moogie Posted February 12 Report Share Posted February 12 Hi everyone, I've made a small (40cm tall) sculpture to sit outside in the garden. I don't want to glaze it, as I'd like moss to grow on it. It has been drying for two weeks inside my house and I'm sure it's dry all the way through. Can I fire it in my electric kiln if I do a long (maybe overnight) candling at 80C and then use my slow bisque program with the last part of my glaze program at the end? It is about 1cm thick. My reasoning for this is that I want to be able to leave it outside all year round and I want it to be tough, but I'm not sure why I would have to bisque it and then high fire it too. So it would go: ramp to 80C, hold overnight ramp at 75C per hour to 600C ramp at 100C to 1180C soak for 30 minutes end I have a rohde ecotop kiln, and am using potterycrafts buff school clay (1140C - 1240C) How does that sound? Thanks very much for your help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted February 12 Report Share Posted February 12 Your kiln firing cycle sounds good, although the overnight hold may be excessive. For a 1 cm ( about 3/8” for the Imperial users) thick piece that’s bone dry, I don’t know that more than 3-4 hours is necessary, even allowing for a more humid climate than mine. We use a 4 hour hold at the teaching studio I’m at, and most learners make some pretty chunky pieces when just starting out. The end durability of the piece in your garden will be dictated more by your clay body’s fired properties and how they interact with your climate. Freeze/thaw cycles will be important, and I’d follow whatever recommendations they have in your area for overwintering terra cotta plant pots. Potterycraft doesn’t appear to offer porosity testing specs on their, but they do say it’s reasonably groggy (6/10). With a 30 minute soak at the end of your firing, I would expect your end firing temp to hit 1200, or a good cone 5-5.5. A bit under the cone 6 end point on this clay, so I would expect some porosity in the end piece. Enough to absorb some water over time, especially somewhere damp enough to grow moss. Rae Reich, Pres and moogie 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babs Posted February 12 Report Share Posted February 12 There aas a thought that smearing your statue with yoghurt would hasten the mould etc growth on it... moogie and Rae Reich 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moogie Posted February 13 Author Report Share Posted February 13 Lovely, thank you. I will do a shorter hold at the start and maybe a slightly longer one at the end. I'll also give the yoghurt idea a go! I'm in southern England, I might have to loosely wrap the statue if the weather gets very cold over winter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hulk Posted February 14 Report Share Posted February 14 We've tented frost sensitive citrus (dwarf variety, in containers) trees with a light tarp to get them through freezing nights - a short string of xmas lights to add some heat makes a big difference... moogie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted February 14 Report Share Posted February 14 1 hour ago, Hulk said: a short string of xmas lights to add some heat makes a big difference... Just realized, harder to do with LED Christmas lights these days! Hulk and moogie 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babs Posted February 14 Report Share Posted February 14 On 2/14/2024 at 4:43 AM, moogie said: Lovely, thank you. I will do a shorter hold at the start and maybe a slightly longer one at the end. I'll also give the yoghurt idea a go! I'm in southern England, I might have to loosely wrap the statue if the weather gets very cold over winter. After firing and in situ. :-)) moogie 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moogie Posted February 19 Author Report Share Posted February 19 It's going in tonight - will let you know how it goes! Callie Beller Diesel and Hulk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babs Posted February 19 Report Share Posted February 19 1 hour ago, moogie said: It's going in tonight - will let you know how it goes! Be nice to your kiln god Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denice Posted February 20 Report Share Posted February 20 Christmas lights are a great idea. I only try to save one plant every year. It is a Whale's tongue agave, it will tolerate down to 11 degrees unfortunately it will get down to -10. My husband built a huge 2 inch thick styrofoam box and we put two lights inside of it. The plant is 7x7x4 feet, we are hoping to live long enough to see it bloom. We have had it 10 years and it takes 25 years to bloom. Denice Hulk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moogie Posted February 24 Author Report Share Posted February 24 Hi everyone, I fired it according to my schedule, with only three hours at 80C to start with and kept the soak at 30 minutes at the end. It turned out well, am very happy with it. It's a Japanese style stone tea lantern. they are sold in my local garden centre, they are quite expensive so I made my own! I've out it in my wildlife garden next to our little pond. Callie Beller Diesel, Hulk and Hyn Patty 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moogie Posted February 24 Author Report Share Posted February 24 On 2/19/2024 at 7:46 PM, Babs said: Be nice to your kiln god I always offer up a few words before I turn the kiln on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hyn Patty Posted February 25 Report Share Posted February 25 (edited) Good job! Stoneware I assume? Love the texture. You should be able to get moss to grow on it easily, especially if you place it in a shady location. Depending on your environment of course. Up here on our temperate rainforest mountain moss and lichens grow on EVERYTHING even out in full sun. If you want any tips or tricks to get moss and lichens growing quickly there are tons of websites out there to help you. Lovely lantern. A nice feeling when you can achieve something you couldn't afford otherwise, isn't it? Pat yourself on the back! Oh! And if you REALLY loved making it, consider making mold pieces of it so you can replicate it and make more of them! For yourself, for friends, to sell in an Etsy shop, whatever. Just a thought. The challenges of learning mold making can be vastly rewarding as well and isn't nearly as difficult as people think it is. Edited February 25 by Hyn Patty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted February 26 Report Share Posted February 26 We love updates! May the moss growing go well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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