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Need help with sawdust firing


fravsss

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Hey guys. 

I'm a begginer in ceramics, so I made a sawdust kiln and put some pieces to bisque fire, but I couldn't get to the right temperature because I was stupid and covered the kiln at the wrong time, I should have waited more, but my question is: can I put it to bisque fire again? They didn't get any closer to the point they should, they are all black and doesn't make the sound of bisquefired pots. Is it ok to try firing it again? Please help me.

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9 minutes ago, neilestrick said:

Can you tell us more about your kiln? By sawdust kiln do you mean a pit, or something with more engineering than that? If it's a pit, the pots won't get as hot as in a regular kiln.

It's a pit, actually it's in my barbecue grill lol, I'm trying to make it work as a pit. And I don't think it got hot enough.  

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5 minutes ago, JohnnyK said:

Since it is your grill, why don't you try firing with a bunch of charcoal briquets, or some very hot burning wood to get the temp up? Do you have a thermometer to tell how hot it gets?

Hmm I thought about it but I didn't know if it would workout, I'm going to try it next time. And no, I don't have a thermometer... And thank you for the help! 

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42 minutes ago, liambesaw said:

Will be tough to get it hot enough for your pots to ring in a BBQ.  You've got no insulation so the heat can't build up very well.

Even if it is in a BBQ like the one in the picture? It's made of brick, that's why I thought it would work. churrasqueira-de-tijolo-05-730x730.jpg.174b608f5aeee99e9ce05b41ce8fd0f4.jpg 

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5 minutes ago, liambesaw said:

Oh wow that's really nice, I wouldn't even try it in something like that!  If it does get hot enough you might destroy the bbq!

But yeah I think it'll still be hard in that one

Oh I don't want to ruin my dad's BBQ, it would be sad and he would kill me lol. 

Gotta try something else then, any suggestions? Considering that I'm in the country (I live in a small town in Brazil) and here doesn't have a place that sells "pottery stuff" to make a proper kiln, so...?

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6 minutes ago, fravsss said:

That's sad... Well, think I gotta try something else. Thanks!

If you have some extra brick you could try stacking a little kiln on/in the ground! The bricks arent designed to take that much heat, so you may only get to fire a few times, but better there than in your outdoor kitchen

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5 minutes ago, liambesaw said:

If you have some extra brick you could try stacking a little kiln on/in the ground! The bricks arent designed to take that much heat, so you may only get to fire a few times, but better there than in your outdoor kitchen

Hmm ok, I will try it. Thank you for the help!! 

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Line a metal garbage can or 44gal drum with top cut off with ceramic fibre..cut draught holes at bottom fill with sawdust and pots and light it up lid placed on after the fuel has caught

Or  Cut a few slots in drum at various heights fill with pots and sawdust,  light up and put lid on. This is low fired stuff

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8 hours ago, Babs said:

Line a metal garbage can or 44gal drum with top cut off with ceramic fibre..cut draught holes at bottom fill with sawdust and pots and light it up lid placed on after the fuel has caught

Or  Cut a few slots in drum at various heights fill with pots and sawdust,  light up and put lid on. This is low fired stuff

I have a gas kiln like that but it's in São Paulo, I'm in the country in my parents house due to Corona virus, and here I can't find ceramic fibre anywhere...

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19 minutes ago, Magnolia Mud Research said:

You don't need fiber insulation for sawdust firing or "pit firing".   Think of this firing technique as a trash burning in a metal can.    

LT

Gotta find a metal can then! Thank you for the help!

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6 hours ago, Magnolia Mud Research said:

You don't need fiber insulation for sawdust firing or "pit firing".   Think of this firing technique as a trash burning in a metal can.    

LT

My husband built a barrel-fired kiln using sawdust, and today we did the second firing with it just to test temperature.  We started at 4:30, and it is about 1/3 finished. It has reached 640 F.  I will be hot for about 20 hours. I don't know how much hotter it will get.  I'll check it throughout the night. It is built by a  plan   (Alternative Kilns & Firing Techniques: Raku * Saggar * Pit * Barrel) exactly by the directions. 

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8 minutes ago, BonnieBee said:

My husband built a barrel-fired kiln using sawdust, and today we did the second firing with it just to test temperature.  We started at 4:30, and it is about 1/3 finished. It has reached 640 F.  I will be hot for about 20 hours. I don't know how much hotter it will get.  I'll check it throughout the night. It is built by a  plan   (Alternative Kilns & Firing Techniques: Raku * Saggar * Pit * Barrel) exactly by the directions. 

Oh that's great, good luck with it! There's so many options now that I'm kind of lost, I think I'm gonna try everything lol. Thank you for the help btw.

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1 minute ago, fravsss said:

Oh that's great, good luck with it! There's so many options now that I'm kind of lost, I think I'm gonna try everything lol. Thank you for the help btw.

I tried to send a photo, but it didn't work. I am a newly, also. I am learning and experimenting. I want to do variations with firing. My husband has another Idea to build something that will fire to at least cone 6. I am glad he will do this for me. I love the barrel-fired look, but it is not food safe.  Good luck and the book we used to pattern--is so helpful.

 

 

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15 hours ago, BonnieBee said:

I tried to send a photo, but it didn't work. I am a newly, also. I am learning and experimenting. I want to do variations with firing. My husband has another Idea to build something that will fire to at least cone 6. I am glad he will do this for me. I love the barrel-fired look, but it is not food safe.  Good luck and the book we used to pattern--is so helpful.

 

 

At about midnight, I checked the temp. of the barrel-firing. It had exceeded 980 F and the flue was smoking strongly. This morning it was barely smoldering and I could see the pottery. I was disappointed about the heat and time compared to the first firing. I haven't been able to check the pottery but it didn't fire but for about 15 hours.  Anyway, I am anxious to clean up the pottery and see what I have. Only two items were broken out of twelve. I am still learning and experimenting...

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