Firing Guidelines

Schedule and Guidelines for Loading, Firing and Unloading the Manabigama Wood Kiln at Monocacy Pottery with John Thies

Schedule

Day 1
9:00 am	Arrive at Monocacy Pottery with your pots bisqued and glazed and ready to load. Glazes can be provided for an additional cost (please inquire before arrival about this).
9:00 am - 9:30 am	John to provide short introduction on wood firing prior to loading.  After introduction, students will begin making wads for kiln.  Wadding materials will be provided by John.
9:30 am - 3:00 pm	Students begin loading with John providing guidance for first rack of pots. Students then take over and share in loading until loading is complete.  John will be there to monitor and answer questions.
3:00 pm	After loading is complete, students will brick up kiln door with John as a monitor.  Door will be sealed with mud dug by students from bank of stream near kiln.  Clean up kiln area after loading and prepare for lighting of kiln.
Day 2:
4:00 - 6:00 am	The kiln will be started with propane. This is the preheating of kiln.  See attached Firing Schedule.
6:00 am - until 3 pm	Begin stoking with wood (John will monitor) and continue until top temperature is reached.  Kiln is fired predominately by students with John providing guidance.  Wood will be prepared throughout the firing using an automatic wood splitter by students. See attached Firing Schedule.
	After firing is complete, kiln will be monitored by at least l person until kiln is safely cooled and it is ok to leave kiln area.  Students will be required to clean up kiln area at end of firing.
Day 3:
At time of unloading- 9:00 am - to approximately 4:00 pm	Doors are un-bricked and unloading begins.  After unloading is complete - John is available for open discussion, question and answer period. Students will be required to clean out kiln, fire box, kiln wash kiln floor, scrape, clean, wash kiln shelves, clean and dip stilts.  All this is done to prepare kiln for next group.

Guidelines for Manabigama Wood Firing

Amount of work to bring:

The kiln is approximately 24 cubic feet. Based on the number of students, assuming there are 6 to 8, each student can bring up to 20 to 30 kiln friendly pieces each. The group will make every effort to load work on a �fair� basis, and not necessarily by equal volume. Every effort will be made to accommodate all pieces in the firing, however if individuals bring large pieces we will only be able to accommodate what fits, in fairness to all participants. Please bring kiln friendly pieces avoiding plates, platters or any other type of flatware that cannot be wadded on top of each other or on top of other pots to save space in the kiln.

Safety Concerns:

Please wear protective shoes and bring leather gloves, and also a hat if your hair is long. Please do not bring children under the age of 16 at anytime to the workshop. Please use caution when working around the kiln.

Remember this is a wood firing with a chance that things may not work out to your expectations and accidents can happen. No guarantees for the perfect wood-fired pot.

Monocacy Pottery cannot be held responsible for kiln accidents.

Suggestions on Clay Bodies, Forms, Glazes, Decorating Techniques for the Wood Firing

Clay bodies:

A "light burning" clay body usually works best. This means lower iron content in the clay. It "flashes" well and doesn't turn brown completely. Stay away from high iron clay bodies unless you use a white slip over which will lighten up the surface and pick-up the wood flashing. ALL CLAY BODIES MUST BE ABLE TO TAKE CONE 10. PLEASE, KNOW YOUR CLAY - If you're not sure what the capabilities of the clay are, do not bring to the firing.  This will prevent major accidents with other peoples work and expensive kiln shelves.

These clays are all available commercially through your local clay dealer. All deliver to your door. Ask for a wood-fired body and they might have some suggestions. Some are courser than others, so specify what you prefer. Having the proper clay makes a big difference in the finished results.

Glazes:

If you are just starting out with wood firing we recommend no glaze on your work. This gives you an opportunity to see your work "glazed" naturally just by the wood fuel only.
When choosing a glaze or glaze's make sure it is one you know melts at a range of cone 8 to cone 12. If a glaze melts at cone 8 it generally will take cone 12. Stable glazes are best as opposed to fluid glazes. If using a very fluid glaze, please be cautious not to glaze more than 1/3 of the way down on your work. This will prevent the glaze from running onto the kiln shelves. REMEMBER in a wood firing there is a great variation in temperature. Some glazes that you're used to will react totally different in the wood-fired atmosphere - so keep glazing simple. Keep in mind the kiln will do a lot for your work naturally, so be conservative. Leave a lot of clay exposed otherwise "why fire with wood?"

