Kiln procedures

Ceramics
#131

This thread has misrepresented the way Fired Arts runs because it focused on the kilns, starting with the erroneous premise that they were being unused.

Fired Arts operates much more like the college environment.

Also, the premise and focus on the kilns made the point about established potters using us distorted. Those folks are choosing us because they’re looking for a place to work. The fact that it comes with firing is just a bonus. When I joined, the 24 hr access to the studio was the seller for me. The colleges make you take a class, and then you primarily get access during the class you’ve signed up for. And, unless you’ve been going to that college for quite a while, you won’t be running a kiln by yourself. Our kilns (partly because they’re smaller than the colleges’) run much more frequently than the colleges run their kilns. I went to Northlake before here, and they only fired the glaze kiln at the end of the course – roughly 2 months (summer class). Even when I started and we were slower, I got things glaze fired much quicker than that.

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#132

Oh, and the point that got clouded was that you can join DMS, and get workspace and firing for about the same as Trinity charges for firing. Of course, Trinity is trying to make money, and we’re just fine covering our expenses.

#133

We are not a college environment. We are more an apprentice hobbyist environment where members get the chance to learn how to run many different tools, not create anything in particular. Though that is usally the end game. But that’s an individual goal and not a collective one.

What I got out of this thread was that the kilns can only be used by the select few for various reasons that seem reasonable. If I’m not mistaken, it’s probably the only tool at the space that is like that?

The point that perhaps training to use the kiln makes sense and another kiln to train and folks to use individually is a good thing for Fired Arts.

To me, all positive. A need was articulated and a solution to grow was presented that seems to enhance the good work already being done.

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#134

Sooooo… where precisely in this thread did YOU see a specific individual articulate their personal need? I will grant you that @wandrson mentioned a prior need. Fired Arts would be working with him except that he’d given up some time ago. The only other commentary I’ve seen has primarily been speculative, speaking of hypothetical needs that are hypothetically held by some random folks who are not involved in the conversation.

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#135

Potters may be more patient than most folks, The entire process is one that
is done over a period of time, When you are handbuiling you start your item, leave it for maybe an hour, come back work on it some more that may happen several time Then you may cover it in plastic and
come back in a couple of days and work on it some more. Then you have to wait till it is bone try to fire

Then bisque firing and then applying glaze, sometime there may be an addition glaze fire for specail glazes,

It is easy to have 2-3 weelss of work in a in a single piece

#136

The fact that others discussed no kiln training is occurring would indicate that others would like to know how to operate a kiln for their use. Would you agree?

Each committee is about potential. How do you know if there is a demand or not unless the training is offered. Granted, folks could come to you directly and ask, others may not.

I would think most potters would be interested in knowing how to load and run a firing.

I feel that a kiln is a tool and everyone who wants to know how to use one should be given the opportunity.

I can agree that the somewhat heavy-handed approach of selling off a tool that is not being trained in this case is probably more symbolic than real. Trying to make a point.

Like I said, this is more of an opportunity to expand Fired Arts and at least offer others the chance to run a kiln. Which is a good thing

#137

I think we’re well on our way to getting this all settled out, but I’ll be less hypothetical.

I definitely want to occasionally do a cone 10 firing for porcelain. There are at least a couple of long-term projects I’m working on that involve translucency in porcelain, and that happens best at cone 10.

I also occasionally want to do a slow-cool firing to experiment with crystalline glazes (we currently have one of these firings pending).

I won’t want to do it often, and I’d much rather do it in the smaller of the two Paragon kilns.

But, just throwing it out there. I definitely have a concrete, not-hypothetical desire to be able to do one-off independent firings of my work in DMS kilns. Not just one time, but on an ongoing, if occasional, basis.

This is not a request to do the community firings. Should the need arise, I’m happy to help with those, but at the moment, I’m only wanting to be able to fire my own work in an infrequent independent firing - preferably in the smaller kiln (which is hopefully going to be fixed and/or at least diagnosed today).

