Elaine Birk on fri 27 may 05
Hi Janine, and welcome to the adventures of firing with gas.
I know you will get responses from people who have alot more experience than
I, since
I am only a few firings ahead of you. I also have a new downdraft gas kiln
and fired it for the first time on New Years Eve. The kiln, a Geil, comes
with lousy instructions, that were of no help whatsoever. It was the first
time I ever fired a gas kiln with the exception, like you, of a small raku
garbage can kiln. I read everything I could get my hands on prior to firing,
and like you I didn't find much. I wanted something that would walk me
through it step by step. I would think your best resource will be the kiln
builder.
I just finished my forth firing.
It really is pretty easy once you get past the initial anxiety. At least it
is with my kiln.
I read the Nils Lou book and that helped me somewhat, also there is alot of
information in the Clayart archives, and in past issues of Ceramics Monthly.
John Britt's new book "High Fire Glazes" has firing schedules that were
useful and I try to follow one of his schedules, he explains the firing
process and that was helpful and I think the most understandable, for me.
But until I fired it I couldn't really understand how to put the theory into
practice. I really felt I was shooting in the dark.
The hardest part, for me, was slowing the kiln down and not firing too fast.
I now feel that I have much better control over temp. rise and level of
reduction. And my pots are coming out pretty good.
The bottom line is that books can only take you so far, the experience of
firing it will be the best way to understand the particulars of your kiln.
Also the folks on Clayart were very helpful after my first firing and I had
so many questions to ask.
Good luck and have fun with your new studio.
Elaine Birk
Virginia Beach
-----Original Message-----
From: Clayart [mailto:CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG]On Behalf Of Janine
LaMaie
Sent: Friday, May 27, 2005 4:30 PM
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Subject: Best Book(s) on Gas Firing?
Hello Clayart!
I'm near completion of a 1,000 sq. ft. studio, and am more excited than
words can express to be moving all my stuff to a new playhouse. The
building was conceived by the desire to have a gas kiln. This weekend will
see the chimney and hood installed so that I can take delivery of a small
(20 cu. ft.) custom-made downdraft. I'm behind schedule, so the kilnmaker
will be pleased to get mine out of his workshop, I'm sure.
The building has been a learning experience, as I'm within the city limits
of Tacoma, WA. I've gone through an interesting permitting process.
Now the real learning begins, as I've NEVER fired a gas kiln! (not counting
my one-burner raku.) I trust that my clay supplier, through whom I made the
purchase, will provide assistance in learning to operate the thing, but I'm
hoping to educate myself a little before I jump into the fire.
I've just purchased The Art of Firing by Nils Lou, and have many other
general ceramics references. Can any of you recommend others that feature
the basics of gas firing? I'm hoping there are more out there that can offer
help to a rank beginner.
I look forward to hearing from any of you - on- or off-list.
Many thanks in advance!
Janine
____________________________________________________________________________
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Janine LaMaie on fri 27 may 05
Hello Clayart!
I'm near completion of a 1,000 sq. ft. studio, and am more excited than
words can express to be moving all my stuff to a new playhouse. The
building was conceived by the desire to have a gas kiln. This weekend will
see the chimney and hood installed so that I can take delivery of a small
(20 cu. ft.) custom-made downdraft. I'm behind schedule, so the kilnmaker
will be pleased to get mine out of his workshop, I'm sure.
The building has been a learning experience, as I'm within the city limits
of Tacoma, WA. I've gone through an interesting permitting process.
Now the real learning begins, as I've NEVER fired a gas kiln! (not counting
my one-burner raku.) I trust that my clay supplier, through whom I made the
purchase, will provide assistance in learning to operate the thing, but I'm
hoping to educate myself a little before I jump into the fire.
I've just purchased The Art of Firing by Nils Lou, and have many other
general ceramics references. Can any of you recommend others that feature
the basics of gas firing? I'm hoping there are more out there that can offer
help to a rank beginner.
I look forward to hearing from any of you - on- or off-list.
Many thanks in advance!
