Cat Yassin on thu 7 nov 02
I had noticed a gap between the top ring of my elec. kiln and the lid, about
1/4 " in some places and I had been firing to ^6 lately and the top shelf
wasn't getting as hot as the middle and bottom of kiln. So... I had seen
another potter put kaol wool strips between the top of the top ring and the
lid, so I did it too. I hate that stuff! It reminds me of this fiber glass
surf board we kids played with growing up that wreaked havoc on our skin.
Anyways it doesn't seem to insulate as well as I wanted for the hassle of
leaning over the kiln to load and unload and get the fibers on my arms. I
even took the strips off in front when I was loading and unloading my kiln
and some of the fibers are still there. Anyone have a better solution?
Thanks in advance,
Cat Yassin
San Antonio
Paul Gerhold on fri 8 nov 02
Check the operation of the hinge for the lid. Sometimes as things shift the
hinge can keep the lid from closing evenly.
Since most of the firing manuals suggest never closing the top peephole what
I do is just close the peephole and let the gap in the lid do the venting
function. Of course I don't use an Environvent or any of the fan venting
systems although for a downdraft power vent it probably wouldn't matter.
A quarter of an inch gap really does sound like a hinge problem though and
should probably be fixed. My big skutt is about as old as dirt and still has
only sixteenth at it's worst but I have opened up the hinges for the lid.
Paul
gillian evison on fri 8 nov 02
Hi Cat - I have a similar problem. The bricks in my kiln lid have shifted
leaving an unacceptable gap between the kiln top and lid. So I bought some
kaowool and cut it into 1 inch strips, which I tuck into place around the
top before turning the kiln onto HI. I take it off before unloading and use
it again; and also brush the top after unloading and before re-loading to
prevent crumbs getting on glazed ware.
You could try that if you're desperate.
Jill
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Eleanora Eden on fri 8 nov 02
To Cat and All,
I use kaowool strips as a gasket but I never leave them there between
firings. I have a designated board and they get carefully transferred and
put on a high shelf out of the way until the next firing....they get
squished so they're relatively easy to handle and I just sponge off the lip
of the kiln after so there's no residue floating around. I can't imagine
trying to load or unload a kiln with that stuff lolling about.
BTW, and off subject, sorry that I sent a note I thought was direct to
another clayartist to the whole list. Oh, well.
Eleanora
I had noticed a gap between the top ring of my elec. kiln and the lid, about
1/4 " in some places and I had been firing to ^6 lately and the top shelf
wasn't getting as hot as the middle and bottom of kiln. So... I had seen
another potter put kaol wool strips between the top of the top ring and the
lid, so I did it too. I hate that stuff! It reminds me of this fiber glass
surf board we kids played with growing up that wreaked havoc on our skin.
Anyways it doesn't seem to insulate as well as I wanted for the hassle of
leaning over the kiln to load and unload and get the fibers on my arms. I
even took the strips off in front when I was loading and unloading my kiln
and some of the fibers are still there. Anyone have a better solution?
Thanks in advance,
Cat Yassin
San Antonio
Eleanora Eden 802 869-2003
Paradise Hill Road eeden@vermontel.net
Bellows Falls, VT 05101 www.eleanoraeden.com
Pottery by Dai on fri 8 nov 02
Cat, if it's just the fibers you want to keep away from your arms (been
there, done that), cut a piece of plywood to fit over the top course of
bricks in your kiln and place it over the fiber while you load. I used
fiber to try to seal variances in the fit of the lid, but it really didn't
work all that well. Eventually, I sort of ground down the top course so it
was level and even, eliminating the gaps. The biggest "dip" in the top edge
was from years of putting the wedge in the same place to prop the lid when
heating and cooling. Maybe a small piece of harder brick at this place
would be a better idea. I've seen kilns with a metal "prop" that was
attached to the side, so there was nothing touching the brick, but mine
doesn't have that.
Dai in Armstrong, BC
dai@potterybydai.com
potterybydai@telus.net
nightfire@telus.net
www.potterybydai.com
Take your work seriously---take yourself lightly. Unknown
----- Original Message -----
From: "Cat Yassin"
To:
Sent: Thursday, November 07, 2002 8:03 PM
Subject: Kaol wool under elec. kiln lid
> I had noticed a gap between the top ring of my elec. kiln and the lid,
about
> 1/4 " in some places and I had been firing to ^6 lately and the top shelf
> wasn't getting as hot as the middle and bottom of kiln. So... I had seen
> another potter put kaol wool strips between the top of the top ring and
the
> lid, so I did it too. I hate that stuff! It reminds me of this fiber glass
> surf board we kids played with growing up that wreaked havoc on our skin.
> Anyways it doesn't seem to insulate as well as I wanted for the hassle of
> leaning over the kiln to load and unload and get the fibers on my arms. I
> even took the strips off in front when I was loading and unloading my kiln
> and some of the fibers are still there. Anyone have a better solution?
>
> Thanks in advance,
> Cat Yassin
> San Antonio
>
Jose A. Velez on sat 9 nov 02
Clayarters:
On the subject issue, I have a similar problem with a kiln where the lid
does not fit very well creating a significant waste of energy. It seems
using Kaol Wool could be hazardous and a hassle to handle. I wonder if
there is a low density castable refractory of which one can mix and roll a
coil to be placed on the top edge of the kiln and fit the lid while still
"leather hard", so as to create a good fit. Then let dry and fire in place,
creating a good "hard seal". Is this feasible? Has somebody done it? What
kind of low density castable refractory is there out in the market that
could be used in such way?
