Michele Williams on thu 18 apr 02
Kilnless ceramic dabbler needs ways to fire without pit, kiln, raku =
devices, etc. Does anyone know what it takes to fire (lowfire, =
obviously) in a barbecue grill? I have a gas-fired bbq grill I could =
use. What would be my timing, do I need to buy a pyrometer to test =
temps, etc.
For the campfire-style firing of small pieces (I'm doing birds about =
1-2" tall), should I use charcoal, hardwood, what? How long? =20
(GAK!) I wanted to do art, and now I'm playing with fire. Literally. =
Willya let me know if you see any straight-jacket squad folks coming?
Michele Williams
Tony Ferguson on thu 18 apr 02
Michele,
Why don't you line your grill with ceramic fiber--then you will be able to
low-fire, raku, whatever. Very inconspicuous. Check out my website under
raku--you will see plans there on how to do this.
Thank you!
Tony Ferguson
Stoneware, Porcelain, Raku
www.aquariusartgallery.com
Workshops available
218-727-6339
315 N. Lake Ave
Apt 312
Duluth, MN 55806
----- Original Message -----
From: "Michele Williams"
To:
Sent: Thursday, April 18, 2002 11:48 AM
Subject: Kilnless Firing
Kilnless ceramic dabbler needs ways to fire without pit, kiln, raku devices,
etc. Does anyone know what it takes to fire (lowfire, obviously) in a
barbecue grill? I have a gas-fired bbq grill I could use. What would be my
timing, do I need to buy a pyrometer to test temps, etc.
For the campfire-style firing of small pieces (I'm doing birds about 1-2"
tall), should I use charcoal, hardwood, what? How long?
(GAK!) I wanted to do art, and now I'm playing with fire. Literally.
Willya let me know if you see any straight-jacket squad folks coming?
Michele Williams
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Jeff Tsai on fri 19 apr 02
Michele,
if you fire your work in a barbeque, then your barbeque is your kiln.
I assume you want low fire, unglazed work, because if you plan to glaze
fire,
you'll have a tough time reaching glaze temperature in a small barbeque, not
to mention there is almost no way to firgure out what temperature you're at
with much accuracy (unless you can read the color of the fire, but even
then,
it'll probably be uneven throughout the barbeque).
If you are just going for that pit fired look (black and white, no coloring
really) just treat the barbeque as you would a pit. put your pieces in,
layer
hardwood (use hardwood as it burns much hotter) around your pieces and build
up a big pyrimid of wood and set it aflame. Your work will need to be
totally
dry, maybe even preheated to a couple hundred degrees in an oven prior to
firing. you could also use less wood to start and slowly add more. As the
wood turns into coal, you want to have a nice coal bed around your pieces.
At
the end of the firing, (might only take about an hour or so) just put the
lid
to the barbeque on. I can't predict what will result, but that's a pretty
basic pit fire in a barbeque.
Now, if you want some fumed colors, well, then ou just add seaweed or salt
to
the mix with some stuff like copper carbonate, cobalt carb or red iron
oxide.
However, you won't want to cook any hamburgers in that grill again if you
do.
Glazed work, well, there is a chance. If you take a metal
container....preferably a small steel cookie box, you can put a glazed piece
in there and put that in the barbeque and fire that. Punch some holes in the
top to allow for air flow and hope that you reach a temperature where the
glaze melts.
To be honest, I'd need to know what effects you're going for to tell you
what
to do, but a barbeque firing (especially a barbeque firing in a barbeque
that
you want to use to food again, is pretty limiting.
-jeff
Stephani Stephenson on fri 19 apr 02
The way I do kilnless firing was learned from Susannah Denet, a
traditional Hopi potter.
No need for a pit, but you will be making a fire.
Clear a small area where the fire will be built
good to surround the fire ring with some flat top rocks, upturned
flower pots, etc.
three or four of the rocks (not river rocks) or upturned fire flower
pots will later serve as
a base for a barbecue or oven rack, so figure out which rack you will
use and where to put the supports before you build the fire.
build a small fire. feed it for awhile till you know it will make a
good bed of coals.
put your unfired pots around the fire, but not too close.
far enough away so they will just get a faint whisper of heat.
Set them on small racks , rocks, not directly on the ground. Elevate
them a little .
put them rims down, bottoms up, kind of in a circle, still pretty far
away from the fire
a place where they are not too hot to touch.
let the fire burn for awhile till it starts to burn down
as it burns down move the pots in a little closer, and turn them
they are slowly , (slowly!) preheating, getting warm, but still cool
enough you can pick them up and
turn them with your hands. Just keep inching the pots closer and close
to the fire
When the fire has burned down place a barbecue or oven rack over the
fire
set the corners of the rack on the rocks or flower pots, nice and
stable.
maybe 3-5 inches above the bed of coals
bed of coals should be pretty even by now
by now the pots are right near the fire and are hot.
