Hulk

Container inverted over each ware.
I have two quart size plastic planters (with the drain holes taped over), 2.5 quart containers (a big wider), one and two gallon buckets, five gallon buckets, one large canning pot.
Almost all my work is wheel thrown, on bats. To slow drying, I'll pop a container over the ware.
Ware on impervious bats can stay on, or be wired off when stiff enough; ware on absorbent bats have to be removed before they get too dry...
The wares can be kept moist indefinitely, given periodic misting with a spray bottle, even in the height of summer.
...however, probably better to get to them afore the molds take over...
Trade-offs, eh?
Keeping a crowd of ware together, no doubt simpler, more space effective.
To each their own container can be "brought along" individually.
It's what I'm used to.
For clay balls waiting their turn on the wheel, I'm using a plastic tote with two bits of damp sponge in there. Periodically, I'll refresh the sponges and use the spray bottle to mist the underside of the lid.
I'm not over loathing plastic sheeting for protecting in progress clay work.
Hulk no like!

Usually I work things pretty close together, so I don’t need a lot of “long term” (more than a week) storage these days.  Mostly I use a double layer of plastic to cover things, but I did get a large under-bed plastic tote for handles that I use in a similar manner to what you describe @Pres. I have to ask though: why the board or plate over the sponge? I’m picturing a small throwing sponge or similar, as that’s what I use. 

Hi folks, I am getting ready to get back to work in the shop and I was thinking of things I need to get ready for the work I will be doing. I have decided to do some more teapots, and chalices myself and for orders. Much of what I do is in batches, where I may throw 15 stems for chalices, and then throw 15-16 bowls. Teapots, I usually throw 6 bodies, and then the lids, and spouts.  This requires storage for the pieces until the bodies are trimmed. Same happens with the chalices. My best way of storing large amounts of pieces is to have a rubbermaid type container with a damp sponge across the bottom and a board over the the sponge. The stems are usually stored in a round container with a plate over top of the damp sponge. I know that several of you have talked about plaster in the same type of containers, but these work for me. Larger slab/wheel constructions I store under a plastic bag.
QotW: What is your preferred method of storage for work in Progress?

Outlets at counter level ...where your counters are (or will be) can be handy.
A second outlet where your wheel goes might be handy.
Integrated lighting - never, err, hardly ever need dusting - setting your baseline wash(es) of light in the space.
  I'm liking the round flat led units - cut the hole, wire it up, set the light temp, done. Lots of light at low (looong teerm) cost.

Kilns 7 cubic feet and smaller will need a 60 amp breaker at most, with an actual draw of 48 amps at most. 10 cubic foot kilns, if you want it rated to cone 10 (which you do if you're glaze firing to cone 5/6) will need an 80 amp breaker, with an actual draw of 63 amps. That's a really big kiln for most home studios, though. 100 amp service will be great, and leave you plenty of power for running lights, wheels, etc. Kiln vents run on a typical 120 volt household circuit. The only thing that may max out the system is heating, depending on how that's done. Depending on the layout, you may not need to run the heat while the kiln is on.

We added a 100 amp service in the garage.  I will put the kiln in the corner with easy access to an outside wall and close to a window.  In addition to a dedicated circuit for the kiln itself, there are normal outlets which I assume can power any venting system.  Am I thinking about that right?  
My current plan is to talk to Seattle Pottery Supply and pick their brains about the electrical requirements for a home kiln as well as do some online research.  I will have to decide if it makes sense to buy a new kiln or a used one.  That's the rub as far as figuring out the specifics of the amperage.  I think it would make sense to install a 6 gauge wire to the box,  I could then adjust at the breaker for the specific kiln.  
I would like to buy a used kiln which may also include a venting system ( as well as shelves and accessories).   It seems that a powered kiln vent is a good idea with an overhead vent as a good add on. 
So at this stage of construction I will ask the electricians to install  #6 wire instead of the #10.  Am I forgetting anything?

This is my first time on this forum and I am deeply appreciative of the thoughtful advice so far.  Thank you!
 

"Is it correct to say that if a glaze/clay combination does not craze at cone 5, then it should not craze at a higher cone firing?"
Good question.
imo, maybe!
"Maybe" on account of the crazing or not crazing may not matter so much if the clay isn't fully mature or is over fired.
For clays that take a higher cone without misbehaving, yes.

