Cress Kiln Model FX-23B - Testing it?

[RJR]

HI everyone - part of a long story here - but will get to the chase.  I inherited a Cress FX-23B kiln.  I am a potter but was part of a studio before that did all of the firing - and they were new kilns.

 

So we have the correct plug - just got that installed - cleaned it out - have it setting outside underneath a big over hang with nothing around it.  But I hear I need to test it! to ensure the coils all light up/heat up/work.  I have attached two pics.  So what do I need to do and NOT do.    

 

I want to get back into my pottery design (moved a year ago and trying to set up my own studio for me at home)

 

Thank you! 

[Babs]

Well you can turn it on full for a short time ,  say 15 mins turn everything off and open carefully the elements will be glowing red like a heater.

That dangling element I would pin in place or heat up and move into groove and pin or it will over time stretch more and dangle.

You need to purchase a couple of boxes of cones  bar cones which go to temp you want for bisque and glaze firings which will sit the the sitter, 3 pronged thingies in the interior shot.

The flap on the outside can then be lifted and held in position.

Won't go on incase you are familiar with the kiln sitter.

That needs to be engaged before the kiln will operate. Then you press the button  in the  sitter set up and  dial in the energy input.

Looks like there's a timer also so you will have to set a time , usually about 30 mins longer than your firing for electricity to flow to your kiln and to turn off after your firing done in case the sitter doesn'tfunction.

Don' trust the sitter ever....to turn off.

There's be a manual on line I'm sure.

[Babs]

If fiddling with the dangling element , caution... very brittle , expensive to replace. There Are posts here describing how to do this.

[RJR]

Thank you - so to turn on full - the dial all the way up - knobs to their hightest setting and let it go>  Do I need to worry about the cone for this?  Sorry - so new to this process.  I do have some cones - just need to drag them out.  

Do I need to put the blogs in for this test heat?  I assumed not

I did download the manual.  reading now.  

[Babs]

You need a cone in sitter and flap  on outside engaged . Doesn't matter re cone number

You need to press the button in the hole of flap.

You need to turn timer on , say 15 mins , cone only acts to  get the kiln functioning , not to reach a temp.

You need to turn the energy input to full  , wait your 15mins. you then open kiln  face out of the way! And see if all elements are glowing red.

Buns in or out Doesn't matter here

Is your fuse box fitted for this kiln? Can' read the ampage here

[RJR]

I was just going to ask about the dangling element - it is very stiff, and not pliable to be able to move that back into place.  so I will look for other posts.    I inheritated this from my mother in law after she passed.  so have no idea how long that element has been there...  

[RJR]

it is 28 amp...

we put in a separate box next to our electrical plael - where then our plug came out of.   

[Babs]

Any cone will do to keep the sitter in place but you do get bar cones for these sitrers or mini cones.

Yeh element need to be heated and gently prised back in groove but it looks a bit stretched already. I've pinned,  using special wire, name escapes me bent into u shaped staples and pressed into brick to hold the element .

Some of the repair gurus here can help heaps

Good luck.

You can see any element defects by looking. Vacuum out the kiln and element grooves before firing up.

Looks an ok kiln! Lucky you 

[Babs]

Can test your kiln without touchominv that dangly element.

[Babs]

Did your relative have log books of her firings etc as these would be invaluable to you.

[RJR]

HI - no log books.   She was a doll maker and porcelain painter.

we have vacuumed it our prior

Of I think my sitter might be off a bit, but I did turn up the thumb wheel, was able to get the flap up and start it.  Never looked like the timer moved, so I manually  moved the flap back down and the thumb wheel to zero.

 

was plenty hot inside. but nothing glowed red.   was I supposede to check before I shut it off?  So I thought about that as I was typing that myae i just needed to loop before I turned everything off.  Sorry - a little freaked about that one.  

 

[Babs]

Yeh put timer on for longer  and release flap by removing cone on inside after cooled down.

Your kiln will automatically turn off when you open lid to peek 

You can look through bung holes for a glow before popping lid.

Don't freak.

So you put timer on 15mins? Looks like hour segments on your timer... so put anything in timer and manually time say 20 mins  and peek Gain

[RJR]

ok - just want to make sure I understand.

Yes - it has hour increments.  I had put it between the two but never seemed to move.  it should right?

So try for the 30 minutes again

Wheel on high

cone bar on sitter so flap can stay up

press button

do I wait for timer to go all of the way down?  or if it does not move - just time on my watch for 30 minutes?  

you said look through holes to see if I can see it glow

how do I know if they all glow?  I am guessing you were trying to point out that I did not have it on for long enough for the elements to actually'glow' thus they didn't.  Am I correct there? 

then after 20 minutes - open the lid with out the moving dial or flap.  

thank you - sorry for all of the questions.  I know this is a huge part of it all and I really want to learn!  

