[DirtRoads]

Just wondered what thoughts some of you have about NOT using kiln wash? I'm not recommending this but just wanted to know if there were some potters that do not use it on their shelves.

[Marcia Selsor]

This was discussed a while ago. There were several people here who do not use kiln wash. I always do use kiln wash. Maybe it is because I have worked in colleges and universities where students are less than perfect in their glaze application. I think kiln wash really serves a purpose.

Marcia

[Denice]

I always use kiln wash, shelves are to expensive to leave them unprotected, then you have glazes that like to boil and spit especially those with cobalt in them. Denice

[TJR]

I only use my electric kiln for bisqueing, and consequently don't have any glaze on my pots.So I don't need to kiln wash shelves. I also work alone. I glaze fire in a gas kiln. When I was working in a co-operative studio, I used to put the shelves in unwashed side up as they were so caked with kiln wash.Like Marcia said, if you are firing in a shared kiln situation with people that don't know their glazes-[as in applying the glaze too thickly], then use kiln wash. You can apply a very thin coat of wash, not glob it on.
TJR.

[neilestrick]

With the exception of Advancer shelves, at cone 5 and up, porcelain will usually stick to shelves that do not have wash on them. Some stoneware will, too. For bisque it's not a problem. So you have to use some sort of refractory buffer like kiln wash. Another option is a dusting of flint on the shelves (dust issue there), or putting some Alumina Hydrate on the foot, like in the wax resist. Kiln wash is the best solution for glaze drips though.

[Raku]

DirtRoads, on 26 April 2012 - 10:17 AM, said:

Just wondered what thoughts some of you have about NOT using kiln wash? I'm not recommending this but just wanted to know if there were some potters that do not use it on their shelves.

Why would you not use kiln Wash ?

[Mark C.]

I like TRJ I only bisque and rarely in the electrics-so I do not wash those shelves-these are cordlight/mullite shelves. 99% of my firing (bisque and cone 10/ 11 glaze fires) is in a gas kiln with advancers. My porcelain can stick to them and has so I wash them with a thin wash. I use runny glazes so every now and then I have a run-advancers weather washed or not resist all glaze-its one of their features.
When glaze runs onto a cord/mullite shelve it soaks into the material and need to be ground out-(this is at cone 10) cone 6 I'm guessing is about the same-as I do not fire to ^6 lets see what others say about glaze getting into the shelve. When this happens you need to grind it out and that can leave a divet which over lots of runs turns the shelve into a gopher patch.-Wash will help prevent that.

Mark

[INYA]

Mark C., on 29 April 2012 - 03:55 AM, said:

I like TRJ I only bisque and rarely in the electrics-so I do not wash those shelves-these are cordlight/mullite shelves. 99% of my firing (bisque and cone 10/ 11 glaze fires) is in a gas kiln with advancers. My porcelain can stick to them and has so I wash them with a thin wash. I use runny glazes so every now and then I have a run-advancers weather washed or not resist all glaze-its one of their features.
When glaze runs onto a cord/mullite shelve it soaks into the material and need to be ground out-(this is at cone 10) cone 6 I'm guessing is about the same-as I do not fire to ^6 lets see what others say about glaze getting into the shelve. When this happens you need to grind it out and that can leave a divet which over lots of runs turns the shelve into a gopher patch.-Wash will help prevent that.

Mark

what are advancers?
thanks!

[Pres]

INYA, on 29 April 2012 - 01:21 AM, said:

Mark C., on 29 April 2012 - 03:55 AM, said:

I like TRJ I only bisque and rarely in the electrics-so I do not wash those shelves-these are cordlight/mullite shelves. 99% of my firing (bisque and cone 10/ 11 glaze fires) is in a gas kiln with advancers. My porcelain can stick to them and has so I wash them with a thin wash. I use runny glazes so every now and then I have a run-advancers weather washed or not resist all glaze-its one of their features.
When glaze runs onto a cord/mullite shelve it soaks into the material and need to be ground out-(this is at cone 10) cone 6 I'm guessing is about the same-as I do not fire to ^6 lets see what others say about glaze getting into the shelve. When this happens you need to grind it out and that can leave a divet which over lots of runs turns the shelve into a gopher patch.-Wash will help prevent that.

Mark

what are advancers?
thanks!

I fire without a setter, and at ^6 for my glaze, ^06 for bisque. I have overslept during one bisque load about 15 years ago. I think the kiln probably reached ^8 or 9. At any rate my ^5-6 clay was bloated, and dark brown with heavy speckling. Most of the pots stuck to the unwashed shelves. Needless to say since then all shelves are washed, and I carefully babysit all kiln loads. ^6 glaze on my cordlight shelves does soak in a bit, so wash really helps keep the shelves clean. I use a thin wash that I build up in several coats, and when need to repair, just rewash the whole shelf. Periodically I will remove all wash, and rewash completely.

[Mark C.]

INYA, on 29 April 2012 - 01:21 AM, said:

Mark C., on 29 April 2012 - 03:55 AM, said:

I like TRJ I only bisque and rarely in the electrics-so I do not wash those shelves-these are cordlight/mullite shelves. 99% of my firing (bisque and cone 10/ 11 glaze fires) is in a gas kiln with advancers. My porcelain can stick to them and has so I wash them with a thin wash. I use runny glazes so every now and then I have a run-advancers weather washed or not resist all glaze-its one of their features.
When glaze runs onto a cord/mullite shelve it soaks into the material and need to be ground out-(this is at cone 10) cone 6 I'm guessing is about the same-as I do not fire to ^6 lets see what others say about glaze getting into the shelve. When this happens you need to grind it out and that can leave a divet which over lots of runs turns the shelve into a gopher patch.-Wash will help prevent that.

Mark

what are advancers?
thanks!

here is the site on advancers
http://kilnshelf.com...er-kiln-shelves
Mark

[DirtRoads]

Raku, on 28 April 2012 - 06:18 PM, said:

DirtRoads, on 26 April 2012 - 10:17 AM, said:

Just wondered what thoughts some of you have about NOT using kiln wash? I'm not recommending this but just wanted to know if there were some potters that do not use it on their shelves.

Why would you not use kiln Wash ?

I know a professional potter that fires 3-4 kilns daily and they don't use it. They said it created extra dust and that items stick anyway if the glaze runs. They just take more caution in dry footing. They said stripping down the shelves is time consuming and the kiln wash didn't really protect the shelves that much. I just wanted to know if anyone else did this.

[Red Rocks]

One point no one addressed is – if you use kiln washwith anything but Advancer’s you really should flip your shelves everyfiring. I don’t use kiln wash because itis so easy for the kiln wash to flake off and fall onto pots on the shelf belowit. I would be interested to know howyou deal with that issue?

[atanzey]

Red Rocks - I don't flip my shelves. But I have a fairly small kiln and only fire to Cone 6. That said, I use a single coat of kiln wash, about the consistancy of thick latex paint, and I clean between every glaze load. I can scrape most of the shelves completely clean with a wide putty knife. So if you keep your shelves pretty clean, you can probably flip them without incident. But I did make the decision not to flip based on the possiblity of stray kiln wash falling off.

Alice