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#138

Just an observation from an outsider. I can see the advantage of training people to operate the kiln if they want to learn, but I can also see the concern about it considering the length of time it runs, the potential for others work to get ruined, etc. What about a train the trainer type of situation? If someone wants to learn how to operate a kiln offer training, and if they want to help run it, certify them like the trainers are (have to be shadowed until certified) and have a posted schedule of what gets fired, when.

#139

Why not just automate this and call it a day electric kilns have been out for years and I know some of them have the ability to ramp in and out and follow an exact schedule. Smaller kilns would also give flexibility to people wanting to to custom firings and if there automated they are generally designed to preserve themselves from an untrained maker.

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#140

All three of the Paragon kilns we have are as you describe. Digital controllers that handle all of the temperature changes for you. They do not, however, have much of anything in the way of safeguards. They’ll do exactly what you tell them to do, even if that will not be healthy for your wares or the kiln.

Training has more to do with specifics of operating and programming those controllers, how to load the kiln properly, applying kiln wash to shelves when necessary, etc.

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#141

While a minimally-trained operator would have a hard time damaging the kiln itself (and it is the more expensive of the set), there’s also the potential for damaging the kiln furniture. We had an incident last year with a mis-mixed glaze batch (her personal – not DMS work) where one potter cost us $250 in kiln furniture. The glaze had worked previously, so we didn’t stilt everything – not that we own enough stilts for 5 shelves worth of mugs…

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#142

They have digital controllers. It’s more judging whether a piece should be loaded in the kiln in the first place? Whether or not it will explode and take out other people’s work for example. Loading pieces so they don’t break. It is more than punching buttons if I understand correctly. My preference would be that only a few people who know what they are doing operate the kiln that my work is fired in.

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#143

The other flaw in this discussion is that we’d need more floor space to “expand” FA. There are times when it’s quiet back there, but certain time frames are already full up.

And, I’m a nice person. Maybe others have an eye on my space because I’m not trying to expand it, but I can see that my neighbors don’t have any room to give, and there isn’t a square inch of extra room I can have, so why try for the impossible? If DMS gets a bigger building, THEN we can chat about expansion.

I do have a class in mind for the kiln, but I’ll have to find the right time first.

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#144

I think what Robert and a lot of other people are saying: The Communal Firings warrant someone that is trained and approved to do that so members projects are not put at unnecessary risk. But provide training for the smaller Kiln, then individuals can learn how to do this and/or experiment and only have their own work at risk.

This will achieve more utilization of an existing tool - the small Kiln and provide a wider range of skills and training on DMS tools and equipment, achieving our educational mission.

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#145

How many kilns can we run at the same time?

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#146

They should be on different breakers, so both of them.

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#147

Part of the issue is, it’s not just your items you are firing. A large quantity of other people’s art could be ruined. Experience is deffinatly needed.

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#148

When will the Kiln training start. I think I would be a great first student . I have owned in the past 5 kilns. I had 3 at one time in my shop. BUT they were all the turn up manually. I do enough items for loads and would like a slower cooling time on my glaze items.

Something that needs to be taken in consideration is 6-10 firing will be a 3 day process.
I would also like to start firing glass soon. Who can train programming much lower firings on the tiny kiln?

#149

Short answer: After the committee space overhaul.

Long answer: The funding proposal will be going up on Talk tomorrow evening and then in front of the Board on Sunday. Once we know our level of funding, that will inform how we move forward. The broad goal is to have this all finished by mid-January. If possible, earlier of course! I’d like to have the first stage curriculum outline ready for review at the December meeting. Anyone wanting to fire their own work before then can contact me and we can meet up to get something rolling before we have an official process.

@meanbaby We’d love to have you in the class/review the curriculum!

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#150

I didn’t answer part of that question, my bad. Are you talking about the Cress with the kiln sitter? If so, I’m of two minds on its footprint vs. utility. If there is interest in /using/ it, not just being a big ‘teaching tool’, that certainly leans me in a more pro-Cress direction. Let me know on this one and I’ll try to do a test run on it soon, I don’t think it has been fired for some time.