Talbott on sun 9 nov 97
I have heard on occasion that firing a glaze fire in stormy weather can
produce dramatic results. I fire ^9/10 reduction...copper reds, cobalt
blues, etc.. Is there any truth to this weather influence rumor?
....Marshall
101 CLAYART MUGS... A TRAVELING EXHIBIT
2ND ANNUAL CLAYARTERS' GALLERY - NAPLES, MAINE (Summer 1998)
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Cameron Harman on tue 11 nov 97
Marshall,
I like your question. It goes to the thread on oxidizing and
neutral atmospheres. Electric kilns have whatever atmosphere
their load will allow. The only oxygen in many kilns is that
which is in the air to being with. As the ceramic fires it
uses some of the oxygen from that air. If the ports are
plugged, you will not get replacement air, so you may get
some local reduction, especially in the center of the kiln.
The weather conditions can affect the firing as well since
stormy weather is often very humid weather. The high
moisture content actually places more oxygen into the kiln
(it comes from the water itself). Some time a small amount
of steam (or very humid air) can achieve wonderful results.
On the other hand , if you have a lot of circulation in the
kiln, the results will be quite different.
Play with it, you may get some really *neat* ware with
various combinations of humid air and still or moving
atmosphere.
Industrial ceramists cannot afford unexpected results which
are such a joy to the potter. So, they take steps to be sure
the kilns can repeat no matter what the weather. However,
there are a lot of commercial places out there that pay no
attention to technology and they do get unexpected results.
They gripe and complain about it, but don't want to make the
simple changes recommended to them .. sounds pretty human to
me.
For you, take careful notes. Not just that it was a stormy
day, but what was the temperature and relative humidity, how
dense was the load, how sealed was the kiln, etc. you get
the idea, then you can try it again later and you have a
good chance of duplicating a result that you like.
Let us know how it works out, I am sure a lot of us would be
interested to see how you do.
Cameron Harman
--
**********************************************************
Cameron G. Harman, Jr. 215-245-4040 fax 215-638-1812
e-mail kilns@kilnman.com
Ceramic Services, Inc 1060 Park Ave. Bensalem, PA 19020
see our web site at http://www.kilnman.com/potters.html
THE place for total kiln and drier support
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Erin Hayes on tue 11 nov 97
Marshall,
I don't know about humid weather and firing firsthand - mostly due to a
very dry climate where I went to grad school and now an indoor kiln -
but I seem to remember someone on the list a year or so ago mentioning
that they misted their kiln during reduction to create a better
atmosphere.
Does anyone else remember this post? Does anyone want to comment on the
validity of the approach?
Erin. (wondering how my students will react to learning the word
"stoichometric.")
DIANA PANCIOLI, ASSOC. PROF. on tue 11 nov 97
On Sun, 9 Nov 1997, Talbott wrote:
> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> I have heard on occasion that firing a glaze fire in stormy weather can
> produce dramatic results. I fire ^9/10 reduction...copper reds, cobalt
> blues, etc.. Is there any truth to this weather influence rumor?
>
In my experience, yes. I had to reduce the kiln harder to get the same
level of reduction when the air was damp.
DP
Marcia Selsor on tue 11 nov 97
I like firing when there is low barometric pressure. It is easier to
even out the temperatures. (could be my imagination)
In Montana at 3500ft. it seems to have an affect. BTW Montanans think it
is muggy if the humidity reaches 35%.
But who knows?
Marcia Selsor
David Hendley on tue 11 nov 97
Marshall, I don't know what the heck's going on,
but my best firings in my wood kiln are on rainy, overcast, humid days.
Nice bright, clear copper reds, rich iron saturates, etc.
If my schedule will allow, I wait for a good day, sometimes
impossible in Texas in the Summer.
I've fired during some pretty powerful thunderstorms
with good results.
Today was PERFECT.
Cool, drizzling, had to really slow it down
when cone 9 was bending after 5 1/2 hours.
At 11:41 PM 11/9/97 EST, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>I have heard on occasion that firing a glaze fire in stormy weather can
>produce dramatic results. I fire ^9/10 reduction...copper reds, cobalt
>blues, etc.. Is there any truth to this weather influence rumor?
>...Marshall
David Hendley
Maydelle, Texas
See David Hendley's Pottery Page at
http://www.sosis.com/hendley/david/
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