Janine
Ruth Ballou on sat 28 may 05
Janine,
I'm sure many others on this list will join me in recommending an
oxyprobe. If you've never fired a gas kiln before, figuring out when
the kiln is in or out of reduction may be tricker than it sounds in
the books. Some kilns are extremely sensitive and a 1/8" change in
damper placement can make the difference. My kiln would walk, talk,
and smell like reduction, but according to the probe, would be wildly
moving in and out of reduction. Glaze results were inconsistent. An
oxyprobe can shorten the learning curve considerably, saving pots and
fuel.
I also use a digital pyrometer with 2 probes (top and bottom) to
show temperature differences. By comparing how fast each is moving I
can make adjustments accordingly. I found that going slow in the
early stages of the firing makes correcting problems in heat
distribution easier.
Many potters find it very useful to map the results each shelf, with
photos or drawings. Keeping a record of stacking, etc. helps a lot in
figuring out a kiln.
Ruth Ballou
Belgium
On May 27, 2005, at 10:29 PM, Janine LaMaie wrote:
> Hello Clayart!
>
> I'm near completion of a 1,000 sq. ft. studio, and am more excited
> than
> words can express to be moving all my stuff to a new playhouse. The
> building was conceived by the desire to have a gas kiln. This
> weekend will
> see the chimney and hood installed so that I can take delivery of a
> small
> (20 cu. ft.) custom-made downdraft. I'm behind schedule, so the
> kilnmaker
> will be pleased to get mine out of his workshop, I'm sure.
>
> The building has been a learning experience, as I'm within the city
> limits
> of Tacoma, WA. I've gone through an interesting permitting process.
>
> Now the real learning begins, as I've NEVER fired a gas kiln! (not
> counting
> my one-burner raku.) I trust that my clay supplier, through whom I
> made the
> purchase, will provide assistance in learning to operate the thing,
> but I'm
> hoping to educate myself a little before I jump into the fire.
>
> I've just purchased The Art of Firing by Nils Lou, and have many other
> general ceramics references. Can any of you recommend others that
> feature
> the basics of gas firing? I'm hoping there are more out there that
> can offer
> help to a rank beginner.
>
> I look forward to hearing from any of you - on- or off-list.
>
> Many thanks in advance!
>
> Janine
>
> ______________________________________________________________________
> ________
> 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.
>
>
Frank Colson on sat 28 may 05
Janine- To get a full understanding of the firing and functioning of a
downdraft kiln, just go to my site (below), and scroll down on the opening
page, click on KILN THEORY. The first section is on "updraft" kilns, but
continue scrolling for what you are looking for below that title.. Enjoy,
this information is based on years of practical experience.
Frank Colson
www.R2D2u.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Janine LaMaie"
To:
Sent: Friday, May 27, 2005 4:29 PM
Subject: Best Book(s) on Gas Firing?
> Hello Clayart!
>
> I'm near completion of a 1,000 sq. ft. studio, and am more excited than
> words can express to be moving all my stuff to a new playhouse. The
> building was conceived by the desire to have a gas kiln. This weekend will
> see the chimney and hood installed so that I can take delivery of a small
> (20 cu. ft.) custom-made downdraft. I'm behind schedule, so the kilnmaker
> will be pleased to get mine out of his workshop, I'm sure.
>
> The building has been a learning experience, as I'm within the city limits
> of Tacoma, WA. I've gone through an interesting permitting process.
>
> Now the real learning begins, as I've NEVER fired a gas kiln! (not
counting
> my one-burner raku.) I trust that my clay supplier, through whom I made
the
> purchase, will provide assistance in learning to operate the thing, but
I'm
> hoping to educate myself a little before I jump into the fire.
>
> I've just purchased The Art of Firing by Nils Lou, and have many other
> general ceramics references. Can any of you recommend others that feature
> the basics of gas firing? I'm hoping there are more out there that can
offer
> help to a rank beginner.
>
> I look forward to hearing from any of you - on- or off-list.
>
> Many thanks in advance!
>
> Janine
>
>
____________________________________________________________________________
__
> 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.
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