Cathy Mumford on fri 16 jan 98
Hi out there! This year I am hoping to buy and install a gas kiln. I
was thinking of purchasing a manufactured kiln rather than having one
built so that it can be easily moved if need be. I would love to hear
from those of you that have purchased a gas kiln that they are happy
with. The only gas kiln I have used is the kiln at the universiy of
Edmonton. Very large and I did not fire it personally. ( Ease of use
would help alot) thanks. Cathy
Brad S. Reitz on fri 16 jan 98
Cathy,
If you're thinking of a manufactured kiln, I absolutely recommend a Geil.
You'll have to wait for some time and they are pricey, but I've fired three
different ones over the years and they are all easy to fire and consistent.
I've experienced others that are very difficult to get up to temp once in
reduction and that fired very uneven. You won't be sorry.
Leslie Norton on sat 17 jan 98
Cathy,
You should read the books by Fred Olsen and Danial Rhodes on kiln building.
There is a lot of really good information about gas kilns and how they work.
Considering the type of burners, if it is updraft or downdraft, if it is
tall and skinny or short and squat are all a part of how well it will fire.
Depending on the size, it could be a top loader, front loader or even a car
kiln. Then there are the gadgets like oxygen probes, thermal couples, kiln
sitters, and even computers. Understanding these variables will help you
make a decision that is right for you.
I think that you will find that more manufactured kilns fire OK, after you
figure out their idiosyncrasies, so it will basically come down to size,
bells and whistles, and what you can afford.
You might want to consider building your own. This is a very good
experience and it teaches you alot about the "fire", experimenting with
burners, bagwalls and chimneys. I have given a number of kiln building
classes in raku, salt, wood and gas kilns. Students usually feel a lot more
confident in their role as a potter when they have expeienced this process
and have a better understanding of how kilns really go together and work. I
think the biggest fear people have in building their own kiln is the
possibility of failure. It's true that a kiln design doesn't always work,
and you may ruin a few pieces, but if you start small and learn by your
mistakes, your loses will be few and the knowledge gained is priceless.
Good Luck,
Leslie
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Cathy Mumford [SMTP:cathy.mumford@shaw.wave.ca]
> Sent: Friday, January 16, 1998 5:54 AM
> To: Multiple recipients of list CLAYART
> Subject: which gas kiln to buy?
>
> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> Hi out there! This year I am hoping to buy and install a gas kiln. I
> was thinking of purchasing a manufactured kiln rather than having one
> built so that it can be easily moved if need be. I would love to hear
> from those of you that have purchased a gas kiln that they are happy
> with. The only gas kiln I have used is the kiln at the universiy of
> Edmonton. Very large and I did not fire it personally. ( Ease of use
> would help alot) thanks. Cathy
Maggie & David on sun 18 jan 98
Hello Cathy, a little over a year ago, I bought an Olsen Kit kiln, not
feeling like I had the expertise to build one from scratch and also not
having the money to buy an assembled one. I also had no experience firing
a kiln that size (16 cu feet). The first time I fired it, I literally
turned on the gas and away we went. Fortunately, I have found the learning
curve for kiln firing is very steep and now I am happy with the results.
It's very easy to fire and fires evenly and I am now feeling that the
ordeal of constructing it was worth it. Fred Olsen definitely assumes you
know something about kiln construction (which I didn't). The instructions
were abysmal beyond belief- xeroxs of photographs that were difficult to
see, no photo of the finished kiln, I could go on and on but I will
refrain. As I said, I'm very happy with the kiln now, aside from assembling
it, it's a great kiln for a beginnner. Knowing what I know now, I'd do a
downdraft/car kiln but that's now and not then. Asfor purchasing one
outright, I have a friend who has used a Geil for many years and it very
happy with it. Also, Nils Lou's book, The Art of Firing is an excellent
resource.Good luck and enjoy.
Maggie Shepard
FireWorks Pottery
Mt. Shasta, Calif.
Orion/Baker on mon 19 jan 98
We have an Olsen 36 which we built a few years ago. We get great results
-- it's extremely even, with lots of "fire-power" (12 burners), and we have
great atmosphere control.
There's no question that the Olsen was an excellent value -- but we agree
with the folks at FireWorks Pottery that the instructions were not good,
and had a very good idea how kilns go together!
If anyone is contemplating an Olsen, but is worried about putting it
together, we'd certainly be willing to share what we learned along the way.
