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Dave Earley

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  1. Dave Earley
    Ttwo years ago I rebuilt a 4ft x 4 ft catenary arch kiln that I had saved in a pile of bricks for several decades. While rebuilding it i found I was short 4 #3 arch bricks. I bought a bag of refractory cement, rated at 3000 degrees F, made a form using an available brick and cast them. I have also recently made some bricks using wild clay from my back yard.
  2. Dave Earley
    Here is a view of the clay vein in my yard, and a lidded casserole fired to cone ten with white and rutile slip under a mild chrome glaze.
  3. Dave Earley
    I have a whole two acre lot with a stream that has cut through it. There are no cracks in either bowl , they ring nicely. I dipped the rim of the left hand bowl in an ash glaze. the brown cube was my melt test fired on a cookie to cone 10.
  4. Dave Earley
    Here are the bowls fired to electric cone 10 with a semitransparent blue glaze
  5. Dave Earley
    I found clay in my back yard while leveling the ground for an above ground pool. Here is a sample I fired to cone 10 and some bowls (unfired) that I threw. Clay in bowls put through an 80 mesh screen.
  6. Dave Earley
    here is a drawing of proposed wood fire box added to the kiln pictured above
  7. Dave Earley
    This summer I got two used furnace oil burners and added a second nozzle to each one. After preheating to near 900 Fahrenheit with propane weed burners, I turned on the oil burners. I was using waste motor oil with a little diesel added to thin the mix. At around 1700 F I noticed oil leaking under the kiln and shut it down. the oil was too heavy to be atomized and was spraying in a stream. I am now researching rocket burners for economical wood firing.
  8. Dave Earley
    I threw these bowls with clay from my back yard in Strongsville, Ohio. I first tried to use the clay as a slip with stain under an ash glaze. That didn't work. Then I fired a cube of the clay to cone 10. here are pictures.
  9. Dave Earley
    I solved this problem by buying a different switch from Euclid's and the kiln works. Now I have a different problem. I asked the Ceramic Shop in PA where I purchased the first switch for a return/refund. They are giving me the run around, asking for troubleshooting details, did I check with a kiln technician, send them a picture of the damaged part. The switch is open on one leg in the high setting. I even said I would accept a credit. Are they trying to stiff me? I have answered all their questions and am waiting.
  10. Dave Earley
    As the picture of the new switch shows, the two tabs in the middle are connected and i wired one end of each pair to those tabs. Using a slip of paper on each coil on the high setting only one coil is heating. I rechecked the wire connectors but still not working. Thanks for the diagram that is what I was looking for.
  11. Dave Earley
    The kiln has third wire, marked green. plate is labeled model 180, 230 volts ,24 amps. the elements obviously go on the bottom row of connectors but in what order
  12. Dave Earley
    I have a Blue diamond kiln sitter kiln that has new elements. I replaced one 3 heat switch that read open on high setting. I hope i wired the new switch correctly but it did not have a terminal for the neutral wire so I connected that to the chassis ground, the kiln stalled at 1940 F. I initially did a test with paper on the elements which led me to replace the upper switch. The kiln is rated 230 volts so I don't think it has 208 v elements. I haven't found any element to switch diagrams or repair guides. I talked to the RobertShaw company switch tech who said the switch i bought from the Ceramic Shop was originally used for south American air conditioners. He had no information on wiring. The Ceramic Shop was no help either. they said to call Euclids
  13. Dave Earley
    Here are the documents that came with the wheel. I don't remember how or where i bought this wheel but I'm sure it was in 1973.
  14. Dave Earley
    Maybe pictures are here
  15. Dave Earley
    I just had a minor flood last week in my garage, ( blocked drain) and my Brent wheel would not stop. I took the bottom plate off the pedal and saw some moisture. I blew it dry and tried to adjust it and it wouldn't stop spinning. Spent hours on line searching for answers, saw high prices. My wheel is a Brent CK (a kit I think) and is at least 50 years old although not used for 3 decades so I was getting resigned to spending $600 to fix it. I tried adjusting the pedal one more time and it works now. Phew. It is a great wheel.
  16. Dave Earley
    I'm thinking of a vermiculite/clay coating covered with metal sheets from the wall of my above ground pool which blew out. It is good to recycle.
  17. Dave Earley
    I think your vehicle should be to use mostly and not as a signal for your personality. Coal rollers are an extreme example of the latter. I have owned 5 minivans but now drive a Nissan Leaf.
  18. Dave Earley
    The waste oil suction nozzles I used were not up to providing enough heat. On to phase 2. I am purchasing used oil furnace burners as I had success 45 years ago using them. I just need to modify the nozzles to push more oil into the kiln. Here is one modified burner, dual nozzle, maximum flow 3.5 gal/hr. that should do it according to Olsen's The Kiln Book, p172.
  19. Dave Earley

    I am currently building a fiber blanket kiln using a steel dog kennel, 2x2x3 ft.  Hopefully I will be able to finish firing these pots.  

    1. Dave Earley

      Dave Earley

      I just unloaded the kiln,  cone 9 down top and bottom.  Pot closest to flue exit  was under fired and it looks like heavy reduction all over.  I fired up to red heat with propane and then used waste oil nozzles which were hard to adjust for a neutral flame and temperature rise.  The suction nozzles needed only 1 or 2 psi.  I used about 20 lbs of propane and about 6 gallons of used motor oil.  the pots were single fired with mostly a simple ash glaze. I think the fire box is a little small for the oil burner since I immediately had a 12 to 18 inch flame coming out. 

  20. Dave Earley
    I don't understand the variations in pipe sizes for propane mentioned ie. 3/4 " pipe and needle valve. The fitting connecting the tank to a regulator is about 1/8 ". Venturi burners require small orifices. Why does 1/2 psi need 3/4 " pipe.
  21. Dave Earley
    Are you using venturi burners or power burners which use a blower?
  22. Dave Earley

    the kiln is loaded and Im waiting for a friend to deliver 100 gallons of used motor oil

    kiln load.jpg

    1. Dave Earley

      Dave Earley

      I have put together 2 waste oil suction nozzles with electrodes to fire this kiln but after several attempts it keeps stalling  at around 1100 degrees F.  I don't think it is an insulation problem as I built it the same way as at first which fired to cone 10 with a different burner setup.  My best guess is the burners are not efficient enough to make the power needed.  I shut it off at 3:00 AM and will look at it for other problems, ie some collapse inside etc.

      I will probably invest in some gas burners and go with propane. 

      IMG_4464.jpg

  23. Dave Earley
    I have a Brent model CK which is working fine as it was in storage for over 30 years. I am hoping there is no age related deterioration.
  24. Dave Earley

    Making ware to fill waste oil fired kiln.

    233506001_catenaryarch.jpg..jpg

    IMG_0120.jpg

  25. Dave Earley
    I am also using g "Building Pottery Equipment" by roger Harvey and Sylvia and John Kolb, Watson-Guptill 1975 Today I started build the arch form. after completing the build I threw a lot of pots, loaded the kiln and have since been struggling with fuel and burner issues. first time I preheated with propane weed burners, then switched to fabricated waste oil nozzles. Kiln stalled at 1150 F. Now I'm building a propane power burner system after acquiring a larger propane tank. Not giving up!
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