In this video, we'll load the kiln for a bisque firing.
Hi, welcome to pottery crafters. Loading your kiln for a bisque firing
is different from loading for a glaze firing and I'll go through the whole process with you
and the things you need to be aware of. I'm going to load this 818 Skutt kiln
with this green wear. This kiln is 17 and a half inches high and 16 and a half inches across.
It does have 3-inch bricks so I lose a little real estate inside. But it's better insulated,
so it's worth the loss. Before loading make sure all of your pieces are bone dry.
This lowers the chance of your pottery cracking and extends the life of your elements in the kiln.
Electric kilns hate moisture. Let's start loading. Never place your kiln shelf on the
bottom of your kiln. You need air to flow under the shelf. Place three one inch posts
on the bottom of your kiln. Be careful not to hit your shelf on the soft brick on the sides.
And also be careful not to hit the thermocouple.
Then place your post right underneath the post on the bottom.
This is to help prevent your shelves from warping.
Greenware is very fragile so you don't want to grab it by the rim.
It's best to handle with both hands. I'm going to place the shorter items on the bottom shelf.
Your greenware should be at least an inch away from the elements
and two inches away from the thermocouple and kiln sitter if you have one.
There is a difference between bisque and glaze firing the big one is the greenware can touch each
other, and you can have dust on the greenware and the bisque firing will burn the dust right off.
You want at least a half an inch clearance between
your greenware and the top shelf, and be careful not to hit your thermocouple.
Make sure it's nice and sturdy, then place your post right under the post beneath.
I always feel it with my finger to make sure I have the right spot.
Great! Now we can start stacking. With greenware, you can stack them together
because the bisqued pottery won't fuse together. That is a great advantage.
Make sure you're an inch away. Even though you can stack your greenware and have it touching,
it's still like a jigsaw puzzle. And with bisque firing, you don't have to protect your kiln
shelves. I also have a video on 4 ways to protect your kiln shelf. I left a link for you below.
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I'll place the third and final shelf on the post.
Make sure it's nice and stable. Some potters don't use shelves and they'll stack all of
their greenware together. I'm not that brave. This greenware is at such of a fragile state
that if the weight is too much you can easily chip crack or even crush your pottery.
Also if you pack the shelves too tightly you won't allow room for the gases to escape.
Bisque firing is important for several reasons. Most commercial glazes are made for bisqueware.
It gets your pottery ready for glazing by removing the moisture and organic materials in the clay
and it transforms the fragile greenware into ceramic material
making it durable and porous to safely decorate and allow the glaze to absorb into the pottery.
For more information, I have an article on the purpose of bisque firing
on my pottery crafters website. I left a link for you in the show notes below.
Want to make sure you don't stack it too high. A little more room here.
You have to be careful when moving your greenware around because I have already chipped and broken
pieces of my pottery doing that. I like the size of this kiln. I don't have to make as much to fill
it up, and the room doesn't get as hot, and it takes less power to heat up. It's important to
find the right kiln that fits your needs I have an article on buying a kiln, the facts, features,
and what to consider. I left a link for you below. If you're new to this channel welcome to
pottery crafters. Say hi in the comments section below. Make sure it's an inch away from the walls.
Okay. I have room for another bowl. Looks good. Now it's time to fire her up.
There is no exact temperature requirement for bisque firing. However, the ideal range is
usually between cone 06 and 04 which is 1945 degrees Fahrenheit or 1063 degrees Celsius.
You don't want to fire over cone 04, because the higher firing temperature will result in
a less porous ceramic and the glaze will not adhere as well to the bisqueware.
Firing at cone 04 increases the pottery's durability and ensures that all the gases
are eliminated from the bisqueware I have a video on programming this touch screen
controller for bisqueware and glaze firing. I left a link for you in the show notes below.
The process of loading a kiln is quite easy if you follow the guidelines correctly.
Don't forget to give this video a thumbs up and if you want to see me cover any other topics on
this channel leave a note down below. I'll see you next time and as always, let's stay dirty.