Linkinman Posted June 13, 2020 Report Share Posted June 13, 2020 I have been into pottery a really long time and I love everything about it i have been working really hard to MAKE a raku kiln from scratch and have a tremendous amount of difficulty i also have been making my own clay from scratch and have made a ton . I own a wheel (not great at it) but I have made about 30 pots so far my problem is I spent about 300$ and stacked fire bricks up used a metal grate as the shelf and steel plate for lid I cannot seem to make it hot enough I purchased a flame torch for weeds and roofing was able to hit 700 fairly quickly but that's about it bought a second one and cannot seem to break 950 they run on propane .. so my question is where am I going wrong what should I use as a heat source on a handmade raku kiln. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liambesaw Posted June 13, 2020 Report Share Posted June 13, 2020 You need to move air THROUGH the kiln. So an inlet and outlet, plenty of OXYGEN needs to go into the kiln with the fuel. So try making a chimney, and letting air mix with fuel as it enters. This means don't block the inlet with the burner, back it off a bit or make the burner port a little bigger. You want a draft of hot air moving through. If you're stalling at 700, it means you are probably running too much fuel and choking off the heat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted June 13, 2020 Report Share Posted June 13, 2020 Post a pic of your kiln. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linkinman Posted June 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 23 hours ago, neilestrick said: Post a pic of your kiln. Trying not every image I select says it exceeds limit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linkinman Posted June 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 On 6/12/2020 at 8:21 PM, liambesaw said: You need to move air THROUGH the kiln. So an inlet and outlet, plenty of OXYGEN needs to go into the kiln with the fuel. So try making a chimney, and letting air mix with fuel as it enters. This means don't block the inlet with the burner, back it off a bit or make the burner port a little bigger. You want a draft of hot air moving through. If you're stalling at 700, it means you are probably running too much fuel and choking off the heat. This helps alot thank you what should I be using as a base for my pottery to sit on I'm currently using a steel plate. After much research I switched to a steel barrel and punched hole at bottom placed four bricks around and a steel plate on top of bricks to allow fire to pass under it but it seems I am still having problems with building heat is there a way to force more air in or do I need a stronger torch this is the one I am using. Also what is the best lid/chimney to use for a barrel raku thank you again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hulk Posted June 14, 2020 Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 Hi Linkinman, Try taking a "snip" of your pic - just the salient portion - and save as type .jpg, then check that the file size is less than .98MB If Windows, hit the start key and type "snipping tool" and go from there; if Mac, Linux, UNIX, etc., find an image editing tool to accomplish about the same thing - reduce the file size. ...now I want a weed burner, for next Spring's weeds! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linkinman Posted June 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 1 hour ago, Linkinman said: I figured it out and this is my current set up I put rebar and steel plates on the top as a makeshift lid and I ordered more insulation on Amazon but will take a week to come in I am struggling with the LID/CHIMENY aspect of it as well as not getting hot enough Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linkinman Posted June 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 52 minutes ago, Hulk said: Hi Linkinman, Try taking a "snip" of your pic - just the salient portion - and save as type .jpg, then check that the file size is less than .98MB If Windows, hit the start key and type "snipping tool" and go from there; if Mac, Linux, UNIX, etc., find an image editing tool to accomplish about the same thing - reduce the file size. ...now I want a weed burner, for next Spring's weeds! Thanks I'm on mobile but I did find a app to help with resizing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liambesaw Posted June 14, 2020 Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 That's not enough insulation, the metal will burn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linkinman Posted June 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 44 minutes ago, liambesaw said: That's not enough insulation, the metal will burn. Yeah I did order more but I cant seem to get it hot enough to burn I fired for 3 hours and nothing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liambesaw Posted June 14, 2020 Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 19 minutes ago, Linkinman said: Yeah I did order more but I cant seem to get it hot enough to burn I fired for 3 hours and nothing Put a lid mostly covering the top. You need to be able to hold heat in (insulation) while letting exhaust escape. