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Opening Kiln Early


Babs

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Two conversations here but that is no criticism.

I will lower the temp I open my kiln as that is what I am concerned about. The clay body/glaze fit would be the worries for the pots.

Old lady deg C =(5xTempF)-32          F=(9xtempC) +32

                                           9                           5

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Off topic, but you might find it amazing. I primarily fire crystalline glaze, and know many who do. It is very common to pull bunges to get the peak temp of 2340F, down to 2025F as quickly as possible.

 

I have pulled the top bunge before around 400F, and within a few minutes heard that old familiar ping of glaze-grazing. Learned very quickly not to crash cool. I have also installed soft rubber pads around the edges of my kiln so I have something softer to bang my head on when I open it and see the results of my---

 

Glaze Nerd

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WELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL I did take one top bung out at 2ooC then  left it till around 80C as all advised. No drama everything looks ok just trying to protect the longevity of the kiln and furniture.

I am going to  follow advice given,and get on with something totally absorbing. Old dog new tricks so can't promise tooo much.

Considering this new kiln cracked in all 4 corners after a very slow initial firing and has, more worrying prob. to me cracks in some of the lid bricks after a few firings, I am treating this kiln with kid gloves basically because I live   a long way from  the dealer and manufacturer. 

It finished firing 2.30am Saturday morning I opened it this am Monday around 9.00am.

Other firings were bisque, I can leave bisques for days.

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Ughhh I remember one time I hadda open the kiln early so I could get an Xmas present that underfired a couple days before out to Arizona in time. I'm guessing Fred was still around 350F (no thermometer, but he felt damn hot!!), so unloading that giant car-shaped cookie jar was a real TREAT.

 

On a bright note, that's when I made the permanent switch to Clay Art Center's seward terracotta. If that clay could survive such a sudden temperature shock without so much as a ping, THAT was the clay for me! ^_^ Praise the ceramic gods for added fireclay!

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Okay okay, but when I was a production potter there were times when it was economically necessary to open a kiln when it was still pretty hot... as in "That show is tomorrow and if I don't start unloading now, I will be short on inventory when I get there."  This chaotic business planning also led to a lot of driving-all-night episodes.

 

Of course, then I fired in a hard brick gas kiln that had already been moved a time or two, so I couldn't do it much harm, and I didn't care about crazing glazes (I still don't, actually.)

 

Mark is clearly a better-organized potter than I ever was.

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Never quite understood the fear of opening a kiln around 250F and then selling the items in it as oven proof for use in ovens as high as 450F.

 

An empty casserole dish in the kiln will cool much faster and go through more stress than a filled casserole dish removed from a 450F oven -- the hot food contents help control the cool gradually.

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I had a check back on my video, they removed the restrictions for some reason. Kinda bad quality  :unsure:

 

 

 

I think I watched the whole program recently.

 

What I don't get is why dropping a pot into a bucket of "room-temperature" water is any different to waving it around in "room-temperature" air.

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Almost forgot another reason to open kiln to early

Godzilla is spotted a mile away tearing down power lines and vaporizing autos and is headed towards your studio and you only have minutes to get those dog bowls for grampa out and escape in car before he finds the source of where all that power was going ( your kiln)

This reason would fit as one that's ok to open kiln early

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  • 5 months later...

What about kiln cooling at high temperatures? My supervisor tells us that just after the kiln has been shut off at cone 10, to leave the damper open at least an inch so that it is cool enough to be unloaded in the morning. I think she is crazy, and I could use some feedback to prove my case.

 

Thanks!

It because she wants to get it over the next day.For me thats a lazy reason.

This leaving damper open does not let the glazes soak at temp.Bad on furniture as well. Just all around not good.

Scheduling should not trump the work and slow cooling is best practice.

Why not wait until the next day to unload??? makes more sense .

When you fire a kiln you shut it up when done and let cool on its own not leave it open to cool fast-its in all the books if that helps

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What about kiln cooling at high temperatures? My supervisor tells us that just after the kiln has been shut off at cone 10, to leave the damper open at least an inch so that it is cool enough to be unloaded in the morning. I think she is crazy, and I could use some feedback to prove my case.

 

Thanks!

It because she wants to get it over the next day.For me thats a lazy reason.

This leaving damper open does not let the glazes soak at temp.Bad on furniture as well. Just all around not good.

Scheduling should not trump the work and slow cooling is best practice.

Why not wait until the next day to unload??? makes more sense .

When you fire a kiln you shut it up when done and let cool on its own not leave it open to cool fast-its in all the books if that helps

 

I agree, it is due to laziness and poor scheduling. Are there any specific books or articles about slow cooling versus crash cooling that I could show her? Thanks!

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Its a common sense deal as far as I'm concerned. 

I have heard of a member of a public clay studio getting tossed out for opening the kiln early (very hot ) as well.

.

The community studio here had to put a pad lock on the glaze kiln to keep people from going in and opening it early. They were losing too many pieces due to this even though they all know it's only supposed to be opened by the studio director. They have also put the bisque kiln in a separate room with its own key that no one has except for the studio director for the same reason. People make something and get anxious and want to see it but they aren't forum members so don't know the facts of what can happen to not just their pieces but everyone else's in the kiln too.

 

T

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