There's a picture of our Olsen in the "workshop" section of our website.
Regards to all,
Ellen Baker - orion@telcomplus.com
www.telcomplus.com/~orion
jjcat on mon 19 jan 98
There are three kinds of kilns, the one you build yourself, a cheap one off the
shelf and a good one off the shelf.
You can try building one if you have the strength and time, sure you learn alot
about firing, the hard way.
You can buy a cheap one, believe me there are plenty of them around. Or you
can buy a good one.
We will list the best, #1 manufactured kiln, A.R.T., Alpine. #2, HED
Industries, Unique/Pereny. #3 Geil Kilns.
We have heard and seen stories on all those small outfit kiln manufacturers,
Olsen, Bailey, Fredrickson, West Coast, Robertson, Luguna.
Fiber kilns are a cheap down and dirty way to get going, within 5 years you
will wish you never did it.
KILN-RAY SERVICES
tel: 914-987-9589
fax: 914-986-1808
At 08:53 AM 1/16/98 EST, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>Hi out there! This year I am hoping to buy and install a gas kiln. I
>was thinking of purchasing a manufactured kiln rather than having one
>built so that it can be easily moved if need be. I would love to hear
>from those of you that have purchased a gas kiln that they are happy
>with. The only gas kiln I have used is the kiln at the universiy of
>Edmonton. Very large and I did not fire it personally. ( Ease of use
>would help alot) thanks. Cathy
>
>
Dave Eitel on tue 20 jan 98
Cathy--
There's a lot to be said in favor of building your own kiln. But it's kind
of scary spending a few thousand dollars (more or less) on something whose
design you aren't sure of, and you really don't feel like you know what
you're doing. The first kiln I built was an Olsen 24--I found the
instructions adequate (they could have been a bit better, but they
certainly sufficed) and it was a kiln that worked well for me. Before I
built my next kiln, I took a kiln-building workshop at Arrowmont. I
learned enough there to design and build my own kiln--having actually seen
it done. I found Nils Lou's book, The Art of Firing the most helpful of
the kiln building books--the others I read were Olsen's and Rhodes'. I
think a terrific way of building a first kiln would be to find a potter
with experience in building a kiln to put on a workshop for you and some of
your local potter friends.
Clayarter Joan Slack-DeBrock invited Fred Olsen to northern Wisconsin a
couple of summers ago to build a fast-fire wood kiln and charged for people
to attend. But there are lots of not as famous potters out there who would
probably jump at the chance to help you build your kiln, meet some other
potters, share some stories and spend a couple or few days building a kiln.
There may even be some on this list. If you lived near me, I might even
offer.
Dave Eitel
Cedar Creek Pottery
Cedarburg, WI USA
http://www.cedarcreekpottery.com
Vince Pitelka on tue 20 jan 98
I hate to seem contrary, because it really is not in my nature unless the
situation demands it. But the following post invites some comments.
>You can try building one if you have the strength and time, sure you learn alot
>about firing, the hard way.
Of course it is the hard way. But you save heaps of money and you come out
of it knowing every single thing about your kiln. I really do believe that
ANYONE can build a kiln as good as any commercially-made kiln, as long as
they REALLY do their research, and as long as they contract out the work
which they cannot do themselves. This of course raises the price, but the
total will still be far less than a new Geil, Alpine, or Unique.
>We will list the best, #1 manufactured kiln, A.R.T., Alpine. #2, HED
>Industries, Unique/Pereny. #3 Geil Kilns.
WHOA?? Alpine first??? Time to prepare for the new millenium. Alpine has
yet to move into the second half of this century. Their studio kilns are
dinosaurs.
>We have heard and seen stories on all those small outfit kiln manufacturers,
>Olsen, Bailey, Fredrickson, West Coast, Robertson, Luguna.
Yes, and what are those stories?? Some of these "small outfits" produce
excellent kilns.
>Fiber kilns are a cheap down and dirty way to get going, within 5 years you
>will wish you never did it.
Unless you build a GOOD fiber kiln, which is a distinct possibility, given
proper research and preparation.
I do not mean to contest anyone else's expertise here, but this post was a
bit smug and/or misleading.
- Vince
Vince Pitelka - vpitelka@DeKalb.net
Home 615/597-5376, work 615/597-6801, fax 615/597-6803
Appalachian Center for Crafts
Tennessee Technological University
1560 Craft Center Drive, Smithville TN 37166
Marcia Selsor on wed 21 jan 98
I'm back from a tremendously great honeymoon in Spain and Italy.