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted June 14, 2020 Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 22 minutes ago, Linkinman said: Yeah I did order more but I cant seem to get it hot enough to burn I fired for 3 hours and nothing Take a look at some fiber kilns for Raku. Simple to make actually. The steel drum will act as a great heat sink if you do not fully insulate it, top, bottom and sides. You will also need a way to control the draft through the kiln as heat builds. Steel is generally not suitable for shelves or the top And can form the shell but must be insulated with at least one width of fiber. They make ceramic buttons so the fiber can be easily wired while still protecting the wire from direct heat. Sort of like button tufting a seat cover. I suggest you research, read and watch some of the videos available to become as familiar as practical. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linkinman Posted June 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 28 minutes ago, liambesaw said: Put a lid mostly covering the top. You need to be able to hold heat in (insulation) while letting exhaust escape. I did place rebar rods across the top and placed steel plates leaving a hole for the chimney is the torch I purchased good enough to do what I'm trying to do HIGH INTENSITY TORCH FOR MAX HEAT - 500, 000 BTU propane torch for max heat output my question is due I need to increase the PSI or just straight to tank good enough Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linkinman Posted June 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 29 minutes ago, Bill Kielb said: Take a look at some fiber kilns for Raku. Simple to make actually. The steel drum will act as a great heat sink if you do not fully insulate it, top, bottom and sides. You will also need a way to control the draft through the kiln as heat builds. Steel is generally not suitable for shelves or the top And can form the shell but must be insulated with at least one width of fiber. They make ceramic buttons so the fiber can be easily wired while still protecting the wire from direct heat. Sort of like button tufting a seat cover. I suggest you research, read and watch some of the videos available to become as familiar as practical. I have done quite a bit or research and have come quite far from my original attempts but I am still struggling with finding things like buttons and bases of the kiln I found a few that claimed it was super easy to use a steel drum however I am having alot of trouble is there a site you use to purchase buttons or interior shelfs or even torches I am not 100% sure mine is strong enough HIGH INTENSITY TORCH FOR MAX HEAT - 500, 000 BTU propane torch for max heat output is what I bought but I cannot get it over 700 do I need to feed oxygen into the kiln to make it hotter ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted June 14, 2020 Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 500,000 probably way too strong, buttons at axner or other supply companies. Plenty of videos to watch. Your present setup will not work. As I said, steel will not work without being insulated. Round kiln shelves work great for a bottom shelf. Take a close look at some builds on you tube you will get ideas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linkinman Posted June 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 7 minutes ago, Bill Kielb said: 500,000 probably way too strong, buttons at axner or other supply companies. Plenty of videos to watch. Your present setup will not work. As I said, steel will not work without being insulated. Round kiln shelves work great for a bottom shelf. Take a close look at some builds on you tube you will get ideas. I did order more insulation and plan on maybe cutting barrel to make it smaller easier to heat and thank you very much for advice I do appreciate it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted June 14, 2020 Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 You need to insulate the inside of the entire thing with fiber blanket- floor, walls, and lid. Get a proper bottom shelf and put it up on a couple of soft bricks. The lid should have a hole in it to allow for air flow, roughly the same size as the burner port. The burner tip should not be inside the drum. Chances are you're using too much gas. Do some internet research and you'll find lots of good designs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linkinman Posted June 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 13 minutes ago, neilestrick said: You need to insulate the inside of the entire thing with fiber blanket- floor, walls, and lid. Get a proper bottom shelf and put it up on a couple of soft bricks. The lid should have a hole in it to allow for air flow, roughly the same size as the burner port. The burner tip should not be inside the drum. Chances are you're using too much gas. Do some internet research and you'll find lots of good designs. Research really led me in circles and was not helpful and youtube is so full of professionals it's hard to know what to search that's why I came here to talk to experts so the tip should be just outside and should I cut the drum in half to heat quicker and I am using propane is that also ok Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted June 14, 2020 Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 7 hours ago, Linkinman said: Research really led me in circles and was not helpful and youtube is so full of professionals it's hard to know what to search that's why I came here to talk to experts so the tip should be just outside and should I cut the drum in half to heat quicker and I am using propane is that also ok Here’s a couple you could start with, both are garbage