timbo_heff

You can supplement best practice of minimal dust with wet wiping with an air filter. This is a good HEPA rated one: it is small but affordable. If you are being good about not creating tons of dust this would be helpful in cleaning the micro particles out of the air. There are large filters for big spaces but for a small home studio these are great: Austin Air HealthMate | Hepa Filter Air Purifier | Sheffield Pottery (sheffield-pottery.com)

I like the Olympic Electrositter. Pop off the Kiln sitter: put this where the kiln sitter was, connect a couple wires: pretty easy! By default it comes with the capable Bartlett 3 key controller but for small money you can select the 12 key version: much friendlier or even the newest Bartlett Touch wifi enabled controller: Electro Sitter | Kiln Controller | Sheffield Pottery (sheffield-pottery.com)

Wow. that is rough! I agree with Neil et al: not worth the trouble and expense: if you want a small kiln for hobby pottery at home you can get a nice, brand new little Evenheat that will be fun and satisfying for about the same money as fixing that one: Thinking of something like the Evenheat RMII 1413 : nice kiln: small money, no fuss! Evenheat RM II 1413 Cone 8 Kiln | Sheffield Pottery Kilns (sheffield-pottery.com)

I always worry about people outgrowing the 18" height being that 16" is about the tallest pot they can fit. I am not a great thrower but as I get better I can see being able to throw taller than that. So with potters who are not just making tiles, plates, and platters I find that 22.5" is the perfect compromise! I think Olympic had this height first, then Skutt . It's smart that Cone Art, and L&L Kilns have followed suit. So many great options now for people! A really brilliant one is the square Cone Art 2322DSQ: has the 22.5" height but since it is 23" square it is still a full 7 cubic feet with a reasonably small footprint! I think L&L might have a Davinci in this size but not sure off the top of my head.

The new L&L M size is great for us shorter folks: They are 22.5" as Neil mentioned. I am about 5'5" with shoes on and I struggle to reach the bottom of a regular 3 ring 27" kiln such as e23T or 28T. The 2 ring size worries me as you don't want something you will out grow if you start making taller work. The 2 and 1/2 ring "M" size is MUCH easier to load without really sacrificing much space and still fits pretty tall pots! L&L E23M-3 Easy-Fire Kiln Package | Sheffield Pottery Kilns (sheffield-pottery.com)

That's great advice ! Also stacking tall and loose down low and small and tighter up high is good for evenness in these like it is for single zone electric kilns. They are really cool and versatile kilns once you get to know them... would love to have one myself one day! Olympic Gas Raku and TorchBearer Kilns (sheffield-pottery.com)

Stacking loose and tall down low and tight and small up high can help single zone kilns fire more evenly too!

Couple ways to digitize a kiln sitter kiln: Skutt Wall Mount controller is great but not cheap ($1000+), but the Olympic Electrositter is great too and close to half money: You can get it with 3 key, 12 key or even the Genesis touch Kiln controller. pretty easy too: take off kiln sitter and replace with the Electrositter: just a couple wires; . Electric Kiln Controller | Digital Kiln Controller (sheffield-pottery.com)

I had a great teacher show that by reducing the amount of friction between your fingers and the clay by throwing with just the very tip of one finger on the inside and one on the outside you can move a lot more clay with a lot less water. My pots got a lot lighter, bigger, better, easier and a heck of a lot less messy after absorbing that technique

They often make a noise that is easy to fix: take off the head: if you see a round metal cover that the shaft goes through: slip take that off, put a little grease on it, or if you don't have any: use your finger to pick up a little grease from the bearings there and rub it on the underside of that disc. It doesn't take much. When that disc gets a little dry, it spins with the head rotation and rubs there: common shimpo squeak even on new ones,

Shelf paper is for glass firing: Best practice for kiln wash is 3 fired on coats per below; The prob with the stuff is that you can't flip your shelves which will extend their life. I think better to dry foot, use stilts, and or when you throw the foot area of your pots : leave a little glaze catching edge (but not always practical or aesthetically correct) Here is best practice though: DIRECTIONS FOR USE Kiln wash is applied to kiln shelves to protect them from glaze drips. On a washed shelf, drips can be easily removed without gouging or marring the kiln shelf. Mix the kiln wash with water to a thin cream consistency. Apply only one coat at a time. Use a wide paintbrush or utility brush (a 2" - 3" wide, soft bristle brush generally works best). Three individually firedon coats of kiln wash are preferable. APPLYING KILN WASH 1) Make sure the floor of the kiln and the tops of the shelves are coated with kiln wash. This will protect these surfaces from melting glaze and ceramics. 2) Do not coat the bottom or sides of the shelves. 3) Do not apply kiln wash to the brick sides or element holders. 4) Apply the kiln wash to the thickness of a post card. 5) The only purpose of kiln wash is to prevent any glaze that drips from a piece from sticking to the floor or shelves. This saves both the piece and the floor or shelves. If dripping should occur, simply remove dripping and cover the spot with new kiln wash. 6) When you are applying kiln wash to your shelves for the first time, it helps to dampen the top of your shelves with a wet sponge or a water-filled spray bottle first. This makes the kiln wash go on easier and more evenly. 7) For the kiln wash to really protect the kiln shelves it is best to apply three separate coats. In addition it is best to fire each coating separately. (If you brush one coat on, let it dry and then brush on another, you could actually be brushing off the first in the process, so ideally each coat should be fired on). The shelf can be used while firing the kiln wash on, so theoretically you would put one coat on, load the shelves and do your test firing of the kiln. The second coat would be fired on in the first bisque and the third coat in the second bisque or first glaze (whichever comes next). Fire at least to cone 018 - hot enough to give the kiln wash enough adherence to the shelf to prevent it from coming off in the second coating. Note that some people get away fine without three firings of the kiln wash. However, we include this recommendation as a “best practiceâ€. 8) If you notice that your kiln wash is flaking off, use a paint scraper (or something similar) to remove any loose bits, then reapply kiln wash. If glaze drips ontoyour shelf, use the paint scraper to pop the glaze drip off and clean up any loose areas around the area, then dab some more kiln wash in the bare area. PROGRAM TO QUICKLY DRY KILN WASH Here is a program that will dry the kiln wash in a hurry: In the Vary-Fire section: Press Enter Prog, Press '1' Press Enter, Press '1' Press Enter, Press '60' Press Enter, Press '200' Press Enter, Press '600' (for 6 hours, 400 for 4 hours, 800 for 8 hours etc of hold time at 200 degrees) Press Enter, Press 9999 Press Enter, Press START

An easy trick is a plastic grocery bag: : works nice for signing leather clay with a dull pencil too!