Just wanted to add my two cents about kilns.
I agree with Vince that anyone can build a good gas kiln if you do your
homework.
In 30 years of clay work I have never bought a gas kiln until this
year. I have built many types in many places salt, oil, gas, cats
flat tops, sprung arches. All the kilns at MSU-Billings for 23 years have been
built by my students and myself.
This year I saw a used Bailey fiber kiln for a screamingly low price through
the Bray. I bought it sight unseen. I moved into Billings after I lost my
studio, oil kiln, etc in a divorce. I bought a commercial kiln to avoid
zoning and insurance problems at my home.
A local potter in town was shut down by the city because of his homemade kiln.
These are important considerations if you live in a city.
Marcia in Montana
Vince Pitelka wrote:
>
> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> I hate to seem contrary, because it really is not in my nature unless the
> situation demands it. But the following post invites some comments.
>
> >You can try building one if you have the strength and time, sure you learn al
> >about firing, the hard way.
>
> Of course it is the hard way. But you save heaps of money and you come out
> of it knowing every single thing about your kiln. I really do believe that
> ANYONE can build a kiln as good as any commercially-made kiln, as long as
> they REALLY do their research, and as long as they contract out the work
> which they cannot do themselves. This of course raises the price, but the
> total will still be far less than a new Geil, Alpine, or Unique.
>
> >We will list the best, #1 manufactured kiln, A.R.T., Alpine. #2, HED
> >Industries, Unique/Pereny. #3 Geil Kilns.
>
> WHOA?? Alpine first??? Time to prepare for the new millenium. Alpine has
> yet to move into the second half of this century. Their studio kilns are
> dinosaurs.
>
> >We have heard and seen stories on all those small outfit kiln manufacturers,
> >Olsen, Bailey, Fredrickson, West Coast, Robertson, Luguna.
>
> Yes, and what are those stories?? Some of these "small outfits" produce
> excellent kilns.
>
> >Fiber kilns are a cheap down and dirty way to get going, within 5 years you
> >will wish you never did it.
>
> Unless you build a GOOD fiber kiln, which is a distinct possibility, given
> proper research and preparation.
>
> I do not mean to contest anyone else's expertise here, but this post was a
> bit smug and/or misleading.
> - Vince
>
> Vince Pitelka - vpitelka@DeKalb.net
> Home 615/597-5376, work 615/597-6801, fax 615/597-6803
> Appalachian Center for Crafts
> Tennessee Technological University
> 1560 Craft Center Drive, Smithville TN 37166
WardBurner on wed 21 jan 98
hey folks,
Couldn't pass up answering a comment, which was;
<<<you
will wish you never did it.>>>>
I have a 120 cubic foot fiber car kiln. It looks and fires the same as it did
10 years ago. It costs about $8.00...yes $8.00 for a cone 7 glaze firing on
natural gas. Also, they are not cheap. A properly built fiber kiln will cost
about the same as a brick kiln made from new insulating bricks.
Marc Ward
Ward Burner Systems
PO Box 333
Dandridge, TN 37725
USA
423.397.2914 voice
423.397.1253 fax
wardburner@aol.com
Corinne Null on sat 24 jan 98
This discussion is timely for me.
Eventually, I will build my own gas kiln. In the meantime, I have to
recommend a prefab gas kiln for an institution. They already have a close
to 30 year old Alpine HP-20 - that's a natural gas updraft forced air 20
cubic foot. Being in the city, we don't want to deal with inspectors as
much as possible, and figure a manufactured kiln is pretty much
grandfathered.
So, I'm researching prefab kilns. The list that was proposed here didn't
even mention the Bailey's? How come?
I've never heard of HED, or Unique/Pereny. Where are they located?
Someone mentioned that the Alpine's were dinosaurs (David?). Why? What
technology are they lagging in?
I like this way of thinking - good and clear!
>There are three kinds of kilns, the one you build yourself, a cheap one
off the
>shelf and a good one off the shelf.
I want more reasons for these ratings -
>We will list the best, #1 manufactured kiln, A.R.T., Alpine. #2, HED
>Industries, Unique/Pereny. #3 Geil Kilns.
>
I want lists from others - with reasons please.
Remember - I agree that building your own kiln is really the way to go!
Thanks in advance.
Corinne Null
Bedford, NH
cnull@MCIONE.com
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