[Clayart] yup, should have done it

[Gregg Lindsley]

Mel!   I had to laugh, because the same thing just happened to me!  only
with
an electric kiln.  It's a 20 year old paragon, and after changing out the
elements
once a year at Christmas time, the bricks on the bottom of the kiln were
all
broken. 7 cu ft.   When elements are new, they fit into the element grooves
easily!   After they reach  the point where they don't fire well, they are
bigger
in diameter, and are a pain to get out, especially when they keep snapping
as
you are trying to get them out.   (Please don't tell me to be more careful
taking
them out, not in my nature, and I accept that).
 I have orders to fill all the time, so I kept the elements in place with
extra
pins. After each firing, i would say, man, time to fix this..Nah,
everything
looks tight, just one more. Two weeks ago, it wouldn't get up to temp. Uh
oh.
Opened the kiln, and the top string of the bottom element sagged just
enough to touch to bottom string, and wham-o!  melted wire fused into the
brick.
So, yup, should have done it.   That being said, it's a big job. means
taking
the kiln completely apart, down to the floor.  So i got a couple of guys to
lift
the top off and put it safely down on two sawhorses in the glaze area, and
proceeded to replace bricks.  a total of 18 bricks for the whole kiln.
Paragon was great at getting me the bricks fast!
 Since i completely re-did the electrical last year, and the control board
is
new, a new kiln is being born.
So yeah, i was laughing at myself, and now sharing a laugh with you. Joy!
:)


-- 
Gregg Lindsley
Earth and Fire Pottery
10325 Brookside Drive
Middletown, Ca. 95461
707-490-7168
Function and Beauty
in the Mingei  and
Bauhaus traditions
www.earthandfirepottery.net
'At home among the lost and found'
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://lists.clayartworld.com/pipermail/clayart/attachments/20221001/9675b9e3/attachment.htm>