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offcntrI always stress when I fire right after Jon. He'll have a harrowing tale of kiln misfortune/misfiring, and I'll be right in his footsteps, worrying that the same thing will happen to me. Never mind that we stack the kiln differently, fire different schedules to different preferred temperatures. I'm sure I'm bound for disaster.
This time, it was temperature and reduction inconsistencies. The top was too hot, bottom too cold, oxidation spots in places that had traditionally been reliably reduced. One of which ruined a special order platter.
And this time I was literally following right after him; he finished unloading around noon Saturday, Denise and I started refilling the still-hot kiln about 12:30.
We closed up around 5:30, and I came back to light the kiln a little after 7 pm. Because I was firing on a Sunday, I came in extra early (before 5 am) to continue the process, so I'd be done with body reduction in time to sing in church at 9 am.
I messed up, a little. There are lines on the damper (a mullite kiln shelf) indicating different points in the firing, but, since the chimney's been adjusted a few times, there are actually about three sets, marked 1, 2, and two 3's. Between bad lighting, less sleep than usual, and concern about making my self-imposed schedule, I used the wrong line when I put it into body reduction. The damper was about 1/4" too far open. I finally noticed a half hour later, when it was time to take it out of reduction. Concerned that the bottom might not have gotten the reduction it needed, I put it on the proper line for another ten minutes and hoped for the best. (Didn't want to risk more for fear of over-reducing the top of the kiln.)
Other than that, it was a fairly normal firing, at least until the end. Top and bottom were within half a cone of each other at cone 4, normal for me. The margin had widened to a full cone at cone 8, though, so I tweaked the damper a couple of times to try and even it out. I eventually gave up with cone 10 down on top, but only halfway on the bottom. Carryover heat gave me a little more on the bottom after I shut off the burners, but it also dropped cone 11 on top.
When we opened the kiln Tuesday afternoon, though, it was much better than I'd feared. Pots in the hot part of the kiln were still good; the images hadn't blurred or run. Body reduction was a little light in the bottom--my fault--but only one really bad spot of oxidation, down at the bottom right, where it ruined one covered casserole and lightly side-swiped three more. They're still sellable, though, which is good because I didn't have any in stock.
And those four serving bowls? Turned out gorgeous.
This time, it was temperature and reduction inconsistencies. The top was too hot, bottom too cold, oxidation spots in places that had traditionally been reliably reduced. One of which ruined a special order platter.
And this time I was literally following right after him; he finished unloading around noon Saturday, Denise and I started refilling the still-hot kiln about 12:30.
We closed up around 5:30, and I came back to light the kiln a little after 7 pm. Because I was firing on a Sunday, I came in extra early (before 5 am) to continue the process, so I'd be done with body reduction in time to sing in church at 9 am.
I messed up, a little. There are lines on the damper (a mullite kiln shelf) indicating different points in the firing, but, since the chimney's been adjusted a few times, there are actually about three sets, marked 1, 2, and two 3's. Between bad lighting, less sleep than usual, and concern about making my self-imposed schedule, I used the wrong line when I put it into body reduction. The damper was about 1/4" too far open. I finally noticed a half hour later, when it was time to take it out of reduction. Concerned that the bottom might not have gotten the reduction it needed, I put it on the proper line for another ten minutes and hoped for the best. (Didn't want to risk more for fear of over-reducing the top of the kiln.)
Other than that, it was a fairly normal firing, at least until the end. Top and bottom were within half a cone of each other at cone 4, normal for me. The margin had widened to a full cone at cone 8, though, so I tweaked the damper a couple of times to try and even it out. I eventually gave up with cone 10 down on top, but only halfway on the bottom. Carryover heat gave me a little more on the bottom after I shut off the burners, but it also dropped cone 11 on top.
When we opened the kiln Tuesday afternoon, though, it was much better than I'd feared. Pots in the hot part of the kiln were still good; the images hadn't blurred or run. Body reduction was a little light in the bottom--my fault--but only one really bad spot of oxidation, down at the bottom right, where it ruined one covered casserole and lightly side-swiped three more. They're still sellable, though, which is good because I didn't have any in stock.
And those four serving bowls? Turned out gorgeous.
