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How Big Of A Bucket Do I Need?


Stellaria

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My apologies, this is probably the dumbest of basic questions!

 

I have 5 lbs of a dry glaze mix. About how big of a bucket do I need to get to mix it up? I dip-glaze mugs, so I know I don't want a 5 gal because that would make the level too low for good dunking, right?

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I would have a look around your house for something like a narrow small wastebasket or something of that shape. 5 lbs of dry glaze isn't going to make very much glaze. Find something just wide enough to fit your mug in without the handle banging into the side. I would pour the inside then hold the mug upside down and dip the outside, touch up any finger marks at the bottom. (if the mugs are thin you might need to let the inside glaze dry overnight before dipping the outside so the glaze layer on the outside is thick enough) Unless your mugs are small I don't think 5 lbs of dry glaze will make enough wet glaze to use tongs and dip, it's awkward to dip using a narrow mouthed bucket and I'm guessing this amount of glaze won't be deep enough to dip in with a wider mouthed pail or bucket. 

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You gotta convert pounds to grams. A one gallon ice cream pail will hold 1000 grams of glaze. A 5 gallon bucket will hold 6,000 to 10,000 grams of liquid glaze, give or take depending on how thick the glaze is.

TJR.

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5 lbs will give you about one gallon of glaze; a two-gallon bucket, depending on width, may be too shallow to dunk. You might need to store the glaze in one bucket, then dump it into a large bowl or other container for use when glazing (but one deep enough to allow you to dunk the item).

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Mixing instructions from Mid-South:

 

"Opulence Glaze sold in powder form will need to be mixed with the correct amount of water and sieved through an 80 mesh screen. Basic Ratio of powder glaze to water by weight is 1 lb of powder glaze to 0.9 lbs of water. 5lb example: In One Gallon container, add 5lb of dry glaze to 4.5 lbs of water (9 cups). 25lb example: In Five Gallon container, add 25lb of dry glaze to 22.5 lb of water (45 cups). *Always add dry glaze to water. * Avoid breathing dust of any dry glaze. Wear appropriate respirator when mixing glaze and work in a well-ventilated area."

 

Each glaze will be a bit different, so you'll need to adjust water portion accordingly. You really need a container larger than 1 gallon to allow for stirring with drill/mixer. I prefer adding half water, then glaze, then rest of water. Keeps dust down and allows for slaking of glaze.

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Agree with Biskit, rough estimate is 1 lb. dry mix equals 1 pint( 2 cups) of wet glaze

 

10,000 grams= 22 lbs = 'about' 31/2 gallons of finished mix.  This enough for a 5  gallon bucket.  You need mixing room and room for displacement when dipping.

I would have a hard time dipping mugs in that small an amount of glaze. ( 5 lbs. dry)

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For most of my glazes I can only fit 8,500- 9,000 grams into a 5 gallon bucket. It leaves only a few inches at the top for dipping. It will vary depending on the glaze formula. Glazes higher in clay, feldspar or Gerstley will hold more water, therefore requiring a smaller batch. Glazes that have a lot of colorant or opacifier added will also require smaller batch sizes since you're adding so much on top of the 100%.

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