mousey Posted November 15, 2016 Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 Hey all, Ive been using silver nitrate at about 1-3% concentration in some reduction glazes. I know silver nitrate is highly toxic in its raw form, but how safe are the pieces to handle after firing? Not in terms of 'food safe' but in terms of just handling an ornamental piece? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mousey Posted November 15, 2016 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 The pieces are being fired to just under ^08, if that means anything here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MatthewV Posted November 15, 2016 Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 If I recall correctly, even silver nitrate isn't overly harmful. It will turn your skin black. Most forms of silver metal are safe for people, especially in the form of trace exposure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mousey Posted November 15, 2016 Author Report Share Posted November 15, 2016 Fantastic, thank you very much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bananna Posted April 23, 2019 Report Share Posted April 23, 2019 Hi, not sure how old this post is but I have questions regarding silver nitrate glazes and light sensitivity. Last fall I glazed a number of bisque fired pieces with a gold raku glaze (that contains silver nitrate) then my kiln broke down and I wasn't able to fire everything that day. My kiln is located quite a distance from my home so the kiln break down meant I couldn't fire on that trip --- flash forward to six months later. I'm about to go fix the kiln and fire at the end of the week. Those pieces from last fall have been sitting in a closed cardboard box for that long. The spots that had the gold glaze on them are now, as expected, dark brown. First question - I realize that the silver nitrate is light sensitive as it turns colour quite quickly but does that mean that it loses its effect completely? I read somewhere that even when it had turned colour it was still usable - that came from the internet - so it must be true LOL - Anyone have any thoughts/knowledge on this? My plan was to reglaze the pieces - just putting more glaze on top - then firing as usual. I figure if nothing else it will be a grand experiment. It would be great if I could engineer it enough to end up with something sellable though. So the questions... Should I try to remove the old glaze? I'm worried that if I try to wash them then the old glaze will get on the whole piece instead of just where I put it and make a bit of a mess of things. Should I try to scrape it off? Is it worth the persnickety work that would be? If there's any good advice out there - I'd love to hear it. Thanks in advance Anna Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.