Dani Posted August 20, 2014 Report Share Posted August 20, 2014 Setting up an Evenheat programmable 25x23" electric kiln in a basement room that is 15x20'. Questions: 1. Is it safe to vent to the garage, avoiding drilling through the foundation, and propping open a door to the outside? 2. Are fire retardant boards on the walls in the corner good enough or do we have to put plasterboard on the reat of the walls? 3. Will a fire alarm go off is we fire to Cone 6 and, if so, how far from the kiln should it go? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted August 20, 2014 Report Share Posted August 20, 2014 That's not a particularly small kiln and you are venting harmful gases and they really ought to be vented to the outside. Is there a way to run the vent through the garage but end up outside without the whole door propping routine? At least if the kiln was in the garage it would be crystal clear what was going on, the way you outlined it just sounds like it would be so easy for someone to be working in the garage on something and have no idea that harmful gasses are being piped in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Hertzfeld Posted August 20, 2014 Report Share Posted August 20, 2014 Could you install another dryer-like vent above the foundation and sill? Or perhaps set up a vent through a basement window? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted August 20, 2014 Report Share Posted August 20, 2014 Putting the cement board around the kiln will be good enough. Home smoke alarms usually detect smoke, not heat. But if you've got a more advance system that does sense heat, I would check its settings to see what temperature it will sound the alarm at. If it is near the kiln you may need a fan to keep the heat dissipated at the alarm. I would not vent into the garage. As other have mentioned, consider venting through a basement window, or continuing the duct run through the garage and to the exterior. I'm not sure about that vent in particular, but I know the L&L vent can handle a run of 60 feet with up to four 90 degree bends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dani Posted August 21, 2014 Author Report Share Posted August 21, 2014 Thanks everyone. We will try extending the duct up above the foundation in the garage and through to the outside. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Hertzfeld Posted August 21, 2014 Report Share Posted August 21, 2014 You may not need to go through the garage, there is usually a foot or so of space between the top of foundations and the first floor flooring. Your hot water vent, air conditioning lines, electrical drop, and outside spigots will pass to or from the outside through this space. My dryer exhaust also exits the house this way. If your house is set up this way you can reduce the work and install a vent to the exterior straight from the basement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJR Posted August 21, 2014 Report Share Posted August 21, 2014 Dani; Get a pro to punch a hole through your wall above the foundation. You will get condensation and freezing from the vent, so the higher you place it on the wall, the better. I have two layers of drywall on the walls behind my kiln. That should be enough. You are venting sulfur dioxide, so you probably don't want that in your garage. TJR. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deHues Posted August 21, 2014 Report Share Posted August 21, 2014 And once it is vented out do these fumes rise or do they linger at the altitude where they come out? Should there be a stack up to the roof line? Do these types of fumes fall? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted August 21, 2014 Report Share Posted August 21, 2014 The air coming out the vent will be 150F or less, about like your clothes dryer. As long as it's not venting right onto a sidewalk or deck where people will be you should be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrgpots Posted August 21, 2014 Report Share Posted August 21, 2014 Building code will not allow you to vent it to the garage. The garage has to sealed from the house. If you vent it to the garage, the garage fumes will leak back into the house when the vent is not in use. This sets you up for possible carbon monoxide poisoning from garage fumes if the car is allowed to idle in the garage. Carbon monoxide is heavier than air so the fumes would hug the ground and flow down the vent into the basement. So as mentioned by all, vent it to the outside. Jed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tristan TDH Posted August 22, 2014 Report Share Posted August 22, 2014 I have both of my kilns in my Garage, I have down draft venting on both, exhausting to the outside. I also had an overhead fan vent installed in the garage, also exhausting outside. Even with all this, when I'm doing a glaze firing my garage gets pretty stinky with kiln fumes, no doubt all toxic. My point is that a kiln puts out A LOT of very toxic fumes, even with venting. In my opinion you need to vent directly outside, and you may want to install an additional air exchange vent in the basement to make sure none of the nasties get into your living space. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted August 22, 2014 Report Share Posted August 22, 2014 I have both of my kilns in my Garage, I have down draft venting on both, exhausting to the outside. I also had an overhead fan vent installed in the garage, also exhausting outside. Even with all this, when I'm doing a glaze firing my garage gets pretty stinky with kiln fumes, no doubt all toxic. My point is that a kiln puts out A LOT of very toxic fumes, even with venting. In my opinion you need to vent directly outside, and you may want to install an additional air exchange vent in the basement to make sure none of the nasties get into your living space. You should get very little to no smell off the kiln if your vents are working properly. That said, around 500F degrees wax resist burns off, and sometimes it's more than the vent can handle. But after that you shouldn't have enough fumes to cause any issues. Check to make sure your vent is drawing properly but holding a smoldering match next to the vent hole and seeing if the smoke is drawn in. Also make sure the kiln lid isn't lifting up a bunch as the kiln gets hot, which will spoil the draft of the vent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dale pots Posted October 17, 2014 Report Share Posted October 17, 2014 A lot of good advice to get it outside but still should be 10 ft. from a open window! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted October 17, 2014 Report Share Posted October 17, 2014 really, why do you say that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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