In my experience (limited, of course!), some clays have a wider firing range, while others are very much more sensitive to over firing.
Three clays, in particular - a red, buff, and a black clay - that I've tried matured at a solid cone 5 but misbehaved when fired into the top of cone 6 range.
"Fully mature" - where the clay is dense, strong, and has low absorbency*, err, as low as the particular clay can reasonably get, that is.
"Over fired" - where clay has begun to slump/melt, bloat, fizz/bubble...
This article This amazing difference 45 micron silica can make (digitalfire.com) got me thinking.
I wonder if my glaze fitting struggles were related to 200 mesh silica (which is what I have)?
If so, then, would more heat work help dissolve the silica?
If so, then, would more and/or more aggressive fluxes help dissolve the silica?
If so, would a drop & hold (after peak temp) help dissolve the silica?
I don't know.
The solution involved tweaking the formula to reduce COE, however, I'd adopted drop & hold at about the same time.
I'd like to have clay and glaze combinations that can take a half cone or more of "excess" heat work without problems.
The aforementioned sensitive clays, I've found other red and buff clays (haven't tried any other black clays yet).
Keep on with cone packs on each level, keep notes, and test (test, test)!
*article on maturity Maturity (digitalfire.com)
 

Just a few things to suggest to start with.
I would suggest laying out as best you can where the kiln will go. There likely is only one logical best place that you will place it. If you can do that, then roughing a circuit in for a future kiln and ensuring it Is 3/4” pipe (raceway) rough opening will allow you to pull the appropriate size wires when you get most any kiln.
Now, where the kiln will go - probably adjacent to an outside wall, most likely in a corner so there is decent access to ventilation outdoors. You should not combine systems, this one is for the kiln. 
You should decide  if you intend to remove the excess heat as well as all the fumes or a portion of the fumes as in counterflow systems you will likely need electric at or near the kiln for the ventilation accessories you have chosen as well. So maybe another rough electric opening in pipe to be pulled at a later date. Maybe another 3/4” rough opening so if you decide on full ventilation just about any wire size ought to fit.
depending on your ventilation choice above you will likely need to plan on makeup air from outdoors as well. So just some things to start to think of

On the subject of venting  is your kiln going to be located near a outside wall.   In my kiln room  I have a dual Skutt   exhaust system  that works on two kilns and exhaust  through the wall.  My test kiln and doesn't need one.   It is located close to a window,  I also have a exhaust fan in the ceiling to clear out some heat  that is vented  outside.   Even with all of these exhaust features  I usually keep the door open  to my studio to  let some heat escape.   Sometimes you can still get some odor from the firing but having a room reduces the odor.  This may be important because of the apartment in the same area.   I connected kiln  duct work to  a dryer vent in a basement years ago,  It had a baffle on it to close off the dryer vent when the kiln was running.  It only had a 3ft run  from the baffle to the house.     Denice

We had a situation about a year ago where we started to get crazing on glazes that had never crazed before. It took a lot of trial and error testing with known good batches of materials to determine the problem. It turns out that we had received a batch of 200 mesh silica by mistake instead of 325 mesh. Because there was no clear "mesh" marking on the bag, no one realized that we had received 200. The glaze mixers had unknowingly started using 200 instead of 325 in the glaze mixes. Switching back to 325 solved the problem.  Of note, the crazing happened only on cone 6. We did not get crazing on cone 10. My theory is that cone 6 was not hot enough to melt the 200 mesh completely, but cone 10 was able to completely melt all of the 200 mesh.

After a bit of testing, I found a Cone 6 recipe that gives a good, deep blue color that stays blue even over edges/texture. I avoided Gerstley Borate, Neph Sy, and Talc.  GB because of end-of-production. Neph Sy because it somewhat contributes to hard panning. Talc because of recent quality. This has been tested and found to be craze free (boiling water/ice water test) on the following clay bodies from our local supplier, New Mexico Clay: Marilyn's BOD, Ochre, E-Speckled, Cashmere, and Chocolate (these are all of the Cone 6 clay bodies that we now support in our pottery).  On Chocolate, the glaze surface does not look as smooth as on the other four which look great. Here are the two recipe versions, one using Mahavir Feldspar and the other using G-200 Feldspar (because we have both in our supply!).
AMT      MATERIALS

27.6      MAHAVIR POTASH FELDSPAR

26.5      SILICA 325

15.3      FERRO FRIT 3134

18.4      EPK

12.2      DOLOMITE

   2.0      COBALT CARBONATE

102.0   TOTAL


 

 
AMT      MATERIALS

29.3      G-200 FELDSPAR

26.2      SILICA 325

13.9      FERRO FRIT 3134

16.4      EPK

12.2      DOLOMITE

   2.0      COBALT CARBONATE

100.0   TOTAL

"Is it correct to say that if a glaze/clay combination does not craze at cone 5, then it should not craze at a higher cone firing?"
Good question.
imo, maybe!
"Maybe" on account of the crazing or not crazing may not matter so much if the clay isn't fully mature or is over fired.
For clays that take a higher cone without misbehaving, yes.

