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Hi, I have an old AIM 1718 manual kiln with LT3 kiln sitter that I acquired a few years ago but have never used. I take classes and use their kiln but they only do low fire and I would like to be able to do mid-range stoneware work. I have never fired a kiln myself but have been reading up on the basics. The kiln I have appears to be in relatively good shape, clean, a few small areas of firebrick have fallen out but are available for patching to keep the elements from sagging. A blank section, shorter, with no elements or switches, etc. appears to have been added to the 2 sections.this kiln comes with. It is rated at 230 volts and 20 amps. Would my dryer circuit be able to handle this or would I need a dedicated circuit added? I have the kin in my garage which is where the dryer is located. If it would work on my dryer circuit, what should I look for in a test firing? How does the extra blank section affect firing? Does it take longer to heat, etc? What would I use to patch the areas of loose firebrick? Also, I will be needing shelves, posts, etc. Is it a good idea to look for used or not and if so, what should I look out for? Any other suggestions from folks out there?

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Hi, I have an old AIM 1718 manual kiln with LT3 kiln sitter that I acquired a few years ago but have never used. I take classes and use their kiln but they only do low fire and I would like to be able to do mid-range stoneware work. I have never fired a kiln myself but have been reading up on the basics. The kiln I have appears to be in relatively good shape, clean, a few small areas of firebrick have fallen out but are available for patching to keep the elements from sagging. A blank section, shorter, with no elements or switches, etc. appears to have been added to the 2 sections.this kiln comes with. It is rated at 230 volts and 20 amps. Would my dryer circuit be able to handle this or would I need a dedicated circuit added? I have the kin in my garage which is where the dryer is located. If it would work on my dryer circuit, what should I look for in a test firing? How does the extra blank section affect firing? Does it take longer to heat, etc? What would I use to patch the areas of loose firebrick? Also, I will be needing shelves, posts, etc. Is it a good idea to look for used or not and if so, what should I look out for? Any other suggestions from folks out there?

You can repair bricks with this kit from L$L

http://www.hotkilns.com/brick-repair-kit

If you use a dead ring it slows down the firing -any firing.

As to your Dryer curcuit what breaker size is it now (or better yet what wire size?)

If your dryer curcuit has other things on it -I would not use it.

Mark

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If you have the pieces of bricks that have broken, just use some element pins to hold them in place. When it comes time to replace the elements, replace the entire brick at that point. Kiln cement will most likely not hold the pieces in place, and you'll probably get cement on the elements which is not a good thing. Also pin the elements where the broken grooves are to keep them from flopping out.

 

If the kiln is rated for 20 amps, it will need a 30 amp breaker. Your clothes dry may or may not work for that, and the plugs may not be the same. I would have an electrician check it al out before doing anything. Do not change out the plug on your kiln unless it's rated for the same amperage, and has the same number of prongs. Some of those older small kilns use a 4 prong plug. Either way, for 2 or 3 pole circuits you can only have one outlet on the circuit, so you'll have to unplug the dryer when using the kiln. If it does work out that you can use the dryer outlet, go ahead and fire it up. If it hits temp then it works.

 

As for the blank ring, if it's a sectional kiln that has an added blank ring, then the maximum temperature of the kiln will be much lower than without the blank ring. For instance, a cone 10, 7 cubic foot kiln like a Skutt 1027 with an added 4.5" blank ring drops to cone 1. Some kilns have a blank section built into them, in which case the temperature rating on the serial plate will still apply.

 

Make sure the kiln is 18" from anything combustible and 12" from anything not combustible.

 

You'll need shelves and posts. Get them locally if you can since they're expensive to ship.

 

Call Aim if you have specific questions about that kiln.

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There are so many plug configurations-you need the amperage to be corect for both plug and receptacle and also sized to your wire and breakers.

If this is all greek to you hire an electrician as its critical for fire safety.Are you planning on not using your dryer?as well or something else?

Neils advice is spot on.

Mark

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Does the plug on the kiln currently fit into your existing dryer outlet? If so, you're probably good to go, but it wouldn't hurt to have an electrician verify everything. You never know when some crazy cracker did a hack DIY job...as a fer-instance, my mother had aluminum wiring in one spot (a fire hazard) and our house came with the wrong size wire on our hot water heater (it went kaput shortly after we moved in, which is how we knew, since the company wouldn't replace the tank until we changed the wire).

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