David Hendley on mon 11 apr 05
A guy at a near-by university recently built a one-coffee-mug-sized
anagama. I'm not joking. It could be built on a terrace next to
Times Square and fired with a case of toothpicks.
So, if you want to spend 5 or 6 hours firing a single mug, knock
yourself out.
Of course, you can also go the rube-goldberg-recycled-junk
route, and build a wood kiln out of the remains of an old
electric kiln. See Pottery Making Illustrated from a couple of
months ago.
I saw a similar kiln near Asheville, NC a few years ago.
As you may be able to tell from my tone, I think all of these
things are not really useful tools. Worthwhile only as learning
experiences.
And, no matter how many times everyone on Clayart talks up
electric kilns, I will never agree, and would only use an electric
kiln if no other alternative were available to me.
They are just plain too inefficient. With the exception of small
pockets where wind or hydroelectric power is generated, electric
kilns are simply burning coal, gas, or uranium - you just don't see
the burning.
And the conversion rate is terrible - about 1 BTU of heat for
dozens of BTUs burned.
I am currently reading a fascinating book, "The Bottomless Well",
by Peter W. Huber and Mark M. Mills. The premise of the first
part of the book (I haven't finished it), is that, throughout history
we have moved towards more "power density", and the price
of "dense power" is vastly more than diluted power.
On a chart, the line moves at an upward 45 degree angle, when
you plot power density and cost.
The raw energy in coal costs about 1/3 of a cent per kWh,
electricity is about 10 cents, computer-grade UPS power is
about $3, and a laser beam costs about $10 per kWh.
The authors are not criticizing this inefficiency, in fact they praise
it, and I too, am amazed and delighted that we have the use of
the power of the laser. But you don't need laser-grade power
to heat your house.
I look at it this way:
I would not install electric resistance heating in my home because
it is costly and inefficient. However, I wouldn't object if the
vacation cabin I inhabit 5 days a year relied on electric resistance
heating.
Electric kilns are, in fact, big electric resistance heating appliances,
which are switched on for hours on end.
If I were a part-time hobby potter, I wouldn't worry about the
inefficiency, but if firing kilns were my business and I did it regularly,
I would find a more efficient alternative.
I am not trying to impugn those of you who fire electric kilns.
In fact, I use one for bisque firing, and, really, the cost of the
firing is a small part of the cost of making handmade pottery.
But, there is no escaping the fact that they require a relative
expensive "dense" power, and you are really changing heat
into electricity, and back to heat again, with great losses in
efficiency at every step along the way.
David Hendley
I don't know nothin' but the blues, cobalt that is.
david@farmpots.com
http://www.farmpots.com
Elizabeth Priddy on mon 11 apr 05
I don't know...how many of kelly's tiny teapots would fit in the smace of a mug....
and then to say they were fired in a miniature wood kiln to boot...I see a niche market...
a very very expensive niche market...
David Hendley wrote:
A guy at a near-by university recently built a one-coffee-mug-sized
anagama. I'm not joking. It could be built on a terrace next to
Times Square and fired with a case of toothpicks.
So, if you want to spend 5 or 6 hours firing a single mug, knock
yourself out.
Elizabeth Priddy
252-504-2622
1273 Hwy 101
Beaufort, NC 28516
http://www.elizabethpriddy.com
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Elizabeth Priddy on mon 11 apr 05
That is exactly what I want it for.
If I want to make some MONEY, I will fire about 50
chinese brush painted wall pieces in 1 electric firing for
about $1000 worth of product.
It makes the electricity economical when it is used
appropriately. And for some effects, it is the only way.
What I make for business, and what is all about the bpttom line,
even though it is indeed artwork as well as well crafted, is not what
I can commit to right now. I use down time for experiments. I know
how to make the work. I learned to do chinese brush painting while
I was recovering from back surgery. Couldn't make pots. Had to do
something. it became my primary product because I love it. I want a
break from it so that I will love it again. And I can't commit to orders
because my days and months are truly unpredictable with the baby and
I am trying to embrace it rather than fight it.
What you see as a business cost and a neccessity,
a wood kiln, I see as an experimental kiln. It is all about
perspective. I can't see myself ever wanting to fill a normal
size wood kiln with work. I just don't like the surfaces that much.
But small, experimental pieces, a few that are large enough to fill the chamber,
more that can explore form and ash in a hopefully new way....that's
where my head is.
Is there anything you know that could get me on the right path?
David Hendley wrote:
As you may be able to tell from my tone, I think all of these
things are not really useful tools. Worthwhile only as learning
experiences.
Elizabeth Priddy
252-504-2622
1273 Hwy 101
Beaufort, NC 28516
http://www.elizabethpriddy.com
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