Paul Borian on wed 28 oct 09
obviously everyone is going to have a different opinion depending on what
kind of studio/business/production schedule they have going on - but i
personally depend on my 30 gallon glaze batch mixer. I made it from a
stainless tank from a scrap yard, a 1/2 hp motor from a household water
pump (pump broke but motor still was fine) and a stainless shaft with a
little piece of twisted metal at the end. I use it mostly for my slip glaze
and my ash glaze and it makes it very easy to mix enough glaze for several
months. But, i do drain the glaze into smaller buckets for screening and i
generally try to keep it in them for storage because it makes it easier
when it is time to use it. Usually i don't screen it all at once, just one
bucket at a time when it is time to use it.
It takes about the same amount of time to mix 25 gallons as it does to mix
a 10,000 gram batch for me.
just my personal experience/opinion.
Paul
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: David Hendley
Date: Oct 28, 2009 12:09am
Subject: Re: mixing big batches and glazing large platters
To: Clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
CC:
> Hi Rikki, I will answer this, since you directly ask me, but I
> think I already stated why I think mixing extra-large batches
> of glaze is not a good idea for a studio potter in my previous
> e-mail.
> Just reading over your glaze-making procedure sounds tiring
> and like it would take over a good portion of my glazing area --
> plastic bags, large trash cans, plant movers, heavy duty slip mixer,
> smaller buckets.
> I use a scoop, scales, 2 free buckets and a homemade 80-mesh
> sieve to measure and mix my glazes.
> Your 50 pound batches are actually not that large, not close to
> the 30 gallons Mel keeps writing about. My 15,000 gram batches
> that fit into pickle buckets translate to 33 pounds.
> Of course, if I were having an outside source mix my glazes, who
> knows what method I might use, and yours might well be the
> most efficient and the optimal quantity. Not many studio potters
> have their glazes pre-mixed for them, and I wouldn't give
> advice to anyone with health concerns.
> Best regards,
> David Hendley
> david@farmpots.com
> http://www.farmpots.com
> ----- Original Message -----
> Why do you think large batches are a mistake? I have good way to do
> this.
> I have asthma and no longer want to put together my dry glazes, so I have
> our local clay maker ,using my formulas, put the dry mixed chemicals in
> plastic bags for me. I have 50lbs done at one time. I have the bags
> placed
> on a table, so I can pour the glaze into the water in large trash cans
> that
> are set on plant movers. I then roll them to a heavy duty slip mixer, and
> mix them up for at least 30 minutes, until they are totally smooth. I
> don't
> use a strainer until I decant the glaze into smaller buckets.
> I keep the buckets tightly closed when not in use. This system works
> well,
> partly because I never let them dry out. For larger pieces, I sometimes
> dip
> directly into the trash cans themselves.
> When I make a new batch, I first decant the leftovers into something
> smaller, and scrape down the sides and mix with the clean water, so I
> don't
> get any lumps. Then I add the dry glaze and mix it. After testing the
> new
> batch, I add the leftovers. I have been doing this for a few years now,
> and
> I am very happy with this system. It definitely works for me. I use five
> main glazes, and 50lbs
> of each lasts me about a year.
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