in this video I'm going to answer the
most frequently asked questions of all
kilns from beginner Potter's
[Music]
hi Marie here back with another
informative video for you whether you're
buying a new or used kiln there are
basic things that you want and need to
know to get the best results from the
beautiful pottery that you just created
when you're getting your first kill
there's always a lot of excitement and a
little nervousness with that said some
good knowledge will put your mind at
ease I put together a list of the most
frequently asked questions about kilns
from beginner Potter's my advice comes
from personal experience other kiln
owners and the very helpful and
informative technicians at Scott my
first and most important question is do
I need an electrician to install my
outlet yes I most definitely recommend
an electrician to make sure you have
enough power and the proper outlet you
want to have someone with experience to
check out your breaker box and hook you
up properly when it comes to electricity
you don't want to take a chance so it's
best to have an electrician come out do
kilns use a lot of electricity this
would depend on the size and age of your
kiln larger and older kilns will use
more energy a kiln with thicker bricks
will be more efficient this kiln is an 8
18 with 3-inch brick which costs 3
dollars for a bisque and 5 for a glaze
firing at Kohn 5 should I get a used or
new kiln kilns last for a very long time
most kilns are built well and the parts
are pretty easy to repair you can get a
used kiln for a good price for more
information on what to look for in kilns
you can check out my article on choosing
a kiln
I left a link for you in the description
below if you're thinking of getting a
new kiln
I think it's worth the investment you
would have the new
technology they're very easy to run and
more energy-efficient if you decide to
buy a new kiln you can check out my
article on buying a kiln for fax
features and what to consider I left a
link for you in the description below
can I use my kiln right away if it's
used you should use a pyro metric cone
or witness cone for a bisque fire first
fill your kiln with the shelves and
posts only then bisque fire if your
witness cone is correct then you can
begin using your kiln if it's not then
you can make the proper adjustments
before firing her up if it's a new kiln
first you must do a note for bisque fire
with the shelves and posts only to burn
the oils off the elements this process
increases the life of your elements you
also want to do a witness cone to make
sure that the temperature is accurate
with the brand-new kiln the temperature
can be off also do I need to vent my
kiln
there are several vents that you can get
depending on your needs if there's
little to no ventilation and your kiln
is larger and giving off too much heat
for the area then yes you need an
overhead vent that will draw the fumes
and heat out of the kiln area but it
will not bring oxygen into the kiln
there is also event you can get for the
bottom of the kiln this vent will draw
fumes out and bring oxygen into your
kiln
but it will not be effective in drawing
the heat out of the kiln area so if you
have fresh air coming in your kiln area
you should be fine you don't want your
control panel to overheat if the control
board reaches over a hundred and sixty
degrees it'll shut off during your
firing you want to keep that kiln area
below a hundred degrees during firing if
I have no vent should I be concerned
about the fumes in my kiln area
if you have fresh air coming in and
never hang out in the kiln area you
should be fine
most of the pottery burn off occurs
between 500 and 1200 degrees which will
last about 3 to 5 hours depending on how
slow and baked your kiln is keep in mind
the fumes will still be coming in but at
a much slower rate I have the garage
door a quarter of the way up and never
smell anything in the house just make
sure your kiln area is not in your
living area do I need a stand if you
don't have a stand get one or put
something like cinder blocks or
something that isn't flammable
underneath you don't want your kiln to
be on the ground even if it's on
concrete the concrete will crack and you
want adequate air flow underneath your
kiln so definitely get a stand
should I keep all the peeps in the holes
or not that's a great question to people
or not to peep I was told many different
ways to do it then I was told by several
scut technicians that if you have a vent
on the bottom then yes you should keep
all of your peeps in if you have no vent
on the bottom then you should keep the
top peep open throughout the firing this
allows the fumes and fine particles to
escape so they don't settle back on to
your pottery or the elements it also
brings oxygen in and burns cleaner which
helps gives you more vibrant colors and
better results it also increases the
life of your elements because the fumes
and fine particles aren't settling into
the elements if I keep the top peep open
what about thermal shock the kiln is
powerful enough to handle one peep out
but not all of them so the golden rule
is to keep the top peep out at
all times when the kiln says complete
are the elements still on
I still see glowing in my kiln when the
kiln says complete it's still glowing
inside but not because the elements are
on your pottery is still glowing like
pieces of lava the elements have turned
off and your kiln is slowing down
naturally unless you program it for a