Decorating:

Same guidelines apply. Keep it simple, and use things you know work otherwise you may be disappointed with your slips, stains, or over glazes. Remember that you can take all the time in the world decorating a pot for the wood kiln, just to have it all wiped away by the fly ash and intense wood flame.

Forms:

As a group you may practice stacking a lot of work "rim to rim", "boxing" or what some call "tumble stacking" with clay wadding. This allows for total flame contact in all parts of the kiln. This method maximizes the use of stacking space and cuts down on the use of kiln furniture. Maybe make some things with this stacking method in mind. Example: bowls made same diameter with unglazed rims can be stacked rim to rim conveniently. While loading we will mix and match different people's work for this stacking method. Please do not bring plates, platters or any other flatware that cannot be wadded on top of one and other, or on top of other pots to save space in the kiln. They consume a lot of room and cut down on the maximum amount of work you will be able to load per participant on a fair basis.

Manabigama Kiln at Monocacy Pottery Firing Schedule

4:00 am � 6:00 am	Propane gas to preheat kiln
6:00 am	(Chimney damper closed) Light candle fire in center air hole only using small kindling wood.  Left/right air holes remain closed.   Begin firing inside firebox floor, underneath grate bars � increasing fuel to build up coal bed.
7:00 am	Open chimney damper.
8:00 am	Begin stoking logs through main stoke hole.  Work towards an 8-10 minute stoking cycle filling firebox up full.  Check fire box after 8 minutes and prepare for next full stoke.  Each stoke should start with smaller, very dry logs first; larger wetter logs on top.
9:00 am	Open left and right air holes. Start looking for black smoke from chimney.  Try to achieve black smoke with each full stoke.
9:00 am to completion	Black smoke and flame should grow with each stoke.  Smoke should clear within a half-cycle.  If not then take steps to increase combustion (e.g. drier wood, less wood, more air, etc).
1:00 pm	Kiln should be around stoneware temperature at this time.
3:00 pm	Cones 11 and 12 should be down at this point.  Important to reach cone 12 in front of kiln, so back of kiln will reach at least cone 10.
30 minutes after firing is complete	Put fiber strips around peep hole, stoke door, and secondary air hold plugs.  Close primary air holes with bricks and mud.  Put damper back on chimney.
	Stay with kiln until semi-cool - approximately 2 hours, for fire safety check.
	Check area for any external fire danger before leaving kiln.
	Please clean up kiln area (e.g. personal trash, raking of debris by kiln area, organize left over kiln wood).

Pricing  for 2009

This kiln was designed to accommodate the needs of students who wish to be introduced to wood firing. It is an educational tool and not to be used by those who are looking to just get their pieces fired for the retail market.

• Maximum students per group: 8



• For pricing on both Manabigamas please e-mail us at  monocacypottery@comcast.net or call us at
  (301) 471-0296 for more information.

 

Kiln Plans for Sale

 

John Thies along with Bill Van Gilder (Gapland, MD) have developed a complete kiln package for the Manabigama.  The kit includes:

• Complete architectural drawings (scaled to brick size)
• Step-by-Step CD of construction
• Firing Schedule
• Construction and firing support

The Manabigama Kiln Plans are available for you to purchase. You can buy just the plans, or we can come to you and build the kiln for you on your site.

Click here to see some of the Manabigama Kilns that have already been built and hear what our customers have to say about the "Kiln-Building" experience.

If you would like us to build your Manabigama Kiln for you, or if you would like more information about purchasing the plans, please email us at: monocacypottery@comcast.net

 

Monocacy Pottery
John Thies
11801 Hunt Club Rd
Thurmont MD, 21788
(301) 898-3128 Studio
(301) 471-0296 Cell