neilestrick

How do you plan to connect the legs to the top?

If you make them kinda thick they should be plenty string without any additional support structure needed. With a glass top nobody's going to be sitting on it anyway.

Drops can be weird, and are often an issue. If you try to drop at too fast a rate, like 600F/hr, and the kiln can't actually drop that fast, then you'll get an error code. If you drop at 9999 it should, in theory, not have any problems because it's not trying to maintain at a specific rate. However, if it's dropping really fast like it does right after the peak temp, it can sometimes have trouble when it reaches its hold point because it takes a certain amount of time for the elements to get going again, and it can end up dropping too far and putting up an error code. The hotter the kiln is when it tries to hold the more difficulty it'll have. In multi zone kilns the 9999 rate can be a problem because the zones don't drop evenly in an uncontrolled drop, and then you get an error code due to the unevenness if they're too far out of whack. I see a lot of published cooling cycles, including from respected sources and books, that don't really understand these issues, and also don't take into account all the different factors that affect cooling like load density, kiln size, and kiln power. In general, the kiln will always be happiest if it's controlling the cooling rather than using the 9999 rate. The key is to find a rate that's fast but not so fast that it can't keep up, that makes the elements work a little bit but is still quick enough to achieve the desired results. In a short drop that's easy enough, but in a long drop you have to be aware that the rate of natural drop decreases as the kiln gets cooler. So while it may be able to maintain a 600F/hr drop at 2230F, it can't drop that fast at 1950F. In most kilns a rate of 300-400F/hr seems to be a good balance for high temp drops.

No, it won't hurt anything. It's so far below the peak temp that you won't get any additional heatwork from it.

Are the hazardous waste regulations so strict that they would care about the 7.5 grams of cobalt in the 5kg?

Would it be possible to just label the front of each tray?

No, it won't hurt anything. It's so far below the peak temp that you won't get any additional heatwork from it.

I also found a lot of discussions about this exact same issue happening with home charging stations for electric cars. Apparently they have a 14-50 outlet (50 amps), but to be able to charge at their peak power of 48 amps they have to be on a 60 amp breaker since they're continuous draw like kilns.

Congrats on the new kiln! Stack in this order: foam board, wall ring, wall ring, foam board, floor slab, foam board, lid slab. Or stack the lid and floor slabs separately, with foam board under and between. 

I read about that! Crazy that they just had it sitting out in the open where anyone could bump into it. Bad planning on the part of the gallery.

Yep. The only issue is that it may not fit properly, but that's true of all clay bodies. What fits on one may not fit on another. As always, run a test before you use it on something you care about.

Arrowmont in TN has a lot of great several-day workshops.

What model of kiln do you have? What is your service voltage? What voltage was it set up for originally? Are all the elements the same resistance? How many zones in the kiln?
I'm thinking the kiln was originally set up for 240 volts, but your service is 208 or 220 volts?

Yep. The only issue is that it may not fit properly, but that's true of all clay bodies. What fits on one may not fit on another. As always, run a test before you use it on something you care about.

I read about that! Crazy that they just had it sitting out in the open where anyone could bump into it. Bad planning on the part of the gallery.

True. If the kiln pulls 48 amps and you take away one section, or 1/3 of the elements (we'll assume all the elements are the same), then you'd have a kiln that pulls 32 amps. However the 32 amps isn't enough power. The issues is that there's a lot of heat loss out the lid and the floor, and the 4 elements don't have the power to deal with that like the 6 elements did. So we have to increase the power of the 4 elements to make up for it. So you end up with a 40 amp kiln with 2 sections, and a 48 amp kiln with 3 sections. The only way to really save power is to go to a smaller kiln.

We'd rather keep you in the group to talk about your pottery than see you living in a motel fighting with the insurance company after a fire.

I wasn't trying to claim it is safe to fire the kiln or good of the electrician to miss the inconsistencies just that a 30 amp socket/plug on a 40 amp breaker fits the code.

Yep. The only issue is that it may not fit properly, but that's true of all clay bodies. What fits on one may not fit on another. As always, run a test before you use it on something you care about.

or was it?  media coverage, competition from others wanting to purchase the shards, hmmm 
 

Several concerns about the current state of affairs - you took out the bottom section, which changes the amperage draw from 48 amps to 31 amps, assuming the elements are the correct ones for a 240V 1027 kiln. That requires a 40 amp circuit, including the associated wiring. You said you were using a dryer circuit, which is typically a 30 amp circuit. You say the electrician changed the circuit breaker. Changed it to what amperage? If the sparky put the required 40 amp breaker on an existing 30 amp circuit, you need a new sparky and hope your homeowner's insurance is paid up.
Regarding the kiln itself, the design of Skutt kilns places hotter elements in the top and bottom rows to compensate for heat losses through the lid and base. The middle 4 rows of elements are cooler because less heat is need in the middle compared to the top and bottom. By removing the bottom section, you have eliminated that one element at the bottom that needs to be hotter. It may have somwhat unbalanced heating now. Furthermore, though it is now the size of a 1018 kiln, kilns are designed with optimal ratios of heat to kiln surface area. The standard 1018 kiln needs 39 amps to perform up to maximum expectations. Yours now has only 31 amps. Thus, you will probably be limited to cone 6 at best.

The controller is normally grounded through the transformer, but sometimes theres more nose than it can handle and you have to add another ground wire that goes directly from the controller Center Tap tab to the grounding screw in the control box. You'll need a wire (14 or 16 gauge) with a .25 female disconnect on one end, and a ring terminal on the other end, and you'll have to put a new connector on the tab that allows you to attach two wires. But honestly, if you've got the money for a new controller just get it. It'll have more functionality and be more dependable. If you've got the money for the Genesis touch screen then get that.

There are electromagnetic fields (or something like that) coming off the kiln, and they get worse as the kiln gets hotter. The two kilns I've had to add a ground wire to didn't have any problems until about 1900F. I remember talking with an engineer from Skutt once and he said the bricks make all sort of electrical noise as they get hotter.

There are electromagnetic fields (or something like that) coming off the kiln, and they get worse as the kiln gets hotter. The two kilns I've had to add a ground wire to didn't have any problems until about 1900F. I remember talking with an engineer from Skutt once and he said the bricks make all sort of electrical noise as they get hotter.

Gas isn't necessarily faster to fire, nor should speed be a determining factor. Most glazes respond better to slower firings. Gas has its own set of issues to deal with and generally requires more work and knowledge on your part to fire with, so do some research before jumping in. Changing elements is part of owning an electric kiln, just like getting new brakes on your car. It only needs to be done every 100-150 firings, so it's not really a big deal.