All Fired Up

10/17/2023

If your elements look like this, it's time to replace.

01/31/2023

Finding antique jem...a new kiln from the early 70s... client who got this is very happy with their "new" antique....

01/07/2023

Client called me up to work on her kiln. She said it had problems after the electrician put a plug in for it. What she didn't say was that the electrician removed the kiln sitter and direct wired only half of the kiln....

02/22/2022

Vacuum, Vacuum, Vacuum! Or pay for a new set of elements...

02/06/2022

Bad TCs in a ConeArt, the cracked insulation is a dead giveaway. Also noticed that all the new elements were purposely overstretched, about 1 foot, all in a 2-3foot spand...took a lot of extra time, charged to the client/school that didn't have to be...compressing elements back is neither fun or necessary......if they were made correctly .

12/04/2021

Notice that the elements are different colors, same age however, obviously different materials...be cautious of heating elements that are not Kanthal A1... knockoffs are being passed off as Kanthal... buy from sources that are trustworthy...

10/22/2021

As most of you may know, I'm still not fully recovered from my stay in the hospital the last week of September. I was in for pneumonia and covid. As I'm able to get back to work for you all, it's still a slow process, but the biggest battle is just getting started. I'm referring to the hospital bills that are starting to come in...
If you could please help and share this, it would be greatly appreciated .

This is David Snyder, known to many as the Kiln Doctor. He is a long-time profes… Kathy Bryant needs your support for Help the Kiln Doctor with medical bills

10/10/2021

Common question, is the red gap under the lid of my kiln, while it's firing, a problem?
The answer is both yes and no... there are several factors that causes this...
The normal, it's not a big deal...
1 the heat causes positive air pressure that can slightly lift the lid...
2 the light you see is infrared which is prismatic, meaning that the light you see is expanded and the actual crack is less...
3 the lid may have a lift system that uses the positive pressure to lift even more, place a shelf near the handle to add weight...and hold the lid down
4 the inside of your kiln expands when it's hot, this means the bricks inside surface swells, so the lid slightly flexes and bows up normally lifting the handle. Also this expansion will close up many of the cracks in the floor of your kiln.

The problem of the gap and glow, now causing loss of heat and maybe uneven firing.

1A. wear of the brick surface... coming from bending over to load, and the brick wears away...
When it becomes an extreme issue, use fiber blanket to make a gasket...
2A. The natural settling of the kiln over time...with all the expanding and contracting, shifting and gaps just happen...
3A. Damage.... filling the gap is case by case call, and you should evaluate your options and what you want to do.

04/28/2021

Element pins creeping out? Use a post to gently push them back in. Slightly roll the post to keep the edge from poking out. The post is less likely to slip off and unlike plyers, won't gouge the brick.

04/28/2021

Time to get the elements back in place. A common problem of several kiln brands is element jumping out of the grooves. Using a propane torch is a quick way to get the elements back in place. Then reset new pins to hold the element in.

04/15/2021

Element Connection Burnout!
So I get a call from a school about their kiln not firing quite right. When I arrive I do my usual overview for obvious signs. Then I see it's a newer Skutt KM 700 series(green led display). I then show the teacher a simple way to locate the potential problem with the diagnostic feature under the Menu button. Press Menu twice(diag on display) then Enter then Menu twice again(amps on display) then Enter the computer will run a test of each of the sections and show the findings. Amp1- 17, Amp2 - 14, Amp3 - 17, most of the time it's a relay and one of the readings will be 0. However this time the middle section, Amp2, gave a reading of 7. That told me that one element was out. But simple examination didn't show a break. So, I opened the control box and was shocked to see the extent of the lead burnout. I was able to torch the element from the inside to stretch the pigtail lead, make a new/ better connection. But was shocked that this did not blow a breaker or cause noticable arcing sounds.

09/05/2020

Falling/broken brick over an element can prevent the element from properly releasing it's heat and end up burning out. An easy fix is to create a support pillar from a small piece of brick to hold up the brick. It allows for heat release and is not a contaminate to the elements.