Sandi Nelson on tue 25 sep 07
Thank you, Arnold, for your response. The small electric kiln I have is =
2.5
cubic ft., is located in a utility area of our cinder- block basement, =
is
vented w/ a ventsure system to the outside=85no where near a window (so =
the
exhausted air cannot enter the house). My clays have been mid-fire
Laguna=92s, mid-fire Campbell=92s, and mid-fire High Water=85^04 or 05 =
bisque, ^6
glazes. I have French doors on the south wall facing a large river and =
a
single door on the north wall, both of which stay open during firing. =
There
is always a cross breeze=85sometimes too much so I have to partially =
close the
doors so everything in the studio doesn=92t blow away. My husband and I =
have
tried very hard to make certain there is good ventilation. I have even
worked in the studio while firing a couple of times if the breeze is =
=93up=94
and have not smelled any fumes. I will definitely try keeping the =
ventsure
fan on throughout the firing=85what about the peepholes? The reason I =
had
been turning it off was because the kiln seemed to be cooling really =
fast
once it reached peak temp, but now I have added a couple of cool down =
ramps
to control that down to 1,000=B0 F.=20
=20
I=92m in awe of the pottery I see from the links you all give=85what =
beauty!
Thank you for sharing those!
=20
Someday=85Sandi
=20
No virus found in this outgoing message.
Checked by AVG Free Edition.=20
Version: 7.5.488 / Virus Database: 269.13.30/1027 - Release Date: =
9/24/2007
11:27 AM
=20
Patty Kaliher on tue 25 sep 07
My kiln set up is similar to Sandi's in the basement. I only wish to add
that because an electrician had to set up the circuit for the kiln, he had
to get a permit from the township. The township had no problem with the
kiln set up. One of the inspectors was married to a potter.
Arnold Howard on tue 25 sep 07
From: "Sandi Nelson"
I will definitely try keeping the ventsure
fan on throughout the firing.what about the peepholes? The=20
reason I had
been turning it off was because the kiln seemed to be=20
cooling really fast
once it reached peak temp, but now I have added a couple of=20
cool down ramps
to control that down to 1,000=B0 F.
--------------
The downdraft vent requires a slight negative pressure=20
inside the kiln. The vent creates this by removing just=20
enough air to prevent fumes from leaking out of the firing=20
chamber. For this reason, the peephole plugs have to be=20
inserted while the vent is on.
The Orton vent, which operates on the same principle as=20
yours, has little effect on cooling time from the shutoff=20
temperature down to 1000 degrees F. From 1000 degrees down=20
to room temperature, the Orton vent reduces cooling time by=20
about two hours. This varies depending on the kiln size and=20
number of vent holes.
If you are programming a slow cooling only because the vent=20
is left on, it may be more practical to turn off the vent=20
earlier and avoid the slow cooling segment. That will save=20
on element wear.
Sincerely,
Arnold Howard
Paragon Industries, L.P., Mesquite, Texas USA
ahoward@paragonweb.com / www.paragonweb.com
Maurice Weitman on tue 25 sep 07
Hello, Arnold,
At 17:49 -0500 on 9/25/07, Arnold Howard wrote:
>The downdraft vent requires a slight negative pressure inside the
>kiln. The vent creates this by removing just enough air to prevent
>fumes from leaking out of the firing chamber. For this reason, the
>peephole plugs have to be inserted while the vent is on.
Although I agree with you that in most kilns, it makes sense to keep
all peeps closed, some vent kit instructions disagree.
Last time I spoke to Bailey's (about three years ago?) about their
vent, for instance, they said that the top peep should be open, I
believe to supply air in enough volume to clear combustibles from the
kiln atmosphere.
While it does make sense to me to have a discrete source of air, I
think the peep is a bad candidate for this. Not only because peeps
are usually used for witness cones, but mostly because the hole's too
large... I've drilled several small holes in my lid (near the
interior edge of walls) in order to distribute the air intake.
Many believe that there's enough "leakage" between sections and at
the lid/wall boundary to allow for enough air intake. I'm not one of
those.
Regards,
Maurice
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