Muleshoe Posted July 11, 2016 Report Share Posted July 11, 2016 1 st post! A big shout out to everyone in clayland!!! I had my electrician hook up my kiln today! I am finally throwing again! He said not to use all three switches on high just two with one on med or I will blow a breaker! I was just going to use it for bisque. I can't remember if it will reach temp easily this way. I never had this problem before. It is a large 3 ring with an extra blank ring scutt. I can run get numbers if it helps. Will I have a problem? Should I have him rewire it correctly? Thanks in advance. Happy Trowiwing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Woodin Posted July 11, 2016 Report Share Posted July 11, 2016 1 st post! A big shout out to everyone in clayland!!! I had my electrician hook up my kiln today! I am finally throwing again! He said not to use all three switches on high just two with one on med or I will blow a breaker! I was just going to use it for bisque. I can't remember if it will reach temp easily this way. I never had this problem before. It is a large 3 ring with an extra blank ring scutt. I can run get numbers if it helps. Will I have a problem? Should I have him rewire it correctly? Thanks in advance. Happy Trowiwing! If you expect to use the kiln as it was intended then get it wire correctly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted July 11, 2016 Report Share Posted July 11, 2016 He clearly did not hook it up correctly. You need to be able to run it on high. The kiln should be on a breaker that is 25% greater than the draw of the kiln. He has intentionally violated the National Electrical Code by not hooking it up properly, putting your safety at risk, which any good electrician would not do. I would get a new electrician and have it done correctly. The blank ring will limit the peak temp of the kiln to cone 1. With the blank ring it probably won't get to bisque temps without being on high. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted July 12, 2016 Report Share Posted July 12, 2016 Thats not ok-you need to get a real electrician who will do the job right. what you have is not ok. This is a safety issue for you. I could not help myself Neil I said just as you did above. I have seen a lot of done wrong things but this one is not ok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glazenerd Posted July 12, 2016 Report Share Posted July 12, 2016 A properly wired kiln is safe unless you just flat abuse it. An improperly wired kiln is a fire waiting to happen. Nerd. Here is a not so fun fact from our Federal Gov. 63% of all house fires are caused by faulty wiring/electrical issues. 50% of all fire deaths in the home caused by electrical issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muleshoe Posted July 12, 2016 Author Report Share Posted July 12, 2016 Thank you for your help, and advise. I will have him rewire it correctly! Maybe he was trying to save me the cost of buying the bigger breaker. So many roadblocks in life we need to think of as grains of sand! I appreciate the posts! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldlady Posted July 12, 2016 Report Share Posted July 12, 2016 i would be very careful of hiring the same person. your safety should be the most important thing on his mind. people who work to the minimum are not helpful. minimum size closet is too small for hangers, minimum number of steps on a stairway are too high for comfort, minimum is minimal. do not let him tell you to share a breaker with your dryer because you won't use them both at the same time. hire someone else Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pugaboo Posted July 12, 2016 Report Share Posted July 12, 2016 Also make sure when you have the new larger breaker installed that the correct gauge of wire has also been used. Over time the wire heats up, cools down, heats up, etc and can cause the wire to fail and cause a fire INSIDE the wall of your house. Make sure the correct gauge is used for the size of breaker as well as for the length of run to the kiln and the kiln itself. The kiln will tell you in the manual what size breaker and wire to use for so many feet it's away from the breaker box. I had my electrician run the kiln wires on the outside of the wall inside a metal conduit from the breaker to a manual shut off then on to the kiln. Doing this lets me monitor the amount of heat building up in the conduit and will hopefully give me a heads up if I am developing a problem. I like the manual cut off so I KNOW the kiln is OFF when I need it to be. Getting a new breaker, conduit, proper gauge wire, manual shut off, and correct plug cost me between $300 on my small kiln and $400 on the larger kiln due to heavier load materials needed. These were installed separately 2 years apart would have been cheaper to get both done at the same time. TOTALLY worth the piece of mind to know I am at least starting off in the best spot I can. T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AVPottery Posted July 14, 2016 Report Share Posted July 14, 2016 The other issue is that your kiln will never get up to temp if its not getting enough power. If it blows the breaker its never going to pull the amperage that its rated for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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