Earthenware

[GreyBird]

Hi all,

I am not too familiar with firing temps of low fire clay. I have bisques a kiln load of mixed stoneware cone 6 clay and earthenware clay that I found locally to cone 04. I read that I should bisque the earthenware to 04 and glaze fire to cone 06. Can I bisque and glaze fire the Earthenware to cone 04? 

[neilestrick]

I'd bisque to 04, glaze to  06, 05 or 04.

[Soren]

At this time, I work exclusively with earthenware to maintain porosity in the finished object.
I bisque to ^04, as intended for the earthenware clay bodies I use.  Before, I glaze-fired to ^06, but I recently have found better results with smoother finish and less entrapped bubbles with a ^04 glaze firing.  I brush on the glaze, so application is less even and smooth than dipped or sprayed objects so more time is needed at a fluid state of firing in order for the glaze to smooth evenly.

Doubling on ^04 simplifies the necessary cones, since the target cone is the same for both bisque and glaze, which is a nice side effect.

The best way to answer your question is probably the simplest answer to say and the most work-intensive to do: experiment with your clay and glazes to find the desired results.

[GreyBird]

Thank You!