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ash\soil

updated wed 8 mar 00

 

Chris Cantello on sun 5 mar 00

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Could any one out there tell me where to send a sample of ash? I would like
to have it analyzed. Next? Is how much I=92m just a poor potter trying to
recycle the waste of many Almond Farmers in the northern California. Every
year they burn their pruning on the same burn piles. These piles then leach
down with the winter rains and form these Red Iron looking dirt clods. The
thing that raised my curiosity is ware is the red color coming from the
soil around the burn and in the whole orchard is black in color. Anyway I
took some of these clods and screen them and would like to test. Any help
would be great thanks. Northern California Potter Trying To Get Louse
Chris:)

Cindy Strnad on sun 5 mar 00

Chris,

If I wanted to analyze soil or ash or whatever, I'd take it to the Rapid
City School of Mines. Do you have a local college that specializes in
geology, or a college with a strong geology department? That would be a good
place to start. If they don't want to do an analysis, they would likely know
where to send you.

Cindy Strnad
earthenv@gwtc.net
Earthen Vessels Pottery
RR 1, Box 51
Custer, SD 57730

the Gallaghers on mon 6 mar 00

I think you should just add some water, brush it into a small test pot and
fire it in oxidation and reduction to see what you get. We fired dirt from
our backyards and got some very interesting results. Nothing to get wildly
excited about, but there is potential for further exploration. You could do
a line blend adding other substances to see what happens.
Michelle In Oregon
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
------------------
Could any one out there tell me where to send a sample of ash? I would like
to have it analyzed. Next? Is how much I m just a poor potter trying to
recycle the waste of many Almond Farmers in the northern California. Every
year they burn their pruning on the same burn piles. These piles then leach
down with the winter rains and form these Red Iron looking dirt clods. The
thing that raised my curiosity is ware is the red color coming from the
soil around the burn and in the whole orchard is black in color. Anyway I
took some of these clods and screen them and would like to test. Any help
would be great thanks. Northern California Potter Trying To Get Louse
Chris:)

Cindy Strnad on mon 6 mar 00

Hi, Tom.

Yes, I'd forgotten about Mary's offer, but now that you mention it . . .

Actually, it wasn't me who wanted the analysis, though, so I'm going to
forward your reply to the list.

Thanks,

Cindy Strnad
earthenv@gwtc.net
Earthen Vessels Pottery
RR 1, Box 51
Custer, SD 57730

-----------Original Message-------------------

For a gal who stays busy busy, I was a bit surprised that you missed Mary
Simmons offer of chemical analysis, namely $25 for one material analysis,
and she will offer this service for as long as the U let's her use their
very fancy analyzers. You should find her address easily. If not, let me
know.
keep well, Peace. Tom.

Tom Buck ) tel: 905-389-2339
(westend Lake Ontario, province of Ontario, Canada).
mailing address: 373 East 43rd Street,
Hamilton ON L8T 3E1 Canada

Hank Murrow on mon 6 mar 00

------------------
=3E----------------------------Original message----------------------------
=3E------------------
=3ECould any one out there tell me where to send a sample of ash? I would =
like
=3Eto have it analyzed. Next? Is how much I=92m just a poor potter trying to
=3Erecycle the waste of many Almond Farmers in the northern California. =
Every
=3Eyear they burn their pruning on the same burn piles. These piles then =
leach
=3Edown with the winter rains and form these Red Iron looking dirt clods. =
The
=3Ething that raised my curiosity is ware is the red color coming from the
=3Esoil around the burn and in the whole orchard is black in color. Anyway I
=3Etook some of these clods and screen them and would like to test. Any help
=3Ewould be great thanks. Northern California Potter Trying To Get Louse
=3EChris:)

Dear Chris=3B An alternate approach might be to check out Ian Currie's site
for information on his assessment tile method of discovering how to use
native materials.=3Chttp://ian.currie.list.to/index.html=3E. I have been =
using
this approach to 'dial in' local materials for which I have no ready
analysis=3B and find his method extremely useful, and FREE. Good Luck, Hank
in Eugene

martin howard on mon 6 mar 00


I know this question is about USA firms, but for potters in the UK, I can
recommend sending ash or any raw material samples for analysis to:-
CERAM Research Limited,
Queens Road,
Penkhull,
Stoke on Trent ST4 7LQ.
E-mail info@ceram.co.uk
Web Site http://www.ceram.co.uk
Ask for an XRF Semiquantitative Analysis.
Dr G J Oliver there is very helpful.
Perhaps other potters know of other such firms

Martin Howard
Webb's Cottage Pottery
Woolpits Road
Great Saling
BRAINTREE
Essex CM7 5DZ
01371 850 423
martin@webbscottage.co.uk
www.webbscottage.co.uk Should be ready for 2000 :-) or 2001

mary simmons on tue 7 mar 00

It is true--I did offer that! The chem lab here charges 50 bucks per
sample if THEY do the work, and charge me 25 if I do the work myself--that
pays for lab materials, XRF time, time for the lab chemist to oversee the
XRF machine and listen to me whine about electron shells.

It takes about an hour to do the weighing, the fusing, the XRF'ing, the
LOI, the whining....

All I ask for my effort, send 25 bucks for the lab AND something you made
for me, a cup or a bowl or something small, yet meaningful.

cheers-
mary


>-----------Original Message-------------------
>
>For a gal who stays busy busy, I was a bit surprised that you missed Mary
>Simmons offer of chemical analysis, namely $25 for one material analysis,
>and she will offer this service for as long as the U let's her use their
>very fancy analyzers. You should find her address easily. If not, let me
>know.
>keep well, Peace. Tom.
>
>Tom Buck ) tel: 905-389-2339
>(westend Lake Ontario, province of Ontario, Canada).
>mailing address: 373 East 43rd Street,
>Hamilton ON L8T 3E1 Canada
>

Mary Simmons
Dept of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Northrop Hall
University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM 87131-1116

(505)277-9259
piedra@unm.edu

Alex Wilson on tue 7 mar 00

Hello Chris, you should really try to get your samples of the ash _before_
it rains and washes away some of what you might want. Then you can send off
your sample to any college with a ceramic engineering lab - they're usually
happy to have a project for students to work on; or alternatively, to Alfred.
Personally, I'd probably just gather as much of the material as I could
carry, and make some ash glazes with it. What do you need to know, other than
it's Almond Wood Ash?
Just MHO...

Alex Wilson
The Scottish Potter
106 J. Ave.,
Nevada,
IA. 50201-1834
USA