Not anywhere near a red heat, but too hot to handle with bare hands,
All sides have been turned toward the fire at one time or another
using good gloves or tongs put the pots on the rack, RIM DOWN
stack dried manure patties , (or experiment with other combustibles )
around pots , like cards around the pots
OR to create areas of oxidation place bisqued slabs or pot shards
around pots
like cards, like a teepee fire stack.
place license plates, metal sheeting, metal garbage can lids etc.
around that.
now you have sort of a cone or dome shaped thing. let it go till it is
done.
you can get anything from a full smoke to a partial smoke to a no smoke
effect on your pots.
Just like a real kiln, if you want a stronger pot, aim for a hotter
heat, keep some air moving through the stack,
how dense or how loose you pack everything, what kind of combustibles ,
how much wind that day,
everything makes a difference.
The RIMS DOWN tip is an important one. It can makes the difference in
firing without blow ups.
If you hear popping you haven't done your drying/preheating correctly!
I always did this with my beginning classes when I taught at Chemeketa
Community College in Salem OR.
just to show an immediate relationship between clay and fire.....
We used manure in the firing, the traditional way.
Of course the students' clothing and hair became permeated with the
smell of the dung smoke as they hovered around the fire...... and so
they had to 'wear' the fragrance the rest of the day.
The pungent aroma bore an amazing similarity to quite heavily
saturated , resinous, pot smoke (marijuana, not ceramic)
and so the morning students created quite a stir entering their
afternoon classes!
Boy did I hear about THAT! But students loved the firing.
Stephani Stephenson
Carlsbad CA
steph@alchemiestudio.com
Snail Scott on fri 19 apr 02
At 02:48 PM 4/18/02 -0400, you wrote:
>Kilnless ceramic dabbler needs ways to fire without pit, kiln, raku
devices, etc...
>>For the campfire-style firing of small pieces (I'm doing birds about 1-2"
tall), should I use charcoal, hardwood, what? How long?
I have had good luck with Mata Ortiz-style firings.=20
You just need a flowerpot, a few unglazed shards or=20
nails, and a lot of dried cowpies.=20
Get a cheap terra-cotta flowerpot, from Wal-Mart or=20
whatever. Pick one big enough to hold your work.=20
This is your saggar. Heat it slowly in the oven to=20
dry it out thoroughly.=20
Pick a bare spot in your yard and imbed old unglazed=20
shards in the dirt to hold your work about 2" off the=20
ground. Or, push steel nails into the ground for the=20
same purpose. Scatter cowpie crumbles amongst the=20
shards. Push other shards into the dirt to keep the=20
flowerpot off the ground, too, if you want whiteware=20
or colors. For blackware, it can rest on the dirt.
Put your work in the oven, and bring the heat up=20
slowly, 'til it's pretty hot. (400=BAF) Then wrap=20
the work in a towel and carry it out to your firing=20
spot. Put the work on the shards, and cover it with=20
the flowerpot.
Cover the flowerpot with cowpies, around it on the=20
ground, and flat against the flowerpot. Cover it=20
completely. It only needs to be about 1 layer thick,=20
including the top.
Light the bottom, all around, near the base of the=20
flowerpot. Then just wait until it's all pretty much=20
burned up. (If any cowpies fall off, you can tease them=20
back up into place with a stick.) If you want blackware,=20
just wait' til it cools, then unload. For whiteware or=20
colors, remove the cowpie from the top hole after about=20
3/4 of the cowpies have burned away, then wait 'til it=20
cools.
The flowerpot is reusable, so are the shards; you only=20
need to replace the cowpies.
-Snail
Martin Rice on fri 19 apr 02
Really neat, Snail. Woud it work with horse manure, too?
Thanks,
Martin
Lagunas de Barú, Costa Rica
www.rice-family.org
Revised and updated 4/1/02
----- Original Message -----
From: "Snail Scott"
To:
Sent: Friday, April 19, 2002 10:15 AM
Subject: Re: [CLAYART] Kilnless Firing
At 02:48 PM 4/18/02 -0400, you wrote:
>Kilnless ceramic dabbler needs ways to fire without pit, kiln, raku
devices, etc...
>>For the campfire-style firing of small pieces (I'm doing birds about 1-2"
tall), should I use charcoal, hardwood, what? How long?
I have had good luck with Mata Ortiz-style firings.
You just need a flowerpot, a few unglazed shards or
nails, and a lot of dried cowpies.
Get a cheap terra-cotta flowerpot, from Wal-Mart or
whatever. Pick one big enough to hold your work.
This is your saggar. Heat it slowly in the oven to
dry it out thoroughly.
Pick a bare spot in your yard and imbed old unglazed
shards in the dirt to hold your work about 2" off the
ground. Or, push steel nails into the ground for the
same purpose. Scatter cowpie crumbles amongst the
shards. Push other shards into the dirt to keep the
flowerpot off the ground, too, if you want whiteware
or colors. For blackware, it can rest on the dirt.
