Jerry 233 on thu 12 feb 98
I fire crystalline glaze to cone 10 with 5hr soaking periods at 2000degrees. My
skutt1027 elements don't appear to last more than 12 firings. Reluctantly
looking at buying a beefier kiln, AIMS or crucible. Any thoughts on this
problem?
David Woodin on tue 17 feb 98
I would replace the elements, call 1-800-296-5456 ask for
Chris at Euclids and ask for heavy duty element, than I would spray the kiln
with ITC 100 elements and all.
David Woodin on wed 18 feb 98
If you coat your kiln plus elements with ITC 100 and 296 you could expect much
longer life out of you elements and kiln. I might be cheaper than buying
another kiln.
Laura Freedman on sun 31 oct 99
I have an old Sno Kiln that I purchased used several years ago. It sits on
a metal stand on cement flooring. I have noticed a dark residue under the
kiln which looks like flaking rust from the underside. As usual things
always happen when you are the busiest, but yesterday I noticed that there
was an exact imprint of the kiln on the cement floor. This time I really
stuck my hand down under and found what appears to be ground rust plus a
3"x3" mutilated piece of metal which looks as if it too is busy
disintegrating. This kiln is no where near water but in a basement with
some moisture. I have never looked at the bottom (underside) but am
assuming there is some kind of sheet metal on the bottom of kilns to hold
things together? I have been busily firing for a show but am concerned the
damn bottom is going to fall out on to the cement floor. Is that a
possibility? The firebrick inside looks fine. Any suggestions at this
moment would be very welcome. Laura
=?iso-8859-1?Q?Fran=E7oise?= Melville on mon 1 nov 99
> I have never looked at the bottom (underside) but am
>assuming there is some kind of sheet metal on the bottom of kilns to hold
>things together?
Laura, why not get a simple hand mirror and use it to inspect the bottom of
your kiln?
Electric kilns are supported by the metal stand frame. If that has been
eaten away by rust, the whole kiln will end up on the floor, not just the
base.
Francoise
Indalo Pottery
http://indalopottery.tripod.com
David Coggins on mon 1 nov 99
Laura
Most kilns with a stainless steel casing have a mild steel base attached
underneath, to retain the kiln floor if the kiln is lifted off its stand.
Generally, the loss of the mild steel base is of no importance, its just
messy. I don't know why the manufacturers use mild steel, as the heat and
gases from the firings very quickly reduce the steel to rust. I have tried
to use stainless steel in place of the mild steel, but the expansion
co-efficient of stainless steel can cause the kiln to rise up on its base,
or worse, to POP up!! Very disconcerting!! The material I tend to use is
fibre cement sheeting, cut to match the kiln size.
The only time I have struck a disastrous problem is when the kiln has a
pressed fibre base, rather than brick. With these, I have seen a kiln
collapse completely around its stand, so that the kiln walls rested on the
floor, and the stand ended up inside the kiln. If you have one of these
types of floors, beware!!
My suggestion is to clean up all the rust, remove as much of the old base as
possible, and slide a piece of sheeting under the floor.
Dave Coggins
-----Original Message-----
From: Laura Freedman
To: CLAYART@LSV.UKY.EDU
Date: Monday, 1 November 1999 3:32
Subject: electric kiln help
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
I have an old Sno Kiln that I purchased used several years ago. It sits on
a metal stand on cement flooring. I have noticed a dark residue under the
kiln which looks like flaking rust from the underside. As usual things
always happen when you are the busiest, but yesterday I noticed that there
was an exact imprint of the kiln on the cement floor. This time I really
stuck my hand down under and found what appears to be ground rust plus a
3"x3" mutilated piece of metal which looks as if it too is busy
disintegrating. This kiln is no where near water but in a basement with
some moisture. I have never looked at the bottom (underside) but am
assuming there is some kind of sheet metal on the bottom of kilns to hold
things together? I have been busily firing for a show but am concerned the
damn bottom is going to fall out on to the cement floor. Is that a
possibility? The firebrick inside looks fine. Any suggestions at this
moment would be very welcome. Laura
chris@euclids.com on mon 1 nov 99
> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> I have an old Sno Kiln that I purchased used several years ago. It sits on
> a metal stand on cement flooring. I have noticed a dark residue under the
> kiln which looks like flaking rust from the underside.
>Any suggestions at this moment would be very welcome. Laura
Hi Laura,
I think you are correct that it is, most likely, the bottom piece of sheet
metal rusting away. Some kilns have steel bottoms, some don`t.
The quick & easy solution is to put down a piece of metal slightly larger
than the kiln diameter...round is easy or you could cut the shape to match
the kiln. Stainless steel is preferred but quite a bit more expensive.
Making or purchasing an exact replacement piece would be the best solution.
chris
chris@euclids.com
www.euclids.com
800-296-5456
Jeanne Wood on mon 1 nov 99
Hi Laura,
I'll tell you what I would do if I was concerned the
bottom was going to fall out of my electric kiln.
I would use firebrick and stack them underneath from
the floor to the base of the kiln. This would support
and prop the base up if it was weakening. And if (God
Forbid) bricks did fall out, they couldn't fall far.
I'd put shims in if the firebricks were not the right
size to fit exactly.
This may not be the best answer, but it is what I'd do
until I heard of something more efficient. Quick and
dirty is my favorite type of solution.