In my experience (limited, of course!), some clays have a wider firing range, while others are very much more sensitive to over firing.
Three clays, in particular - a red, buff, and a black clay - that I've tried matured at a solid cone 5 but misbehaved when fired into the top of cone 6 range.
"Fully mature" - where the clay is dense, strong, and has low absorbency*, err, as low as the particular clay can reasonably get, that is.
"Over fired" - where clay has begun to slump/melt, bloat, fizz/bubble...
This article This amazing difference 45 micron silica can make (digitalfire.com) got me thinking.
I wonder if my glaze fitting struggles were related to 200 mesh silica (which is what I have)?
If so, then, would more heat work help dissolve the silica?
If so, then, would more and/or more aggressive fluxes help dissolve the silica?
If so, would a drop & hold (after peak temp) help dissolve the silica?
I don't know.
The solution involved tweaking the formula to reduce COE, however, I'd adopted drop & hold at about the same time.
I'd like to have clay and glaze combinations that can take a half cone or more of "excess" heat work without problems.
The aforementioned sensitive clays, I've found other red and buff clays (haven't tried any other black clays yet).
Keep on with cone packs on each level, keep notes, and test (test, test)!
*article on maturity Maturity (digitalfire.com)
 

Thank you! Ughhh I guess live and learn. I’m going to try and be patient and let it dry   

I’ve always lived in hard water areas (my city’s website lists PPM in the 180’s for most of the year), and my fingers have likewise always wrinkled with  extended exposure to water. 

+1
There are also some very useful sites on the web, e.g.  https://digitalfire.com
Just picking up on your reference to lead (and I agree it's best not used).
"Safe" a somewhat conditional term.
- The magnificent lead-glazed wall tiles that were still around in older buildings in the 60's would still - IMHO- be quite safe. (Hard to misuse on a dry vertical surface subject to minimal contact.)
- OTOH  I remember reading of a lead glazed milk jug (which was probably quite safe to use for milk). But the owners squeezed orange juice into it every evening and left it in the fridge overnight to serve with breakfast!  Definitely risky. But how do you know what your friends/customers are going to do with your pots? 
Some craft potters choose to use "liner" glazes for surfaces likely to come into contact with food.
https://digitalfire.com/glossary/liner+glaze
Liner-glazing is a very good way to assure that your ware has a durable and leach resistant surface. It also signals customers that you care about this.
https://digitalfire.com/glossary/lead+in+ceramic+glazes
Lead is a melter in ceramic glazes and performs exceptionally well and must be misused to be toxic. It is also now environmentally pervasive. It is toxic and cumulative at any level of exposure.
... and had a history of frequent misuse, hence the [slightly over] reaction to its use.

@HulkThank you so much for the inputs! I will definitely do some exploration on the public education resources in Bay Area.

I'd started looking this morning, then had to run...
Hi Andy,
Welcome to the Forum!
Good question. I'm not finding a specific reference for oil types/viscosity for Podmore pugmill...
...nor for "Opperman spur reduction" gearbox, which appears to have been standard for some time with Podmore pugmills.
Hypoid oil is important for ...hypoid gears!
Still have the drained oil? Might be helpful for comparison.
You might go with a semi-synthetic (cheaper than full synthetic) multi-range hypoid gear oil.
How warm/hot the gearbox gets, important, as Bill has pointed out.
 