Any ideas would be appreciated.
Jose A. Velez
Arnold Howard on mon 11 nov 02
The 1/4" gap between the top of the kiln and the lid may be due to
a sticking hinge.
As the kiln heats, the firebrick stack grows in height. For this
reason, the hinge must have plenty of play in it. Otherwise, as the
firebrick stack becomes taller, the top of the lid will rise about
1/4". This type of lid problem causes the lid surface to wear
unevenly.
If the problem is not the hinge, the solution may be to smooth the
surface between the lid and top rim of firebrick. You can do this
with coarse sandpaper glued to a board or piece of plywood. This is
an easier solution than using kaowool.
After you even out the mating surfaces between the lid and top of
kiln, you should also coat the surfaces with repair cement:
1. First, vacuum the dust from the surfaces.
2. Dilute repair cement to the consistency of coffee cream.
3. Apply the repair cement with a paint brush to both surfaces.
4. Immediately remove the cement with a rag.
Let it dry before firing the kiln. Though you removed most of the
cement with the rag, the cement will seal the pores of the
firebrick and make the surfaces last longer.
With best wishes,
Arnold Howard
Paragon
--- Cat Yassin wrote:
> I had noticed a gap between the top ring of my elec. kiln and the
> lid, about
> 1/4 " in some places and I had been firing to ^6 lately and the
> top shelf
> wasn't getting as hot as the middle and bottom of kiln. So... I
> had seen
> another potter put kaol wool strips between the top of the top
> ring and the
> lid, so I did it too. I hate that stuff! > Thanks in advance,
> Cat Yassin
> San Antonio
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John Baymore on tue 12 nov 02
Excellent suggestions from Arnold on performing this kiln repair. I just=
want to add a couple of thoughts that I am sure he just forgot about at t=
he
time.......
If the problem is not the hinge, the solution may be to smooth the
surface between the lid and top rim of firebrick. You can do this
with coarse sandpaper glued to a board or piece of plywood. This is
an easier solution than using kaowool.
Wear an appropriate respirator when doing this.
1. First, vacuum the dust from the surfaces.
Unless you own a HEPA filtered vacume cleaner or a central vac that dumps=
the dust outdoors.... you don't want to do this in your studio. I imagin=
e
that at the factory..... Arnold just gets used to having such stuff on
hand. The fine, free silica laden dust will go right thru a standard
vacume cleaner filter and REALLY get whipped into the air. =
Maybe wet clean the surfaces.... and then wait a day for the excess water=
to be absorbed into the brickwork and/or air dry a bit. Wetting ifb is
often a good idea when adding mortar anyway..... to keep the brick from
"sucking" the liquid right out of the mortar instantly.
Best,
..............................john
John Baymore
River Bend Pottery
22 Riverbend Way
Wilton, NH 03086 USA
603-654-2752 (s)
800-900-1110 (s)
JohnBaymore.com
JBaymore@compuserve.com
Cat Yassin on tue 12 nov 02
In a message dated 11/12/2002 8:30:20 PM Central Standard Time,
JBaymore@COMPUSERVE.COM writes:
> Unless you own a HEPA filtered vacume cleaner or a central vac that dumps
> the dust outdoors.... you don't want to do this in your studio. I imagine
> that at the factory..... Arnold just gets used to having such stuff on
> hand. The fine, free silica laden dust will go right thru a standard
> vacume cleaner filter and REALLY get whipped into the air.
>
I wonder if maybe getting some duct tape and wrapping the sticky side out
around your hand like a mitt and going around the top dabbing it would work?
Unless there is quite a bit of dust it might work... just a thought :)
-Cat Yassin
San Antonio
Arnold Howard on wed 13 nov 02
I'm glad John added the safety precautions for working with
insulating firebricks.
The human body is precious and, in some ways, so delicate. One can
never be too cautious in safeguarding health.
Arnold Howard
Paragon
--- John Baymore wrote:
> Excellent suggestions from Arnold on performing this kiln repair.
> I just
> want to add a couple of thoughts that I am sure he just forgot
> about at the
> time.......
>
>
> If the problem is not the hinge, the solution may be to smooth
> the
> surface between the lid and top rim of firebrick. You can do this
> with coarse sandpaper glued to a board or piece of plywood. This
> is
> an easier solution than using kaowool.
>
>
> Wear an appropriate respirator when doing this.
>
>
>
> 1. First, vacuum the dust from the surfaces.
>
>
> Unless you own a HEPA filtered vacume cleaner or a central vac
> that dumps
> the dust outdoors.... you don't want to do this in your studio.
> I imagine
> that at the factory..... Arnold just gets used to having such
> stuff on
> hand. The fine, free silica laden dust will go right thru a
> standard
> vacume cleaner filter and REALLY get whipped into the air.
>
> Maybe wet clean the surfaces.... and then wait a day for the
> excess water
> to be absorbed into the brickwork and/or air dry a bit. Wetting
> ifb is
> often a good idea when adding mortar anyway..... to keep the
> brick from
> "sucking" the liquid right out of the mortar instantly.
>
> Best,
>
> ..............................john
>
> John Baymore
> River Bend Pottery
> 22 Riverbend Way
> Wilton, NH 03086 USA
>
> 603-654-2752 (s)
> 800-900-1110 (s)
>
> JohnBaymore.com
>
> JBaymore@compuserve.com
>
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