Patricia on wed 24 may 06
I just put new elements into an old Skutt 235, using new Skutt elements.
This was quit a labor intensive job, due to the age of the kiln. Anyway, I
put in a cone 04 in the kilnsitter to fire the kiln empty for oxidizing the
elements. Everything was fine until all switches were on high for about an
hour or so, then the kiln turned off (shorted out). At first I only saw that
the power light had turned off, but then noticed that the bar had not
dropped. After cooling the kiln a bit, I opened it up, turned on the
switches, and saw that the bottom elements were not heating up. What do I do
now? How do I know what caused the short? Guess I'll be taking it apart
tomorrow. Thanks for any ideas. This is my first time changing elements.
Patricia
Arnold Howard on thu 25 may 06
----- Original Message -----
From: "Patricia"
After cooling the kiln a bit, I opened it up, turned on the
> switches, and saw that the bottom elements were not
> heating up. What do I do
> now? How do I know what caused the short? Guess I'll be
> taking it apart
> tomorrow. Thanks for any ideas. This is my first time
> changing elements.
Patricia, I would first unplug the kiln, open the switch
box, and visually inspect the wiring.
Since the kiln didn't shut off immediately after you turned
it on, the short may be due to either the element burning
out or to a loose connection.
Contamination in an element groove could burn out a new
element. You may have to look into the groove with a dental
mirror to find contamination. It will be a discolored spot.
An ohmmeter is an inexpensive aid in finding a broken
element. If you don't have an ohmmeter, you could also use a
test light.
If you have lost an element, just chalk it up to the cost of
education in kiln repair. I hope you let us know what you
find out.
Sincerely,
Arnold Howard
Paragon Industries, L.P., Mesquite, Texas USA
ahoward@paragonweb.com / www.paragonweb.com
William & Susan Schran User on thu 25 may 06
On 5/24/06 11:12 PM, "Patricia" wrote:
> After cooling the kiln a bit, I opened it up, turned on the
> switches, and saw that the bottom elements were not heating up. What do I do
> now? How do I know what caused the short? Guess I'll be taking it apart
> tomorrow. Thanks for any ideas. This is my first time changing elements.
When you open the control box on the bottom section, check to be sure you
replaced the porcelain insulators and the element pigtail is not touching
the metal skin of the kiln, or that the connections are tight. If not tight,
you can get arcing, which will burn up the connection, the lead wire comes
off and touches the metal control box - short!
-- William "Bill" Schran
Fredericksburg, Virginia
wschran@cox.net
wschran@nvcc.edu
Lynn Goodman Porcelain Pottery on thu 25 may 06
Your relays may not be tight enough. Try replacing any that have
burned, and screw in the connections REALLY TIGHT. I'm not able to get
mine tight enough, so I always have someone strong help me on this.
Lynn
Lynn Goodman
Fine Porcelain Pottery
548 Court St.
Brooklyn, NY 11231
718-858-6920
Cell 347-526-9805
www.lynngoodmanporcelain.com
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