Put your work in the oven, and bring the heat up
slowly, 'til it's pretty hot. (400ºF) Then wrap
the work in a towel and carry it out to your firing
spot. Put the work on the shards, and cover it with
the flowerpot.
Cover the flowerpot with cowpies, around it on the
ground, and flat against the flowerpot. Cover it
completely. It only needs to be about 1 layer thick,
including the top.
Light the bottom, all around, near the base of the
flowerpot. Then just wait until it's all pretty much
burned up. (If any cowpies fall off, you can tease them
back up into place with a stick.) If you want blackware,
just wait' til it cools, then unload. For whiteware or
colors, remove the cowpie from the top hole after about
3/4 of the cowpies have burned away, then wait 'til it
cools.
The flowerpot is reusable, so are the shards; you only
need to replace the cowpies.
-Snail
____________________________________________________________________________
__
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
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Snail Scott on sat 20 apr 02
At 05:12 PM 4/19/02 -0500, you wrote:
>Really neat, Snail. Woud it work with horse manure, too?
Nope. Horse manure will do for the 'crumbles'
underneath the saggar, but you can't use them
for covering the saggar, and they're the
important part - the 'kiln' itself and fuel
all in one. No structural integrity to 'road
apples'; they won't stack up and stay. Gotta
have nice big flat DRY cowpies.
-Snail
Mark Potter on sun 21 apr 02
Gather your cowpie when wet, slop them against a stucco wall to dry them, or
a section of your driveway, mold them into nice 12" rounds the way they do
in India, thickish, and let the sun dry them. Then stack them up. Or mix
with plaster, wet and build a house that will last forever (almost).
-----Original Message-----
From: Ceramic Arts Discussion List [mailto:CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG]On
Behalf Of Snail Scott
Sent: Sunday, April 21, 2002 1:27 AM
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Subject: Re: Kilnless Firing
At 05:12 PM 4/19/02 -0500, you wrote:
>Really neat, Snail. Woud it work with horse manure, too?
Nope. Horse manure will do for the 'crumbles'
underneath the saggar, but you can't use them
for covering the saggar, and they're the
important part - the 'kiln' itself and fuel
all in one. No structural integrity to 'road
apples'; they won't stack up and stay. Gotta
have nice big flat DRY cowpies.
-Snail
____________________________________________________________________________
__
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.
Michele Williams on sun 21 apr 02
Tony,
Thanks a million! I'll check that. Now tell me one more thing. Is that
ceramic fiber removable? We use that grill all the time and it couldn't be
converted without a great deal of grumbling about the loss to our BBQ menus
and quick/easy/ cooking for our working-16-hr.-days lifestyle. I could snag
a dead grill from somewhere, though...but I need to know if that's what I
should do.
I've seen most of your site--love it! Just hadn't realized there are those
instructions on it since I was always drooling over your eye-candies.
Michele
Michele Williams on sun 21 apr 02
I know all about wet cowpies. I grew up in Kansas, descended from prairie
pioneers who used them for lots of things. What I know about wet cowpies
tells me I can wait until they're dry. I'm not so anal (isn't that where
cowpies come from?) that I have to have them exactly shaped. God & the cows
do a good enough job for me, thank you very much!
Besides, my neighbors like me and I'd like to keep it that way :)
Michele Williams
> Gather your cowpie when wet, slop them against a stucco wall to dry them,
or
> a section of your driveway, mold them into nice 12" rounds the way they do
> in India, thickish, and let the sun dry them. Then stack them up. Or mix
> with plaster, wet and build a house that will last forever (almost).
>
Michele Williams on tue 23 apr 02
Jeff,
First, thank you for taking an interest in helping me. I'm a newbie, so I
don't know where I can be flexible, how to re-create the conditions in a
kiln because I don't know that much about the conditions in a kiln other
than HOT, oxidation, reduction.
My barbeque is not a pit--it's a covered gas grill. And we do have to
re-use it, since we rely on it for our family's meals about 3 times a week.
We do burgers, chicken, fish, corn, (The secret of BBQ corn--soak it in the
husks in water for 24 hours before BBQ time, then throw it on the grill
still in the husks) have even tried pizza ("Cajun-blackened crust"
look--kids wouldn't touch it). I think I'd be limited to saggar in foil,
wrapped to hang over the side and down toward the flame. Unless you think I
could use it for firing outright...
I'm going to try some of those Indian methods, Snail's flower pot trick,
etc. I'd like to try just about anything one could do with lowfire.
Glazing, sgraffito, underglazes, terra sigilatta, fuming, blackening, white
body staying white. I'm also wondering how to do tiles by any of these
methods, since one thing I loved and seem to be good at is carving tiles.
(Used reclaimed clay from University's reclaim bin--got a mix of TC and
White clays...)
If I got my hands on a thrift-shop barbeque, do you think I could do wood
firing in there without melting it?
Ideas always welcome...
Michele
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