Corinna L. Hendrix on sat 30 mar 02
I fired up a kiln that I bought second-hand today for the first time. =
After some great suggestions and guidelines from people on this list I =
was able to figure out what to do with my controls and all that. I =
followed the directions and started on a low setting, working my way up =
to the high setting. I was firing a full kiln to cone 04. I started at =
about 9:30 in the morning and it is now almost 1am and the darn thing =
didn't turn off. I am leary about leaving it on while we're asleep =
(it's in the garage) so I turned it off. This might have been the wrong =
thing to do, but I didn't know what else to do. So, any clue as to why =
it didn't shut off? I used witness cones and placed them where I could =
clearly see them through the peephole. They are still standing upright =
just as when I put them in the cold kiln. I do not have a timer on the =
kiln sitter, so it didn't shut off either. Obviously the bar cone 04 =
that I also used didn't bend so the kiln sitter would shut off. Is the =
kiln just not getting up to temperature? If so, why? Any hints, clues, =
suggestions, advice that I could get would be great. Including what I =
should do with the pieces if they are not fired properly. Do I trash =
them or are they salvagable?
Thanks again for any help you can give,
Corinna
Bacia Edelman on sun 31 mar 02
Corinna: If the witness cones in your newly bought second-hand
elec. kiln did not bend, even after all that time, surely
you can refire the pots.
You can refire them whether you were firing to bisque
or glaze, with new cone packs.
But you did not say if they were
green pots or glazed pots. If only going to bisque, dampen
a piece (tongue or wet finger) and see how quickly or
slowly the spot becomes dry.
It is possible that the kiln needs new elements. Did you
ask the seller how many times it was fired and to which temp?
Possibly, the amperage is far below what it should be
if the kiln is old.
If the kiln was packed very tightly, it would take longer
to reach the temperature for which you aimed.
I hope you can figure it out from this and surely others
will offer suggestions.
Bacia
At 11:55 PM 03/30/2002 -0800, you wrote:
>I fired up a kiln that I bought second-hand today for the first time. =
>After some great suggestions and guidelines from people on this list I =
>was able to figure out what to do with my controls and all that. I =
>followed the directions and started on a low setting, working my way up =
>to the high setting. I was firing a full kiln to cone 04. I started at =
>about 9:30 in the morning and it is now almost 1am and the darn thing =
>didn't turn off. I am leary about leaving it on while we're asleep =
>(it's in the garage) so I turned it off. This might have been the wrong =
>thing to do, but I didn't know what else to do. So, any clue as to why =
>it didn't shut off? I used witness cones and placed them where I could =
>clearly see them through the peephole. They are still standing upright =
>just as when I put them in the cold kiln. I do not have a timer on the =
>kiln sitter, so it didn't shut off either. Obviously the bar cone 04 =
>that I also used didn't bend so the kiln sitter would shut off. Is the =
>kiln just not getting up to temperature? If so, why? Any hints, clues, =
>suggestions, advice that I could get would be great. Including what I =
>should do with the pieces if they are not fired properly. Do I trash =
>them or are they salvagable?
>
>Thanks again for any help you can give,
>Corinna
>
>___________________________________________________________________________
___
>Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
>You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
>settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
>Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.
>
Bacia Edelman Madison, Wisconsin
http://users.skynet.be/russel.fouts/bacia.htm
http://www.silverhawk5.com/edelman/index.html
DEBBYGrant@AOL.COM on sun 31 mar 02
Corinna,
You probably need some new elements in your kiln. It is obviously not
reaching temperature. Let it cool, unload it, and test to see if any of the
elements are broken. Make sure the power is off and take a screw driver
and wiggle the elements back and forth. You will be able to see if there
is a break. If there is no break it may just be that the elements are too
old. It is also possible that one of your switches is faulty. Once you get
the kiln fixed you can reload the work. There will be nothing wrong with
refiring the pots. Do not scrap them.
Good luck,
Debby Grant in NH
Arnold Howard on mon 1 apr 02
It sounds like the kiln's elements are worn out. Do you have the
kiln's electrical specifications? If so, you can measure the amps
that the kiln is drawing, and compare that figure to the amperage
that the kiln is supposed to draw. You will need an ammeter to
perform the test.
Also, an element may be burned out. You could test the elements
with the kiln unplugged using an ohmmeter.
You can fire the underfired ware again. Turning off the kiln before
going to sleep was the right thing to do.
At this point, kilns may seem mysterious, but soon your kiln will
be as familiar as your car.
Arnold Howard
Paragon Industries, Inc.
--- "Corinna L. Hendrix" wrote:
> I fired up a kiln that I bought second-hand today for the first
> time. After some great suggestions and guidelines from people on
> this list I was able to figure out what to do with my controls
> and all that. I followed the directions and started on a low
> setting, working my way up to the high setting. I was firing a
> full kiln to cone 04. I started at about 9:30 in the morning and
> it is now almost 1am and the darn thing didn't turn off. I am
> leary about leaving it on while we're asleep (it's in the garage)
> so I turned it off. This might have been the wrong thing to do,
> but I didn't know what else to do. So, any clue as to why it
> didn't shut off? I used witness cones and placed them where I
> could clearly see them through the peephole. They are still
> standing upright just as when I put them in the cold kiln. I do
> not have a timer on the kiln sitter, so it didn't shut off
> either. Obviously the bar cone 04 that I also used didn't bend
> so the kiln sitter would shut off. Is the kiln just not getting
> up to temperature? If so, why? Any hints, clues, suggestions,
> advice that I could get would be great. Including what I should
> do with the pieces if they are not fired properly. Do I trash
> them or are they salvagable?
>
> Thanks again for any help you can give,
> Corinna
>
>
______________________________________________________________________________
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your
> subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Greetings - send holiday greetings for Easter, Passover
http://greetings.yahoo.com/
| |
|
