DJBrewer88 on sat 26 sep 09
I have an old, very large cone 10 electric kiln that I have never
plugged in. I got it on Craigslist very cheap and it has sat in my
garage for over a year now since I had no 220 outlet with an appropriate
plug and wiring for it. After reading the "metal barrel to cone 8"
success story, I am now wondering if I could convert this large kiln
into a gas kiln. I'd like to have a gas kiln that I could fire both
midrange and highfire.
Surely an old kiln would be a better beginning point for firing than a
metal barrel -- Ivor's own success with the barrel has made me wonder f
I could perhaps get that kiln into something awesome and functioning,
and powered with gas.
Is this a worthy idea to pursue or is it useless to try to convert an
old electric kiln to gas?
thanks for any insight
DJ
William & Susan Schran User on sat 26 sep 09
On 9/26/09 6:20 AM, "DJBrewer88" wrote:
> I have an old, very large cone 10 electric kiln that I have never
> plugged in. I got it on Craigslist very cheap and it has sat in my
> garage for over a year now since I had no 220 outlet with an appropriate
> plug and wiring for it. After reading the "metal barrel to cone 8"
> success story, I am now wondering if I could convert this large kiln
> into a gas kiln. I'd like to have a gas kiln that I could fire both
> midrange and highfire.
>
> Surely an old kiln would be a better beginning point for firing than a
> metal barrel -- Ivor's own success with the barrel has made me wonder f
> I could perhaps get that kiln into something awesome and functioning,
> and powered with gas.
>
> Is this a worthy idea to pursue or is it useless to try to convert an
> old electric kiln to gas?
>
Sure, you can do it.
Here's one way:
I used this conversion on an old beater several years ago at school as that
seemed the only option to get a gas kiln.
Coated the kiln interior with ITC.
Never did fire it, saved up money and we bought a Geil gas kiln.
I would expect it to be similar to the way other updraft gas kilns fire.
Check my web site for some insights about firing updraft kilns.
Bill
--
William "Bill" Schran
wschran@cox.net
wschran@nvcc.edu
http://www.creativecreekartisans.com
Lee Love on sat 26 sep 09
On Sat, Sep 26, 2009 at 7:03 AM, William & Susan Schran User
wrote:
>
> Sure, you can do it.
> Here's one way:
>
Wow. This would power a nice little raku kiln! Make a bell
configuration and a counter weight!
--
Lee Love, Minneapolis
"The tea ceremony bowl is the ceramic equivalent of a sonnet: a
small-scale, seemingly constricted form that challenges the artist to
go beyond mere technical virtuosity and find an approach that both
satisfies and transcends the conventions." -- Rob Sliberman
full essay: http://togeika.multiply.com/journal/item/273/
Cathi Newlin on sat 26 sep 09
That's exactly what I have as a kiln.
I use the Model GV-18 burner - its 2 burner ports, which gets me up to cone
11.
It does fire very quickly, which I'm struggling with at the moment, and a
little unevenly, but I think that's as much to do with how I'm loading it a=
s
anything. One thing that helped me was to perfrate my kiln shelves with
holes, kinda like a pizza pan to allow more air circulation.
But I think between the kiln and the burner, its a great $300 kiln!
Cathi Newlin, Angels Camp, Ca
cathi@box49.com
box49@caltel.com
cathi@SquarePegArts.com
-------------------------------
California Boxers in Need:
http://CaliforniaBoxer.org
----- Original Message -----
From: "William & Susan Schran User"
To:
Sent: Saturday, September 26, 2009 5:03 AM
Subject: Re: [Clayart] Can an old Cone 10 electric kiln be converted to gas=
?
> On 9/26/09 6:20 AM, "DJBrewer88" wrote:
>
>> I have an old, very large cone 10 electric kiln that I have never
>> plugged in. I got it on Craigslist very cheap and it has sat in my
>> garage for over a year now since I had no 220 outlet with an appropriate
>> plug and wiring for it. After reading the "metal barrel to cone 8"
>> success story, I am now wondering if I could convert this large kiln
>> into a gas kiln. I'd like to have a gas kiln that I could fire both
>> midrange and highfire.
>>
>> Surely an old kiln would be a better beginning point for firing than a
>> metal barrel -- Ivor's own success with the barrel has made me wonder f
>> I could perhaps get that kiln into something awesome and functioning,
>> and powered with gas.
>>
>> Is this a worthy idea to pursue or is it useless to try to convert an
>> old electric kiln to gas?
>>
>
> Sure, you can do it.
> Here's one way:
>
>
> I used this conversion on an old beater several years ago at school as
> that
> seemed the only option to get a gas kiln.
> Coated the kiln interior with ITC.
>
> Never did fire it, saved up money and we bought a Geil gas kiln.
>
> I would expect it to be similar to the way other updraft gas kilns fire.
> Check my web site for some insights about firing updraft kilns.
>
> Bill
>
> --
> William "Bill" Schran
> wschran@cox.net
> wschran@nvcc.edu
> http://www.creativecreekartisans.com
>
DJBrewer88 on sat 26 sep 09
Kathleen
Yes, I did buy the Skutt Kilnmaster -- that kiln is virutally new and
barely used.
The kiln I am referring to is quite old and beat up. I got it for $50
bucks on Craigslist around a year and a half ago. I am not even sure if
it turns on. I want to be able to do gas reduction as well as electric.
So then I was thinking maybe that beater kiln might be able to be turned
into a gas kiln.
Why would it be a waste to turn such a beater kiln into a gas kiln?
Just wondering.
DJ
Kathleen Hamlet wrote:
> Hi DJ,
>
> It's not useless to convert it, just a waste of a good kiln....
> Didn't you say that you were buying a kiln? A 1027?
>
>
>
> Kathleen Hamlet
ivor & olive lewis on sun 27 sep 09
Dear D.J.Brewer,
This can be done, it has been done and there is a lot of information in
ClayArt archives describing other people's experiences.
My suggestion before you put drill to metal and angle grinder to firebrick
would be to read all to can about the science and technology of firing with
gas, how to select burners and how many, whether to choose natural gas or
LPG, what safety measures to take, how high to build the stack if you need
one and where to site the kiln. Then sketch plans of the possibilities with
copious notes.
Building a kiln from scratch is a serious undertaking. Converting an
existing unit to an alternative fuel source presents a differing set of
problems to solve. I wish you every success with this venture and know you
will get informed responses from the Clayart community.
Best regards,
Ivor Lewis,
Redhill,
South Australia
----- Original Message -----
From: DJBrewer88
To: ivor & olive lewis ; Clayart@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Sent: Saturday, September 26, 2009 7:50 PM
Subject: Can an old Cone 10 electric kiln be converted to gas?
I have an old, very large cone 10 electric kiln that I have never
plugged in. I got it on Craigslist very cheap and it has sat in my
garage for over a year now since I had no 220 outlet with an appropriate
plug and wiring for it. After reading the "metal barrel to cone 8"
success story, I am now wondering if I could convert this large kiln
into a gas kiln. I'd like to have a gas kiln that I could fire both
midrange and highfire.
Surely an old kiln would be a better beginning point for firing than a
metal barrel -- Ivor's own success with the barrel has made me wonder f
I could perhaps get that kiln into something awesome and functioning,
and powered with gas.
Is this a worthy idea to pursue or is it useless to try to convert an
old electric kiln to gas?
thanks for any insight
DJ
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