Glass Kiln Questions
Sumar
I'm still in search of a glass kiln, but the more research I do, the
more confused I am. I intend to use the glass kiln strictly for glass
painting and I favour one with internal dimensions of about 14 inches
wide. A few questions:
#1. Some kilns have an element in the lid only, the sides only, or both.
What is best for glass painting and why?
#2. I would like to maximize utilization of the kiln by using as many
shelves as possible. Will shelves interfere with the firing of the glass
on the lower shelves? A SG retailer I spoke with said you should really
use only 1 shelf, but he didn't sound very certain. On the other hand, I
communicated with someone via email from Euclid's Kilns, and s/he
replied that it would be OK to have 5 shelves in a 9 inch deep kiln,
using 1 inch posts (this would leave 1.5 inch from the lid). How much is
the distribution of heat affected by shelves?
#3. 240V or 120V: I understand the 120V takes longer to fire than the
240V, but how much longer? Which is less costly overall?
#4. Does glass paint produce any toxic fumes I need to worry about? The
kiln will be located in the basement of our two-storey home. How
important is it to use a vent? Does the firing produce any smells (my
hubby is sensitive to bad smells, while I can hardly smell anything).
Thanks for your answers. I'm so anxious to get started in glass
painting, but I won't buy a kiln until I know which is best.
Cheers,
Sumar
Charlie Spitzer
"Sumar" <su...@home.com> wrote in message news:3BE84B93...@home.com...
> Hi !
>
> I'm still in search of a glass kiln, but the more research I do, the
> more confused I am. I intend to use the glass kiln strictly for glass
> painting and I favour one with internal dimensions of about 14 inches
> wide. A few questions:
>
> #1. Some kilns have an element in the lid only, the sides only, or both.
> What is best for glass painting and why?
top. the paint is on top. sides are useful for drapes.
> #2. I would like to maximize utilization of the kiln by using as many
> shelves as possible. Will shelves interfere with the firing of the glass
> on the lower shelves? A SG retailer I spoke with said you should really
> use only 1 shelf, but he didn't sound very certain. On the other hand, I
> communicated with someone via email from Euclid's Kilns, and s/he
> replied that it would be OK to have 5 shelves in a 9 inch deep kiln,
> using 1 inch posts (this would leave 1.5 inch from the lid). How much is
> the distribution of heat affected by shelves?
heat has to get to the interior of all those shelves. the shelves will not
fire all at the same temp, so you'll have to be pretty careful on what you
load where. it's far easier to only fire 1 shelf at a time.
> #3. 240V or 120V: I understand the 120V takes longer to fire than the
> 240V, but how much longer? Which is less costly overall?
how long is a piece of rope? watts is watts. you'll need special wiring to
get 120v at high power. normal 120v are limited to 15 amps, which limits the
size of kiln.
>
> #4. Does glass paint produce any toxic fumes I need to worry about? The
> kiln will be located in the basement of our two-storey home. How
> important is it to use a vent? Does the firing produce any smells (my
> hubby is sensitive to bad smells, while I can hardly smell anything).
yes, lots. smelly and dangerous.
>
> Thanks for your answers. I'm so anxious to get started in glass
> painting, but I won't buy a kiln until I know which is best.
>
> Cheers,
> Sumar
>
try hanging out at http://warmglass.com
regards,
charlie
phx, az
Sundog
>
> I'm still in search of a glass kiln, but the more research I do, the
> more confused I am. I intend to use the glass kiln strictly for glass
> painting and I favour one with internal dimensions of about 14 inches
> wide. A few questions:
>
> #1. Some kilns have an element in the lid only, the sides only, or both.
> What is best for glass painting and why?
side elements will warm the edges of the glass faster than the center....
not uniform for paint, but helpful for deep slumping when combined with top
elements. Top elements will radiate more evenly down onto your flat
glass.... this is the desired effect!
>
> #2. I would like to maximize utilization of the kiln by using as many
> shelves as possible. Will shelves interfere with the firing of the glass
> on the lower shelves? A SG retailer I spoke with said you should really
> use only 1 shelf, but he didn't sound very certain. On the other hand, I
> communicated with someone via email from Euclid's Kilns, and s/he
> replied that it would be OK to have 5 shelves in a 9 inch deep kiln,
> using 1 inch posts (this would leave 1.5 inch from the lid). How much is
> the distribution of heat affected by shelves?
>
The top shelf OF COURSE blocks the heat from above! I have fired paint on 2
stacked shelves. The lower shelf would not mature, but would 'stick', which
was still useful for speeding up a project where the 6 glass pieces were
fired successively 20-25 times each, building color with each cycle..... but
this is abnormal for many folks. I now use multiple kilns if needed to speed
things along, works much better.
>
> #3. 240V or 120V: I understand the 120V takes longer to fire than the
> 240V, but how much longer? Which is less costly overall?
>
> #4. Does glass paint produce any toxic fumes I need to worry about? The
> kiln will be located in the basement of our two-storey home. How
> important is it to use a vent? Does the firing produce any smells (my
> hubby is sensitive to bad smells, while I can hardly smell anything).
