fordtruckey Posted November 2, 2015 Report Share Posted November 2, 2015 Is it safe or unwise to fire an electric kiln in a garage during the freezing winter months? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Coyle Posted November 2, 2015 Report Share Posted November 2, 2015 As long as the kiln is wired properly and away from walls and combustible materials, it should be OK. Lots of people have kilns in their garage. If the reference to winter months means that there will be no ventilation, then maybe you need to stay out of the garage while it's firing, or vent it outside. A lot depends on the glazes you are using. Some release products that you don't want to breath. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pres Posted November 2, 2015 Report Share Posted November 2, 2015 I do it all the time. garage will heat up, make certain nothing near kiln, I usually figure 2 ft clearance just for safety. No flammable liquids near kiln, or loose paper, rags etc. These things should be a given all of the time. If you think it gets too hot in there raise a window, or open a door. I find that time after kiln is firing is good time to get some work done in the shop. Nice and toasty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Min Posted November 2, 2015 Report Share Posted November 2, 2015 If it gets really below freezing then you might need to warm up the controller, if your kiln has one, with a hair dryer or small space heater before starting it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bciskepottery Posted November 2, 2015 Report Share Posted November 2, 2015 Electric kiln controllers may not work properly under really cold conditions . . . many are not recommended to be used below 32F. Check your manual. If you do not heat your garage, you can put a small space heater next the controller area to warm things up. Once the kiln is going and up in temperature, you will not need the space heater. Also watch for condensation in your kiln vent tubing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joseph Fireborn Posted November 3, 2015 Report Share Posted November 3, 2015 I fired mine all winter last winter with my garage door cracked about 5 inches. It is a two car garage. I never had any problems or noticed any slowing down of firing. My coolings were much faster though. I live in Georgia though, and we rarely have temps below freezing except a few weeks of the year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shelly M Posted January 7, 2016 Report Share Posted January 7, 2016 I am embarking on my first kiln purchase (electric.) It will be kept in a large workshop (70'x28'x12'high) The shop has small roof vents (2 ft. square.) Is it necessary to buy a kiln venting system or is the large open space with roof vents adequate? Also, I will be firing during winter months here in the mountains. Is there much benefit to using a 'kiln blanket' to wrap around the kiln to keep it from cooling down too quickly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MatthewV Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 I will guess that most people wouldn't want to answer the above question without erring on the cautious side. I personally like venting kilns even if it isn't needed. It is easier to fire without worrying about bungs being open. I also don't want to breath traces of airborne copper, sulfur, and whatnot that gets into the air if I can avoid it. Do you need to? Even if you are firing frequently I do not believe you will notice in a space that size. For the first few firings I exhausted an 8 cu ft kiln to a room about 40'x20' and 12' and just tried to reach peak temperatures when I wasn't around. It never smelled bad. If you do notice and find it annoying it is possible to install the vent afterwards. I wouldn't worry about cooling too fast in an any indoor location. The benefit of extra insulation is to lower the electrical usage. Clay shouldn't be left to freeze so I am assuming that you are staying above freezing at all times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shelly M Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 Thank you. I appreciate the feedback! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joseph Fireborn Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 You really want to vent a kiln not just for your safety but for the quality of the wares inside as well. A vent is very cheap in the long term of things. Think a few hundred dollars to buy a commercial one or less to build your own. They are not very complicated at all. It is worth it to know that once your vent is installed right you wont be breathing in stuff that is floating around in your studio. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhPotter Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 As Joseph said, the quality of the wares will be much better if you vent the electric kiln which is of course an oxidation atmosphere - meaning it likes oxygen. These were glazed from the same glaze batch buckets. Picture on the left is without vent. Picture on the right is vented. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted January 8, 2016 Report Share Posted January 8, 2016 Do not wrap anything around your kiln! If you need to slow down the cooling rate, then do a controlled cooling in the firing program. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.