Ginny C Posted June 13, 2015 Report Share Posted June 13, 2015 I just dipped a mug in the Laguna Robin's Egg glaze I mixed several months ago from dry...and added bentonite to. Today the glaze seemed a bit too thick in the bucket so I added a bit of water and several drops of Glaze Thinner (forget what brand it is) until it seemed okay. (I've used this glaze many times before and never had any problems.) Two hours ago I dipped a bisqued mug (Laguna B-Mix cone 5 clay bisqued to cone 04) The glaze has stayed wet in places and run some into thick drips. If it ever dries (it's now outside on top of my hot kiln), I will try to brush and scrape it back to an even thickness, but I'm afraid it's starting to crack in places. I know I might have to wash it off and let the mug dry overnight, but in some places it looks fine. (I'd sure like to make it work. This is a special mug for my artist son...i'm going to write "breathe" on the side, at his request!) Why did the glaze do this? What do I need to add to it? Thanks, folks! And John, I tried to find info on this in your FAQ, but I cannot tell from the very abbreviated topics shown what each is really about. Could you put the whole topic title in that list? And when I google glaze problems in application I see only glaze defects that show up after firing. Ginny Clark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chantay Posted June 13, 2015 Report Share Posted June 13, 2015 I talked about this in my post last week on "spotty glazes." I think after sitting for awhile the glaze becomes over flocculated. To correct you need a deflocculant. I used Darvan 7. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted June 13, 2015 Report Share Posted June 13, 2015 I think you have added something besides water to the glaze. If you want it thinned add just water. I suggest washing the mug -then dry it and start over as you said you wanted it done right. You will need to get the glaze adjusted before dipping the mug-test with broken bisque wares. You may even want to mix up a new batch of glaze with only water. Glazes should not be so thick that they do not dry. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldlady Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 don't forget that for dipping, it helps to dampen the pot before applying the glaze. if you try to dip or brush a normal glaze onto a very dry bisque pot, the dry surface grabs the liquid and it winds up too thick. just dunk it into a bucket of clean water for a second and put it down while you get ready to dip it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ginny C Posted June 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 Thanks, old lady. (Bet I'm older...) I did forget to rinse it, which I usually do, as I'd sanded, rinsed and waxed the day before. That and the glaze being a bit too thick in the bucket I think were the problems. It finally dried and I rubbed off the thickest parts. Rubbed also where it had cracked a bit. Here in the midwest we have been blessed with so much rain lately that the humidity is close to 100% I think. I'll wait till tomorrow to fire this batch to be sure all are dry. Wish someone would figure out a way to send some of our surplus water out west! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alabama Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 I don't believe in thick glazes. Or glaze "thinners", I don't have many issues with many of the 30 glazes at the community college. My knuckles are hairy enough to dip in glazes to test the thickness. I add enough water for the hairs to break loose before any dipping occurs. The amount of water might be a quart up to a gallon...just whatever it takes. For cups, I twist my arm, pour about 1/2 to 3/4 to the top then, as the arm untwists, pour the glaze out as fast as possible. Then, grasping the cup with two fingers and one opposable thumb I dip the rest of the cup in and out as fast as possible. If the glaze is the right consistency it soaks in the bisque and starts drying in à minute or two. When some of my early pieces were dipped too thick, while the glaze looked too thick, the glaze proved it by crawling and causing separation where it was too thick. So wash off the glaze, allow the cup to dry and start over, per Marks instruction. See ya, Alabà ma Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Min Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 Alabama, you dip your hands in glaze buckets without wearing gloves? Hope there is nothing nasty in any of those 30 buckets of glazes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alabama Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 Hey Min, I really don't like to, but if the glaze looks like a Wendy's Frosty, I start adding water, til it passes the buttermilk thickness, to the chocolate milk thickness. Somewhere between the chocolate milk and skim milk thickness, I might dip my hand in once, then I start making notes from dipping bisqueware in the glaze.. Since I put the date on each vessel, the notes will look like: Bowl w/lug handles....4/16/2015...yellow gold Plain bowl....3/31/2015...yellow gold plus one cup water. Stein...4/18/2015...yellow gold plus one quart water. This way the vessels become test tiles... Each time I mix the water into the glaze I'll shake the whisks off and watch how the drips are absorbed back into the glaze. Some of the glazes appear better on the red stoneware clays when thinned. And of course the thinned glazes don't run either. If I want it appear that glazes have been thick enough to run, I'll dribble slip on the leather hard vessel and let dry, so when glazed it appears that the glaze ran but its only glazed slip that has been applied and feathered back. When I started out in ceramics way back when, I remember having to reach down to the bottom of the 5 gallon buckets and having glaze up to the elbows. But now I can't remember why we did that other than finding out if the glaze was fully mixed. I realize now that's a big no no in today's ceramic class, and it is not acceptable. Hope this helps. Alabama Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GiselleNo5 Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 Robin's Egg is one of my favorite glazes but it tends to be finicky! I have a beautiful little plate that I made, dipped at my friend's studio, but she has so many problems with that glaze plus it tends to drip and crawl because it gets too thick very quickly. I think it's worth the trouble, personally, because it almost has a silvery, opalescent sheen to it when it comes out properly. Something I've done before is put the piece in the oven on a cookie sheet on very low, 200, to dry out thoroughly. This is mostly a problem when I'm refiring and it's wet over fired glaze which takes forever to dry. I don't know if this is a bad pottery habit (!) but if not it may help when you have that much humidity. I let it cool before putting it in the kiln. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldlady Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 i thought every potter has a hairdryer hanging somewhere in the studio. if not a heatgun. sounds like a perfect opportunity to use one or the other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted June 14, 2015 Report Share Posted June 14, 2015 As far as puting your hands in glaze -if you make your own you will know whats in the the bucket and how they should be handled. For many years as a tec at collage I never wore gloves(nobody did) -that would be thru the 70'sand 80's as well as a production potter thru these years. In the 90's I started to wear gloves-mainly to keep the iron off the skin and to keep my hands from getting so dryed out. Most of my glazes are user friendly but I wear latex gloves always on glaze day. Back in the early 70's we leaned to tell how to judge the thickness by the way the glaze ran off our hands-I still have this skill but now I use other tools to gauge this. I have no drying tools in studio except for a heater in winter months. I do use the sun to dry things sometimes. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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