Ilene Richardson on sun 13 oct 02
The bottom of my kiln's surface, inside of course, seems to be
separating, not all the way but somewhat cracking. It was just moved
into a new location and must have suffered the damage to the hearth
then. Any ideas on how to repair the cracking so it doesn't go all the
way thru?
Snail Scott on mon 14 oct 02
At 11:18 PM 10/13/02 -0400, you wrote:
>The bottom of my kiln's surface, inside of course, seems to be
>separating, not all the way but somewhat cracking. It was just moved
>into a new location and must have suffered the damage to the hearth
>then. Any ideas on how to repair the cracking so it doesn't go all the
>way thru?
This happened to mine. (Thousands of miles in the
back of a U-Haul haven't been kind to it.) I
tried to ignore the problem, even as it became
progressively harder to level the bottom shelf.
Then one day I unstacked the kiln to replace the
bottom element, and my kitten jumped onto the
floor, which shattered into dozens of fragments!
I swiped the lid off my old 'beater' kiln and
used it for the new floor. I've noticed that
there a lot of dead kilns out there with fairly
decent lids; maybe you could find one. Ask a
supplier in your area? Also, if I had dealt with
mine sooner, I would have followed my original
idea, which was to put a piece of hard fiberboard
underneath, between the floor and the stand. (I
did that anyway, actually).
-Snail
Snail Scott on tue 15 oct 02
At 09:50 AM 10/15/02 -0700, you wrote:
>It might help to install a piece of galvanized sheet metal under
>the brick bottom. I think every kiln should have that as extra
>support.
>
>Arnold Howard
>Paragon
I used an old stop sign for a while (and another
as a rain-cover for the top). I stopped using it
because I wan't sure if the heat might cause the
metal to expand and warp or buckle rather than
remaining flat. Figured that might just make the
problem worse. I don't know for sure if this
actually occurred...any reassurance?
-Snail
Arnold Howard on tue 15 oct 02
It might help to install a piece of galvanized sheet metal under
the brick bottom. I think every kiln should have that as extra
support.
Arnold Howard
Paragon
--- Snail Scott wrote:
> At 11:18 PM 10/13/02 -0400, you wrote:
> >The bottom of my kiln's surface, inside of course, seems to be
> >separating, not all the way but somewhat cracking. It was just
> moved
> >into a new location and must have suffered the damage to the
> hearth
> >then. Any ideas on how to repair the cracking so it doesn't go
> all the
> >way thru?
>
>
> This happened to mine. (Thousands of miles in the
> back of a U-Haul haven't been kind to it.) I
> tried to ignore the problem, even as it became
> progressively harder to level the bottom shelf.
> Then one day I unstacked the kiln to replace the
> bottom element, and my kitten jumped onto the
> floor, which shattered into dozens of fragments!
> I swiped the lid off my old 'beater' kiln and
> used it for the new floor. I've noticed that
> there a lot of dead kilns out there with fairly
> decent lids; maybe you could find one. Ask a
> supplier in your area? Also, if I had dealt with
> mine sooner, I would have followed my original
> idea, which was to put a piece of hard fiberboard
> underneath, between the floor and the stand. (I
> did that anyway, actually).
>
> -Snail
>
>
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vince pitelka on wed 16 oct 02
> It might help to install a piece of galvanized sheet metal under
> the brick bottom. I think every kiln should have that as extra
> support.
Arnold from Paragon gives good advice here. Another key consideration is
the placement of the metal supporting stand beneath the kiln floor, and the
corresponding placement of the posts to support the shelves. If you use
half-shelves, you will have four support posts, and it is easy to place them
directly above where the stand is located beneath the kiln floor, so that
the stand absorbs the weight of the set (the "set" is the combined unit
representing the posts, shelves, and wares). If you are using whole
shelves, with three supports, then it is more of a challenge to locate the
posts, but you still can usually arrange it so that the stand absorbs the
downward thrust of the set.
If the cracks in the floor are tight, then they will hurt anything, as long
as the floor slab is well supported in the future. If the cracks are loose
or open, it would be a good idea to repair the floor with kiln cement. Lay
the kiln floor on a flat surface, loosen the clamp screws and remove the
stainless steel clamp band, separate the cracked portions, saturate the
contact surfaces very thoroughly with water (this is essential to let the
air-set cement cure properly - it must not dry out right away), apply kiln
cement to one surface, and immediately join them, reinstall the clamp ring,
and tighten. If there are multiple broken sections, in advance figure out
the best sequence for cementing and reassembling them. Once they are
cemented and the clamp ring is tightened, let the slab sit where it is for
24 hours in order for the air-set cement to cure. After that, reassemble
the kiln, and then turn the bottom element on low and leave the kiln with
the lid open for 24 hours to drive off the moisture.
Best wishes -
- Vince
Vince Pitelka
Appalachian Center for Crafts
Tennessee Technological University
1560 Craft Center Drive, Smithville TN 37166
Home - vpitelka@dtccom.net
615/597-5376
Work - wpitelka@tntech.edu
615/597-6801 ext. 111, fax 615/597-6803
http://www.craftcenter.tntech.edu/
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