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Glaze Chemical Containers - Help!


TonyC

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Hello All

 

I have spent the past several months reviewing various Cone 6 recipes (too many books and websites) so as to enter into making my own glazes.   I reduced my list to a specific few, calculated my initial needs, and just came home with several bags of chemicals.   I realize how important storage is, and now find myself ignorant as to where to get reliable containers for the various oxides, fluxes, etc..   

 

Can anyone offer any insight as to the best places to buy various chemical containers?   I have found a few sites on the internet, but would prefer to use sources that are proven reliable.   Thank you for any and all insight on this subject.   Thank you.

 

Tony

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I go to the local supermarket's deli department, they have a variety of sizes of once used containers I can get for free. I made a point of gifting a mug to one of the workers who keeps an eye out for the sizes I like best.

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I admit that I am somewhat obsessive about storage and organization. I really like these clear plastic "closet boxes" from The Container Store. The "Deep Sweater Box" will hold a 50lb bag of something fluffy like EPK. The small "Accessory Box" is perfect for oxides and things bought in small quantities. And there are several useful sizes in between. I like that they are clear which allows me to see what's in them, and how much. Most of mine are 15 yrs old, and in like new condition.

 

https://www.containerstore.com/s/closet/storage-boxes-bins/our-clear-storage-boxes/12d?productId=11004743

 

 

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For 50lb bags of materials I found some of these at a garage sale. I like that I can scoop stuff out without unstacking them and they take up a small footprint of space. (Ikea sells them) I have them in 2 sizes.

sortera-waste-sorting-bin-with-lid-white

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there are wonderful storage containers in the dollar tree stores if you look in the housewares section.  some of the materials you have are in smaller quantities than the others so the shoebox size is useful as well as the clear flat ones that can hold oxides, etc.  if you live in a large enough city, there may be a restaurant supply house selling quart, pint and half pint clearish plastic containers. a "sleeve" of 50 of them sounds like a lot but at about $4 per sleeve are a bargain.  they are great for testing glaze recipes.   if you are in a smaller city, chinese restaurants sometimes have those for carry-out soups.  i have bought a dozen at a time from those places. 

 

mea has labeled hers on tape and i used to do that, also.  however, if you write directly on the clear plastic containers with a sharpie, the name should be on both the container and it's lid.  masking tape dries out over time and can fall off.  if you need to change the words on a particular container, a spray of cheap hairspray on the letters will allow you to wipe them off with a cotton ball.  sometimes you decide to buy a larger quantity and change containers.

 

for large quantities, 50 pound bags, rubbermaid totes work well for many years.  i personally dislike sterilite brand because they are brittle and crack easily.  whatever you choose, a couple of scoops from the pet section at walmart are very helpful in removing the material cleanly from the containers.

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I like the idea of getting free containers! I have bought Sterilite snap lid garbage cans to hold full bags. My kiln shed has some issues with debris falling (small dark specks of who knows what) that I don't want falling into my chemicals, and these seem to keep the best seal. My best source is Target for around $10 each.

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It might be a good a idea to take pictures of the label and other pertinent information for reordering or searching for a compatible/replacement product in the future. I wont remember once that bag is gone and a decade has gone by.

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These are all great ideas!   Thank you very much.   I also like to highly organize and therefore like the idea of similar containers.    My "studio" or rather work space is in my garage and I wondered if I need to worry about moisture and having air tight containers.   I like Min's bin and the ability to not have to unstack them to get to the chemical, but would I need to keep airtight plastic bags of chemicals inside? 

 

Also, I may not need larger bins at this time as I am just beginning this process.   However, I also don't want to buy several 'smaller' containers that I will need to throw away in a year.  Is there a reasonable size to start with (based on the chemical)?   Here is a website that I found with various container sizes (70 oz, etc):   https://www.containerandpackaging.com/item/B510

 

Just when you thought I had no more questions...   :)    Thank you all.

 

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My "studio" or rather work space is in my garage and I wondered if I need to worry about moisture and having air tight containers.   

