2Relaxed

Ah, thank you for great responses! I obviously have a lot to learn about glaze chemistry, not just try to wing a recipe I get excited about!

I'm trying to understand what percentages mean for each element in a line like this: MgO 0.42* 9.79%w 13.17%m What does "w" stand for beside the first percentage? What does "m" stand for beside the second percentage?

@glazenerd Very nice! Do you think micro-crystals are possible with mica? If I omit the hold and/or don't slow cool?

@glazenerd, I was literally just reading that thread! Too bad the pics are so compressed that I can hardly even make out the crystals on those discs! So the only way to get mica powder you mention is to order it direct from China, is that right? Or are there suppliers in North America?? Edit: Okay, scratch that, some ceramic suppliers have mica 325 mesh in stock. This is exciting!

OK, I guess I'll leave the floor alone. I always have 2 shelves on 1/2" posts on the bottom, and I already have a piece of sheet metal under it that has the vent attached to it. Shouldn't have bothered to change the good for the better with that old kiln paste.... Thank you!

more pics

Here're some pics. I'd still like to know though what I can use to repair...

Hi all, My 25-year new kiln (I got it used) came with hairline cracks in the floor. I fired the kiln several times and had no issues and probably should have left the cracks alone. But. The kiln also came with a container of some sort of repair paste. It must have been around the same age as the kiln, because when I decided to use it to repair the cracks it only made things worse. After I applied it to the cracks, dried and fired the kiln again, the paste bubbled up and detached from the bricks. I was literally able to scrape it off with a trowel. Of course it took parts of the brick

Huh, that's a good idea - to stick your materials for roasting in the kiln together with luster stuff!

That's exactly how it worked (still does!) at the studio I used to hang out at! Toilet brushes and all!

Gotta get me one of those, maybe in a thrift store. I'd take one from my kitchen but I use it quite a bit there.

Cool, thanks Liam! Still finding my way round all the terminology.

Min, thank you. You're right. I don't know why the term "calcine" got stuck in my head, the recipe calls for 1000F roast and that's what I'll do!

Oh. I haven't thought about the color of clay body. The container is made from my reclaim that is a mix of a bunch of cone 6 bodies (light and dark), as well as some raku bodies. The raw color of this clay is somewhere between terracotta and gray. When bisqued it turns pink. I was more worried about the material being calcined fusing to the body of the pot. I want to calcine Ravenscrag slip.

Not sure if this forum is correct for my question. Moderator, please move it if appropriate. I've made a lidded container for calcining some of my materials. It's greenware now, not fired. The question: do I need to bisque the container before using for it for calcining or can I simultaneously do both? Meaning, put my material in that greenware container and bisque fire all together. Why I'm asking? It don't fire often as it takes me a long time to fill the kiln. If I could calcine in the greenware container, I could then test glazes that contain the calcined material in the glaze fi