ClayChris Posted April 6, 2017 Report Share Posted April 6, 2017 I just got a little Firecraft P-1317 . There is no max temp anywhere on it and no documentation (only for the PerfectFire controller). It's a 240V, 20Amp, 17.5"W x 13.5"H. I have looked everywhere on the net for info. Does anyone here have an idea of what this kiln is rated for? I generally work ^6 stoneware and would like to use it for that. Any and all thoughts are greatly appreciated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Allen Posted April 6, 2017 Report Share Posted April 6, 2017 According to http://www.firecraftkilns.com/, PSH of Canada aquired all of Firecraft's assets back in 2004. So you might try contracting them to see if they can share any information on your kiln -- http://psh.ca/Industrial%20Site/indexkf.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClayChris Posted April 6, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 6, 2017 Yes thank you Tim. I already have and they are awesome as usual. Unfortunately, they only have the info on the controller which they had already sent. I actually just received an email now from them that it 'should be' capable of cone 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Allen Posted April 6, 2017 Report Share Posted April 6, 2017 OK, here's a quick calculation.... heat is lost from the kiln essentially as a function of the surface area of the chamber, at a rate that is determined by the insulation (e.g. thickness of the brick as well as what kind of brick). Your kiln (assuming a rectangular volume 17.5"wide x 17.5" deep x 13.5" high) has a surface area of 1557.5 square inches. At 4800 watts heating power (20 amps at 240 volts), that works out to just over 3.08 watts per square inch. (if your kiln is round, 17.5 diameter by 13.5 high, then your surface area is 1222.6 square inches, which means you've got 3.93 watts of heating power per square inch). Our Gare 2318 (round kiln 23" in diameter, 18 inches deep) has a surface area of 2130.5 square inches. It is rated at 7200 watts heating power (30 amps at 240 volts), so that works out to 3.38 watts per square inch. Our kiln is made of standard 2.5 inch brick. We understand ours is supposed to be able to achieve cone 6, but we only use it for bisque so don't know how high it can actually go (we got it 2nd or 3rd hand). So if your brick is similar (2.5 inches), I would guess that the "should be capable of cone 6" advice is probably close.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClayChris Posted April 7, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 7, 2017 I hadn't considered a calculated comparison - thank you so much! That's a handy one to have...I've added it to my notes. It's a little round one with standard 2.5" bricking so I should be fine reaching cone 6. I'll keep a close eye on it especially near the end and perhaps do a slow firing. Without access to any documentation the "Do not exceed ----Degrees" is still a consideration. Never had a melt-down and don't want to start now Thanks for the great info Tim! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Allen Posted April 7, 2017 Report Share Posted April 7, 2017 Yeah, my comparative analysis doesn't address what the max temperature is that the kiln materials can withstand (the "do not exceed" threshold), only whether you've got enough heating power to get there.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.