hlipper Posted May 18, 2021 Report Share Posted May 18, 2021 Hi there! I am interested in firing some luster pieces in my kiln in my basement (I have an L&L easy fire with a downdraft vent and a vent for heat). I open a couple small windows when I fire as well. I've heard anecdotally that luster firings smell really bad so I'm not sure they are safe to fire in a home studio. Do folks have experience with this? Thanks in advance!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liambesaw Posted May 18, 2021 Report Share Posted May 18, 2021 They smell like burning lustre, it's not a great smell. As far as safety, a lot of the hazardous components evaporate away, they're the solvents. Shouldn't get too much solvent burning off, but you'll smell the resin burning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hlipper Posted May 18, 2021 Author Report Share Posted May 18, 2021 But is it unsafe to do because of the fumes? Or is the smell the only issue? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted May 19, 2021 Report Share Posted May 19, 2021 I would be as concerned, if not more, about the fumes during application. Wear a respirator that's approved for vapors, wear safety glasses and gloves, in a well ventilated area. With a downdraft vent and windows I would think you'll be fine during the firing. Maybe put a small fan in one of the windows, blowing out, to move more air through the space if needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liambesaw Posted May 19, 2021 Report Share Posted May 19, 2021 6 hours ago, hlipper said: But is it unsafe to do because of the fumes? Or is the smell the only issue? I lustre fire outside, but the overglazes do not vaporize, so it should not be unsafe. This is assuming you're using modern overglazes, not lead fluxed overglazes from pre-1990. Modern overglazes are fluxed to the surface with either bismuth salts or silver salts. The nonvolatile (the compoundes that do not evaporate after application) compounds in lustre overglazes are pine rosin and metal salts. The pine rosin is there for local reduction, and will generate a tiny amount of carbon monoxide during firing, but it likely converts to carbon dioxide before it even leaves the kiln. The salts reduce to their metallic form. Take that with a grain of salt, but I would be more comfortable firing lustres in a vented kiln than I would firing a speckled body. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted May 19, 2021 Report Share Posted May 19, 2021 8 hours ago, liambesaw said: Take that with a grain of salt, but I would be more comfortable firing lustres in a vented kiln than I would firing a speckled body. The lustre burnout/smelly period would be a lot shorter than the burnout of stuff during a bisque firing, wouldn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted May 19, 2021 Report Share Posted May 19, 2021 I would think the volume alone would be lower. There’s more clay in a firing than there is lustre. And bisques are usually to earthenware temperatures, and lustres are usually cone 016 max. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pres Posted May 19, 2021 Report Share Posted May 19, 2021 I fired lustres at the HS, used a vent fan overhead, ran a slow firing with peeps open. Very little smell in the room. I always required that students wore the respirator mask in the room when applying lustres, also in a station with near the kiln vent fan. Lustres a great on decorative pieces, but as they wear off, little use on functional pieces that will get lots of wear. best, Pres Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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