be happy to talk with you
about specifics.
A SASE will get you some formula and notes which were delivered for
me in my absence from the Alabama Clay Conference last week.
W. Lowell Baker
Box 870270
The University of Alabama
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0270
205-348-1889 (my desk phone)
J PLEAK on wed 5 mar 97
Christopher I frequently use this castable formula when teaching kiln
building here at Beorgia Southern University. I works great and can stand
some real abuse from the students I got the formula at Indiana state
University in graduate School. The real trick is to make it as dry as you
can and ram the hell out of it. I had the students use it for the wood fired
salt kiln and it worked fine. I have them build a 12 cu ft kiln and we redo
it about every 4 years. Right no it was sealed off - it was on the roof of
the forth floor where they have sculpture and ceramics and our new safety
inspector had a fit so casting and wood firing are off limits until we get
to a new facility. I put alumina hydrate in it because we add salt to the
kiln. It works best if you get a good group working and they can ram all
day. We have usually taken 2 to 3 days and the sepeartion seams you need to
address as in the kiln they will expand. I will be teaching kilnbuilding
this spring quarter and we will be desiging experimental kilns due to our
recent expulsion from our burning space the roof. I have the students design
kilns and then build models to scale and we fire them. we had a great
anagama a few years ago all 12 inches. The way we construct is in a catenary
arch and build a wall the thickness of the castable and ram you need to work
out your design and plan how you will ram. good luck
Jane Pleak, Georgia southern University in Statesboro, GA where the sky is
blue and the flowers are out and spring is here in a big way.
At 10:22 PM 3/4/97 EST, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>
>Hello CLAYARTers,
>
>I was intrigued by Sam Wainford's posting of Feb 21 which
>included a recipe for a castable refractory he has used to
>build a kiln. Does anybody have good references in this
>regard (different recipes, advice/instructions on how to
>build a kiln entirely from these materials, experiences to
>share, or cost comparisons)? I looked in THE KILN BOOK
>but didn't find a great deal of info. Thanks in advance.
>(And Mr. Wainford, have you tried it out yet?)
>
>A big HELLO to all the folks out at the Baltimore Clayworks!
>
>Christopher M. Rose
>in Baltimore, MD (where it is now rainy and a bit chilly -
> good weather for starin' out the window and thinkin')
>
Bill Amsterlaw on sat 8 mar 97
Hi Jane Pleak:
Thank you for the information you posted on constructing castable-material
kilns. I have some questions regarding the methods you described...
1. >> The real trick is to make it as dry as you can and ram the hell out of
it.... You need to work out your design and plan how you will ram. <<
Can you go into some detail describing exactly how you mix it, how you wet it,
and how you ram it?
2. >> I frequently use this castable formula... <<
>> I put alumina hydrate in it because we add salt to the kiln. <<
Are your referring to the recipe posted by Sam Wainford on 21Feb97 ... or are
you referring to Pacocast 30, also discussed in Sam's post? What is the
actual recipe you use? How much alumina hydrate do you include in the recipe?
3. >> We start with level sand then concrete blocks and then two or three
layers of hard bricks depending on how high off the ground we are building it.
Then we build the arch and put it inside the kiln and ram the castable on the
outside of that. <<
You must build a wooden arch form first, right? Do you build up the castable
material directly on this form ... or do you make an arch of brick on the form
and then put the castable material outside of the layer of brick? Are you
able to get the arch form out when the castable material has set ... or do you
burn it in the first firing?
4. >> I like to cover the castable with a variety of materials to have a wall
that is 8 inches. <<
What layers are in the wall and how thick is each layer? What are some of the
materials that work well for covering the castable?
5. >> ...the separation seams you need to address as in the kiln they will
expand. <<
Are there any rules about where you need separation seams? How do you make
them?
Thanks again. I look forward to your reply.
- Bill Amsterlaw (wamster@msn.com)
Plattsburgh, NY
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