I don't believe the paint itself gives off fumes, although the powders often
contain heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, selenium, cobalt, etc.... all
toxic elements. The binders you chose to mix with the powders may give off
noxious fumes... clove oil, lavender oil.... although I doubt if they are
toxic. I usually paint with a water medium and smell nothing during
firing.... Klear-Fire is good.... gum arabic and water also. If you only
paint, fumes should be minimal, but venting from the basement could hardly
be called a bad idea!....oh, and I assure you, someday you're going to do
more than fire paint.
>
> Thanks for your answers. I'm so anxious to get started in glass
> painting, but I won't buy a kiln until I know which is best.
>
> Cheers,
> Sumar
>
>
Good luck, Jacques Bordeleau
db
> #4. Does glass paint produce any toxic fumes I need to worry about? The
> kiln will be located in the basement of our two-storey home. How
> important is it to use a vent? Does the firing produce any smells (my
> hubby is sensitive to bad smells, while I can hardly smell anything).
I'm more concerned with the dust created from the painting process.
Traditional techniques include scratching away at the dried paint, which
creates a toxic fume. You should research methods of directing these fumes
elsewhere. A respirator is a good start, but the stuff will get all over
everything if you don't fan it away somehow..
Glenn G.
included text:
G^2
--
"Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level then beat you
with experience".
"Sundog" <n...@home.not> wrote in message
news:y7_F7.19198$S4.18...@newsread1.prod.itd.earthlink.net...
You would indeed have to fire a much slower profile to evenly heat glass
stacked in the kiln. You may be able to pull it off, but I would be afraid
loading the kiln would present a challenge as well. If, while you are
stacking, you knock some crud on one of your pieces...
You might think about getting a bigger top fire. It would allow you to get
in multiple pieces or one large piece.
>
> >
> > #3. 240V or 120V: I understand the 120V takes longer to fire than the
> > 240V, but how much longer? Which is less costly overall?
> >
240V is more efficient. You may in fact have problems finding a 120V kiln
in a large size. Go with 240V if at all possible.
> > #4. Does glass paint produce any toxic fumes I need to worry about? The
> > kiln will be located in the basement of our two-storey home. How
> > important is it to use a vent? Does the firing produce any smells (my
> > hubby is sensitive to bad smells, while I can hardly smell anything).
>
> I don't believe the paint itself gives off fumes, although the powders
often
> contain heavy metals such as lead, cadmium, selenium, cobalt, etc.... all
> toxic elements. The binders you chose to mix with the powders may give off
> noxious fumes... clove oil, lavender oil.... although I doubt if they are
> toxic. I usually paint with a water medium and smell nothing during
> firing.... Klear-Fire is good.... gum arabic and water also. If you only
> paint, fumes should be minimal, but venting from the basement could hardly
> be called a bad idea!....oh, and I assure you, someday you're going to do
> more than fire paint.
>
> >
> > Thanks for your answers. I'm so anxious to get started in glass
> > painting, but I won't buy a kiln until I know which is best.
> >
> > Cheers,
> > Sumar
> >
> >
>
> Good luck, Jacques Bordeleau
>
>
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Liam
kilns. Do they require a vent. and if so is a passive vent fine, how big,
or do I need one with a fan to draw the heat. The rafters in the shed are 8
feet up and I don't want to burn them. And, should I use a double layer
vent like the kind over a hot water heater
Liam
Michele Blank
have mine in a garage, door open (sometimes) I actually fire those puppies
up just to heat up the workshop so door is often closed. I HATE firing wet
fiber mold cos the binder stinks so bad i get letters from the neighbors. i
do not vent but i don't fire paints, just glass to glass... so... what
are you going to be working on? michele
"Liam" <txl...@swbell.net> wrote in message
news:7H2G7.312$Sr4.21...@newssvr11.news.prodigy.com...
Liam
Liam
Michele Blank
the paint and medium. i have fired a few enamels and paints with no venting
but i'm not one to follow the strictest precautions. I know that the powders
themselves should be handled carefully/ with respirators because they are
powdered glass and have lots of goodies mixed in that one would be better
off not inhaling, but i don't think their fumes during cooking would be
toxic. You may want to think about where you are venting to. any hazardous
stuff coming out the vent is gonna land somewhere!? michele
"Liam" <txl...@swbell.net> wrote in message
news:mjbG7.444$Hp1.26...@newssvr11.news.prodigy.com...
me
I don't stack more than two shelves so I can't give you much advice there,
however if you are going to be stacking you will need top and side elements
otherwise your top pieces will be much hotter than your bottom pieces
causing you to over fire the top ones. Always, always, always vent. Any kind
of chemical compound (paint, esp 14k gold, glue, kiln wash) has some
elements that will burn up and the molecules will release into the air. Even
non toxic chemicals can raise up and land back on your piece causing some
scummy results.
Sumar <su...@home.com> wrote in message news:3BE84B93...@home.com...