Cindy on wed 1 dec 04
Dear Kim,
All kilns will take a certain amount of time to reach their goal
temperature. Larger ones will take longer. (BTW, we're talking electrics
here.) So, I personally do not have a problem starting my large kiln and
then going to the grocery store or whatever--and then coming home within a
reasonable period of time. I realize I am taking a chance, but it is an
acceptable risk to me.
What you don't want to do is start a kiln, particularly a small one, and
then come home a few minutes before it should finish. They need checking on.
If you disable the kiln sitter by putting in a high cone or proping it up or
whatever, the kiln will need constant watching. Small kilns can fire much
more rapidly than large ones. While your behemoth is struggling to drag
itself up to ^6, your little racer can speed past ^10 and all the way to
melt-down before you know there's a problem.
As for gas water heaters--well, if there's no water, you could have
problems. If there's a gas leak, you could have problems. A friend of mine
narrowly escaped going up with her house when it exploded due to a gas water
heater. This happened a scant few minutes after she had stepped outside to
do some chores. Gas heat and water work great most of the time, but they are
a bit risky.
My new husband being an insurance adjuster, we have just completed the
switch to all electric. He may be a teensy bit overcautious, but he's
seen a lot of weird things happen.
With the electric kiln, your main problem is that if you let it overfire,
you lose all your valuable work and likely ruin your expensive shelves and
your expensive kiln. Unless you have papers blowing around the room, or
gauzy curtains nearby, or situate the kiln too close to an inflammable
surface, you're not likely to set your house on fire. Not that it couldn't
happen, but other causes are probably more likely--malfunctioning propane
heat, for one.
Best wishes,
Cindy in SD
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