Glaze making - beginner's questions

[karimel]

Hi potters!

I am very new to glaze chemistry. I am not very experienced potter but as I have my own kiln I decided to research a question of  making my own glazes. I use shop bought  brush on  and dipping glazes  in EW and  mid fire range, and now when I started to make more items I want to explore glaze making process. I am interested in celadon kind of glazes in particular. 

Please point to the appropriate topic as I did not find one with such a basic answers.

My questions are:

- what kind of mask/respirator do I need (are there particular standards for dust masks for the task)?

- 1g scales: how much should they cost? there are cheaper options ($A20-50) - can they be trusted?

-  any suggestions on text books?

- what else do I need? Like basic chemicals - what amount to buy to start with and how safe is it  to store them in a garage?

Thanks in advance!

[GEP]

I recommend a respirator with P100 filters that are rated for dust. Some filters are rated for odors too but you don’t need to worry about odors, just dust.

My scale was about $30 USD, from Amazon. Make sure it can measure 0.1 grams, sometimes you need increments that small. And up to 2000g, you rarely need to weigh out more than that. To make sure you can trust the scale, also buy some calibration weights so you can occasionally check its accuracy.

[neilestrick]

I also recommend investing in a digital pocket scale if you plan to do small batch glaze tests, as they tend to work better for small amounts. You can find them on Amazon for $10-15.

[Min]

2 hours ago, karimel said:

I am interested in celadon kind of glazes in particular. 

Celadon glazes are traditionally high fire glazes fired in reduction. We can do faux celadon type glazes by using a clear glaze and adding stains or colouring oxides to it. I would suggest working on a clear glaze that fits your claybody without flaws first then adding colourants to get the colours you want. For earthenware you could probably start with a boron frit, kaolin and silica plus bentonite to suspend it. For midrange there are many more possibilities for glaze materials. Have a look at Glazy clear recipes for the cones you will be firing to and see what they have in common and what the Australian equivalents are for materials unavailable to you. @Babs, do you have any recommendations for AU subs?

There have been a number of posts on book recommendations, one here to start with. If you do a search from the main page more will come up.

Welcome to the forum.

 

[Babs]

For subs, ferro frits, most of them you merely sub a 4 for the 3 at start of the number.

These forums or glazy and Tony Hanse n of Digital fire give great info.

A "pantry basic supply" depends. 

Finding a base glaze then the above.

Who is your local supplier? 

Oldie but good,

Janet de Boos. "Glazes for Australian Potters"has a section on 3 firing ranges. 

Greg Daly's Glazes and glazing techniques

Constant and Ogden"The Potter's Palette"

 

[Babs]

Noticed you intend to have kids in your studio.

Learn about toxicity of glaze ingredients, have your chemicals and kiln out of the kid space.

Just saying

[karimel]

1 hour ago, Babs said:

Noticed you intend to have kids in your studio.

Learn about toxicity of glaze ingredients, have your chemicals and kiln out of the kid space.

Just saying

Even when the kiln is not working? I do fire only when I don't have anyone (including myself) in the space.

[Babs]

I would, just saying.

Kids flick switches, kids touch things.

Kids try to open things....

Less hassle, separate place, vented to outside.

Good insurance policy.

[Hulk]

I'm using a 3M P100 mask, which is comfortable, washable, has replaceable filters, and comes in sizes - I run a medium.

When measuring out powders, I mask up and work under a fan hood.
The powders I store in lidded containers on shelves in a cabinet, also in the bags they come in, however, I've no children or pets frequenting the shop, and if so, there's opening the cabinets or dragging out the bags from under the built in shelving to get at the stuff.
I fill the lidded containers outside, well away from the studio, standing upwind, fill, wipe down the container, put all away, hose down any spills.

Recipes, so many. Suggestions:
  try to choose a heat range; I'm in midfire, cone 5/6
  look at lots of recipes; consider the ones coming from reputable sources with (With!) usage notes, test results, something helpful*
  at one extreme, work on one recipe that will be the base clear to rule them all, adding color to the one base
  at the other extreme, try many recipes! I went somewhere between, and although I have more ingredients, it has been rewarding**

Many good books, periodicals, video clips to learn from. This forum is a treasure. Tony Hansen's site, a treasure.
I'd like to recommend Peterson's The Craft and Art of Clay - it has pictures, and best unity explanation I've seen.

I'm happy with my 2000 gram capacity electronic scale - it wasn't terribly expensive.

*see FrogPondPottery glaze pages ...still available in this archive, looks like Mid-Fire Stoneware/Porcelain | Frog Pond Pottery (archive.org)
aforementioned Digitalfire.com
Lakeside Pottery glaze pages
I'm using a few recipes from Bill van Gilder's book

**learn by doing! I could afford to use frits for boron and avoid the gerstley borate altogether, however, my GB glazes are working, for example.
I'm using talc, petalite, three different feldspars, wollastonite, and several other things that could be avoided via one master clear approach, maybe.

[karimel]

Thank you everyone for the answers! Very informative! Will try and learn!

 

[PeterH]

On 4/6/2022 at 6:26 PM, Hulk said:

I'd like to recommend Peterson's The Craft and Art of Clay - it has pictures, and best unity explanation I've seen.

@HulkAny edition in particular?

Snippet of 4th edition visible from "Look and See" on https://tinyurl.com/yc6bnz9y

Sample prices at https://tinyurl.com/2p8hfxbc

[Hulk]

Hi Peter,

The later editions might be "better" - I was looking at a friend's copy, and got it damp, so I found a replacement.
I'm not remembering just now by looking at the covers; I'm away from home for the next month or so.
...I'm guessing third one.

Any road, I liked the broad approach, with sufficient detail in many areas I'm curious about, large array of images, and Peterson's voice.

[Chilly]

On 4/5/2022 at 3:03 PM, karimel said:

My questions are:

- what kind of mask/respirator do I need (are there particular standards for dust masks for the task)?

One that fits YOU.

And the only way you will find that out is to try some on.  As a specs wearing female with a small head (smallest hat size usually falls over my eyes), I tried many before I found one that is comfortable and fits.  Look for a brand that makes them in different sizes.  Don't know if these are available in Australia, but this is what I bought.  I can wear it and safety glasses for hours without any problems.

https://www.arco.co.uk/Web-Taxonomy/Personal-Protective-Equipment/Face-Masks-%26-Respirators/Half-Masks/3M-6000-Half-Face-Respirator-Mask/p/PIMM00000000001635