Glaze Embedded Into Kiln Wall

[Justin]

I recently bought a used kiln. My first kiln!  I bought it from the original owner, who used in very minimally. As far as I can tell the kiln has a lot of life left to give.  I believe that after some glaze had come into contact with one of the side wall bricks, it had not been removed befor the next firing or firings, and became embedded into the brick. The gaze apperas to have saturated about 1/4 in. into the bricks surface but without contacting any elements. The rest of the interior looks great, so this really stands out to me.

 

Should I try to remove embedded glaze before I attempt to fire?

 

It is the DE 1020-2 Duncan w the digital controller, and any knowledge you can share about this kiln would be appreciated as well.

 

Thank you,

  and thank you all for the priceless info on these forums!

 

Beginner Potter

 

 

 

[Mark C.]

Glaze will continue to seep into brick with every fire. I would grind it out with a dremill tool while vacuuming the dust at same time until clean brick shows.A small 1/4 inch hole is no big deal. 

Neil may have a better idea see what he says as he is the electric guru here.

Mark

[neilestrick]

A small spot is no big deal, but a quarter size or larger spot may continue to eat through slowly, but may not. It depends on just how much glaze there is. If you can cut or grind it out without damaging the element groove and without putting a large hole in the brick, then do so. Otherwise I would just leave it for now but keep an eye on it. If it spreads or seeps deeper, replace the brick. Be very careful if you have to replace the brick, because old elements are quite brittle. I would have a spare element on hand just in case. If you're lucky the spot will stay put until it's time to replace the elements, which is the ideal time to replace bad bricks.

[Justin]

Ok that is what I was hoping to hear. It is roughly the size of a quarter, but I might have exaggerated on the depth. I will take your advice.

thanks