sherleytucker Posted February 11, 2012 Report Share Posted February 11, 2012 I recently lost my home and studio due to foreclosure. During better days I had purchased both a gas and electric kiln for stoneware ceramics. Unable to quickly sell the gas kiln, I donated it to a charitable educational service organization, presuming I would be able to easily have 220 wiring installed for the electric kiln. However, the local power company which provides underground wiring, is requiring greater electrical capacity and the cost for trenching, 3-inch conduit, new power box, etc., etc. comes to $6,000-$7,000. I am searching for optional power sources. The electric kiln is a Bailey with Model P kilnsitter. It pulls 63 amps. Would a generator be feasible? Any other ideas or suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted February 12, 2012 Report Share Posted February 12, 2012 Thats a yes-with reservations I have a backup generator that is run on natural gas that is a 7kw-maxium 50 amps-it has 10 curcuits-its a generac brand-its not a portable needs a concrete base and is wired into house curcuits You can get one that is say-10-12 kw and check the specs to see max amps-an has 220 volts output Several suggestions are in order here first First making your own power costs a lot more than the power companys power Especially gasoline run You will need to upsize the amps so as not to be near its maximum output as kilns on high have a constant draw If you are renting this would not be worth it I suggest renting a large trailerable generator to try out first to see how you like one-they are noisy Get a diesel one if you can for fuel cost savings Feeding this gas will not be fun The size you will need will be a big boy I have rented a large 3 phase for a commercial dive job on was on a few years ago- it had all you would need amp wise except 3 phase is not what you need It was cheap for a week at a tool rental yard. One other option is you can combine two generators for double output-hondas have that option-I think they are not rated with enough amps for your needs with a 220 outlet. If this is not a rental and its your permanent place the ditch and wire and box makes the most sense-Use Direct Burial Duct-its cheaper -lighter thin wall-than schedule 80 but cannot be used above ground-use 80 on the sweeps up above ground(check local codes on its use)-aluminum wire will also save you some$ I have worked as an electrician in my life. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJR Posted February 12, 2012 Report Share Posted February 12, 2012 I just built my new studio and of course had to wire it. The question is;Do you rent or own? I was going to have to trench from the studio to the house, but the circuit box was too small for my 220 line for the kiln.[in the house] I ended up running a separate line from the hydro pole in the back. Also has a separate meter. I am not connected to the house at all. Mark is correct. You don't want to be constantly filling a generator with gas of deisel. What if the tank runs dry during a firing? Hope this helps.TJR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Posted February 12, 2012 Report Share Posted February 12, 2012 As others have said it would cost a lot in petrol or diesel compared to utility supplied electricity. Have you considered converting the kiln to gas operation - I haven't done this myself, but have seen online and in books where people have converted an electric kiln to gas. Obviously you'd need to make sure any conversion was carried out to proper standards for gas fitting and ventilation. I guess a place to start would be to get some data on generators, get some figures on efficency, and work out how often you'd fire the kiln. A quote from Wikipedia on Diesel generators: Fuel consumption is the major portion of diesel plant owning and operating cost for power applications, whereas capital cost is the primary concern for backup generators. Specific consumption varies, but a modern diesel plant will consume between 0.28 and 0.4 litres of fuel per kilowatt hour at the generator terminals. So, if your 63 amp at 220v kiln takes about 8 hours to fire at 75% load on average, then you'll use (63a * 220v * 8 * .75) = 83.2kWh. So using the worst case from the quote above, it would be (83.2 * 0.4) = 33.3 litres of fuel. That is about 8.8 US gallons. I expect the Wikipedia article I quoted refers to large generators like building site plant etc, and of course with any generator you have the maintenance to attend to including oil changes etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Randall's sculpture Posted February 13, 2012 Report Share Posted February 13, 2012 . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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