[Babs]

Yeh time it manually but need timer on kiln dialled to some thing so it will work. Say an hour.. but set watch to 20 mins

Glowing element seen through bung holes will indicate hot happening so then crack lid carefully and look inside.

If all glowing  bingo the elements are intact.

Another thing to check if operated by a China painter is the temp this kiln can handle being fired to. The maximum temp is that  And is hard to achieve as elements fade,  what I am saying is you should have a kiln which you would operate a ways  below the max the kiln will handle....

[Babs]

Yeh thumbwheel full 

What's the firemate set at full also? 

[RJR]

OK - so I am going to try this first thing int he morning.

turn on full wheel - 10 - set for an hour by watch my watch for 20 mintues

cheep peep holes to see if glowing

open lid when I do to check them all

 

the manual says it can fire to cone 10.  since what I do is always cone 5 or 6 I hope we are still good.  I have no idea if she has ever redone the elements or not.

 

[Babs]

And the beige firemate setting?

Remember to trip the sitter when shutting down at end of test.

Fingers x'd

[RJR]

beige firemate setting that goes from 1 to 10 - I didn't have it at anything before.  not even sure what that is for?  what should I put that at?  

should I trip it now?  I assume you mean - take the cone off - and then put it back etc.  

[Babs]

1. Set timer

2. Press button in kiln sitter which is already set up.

3 put thumb wheel on 8 to 10

4  put firemate on 10 I guess  but to the faster end..you shouldn't be hearing any clicks on and off because your kiln will be full on!  

Check it out in10 to 20 mins.

When finished the check out  release the kiln sitter .

This is not the set up for what you'd do for a normal bisque or glaze!!!!

Get a log book on the go.

Cheers

 

 

 

[Callie Beller Diesel]

I have a model similar to this (it's just bigger). You can engage the cone sitter without anything in it if you lift the weight, press the button, and VERY gently ease the weight back down. 

The thumbwheel and the firemate together control the rate of kiln climb. It's a very early version of a computerized kiln sitter that controls ramp rates that works off of timer motors.

The thumbwheel controls how frequently the relays click on and off, and will gradually get faster and faster, increasing the intensity of the heat. The firemate dial controls how fast the thumbwheel progresses through its cycle. If you set the firemate to manual, you will have to come out to the kiln and adjust the thumbwheel to get your kiln to continue climbing in temperature.  

To clarify, if you want to do an over night soak, start the thumbwheel  at zero and the firemate at manual.  If you want a slower firing, start both thumbwheel and firemate off at zero. If you want it a bit faster, you can start the relays low, but set the firemate a bit higher. 

The timer is a fail safe shutoff as a backup to the cone sitter, and unless it's turned on, your kiln won't go. 

If you want to check elements, engage both safety measures (timer and cone sitter), turn both thumbwheel and firemate to high and see what it does. 

[Min]

16 hours ago, RJR said:

I was just going to ask about the dangling element - it is very stiff, and not pliable to be able to move that back into place.

Take a torch and heat up the drooping section until it glows orange then take a piece of wood and while the element piece is still hot gently place the drooping bit back into the groove. If the element cools down too much it will get brittle again, re-heat it before trying to get it back into the groove. The wood will smoke and char if the element is hot enough. Once it's back in place you might want to pin it with a couple element pins but that might not be necessary. Heating the element up makes it more pliable but it will still be very fragile. If you don't get it back into the groove it will sag more and more every time you fire the kiln.

edit: breaker off when working on the kiln

[Denice]

I have a timer on my kiln sitter like yours,  if I turn it to the farthest point around the dial it won't work.  But if I back it off a little it works just fine.    Denice

[RJR]

Thank you so much everyone for your comments!  they are greatly appreciated as I figure this all out.

I tested again tonight - looks like all elements heat up - all of them glow except for the parts that are hanging down, but everything glowed.

what is the next thing that I should be checking?  and I guess I do not understand how to use the thumb-wheel - when to be at 5 and when to be at 10 for instance - or the fire mate setting knob.I appreciate Callies comments on both of those dials, but still a big confused. I am truly a beginner when it comes to the kiln.  

I set the timer for an hour - and it never moved.  so I guess the next might be to see if it moves when it is set for 5 hours.  ? 

[RJR]

Also - any abnormalities I should be looking out for as well?  event two hours letter the handle it extremely hot to touch. Just to peak I needed gloves.

  I get it - it is getting up to extreme temps, I guess I did not remember even the outside of the studio kiln getting that hot to the touch.  if that is normal - no problem - if not, let me know.  

[Callie Beller Diesel]

The kiln handle thing is indeed normal. 

The thumbwheel is your high/medium/low switch. The other dial turns your kiln up for you when it's engaged (not set on manual). 

If you're at all concerned that any of the motors on the timers or other dials aren't working as they should, I'd  call Cress. I've been told that the motors that they run off of can go, and the timer is one of your safety features.