Blue Ridge Pottery - Kilns

Kilns and Firing

Many folks ask us how we get our intense and beautiful colors. While the glazes provide the basic elements the firing is what actually changes the colors from light pastels to intense reds, blues and greens.

The kiln is the beating heart of a pottery. Our present kiln was designed by Alun and built in 2005. The building process took approximately three months and used just over 4000 high temperature kiln bricks. The kiln is housed in its own metal building and has overall dimensions of approximately 10 feet wide by 8 feet deep and six feet high. It has two chambers and is designed to produce a reduction atmosphere which burns the oxygen from the oxides in the glazes resulting in the overall color changes. The kiln can accommodate up to 300 pieces on each side.

 

Each firing and cooling cycle takes approximately 3 1/2 days. Four propane gas burners provide over 500,000 btu’s per hour of heat which applied for a twenty four hour period. Two one thousand gallon propane tanks provide the fuel for the kiln. An afterburner has been designed into the kiln to thoroughly combust any unburned gases resulting from the reduction process. This heat is transferred back into the kiln chambers through a fire brick wall.

In our "Open Studio", the kiln is the only area that is off limits to guests. During studio visits our kiln can be seen through the double glass doors at the back of our glazing building. If you are lucky it may be firing or unloading on the day you arrive to visit with us. During the season the kiln is usually opened on Tuesdays and Fridays, although weather and other factors can change our firing schedule.

 

 

 

 

Also see: Glazes, & Glazing