-Jeanne
--- Laura Freedman wrote:
> ----------------------------Original
> message----------------------------
> I have an old Sno Kiln that I purchased used several
> years ago. It sits on
> a metal stand on cement flooring. I have noticed a
> dark residue under the
> kiln which looks like flaking rust from the
> underside. As usual things
> always happen when you are the busiest, but
> yesterday I noticed that there
> was an exact imprint of the kiln on the cement
> floor. This time I really
> stuck my hand down under and found what appears to
> be ground rust plus a
> 3"x3" mutilated piece of metal which looks as if it
> too is busy
> disintegrating. This kiln is no where near water
> but in a basement with
> some moisture. I have never looked at the bottom
> (underside) but am
> assuming there is some kind of sheet metal on the
> bottom of kilns to hold
> things together? I have been busily firing for a
> show but am concerned the
> damn bottom is going to fall out on to the cement
> floor. Is that a
> possibility? The firebrick inside looks fine. Any
> suggestions at this
> moment would be very welcome. Laura
>
=====
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Bid and sell for free at http://auctions.yahoo.com
Laura Freedman on tue 2 nov 99
Thank you all for your timely responses. The kiln finally cooled and we
were able to investigate where the rust was coming from. The metal stand is
fine and the base of the kiln which was clad with metal had disintegrated.
I have been assured by many that it was only a possible cosmetic sheet and
that the bricks would not tumble in. I will go with that. Laura in misty PA
GSM_ENT on wed 3 nov 99
Hi Laura!
Just some food for thought. Do you think that the manufacturers would
undergo the expense of a "cosmetic" metal bottom or pan? I don't think so.
That metal pan does provide support to the bricks of the bottom. When the
kiln heats up both the bottom and the lid "bow down". When the kiln cools
off they straighten out again.
Tony
----- Original Message -----
From: Laura Freedman
To:
Sent: Tuesday, November 02, 1999 8:12 AM
Subject: electric kiln help
> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> Thank you all for your timely responses. The kiln finally cooled and we
> were able to investigate where the rust was coming from. The metal stand
is
> fine and the base of the kiln which was clad with metal had disintegrated.
> I have been assured by many that it was only a possible cosmetic sheet and
> that the bricks would not tumble in. I will go with that. Laura in misty
PA
newt and amy on wed 16 jan 08
i just bought a used electric cress kiln, which has no pilot light or a =
cone setter. i am used to the model that advances the heat =
automatically. =20
any suggestions on how to retrofit ? not certain if i should try to =
get a computer driven controller or should i try to add a cone setter. =
i only use the electric kiln for bisq.
thanks newt in downtown osage ar =20
www.osageclayworks.com
Rob Haugen on wed 16 jan 08
I would recommend a computer wall unit for your kiln. The installation only
requires plugging in your existing kiln to the unit and installing a
thermocouple into the kiln.
Rob Haugen
Olympic Kilns
----- Original Message -----
From: "newt and amy"
To:
Sent: Wednesday, January 16, 2008 8:17 AM
Subject: electric kiln help
i just bought a used electric cress kiln, which has no pilot light or a
cone setter. i am used to the model that advances the heat automatically.
any suggestions on how to retrofit ? not certain if i should try to get a
computer driven controller or should i try to add a cone setter. i only
use the electric kiln for bisq.
thanks newt in downtown osage ar
www.osageclayworks.com
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Snail Scott on thu 17 jan 08
> Date: Wed, 16 Jan 2008 07:17:36 -0600
> From: newt and amy
>
> i just bought a used electric cress kiln, which has no pilot light or
> a =
> cone setter. i am used to the model that advances the heat =
> automatically. =20
>
> any suggestions on how to retrofit ? not certain if i should try to
> =
> get a computer driven controller or should i try to add a cone
> setter. =
> i only use the electric kiln for bisq.
Don't bother retrofitting.
A completely manual kiln like this one is still a good
kiln. All that fancy stuff is nice, but not essential, like
an old car with no radio, air conditioning, or automatic
transmission. It'll still get you there, perhaps with less
comfort, but with fewer things to break down. I have a
manual kiln with a timer and kiln-sitter, but I still fire it
as though it didn't; that stuff is for backup/failsafe, not
as a substitute for being there.
You do need to be there to babysit the firing with a
manual kiln, but you should do that anyway, if it's a kiln
in your own studio.
When you do a bisque, prop the lid partway open, set
the top ring on 'low' and candle for several hours, then
turn the other rings to low for an hour. Shut the lid,
wait an hour, then turn to 'medium'. (In some kilns, you
can actually hit a bisque temperature on just medium,
but although it's nice and slow, it's a bit of overkill.)
An hour after 'medium' (or a little sooner), turn to
high. Learn to judge the heat by color, by using lots
of witness cones to judge progress at first. Later, you
will have a good sense of how hot it's getting and how
fast, and you won't have to hover nearby every minute.
Once it's on 'hi', let it ride for the length of time that
you will have learned is required, then about an hour
before you expect it to finish, check your witness cones.
(Firings vary in length depending on power fluctuations
and load density, so don't expect the same firing length
every time, but it will usually be pretty close. When your
cones show the result you want, turn it off.
You can do the whole firing within the length of a
normal working day. If you need to do it quicker,
do all your candling overnight and shut the lid first
thing in the morning; you should be done by mid-
afternoon.
I wouldn't hesitate to use this kiln in its present form.
Nice and basic. Those extra features are really
convenient, but I wouldn't pay extra to retrofit them.
-Snail
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