can type but show the insulation and making your own buttons as well as cutting an inlet and flue port the same size. I think total less than 25 minutes or less And you should have a good idea about insulation, shelves, cutting etc.... Remember, you still need to learn the how to actually fire the kiln, when do you remove pieces, safe operation of your burner, eye protection for infrared , gloves, tongs, proper clothing, hair protection, glazes, application ......... lots to learn. Folks spend years learning how to do this well, there must be something to it. I highly suggest you try and learn as much as practical and even suggest firing with folks who have done this several times in the beginning until you are sure you can do this safely. What you have built is great but to me it is apparent you have plenty of room to continue learning and I am concerned for your safety and the appearance that you are rushing a bit. Just my opinion so take it for what it is worth. I want to see you fire safely and create great stuff. The kiln is only a tool for the artist. Wishing you good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linkinman Posted June 14, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2020 3 hours ago, Bill Kielb said: Here’s a couple you could start with, both are garbage can type but show the insulation and making your own buttons as well as cutting an inlet and flue port the same size. I think total less than 25 minutes or less And you should have a good idea about insulation, shelves, cutting etc.... Remember, you still need to learn the how to actually fire the kiln, when do you remove pieces, safe operation of your burner, eye protection for infrared , gloves, tongs, proper clothing, hair protection, glazes, application ......... lots to learn. Folks spend years learning how to do this well, there must be something to it. I highly suggest you try and learn as much as practical and even suggest firing with folks who have done this several times in the beginning until you are sure you can do this safely. What you have built is great but to me it is apparent you have plenty of room to continue learning and I am concerned for your safety and the appearance that you are rushing a bit. Just my opinion so take it for what it is worth. I want to see you fire safely and create great stuff. The kiln is only a tool for the artist. Wishing you good luck! Thank you very much I have takin a few years of ceramics at my local community college and do have alot of the safety gear and have even forged a few knives but my class only did RAKU twice which was extremely disappointing as I found it to be the coolest thing we did all year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 On 6/14/2020 at 12:10 AM, Linkinman said: I did order more insulation and plan on maybe cutting barrel to make it smaller easier to heat and thank you very much for advice I do appreciate it. Maybe cutting the barrel will help, but might not matter at all. The steel barrel if not fully covered everywhere in insulation will absorb way to much heat and the lack of a lid (with hole) will keep heat from building up properly and the overpowered burners are going to choke it. Unless I am missing something you haven't corrected any of that so cutting the barrel or any other changes seems premature . I think you are going to have to get the kiln right or its just going to keep doing what its doing and stalling out and if you keep trying more stuff without getting the basic setup right it will get more and more confusing . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyK Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 Here are some pix of a portable Raku kiln that I made which I have used for my Horsehair Raku over the last couple of years. I have yet to do regular Raku in it, but that is in the near future...I made my own buttons and used stainless steel wire to fasten the insulating blanket with the buttons. The single weed burner has worked fine for the Horsehair Raku getting up to 1500 degrees F in about 20 minutes... I Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldlady Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 beautiful job, johnny! i tried to tell the OP about the Bracker raku kiln that is shown on their website but he is determined to fool around with that steel barrel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linkinman Posted June 17, 2020 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 6 minutes ago, oldlady said: beautiful job, johnny! i tried to tell the OP about the Bracker raku kiln that is shown on their website but he is determined to fool around with that steel barrel. At what point was I determined to fool around as I am building a bracker and looked into ordering parts to make one but please continue to be condensing it really helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldlady Posted June 17, 2020 Report Share Posted June 17, 2020 linkinman, many of the newbie posters just ask questions, continue to say their way is better, disappear from the forum and never say what they actually have done to solve their problems. others say "thank you" to people who go to the trouble of giving their advice. the ones we all love show pictures of how the advice they took from the forum has benefited them. your replies to the advice given, if you read them again, might indicate the group you appear to fall into. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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