Kiln Firing

I stayed up late the night before the firing to finish all this glazing.  This would have more than filled up my older (and smaller) kiln, but as it is, I did get four layers instead of the normal three, and I probably could have fit more onto each shelf as well.

But then disaster struck.  I went through my checklist: Turn on timer for kiln sitter.  Put cone 10 bar in kiln sitter, push in plunger to engage .... because unless the kiln sitter is engaged, the digital part of the kiln will not run (and if you missed that small saga, it is a few posts back in time) ...

Alas.  The kiln sitter plunger did not engage. I pushed, I shoved.  I muttered.  All to no avail.  It would not work.

I unloaded the entire kiln.  I did a google search and find something about some spring action that should be happening and isn't .... so I take my hand dandy screwdrive and unscrew the kiln sitters face plate and wiggle the parts around. Nothing happens.

I screw the kiln sitter face plate back in, readjust the claw that holds the small cone bars.  I try again. Repeat.  Nothing happens. Repeat.  I started this process at about 10 am in the morning and at 11:30 finally (I don't know why) the plunger engaged.

I reloaded the kiln and it is firing right now.  It's more than ironic that I bought this kiln so that I WOULDN'T have to disassemble it every time I wanted to fire.  Why?  Because that's what I had to do with my old kiln.

On the other hand ... this has a nice 'soak' function that my other kiln didn't (it being only equipped with a manual kiln sitter and infinite control knobs and all).

UPDATE:  It fired almost 14 hours with a 20 minute soak.  At this very moment is cooling down  and is just above 200 degrees.  Tomorrow -- pictures!

Thanks for stopping by!
Natalie