Your new teapot is unlikely to cause you any harm, short of breaking it and cutting yourself on a shard accidentally. It doesn’t have any warnings about lead or cadmium, nor do I see any colours or textures in that line of work that would lead me to suspect any use of those materials. If you’re super nervous about anything and want some reassurance, you can get lead test kits for pottery on the ‘zon, but I’d be surprised if this item came back positive.
In the product description from your link, where it says Material Icon, there’s a number of little care instruction and definition buttons. When you click on “Iron in Powder” (likely a translation vagary) it points out that there may be some dark specks that appear in the final piece from iron impurities in the clay. There’s going to be considerably less iron that could possibly come out of this teapot than, say, a cast iron frying pan.
Glaze doesn’t work the way you’re describing, no. Whoever gave you that description may have been thinking of earthenware that was painted with some kind of lead bearing decorative slip or underglaze, but even that has some dubious underlying assumptions. 
First, not all pottery is made in the same way. Without getting overly technical, different kinds of clay that people use in different parts of the world will have different levels of porosity, firing temperatures, and a bunch of other stuff. So items made in Japan won’t use the same techniques or materials that get used in, Mexico, or the US, or even Canada. And studio pottery will not be made with the same materials/techniques as industrially produced items.  But in general, glaze is used on a clay body to make it stronger, and to make it more waterproof and easier to clean than just the clay surface would be alone. Also, it makes it pretty!
****IF**** a piece of pottery were to contain lead or cadmium, it won’t be in the clay body. Those metals will typically be present either in an underglaze decoration (they make pretty reds, yellows, oranges and some greens), in some forms of china paint decoration, or in the glaze itself. It’s important to note that a lead free clear over a lead or cadmium bearing underglaze **might** not block all lead bleed through should those materials be present. It’s also important to remember that not all yellow/red/orange/green underglazes or glazes will have any of those things in them. There’s lots of ways to get those colours that don’t involve those metals, and are safe for daily use. 
 
 

I'd started looking this morning, then had to run...
Hi Andy,
Welcome to the Forum!
Good question. I'm not finding a specific reference for oil types/viscosity for Podmore pugmill...
...nor for "Opperman spur reduction" gearbox, which appears to have been standard for some time with Podmore pugmills.
Hypoid oil is important for ...hypoid gears!
Still have the drained oil? Might be helpful for comparison.
You might go with a semi-synthetic (cheaper than full synthetic) multi-range hypoid gear oil.
How warm/hot the gearbox gets, important, as Bill has pointed out.
 

Holy cannoli-you have an amazing attitude-good for you! If you get tired, let yourself be tired, tho, don't push it--and best wishes going forward.

My ceramics supply store fix kilns,  you had to haul your kiln to the store and then wait 3 to 6 months.   You could probably stretch your repair schedule out a little,  your customers will wait.   I didn't feel confident working on the kiln myself,   my husband had no interest in working on my kilns.    When he retired he decided to give it a try and decided it was easy.   It would be easy for him,  he wrote  operation  and repair books for a living.    Denice
 

If you absolutely do not find a spec, I would consider trying hypoid general purpose gear oil, likely in the 90w range and observe the heating in early operation. I would hope there are no significant swarf  to speak of from machining operations and he was concerned about break in.

Years ago I moved from a soft water area (Liverpool) to a hard water area (Essex), and my skin stopped wrinkling when I had a long baths.  (Also I needed to use more soap, as hard water reduces its effectiveness.)
A suggestion that the effects of moving  from hard water to soft may be self-correcting over time.
https://kidshealth.org/en/kids/wrinkly-fingers.html
I suppose you might try experimenting with:
- pre-exposure skin/barrier creams
- slightly hardening the water you use for throwing (slightly because it may effect the clay)
https://sciencing.com/make-hard-water-8191733.html
https://www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/science/hardness-water
General guidelines for classification of waters are: 0 to 60 mg/L (milligrams per liter) as calcium carbonate is classified as soft; 61 to 120 mg/L as moderately hard; 121 to 180 mg/L as hard; and more than 180 mg/L as very hard.

Atlanta refs to confirm your suspicions about water hardness.
https://www.atlantisplumbing.com/articles/city-water-vs-well-water/
City Water Vs. Well Water
2. Generally speaking, well water is hard water so a water softener is recommended for homes that use well water.
https://www.hydroflow-usa.com/georgia-water-hardness
Georgia water is considered soft water. The average water hardness for the Georgia resident is around 60 PPM. Atlanta, the most populous Georgia city has a water hardness level of 21 PPM which according to USGS water hardness measures is very soft.
PS In this context mg/L = mg/kg = PPM

I have always been told this is a natural function of skin, predominately hands and feet and extended exposure to water. It definitely happens to me using city, well, lake, stream, and swimming pool water. The dead skin cells absorb water and expand, yet living cells beneath do not. End result - wrinkles. Today this is debated I believe (the mechanism not the wrinkles) …  and there are diseases that can present other symptoms as well as similar symptoms. (See Raynaud’s disease) well water can be hard in general and often contains many more organics, not sure of any correlation there though. It is possible that city water is softer, occasionally if sourced from a river. “Chemicals” is a pretty broad description so anything is possible though, but in general well water is untreated and can contain lots more stuff than city water. For most of us I think quite common to see after prolonged exposure to water — city or well. If in doubt, probably take pictures, record what you can about time exposure, temperature, etc…. and see your doctor to be sure.