Angel Harmon on tue 6 nov 07
I just bought an entire studio with kiln and molds (not the place - just
the stuff inside it). While I feel like I got a fantastic deal, I am in a
huge quandry: I have no idea how to hook it up or even use it. 28 years
ago I got into ceramics while pregnant with child #2. I loved it and made
all sorts of things during that time. I'd paint them and take them back to
the store to be fired. Since then my greatest dream was to own a kiln for
doing both ceramics and, my second passion, glass. Now that I have it and
have looked at it a bit closer, I see it is older than dirt. I'm not
upset, just a bit worried. The front box is very rusted and barely hanging
on. It warmed up in the shop when I looked at it but I have no idea if it
heats to desired temps.
Will this thing totally kill my electric bill? Did I make a mistake? The
lady's papers date back to 1982...yep...the days I was preggars and
painting away like a fool. She says it works like a dream but she also
said she didn't use it much and the woman she bought it from said she was
glad to be rid of it just before she left her house.
The wiring makes me nervous. She had it hooked up at her shop but it looks
rigged or something. Someone please help. I'm beginning to feel a sense of
panic. Dream come true or horrible nightmare?? I'm just not sure now. I
only paid $350.00 for all of it so I can't complain, I guess, but it was
all I had, too. I have a shop I have been building - came as a shell. So
all my money has been going into finishing it. It's not quite done. I'd
need to add a 240 to make this work, I'm assuming, but I only see wires
with electrical tape and no plug????? Somebody please have mercy on a 46
year old dreamer and please help.
I'm long-since divorced so I have no male to help with the heavy lifting
or the electrical stuff now - but I can take my time moving everything.
And a friend of mine said he might be able to help fix the plug, but he'd
have to look at it. Since he's disabled and his vision is not the
greatest, I'd really like some experienced users' advice before I let him
mess with it. I'd hate to have him get electrocuted or burn my house down.
Neither of which is an option. All that came with it is a specs list and a
page about temps and times, but I don't know enough about kilns to even
know how to do anything with it. The inside is huge and clean. The lid
looks like it needs help but the lady said it worked fine for her. She did
suggest I google kiln repair, though, to see about sealing it better.
Thannks for anything useful,
Angel Harmon
Arnold Howard on tue 6 nov 07
From: "Angel Harmon"
The front box is very rusted and barely hanging
> on. It warmed up in the shop when I looked at it but I
> have no idea if it
> heats to desired temps.
The Paragon A-82B requires a 14-50R receptacle. This is a
4-wire circuit. The plug may have been removed so that it
could fire on a 3-wire circuit, which is not safe. The line
neutral carries current, so the circuit needs a separate
grounding wire.
You mentioned firing cost. The kiln uses 23 1/4 KwH to fire
to cone 05. That is the only firing test data I have.
If it were my kiln, I would remove the switch box, replace
any damaged wires, check for tight wire connections, install
a new cord set (or wire direct so that you don't need a
plug), check the elements with an ohmmeter, and repair any
bulging elements.
You will need the "A & B Series Instruction Manual," which
you can order from Paragon or download from our website. It
covers electrical installation. Also, download "Ohmmeter
Instructions for Testing A-Series Kilns":
http://www.paragonweb.com/Instruction_Manuals.cfm
Sincerely,
Arnold Howard
Paragon Industries, L.P., Mesquite, Texas USA
ahoward@paragonweb.com / www.paragonweb.com
James and Sherron Bowen on tue 6 nov 07
What city are you in?
There may be someone on the list or a friend nearby who can help.
JB
----- Original Message -----
From: "Angel Harmon"
To:
Sent: Monday, November 05, 2007 10:59 PM
Subject: Help with Paragon A-82B Kiln
Hank Taylor on tue 6 nov 07
Hi , Angel
No need to panic , just go to the Paragon website at
http://www.paragonweb.com and you can download the electric diagram for that
kiln and also have a source for the different parts that might need
replacing. There are also sections on the site that can tell you just about
anything you might have a question about. If the A-82b is like my A-99, it
will require a four wire 220v power source (black wire 110 , red wire 110,
white wire neutral, bare copper dedicated ground ) Don't let anyone hook it
up to a regular 220 with only three wires, it could hurt someone without
that bare ground wire. Arnold Howard from paragon ,would be glad to help
with any questions you may have about a paragon kiln or about other related
topics.
good luck ,
Hank Taylor
Woodshed Pottery
hanktaylor(at)dtcweb.net
----- Original Message -----
From: "Angel Harmon"
To:
>I just bought an entire studio with kiln and molds....While I feel like I
>got a fantastic deal, I am in a
> huge quandry .... . I have no idea how to hook it up or even use it....
> The front box is very rusted and barely hanging
> on. It warmed up in the shop when I looked at it but I have no idea if it
> heats to desired temps.
> Will this thing totally kill my electric bill? Did I make a mistake?
> The wiring makes me nervous.... She had it hooked up at her shop but it
> looks
> rigged or something.... Someone please help. I'm beginning to feel a sense
> of
> panic.Somebody please have mercy on a 46
> year old dreamer and please help.
> All that came with it is a specs list and a
> page about temps and times
> Thannks for anything useful,
>
> Angel Harmon
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
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>
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>
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John Sankey on wed 7 nov 07
"I have no idea how to hook it up or even use it ... The wiring
makes me nervous."
Then hire someone to hook it up who knows exactly what they are
doing and who will certify to you that they follow all local
codes. Electricity is a wonderful servant, but a frightful
master. Properly installed, electric kilns are perfectly safe -
they use the same voltage and about the same power as a common
kitchen range with everything on. But, any significant mistake
and they will kill or burn your house down.
"Will this thing totally kill my electric bill?"
At 6c/kWh, mine costs $1.20 per firing.
--
Include 'Byrd' in the subject line of your reply
to get through my spam filter.
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