Manual Glass Kiln

Basic Operation
Accessories
Ceramic Fiber Shelves
The soft ceramic fi
-
ber shelf, which comes
standard with the kiln,
cradles gold and silver
clay pieces. These
shelves are not suitable
for firing glass or ce
-
ramics.
Ceramic Fireclay Shelves & Posts
Ceramic fireclay
shelves, available from
Sundance are hard ce
-
ramic surfaces on
which to fire ceramics
and glass. Firing glass,
enameling,andceramic
glazes directly on the
firing chamber bottom
would ruin the bottom.
Shelves can be stacked
using posts.
Glass Separator & Kiln Wash
Glass separator and
kilnwash are mixturesof
finely ground minerals
that will not melt and
fuse together at high
temperatures. They pre
-
vent glass and ceramic
glaze from sticking to
fireclay shelves. The
main difference between
glass separator and kiln
wash is that the separator is ground more finely to leave a
smooth back to glass pieces laid on the shelf.
Aspowders,glassseparatorandkilnwashhaveanunlim
-
ited shelf life. Do not breathe the powder when mixing.
Caution: If glass separator or kiln wash contact a
heating element, that element will burn out in the
next firing. NEVER apply glass separator or kiln
wash to the ceramic fiber firing chamber.
Haik Brush
The haik brush is used to apply
glass separator to the kiln shelf in a
smooth, thin layer. The smoother
the glass separator, the smoother
the underside of the glass.
Alumina Hydrate
Delicatesilverorgoldclayshapesmayneedextrasupport
duringfiringtopreventwarping.Placetheseshapesinathin
layerofaluminahydrateinsideasmallceramicbisquebowl.
Do not breathe alumina hydrate.
Stilts
Stiltsarepoints embedded ina ceramic base.The points
separate enameling and glazed ceramics from the shelf.
Enameling Racks
Enamelingisthe artoffiringglassontometal.The metal
shapes are loaded onto a high temperature wire rack. The
enameled pieces and wire rack are loaded into a hot kiln,
fired for just a few minutes, and removed red hot. To load
and unload the racks safely, use an enameling fork.
The heating element under power is dangerous. Do not
touch the element with anything! Turn the kiln switch off
beforeinsertinganenamelingforkintothefiringchamber.
Fiber Repair Filler
Thisisapermanent,hightemperaturerefractorycement
used to repair holes or cracks in the ceramic fiber firing
chamber.
Safety Glasses
Wear clear safety glasses
when cutting orchipping glass.
Wear firing safety glasses when
looking into a hot kiln, such as
when checking the progress of
glass.
Caution: Always wear fir
-
ing glasses when viewing
the interior through the optional glass view port.
5
The wire mesh above is referred to as an enameling rack. An enameling
fork lifts the rack out of the kiln. A stilt separates the piece from the rack.