 

Depends on how humid your environment is. My summers are very humid but my winters are very dry. I find that airtight containers are not necessary for most things. But there are some materials that will clump hard if in a humid setting. I keep my Soda Ash in a zip-lock type bag, rather than the boxes I mentioned above, for this reason. But everything else is fine in a non-airtight box. 

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sizes depend on what you are using. Right now I am working with chlorides in 100 -250 gram purchases. They come in resealable envelopes that I store together in an air tight plastic container. Others come in air tight plastic jars...they would corrode metal.

I clay body chemicals are on a pallet outside covered with a tarp. 50-100 pound sacks.

Glaze chemicals are usually purchased in 25-50 pound sacks. I keep them in the plastic drawers. Colorants: metallic oxides are usually purchased in 1-5 pound quantities. I also have several shelves of mason stains in plastic envelopes. Some are 40 years old. I got some Drakenfeld and Standard Ceramic stains, free samples  in 1972 in grad school. I still have a few. I had a grant in the late 1970s and purchased mason stains. I have been adding to those colors over the years.I used them on porcelain. Mason stains are /were purchased in 1/4-1 pound quantities.

So you have to think about what quantities you'll be using or purchasing before you get the uniform storage containers.

Marcia

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My "studio" or rather work space is in my garage and I wondered if I need to worry about moisture and having air tight containers.   

 

Depends on how humid your environment is. My summers are very humid but my winters are very dry. I find that airtight containers are not necessary for most things. But there are some materials that will clump hard if in a humid setting. I keep my Soda Ash in a zip-lock type bag, rather than the boxes I mentioned above, for this reason. But everything else is fine in a non-airtight box. 

 

Thanks.   I live in MA where we can get humid in the summer months as well (especially in Pioneer Valley).   Better to be safe, I guess without being too 'over the top'.   

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sizes depend on what you are using. Right now I am working with chlorides in 100 -250 gram purchases. They come in resealable envelopes that I store together in an air tight plastic container. Others come in air tight plastic jars...they would corrode metal.

I clay body chemicals are on a pallet outside covered with a tarp. 50-100 pound sacks.

Glaze chemicals are usually purchased in 25-50 pound sacks. I keep them in the plastic drawers. Colorants: metallic oxides are usually purchased in 1-5 pound quantities. I also have several shelves of mason stains in plastic envelopes. Some are 40 years old. I got some Drakenfeld and Standard Ceramic stains, free samples  in 1972 in grad school. I still have a few. I had a grant in the late 1970s and purchased mason stains. I have been adding to those colors over the years.I used them on porcelain. Mason stains are /were purchased in 1/4-1 pound quantities.

So you have to think about what quantities you'll be using or purchasing before you get the uniform storage containers.

Marcia

Thanks Marcia.   I need to break down what I anticipate.   I also need to get a better idea as to what size container can hold between 1-5 lbs of materials.   Everything I have currently are still in bags, so I need to get a feel for container size needed.   Thanks for your insight.   

 

BTW:  I just realized that the Selsor Faux Celedon recipe I want to make is from YOU.   THANKS!

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My favorite source of free buckets is my dry cleaner.  They purchase laundry detergent in 5 gallon buckets and are happy to give me the empty ones instead of throwing them away.  The best part is that the buckets are clean.  Much better than scavenging used drywall buckets like I did before. 

 

-SD

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My favorite source of free buckets is my dry cleaner.  They purchase laundry detergent in 5 gallon buckets and are happy to give me the empty ones instead of throwing them away.  The best part is that the buckets are clean.  Much better than scavenging used drywall buckets like I did before. 

 

-SD

I will have to look into this one.   Interesting.  Thx

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For the big stuff  like the 50# bags that the material come in I just leave it in the bags and use a scoop. For small stuff I use 4 gallon tins and 1 gallon plastic jars . I got them all free in the 70's.

I do not spend much time reprocessing materials -I feel my time is better spent elsewhere .my 2 cents

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For 50lb bags of materials I found some of these at a garage sale. I like that I can scoop stuff out without unstacking them and they take up a small footprint of space. (Ikea sells them) I have them in 2 sizes.

sortera-waste-sorting-bin-with-lid-white

These are really nice and not that expensive.   I saw a Rubbermaid for $150-$200.  Crazy

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