HS Newbie Posted July 7, 2021 Report Share Posted July 7, 2021 Hey guys! I've just replaced my kiln elements and noticed the bottom elements are not glowing while the top ones are cherry red at 600°. I'm using a second hand Cromartie 450CTL kiln. The previous user (whom I'm unable to reach) had changed the wiring so the factory original wiring diagram doesn't really help. This did not affect the kiln and it was working fine before we changed the elements (after they broke). We also recently changed the contactor. I'm unable to identify the source of the problem. Please could you help me narrow down on what it could be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted July 7, 2021 Report Share Posted July 7, 2021 My best thought some decent pictures showing as much of a clear view of the wiring and you will likely need a meter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HS Newbie Posted July 8, 2021 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2021 Hi Bill, I'm trying to add pictures but unable to upload for some reason. Spoke to a helpful team at Cromartie this morning. They suggested to check the amps into the elements and its all checking out ok. I even sent them the electrical box wiring pictures and while it's been modified from the factory settings, they seem to be ok. The amps, voltage and ohms are all fine and they don't understand the lapse then. Any suggestions on what else we can check are welcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted July 8, 2021 Report Share Posted July 8, 2021 If the elements are not glowing then it’s not possible they are drawing the correct amount of current (Amps). This would be a power on test so electrical safety is a must. Sometimes folks confuse the amps (power on) with resistance (power off, ohms) So it seems there is a chance it could be wiring, relay, etc…. A picture or two would allow us to suggest where to test and for what. You can. Drag photos to the box below to attach or use the attach button. If they are too large one way to reduce their size is to email to yourself and choose reduce size as an option when you are emailing. Then use the photos you received in email. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HS Newbie Posted July 12, 2021 Author Report Share Posted July 12, 2021 So we checked the amps and ohms and all checked out just fine. I also cross checked this with the guys at Cromartie. We fired up the kiln for a bisque firing. All went great! Second was a glaze firing. We got cut off at 1080°c but on inspection, all the wiring seems to be ok and intact. We're running one more firing tomorrow to see if the problem was a one off or something else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted July 12, 2021 Report Share Posted July 12, 2021 Does the kiln have graded elements- elements that have to be in certain positions in the kiln? Many kilns have the very top and very bottom elements run hotter than the others, so if you happened to put the hotter ones in the in the same section and the other two in the other section that could account for the difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted July 12, 2021 Report Share Posted July 12, 2021 6 hours ago, HS Newbie said: We're running one more firing tomorrow to see if the problem was a one off or something else. My guess it likely will return. Pretty rare for it to get better on its own. Intermittent problems are definitely difficult. To Neil’s point, can you post the measured resistance and amperage for each element group? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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