slower cooldown then the elements will
turn on to assist in cooling it down
slowly oh this is a good one can I lift
the lid while the kiln is still hot
technically yes you can should you know
besides the sheer curiosity there's no
reason to lift the lid since you can't
do anything with the pottery until it's
cool leave it alone
if you do lift it up you take a chance
of ruining your pottery causing thermal
shock and crazing I know how badly we
want to get in and see our finished
product but it's best to wait until it's
a hundred and twenty-five degrees or
even room temperature how long does a
firing take from beginning to end and
how this will depend on several things
how big your kiln is how thick your
bricks are if you programmed your kiln
for a slower fire or a slower cooldown
this kiln takes around 36 hours from
beginning to end it's a smaller kiln but
it has the 3 inch bricks figure at least
24 hours and remember for the best
results don't open until 125 degrees or
room temperature if you can is 3 inch
brick better than two and a half two and
a half inch brick does give you more
space inside the kiln and it also costs
less the three inch brick is more energy
efficient cools down much slower which
is always a plus and pottery
and the control board is more protected
from the heat of the kiln if the Box
hits a hundred and sixty degrees your
kiln will shut down you lose more space
with the three inch brick and it does
cost more with that said I would still
go for the three inch brick because the
pros do outweigh the cons I get a
touchscreen controller
you definitely don't have to but if
you're new at working with kilns and you
want the luxury of the 21st century
computer touchscreen and it's in your
budget then I would say get one I love
my the scut technicians have access to
my kiln data and they help me with any
troubleshooting you can update it and
it's easy to program but computerized
programmer also gives you more control
over your firings and it's very simple
to use do I need to use a witness cone
all the time witness cones also called
pyro metric cones play a very important
part in the accuracy of the temperature
in your kiln even if you have a newer
kiln with the computerized touchscreen
you still want to make sure that it's
accurate so you still need to use the
witness cone but not as often definitely
use them from time to time to ensure
your kiln is running properly if you
have an older kiln yes you should use
them more often an older kiln should be
checked at least every four fires some
Potter's use them in every fire you
should also use witness cones to check
the temperature of each shelf should I
slow medium or high fire my pottery
medium fire is the most popular and
works fine with most clays and glazes
but slow firing is the best way to go
you can high fire but it's not
recommended it doesn't allow time for
your glaze to cure properly do I have to
use
Kiln wash if you don't have
top-of-the-line kiln shelves or use
cookies then I definitely would use kiln
wash if you use cookies make sure you
use cone ten clay with heavy grog they
last longer and shrink less with the
heavy grog these are my shelves and they
still look pretty good I also have an
article for you to read on protecting
your kiln shelf for melting glaze I left
a link for you in the description below
this is how well the cookies protect
your shelf from melting glaze if I
didn't have this cookie I'd have a
really hard time getting all that glaze
off of my shelf even with the kiln wash
should I be concerned about cracks on
the bottom of my new or used kiln very
good question
cracks are normal on the bottom from the
heat expanding and contracting you
should be concerned if the cracks go all
the way across the bottom or if they go
all the way through the bottom and you
can see a light through the bottom I
have a few cracks in mine and that's
totally normal
never put anything on the bottom of your
kiln the air needs to flow through so
1/2 an inch post will give it enough air
to flow through on the bottom should I
put a hold on when I glaze fire you
don't have to but if you want to make
sure that the temperature is even
throughout your kiln you can program a 5
minute hold at the end of the firing it
also helps the glaze cure if you don't
want to put a hold on you can slow fire
instead
does the glaze have to totally dry
before I place it in the kiln it is best
to allow your glaze to totally dry kilns
hate moisture the less moisture in your
kiln the longer your kiln will last how
often should I vacuum out my kiln I
would recommend after every bisque fire
the reason being there's clay dust
floating around from the bisque fire and
you know it because you're wiping off
the fine dust particles from your bisque
ware before you glaze after spending all
that time creating decorating and
glazing your pottery it's totally worth
taking five to ten minutes out to vacuum
and increase the sex after spending all
of that time creating decorating and
glazing your pottery it's totally worth
taking five to ten minutes out to vacuum
and increase the success level of all
the pottery in your kiln I hope this has
helped you to run and maintain your kiln
to get the best results on your pottery
that you've crafted don't forget to
check out pottery crafters website where
you'll find more helpful information on
kilns and also tips tools and other
information about pottery making when
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