help with porosity after firing

[fravsss]

Hey guys, due to the pandemic and because I don’t have a kiln at home, I’m bisque firing my pottery with wood in a barrel and I’d like to know if you have any tips to reduce the porosity of the pieces after they are fired, should I pass some type of wax or something like that? I'm not glazing them.

 

 

[Bill Kielb]

16 minutes ago, fravsss said:

Hey guys, due to the pandemic and because I don’t have a kiln at home, I’m bisque firing my pottery with wood in a barrel and I’d like to know if you have any tips to reduce the porosity of the pieces after they are fired, should I pass some type of wax or something like that? I'm not glazing them.

 

 

Hang on to them, when the pandemic is over glaze fire them! Just my thought. Studios are beginning to open and have classes again. Your wood fire probably didn’t get them very bisqued. Good for storage, bisque fire them in a real kiln and glaze them.

[neilestrick]

A barrel firing won't get them hot enough to be considered truly bisque fired, but if you're happy with how they look and want to keep them, go for it. However, they should not be used for food, and will not be good for holding water no matter what you seal them with. But you can seal them up with floor wax like people do with pit fired and raku pieces to give the surface a little sheen. Do a search here on the forum and you'll find a couple of recent threads about which products people prefer. Some are prone to yellowing over time, so it's worth the search.

Like Bill said, if you think you might want to do more with them, just hold on to them until quarantine is over and run them through a proper bisque firing.