Arbuckle: Reduction Firing

Reduction Firing

Reductionisfiringwherethekilnatmospherehas
insufficientoxygenforcompletecombustion(morefuel
thanairtoburnit).Athightemperatures,thisproduces
carbonmonoxidegas,whichwillsteallooselybonded
oxygenfromothermaterials,inceramicsmainlyironand
copper.

SAFETYNOTE:
carbonmonoxidegasisTOXIC.Donotremainina
closedkilnroomduringreduction.

Thischangesthemolecularformofthematerialand
producescolorchanges.Inoxidation,irongenerally
China.Qingdynastyceladoncups
producestan,brown,orrustcolors.Inreduction,small
amountsofirongiveceladoncolors:green,blue,olive,or
greygreencolors.Copperinoxidationisgreenorblue
green.Smallamountsofcopperintheappropriatebase
glazeinreductionproducescopperredsinshadesknown
assangdeboeuf(oxbloodredtowardaplumred),
peachbloom(pinktopeachyreds),orflamb(orangish
red).Chinesehistoricceramicsareparticularlyfamousfor
thesecolors.Whilereductioncanbedoneatother
temperaturesthanhighfire(cones811),itisheldby
manyclayartiststhathighfirereductionhasthebestcolor
response,withrichertones,thanreductionatlower
temperatures.

China.Qingdynastysangdeboeufvases
Bisquingworkbeforeglazing
Workmayberawglazedandoncefired.Thisisnotthemostcommonprocedurebecausebonedrygreenwareis
fragile,maysplitorcrackfrombeingwettedbyglaze,andcontainscarbonaceousmatterthatwillburnoutin
firing,possiblycausingpinholingintheglaze.Greenwareisalsopronetoblowingupiffiredquicklypastthepoint
wherewaterturnstosteam(212F),andpiecesofexplodedwarewouldbetrappedinglaze.Glazesforoncefiring
mustbebalancedforshrinkagewiththerawpot,andusuallycontainamuchlarger%ofclaythanglazesfor
bisqueapplication.

Industrysometimesbisquefirespotterytomaturitysothatitmaybesupportedduringthefiring(e.g.translucent
porcelains).Thisvitrifiedwareisnolongerporousandspecialbinderandapplicationmethodsmustbeusedto
applytheglaze.

Studiopottersusuallybisquetoatemperaturebelowthematuringpointoftheclay,thenapplyglazetothe
porousbisqueandglazefiretomaturity.

Pyrometersmeasuretemperature,usuallythroughaprobeinsertedintothekiln.Thistellsusthetemperatureat
theplaceoftheprobeandthetimeread.Thismaynotindicatewhetherthematerialsinthekilnhavesufficiently
melts.

Pyrometricconesmeasureworkheat(theeffectoftimeandtemperatureonmaterials)andaretheusual
indicatorsforfiring.ConesweredevelopedbySeger.AmericanconesaremanufacturedbyOrton.Conesarea
combinationofclayandglazematerials,calibratedtomeltataspecifictemperature.Theintervalbetweenconesis
about32degreesF.Conesaremadeinlargeandsmallformat.Meltingtemperatureissomewhatdifferent
betweenlargeandsmallconesofthesamenumber.Smallconesareoftenusedinelectrickilnsforvisualcones
becausepeepsaresmallandit'shardtoseeseverallargecones.Smallconesareusedinelectrickilnkilnsitters.

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Arbuckle: Reduction Firing

SeeAppendix2inHandsInClayforcolorandtemperatureequivalents.Lowerfiringconesarenumberedwitha
"0"infrontofthenumber,andreadlikeanegativenumber(e.g.022iscoolerthan06).Thereisnoconezero.
Numberinggoesfromcone01tocone1.Conesnumbersw/oa"0"infrontarehotterinascendingnumerical
order:cone1iscoolerthancone6.

Conepacksshouldbemadetoputinfrontofbothtopandbottom
peepsofthegaskilns.Claywadsareusedasabasetosupporta
seriesofcones:theoretically,aguidecone(tellsyouwhenyouare
gettingtowardtemperaturedesired),afiringcone(thedesired
temperature),andaguardcone(togaugethelimitsyoumayfire
to).

Conesshouldbetiltedataslight(8degree)anglesothatyouwill
Bisqueconepacks,cone05.Left, 06,right
seethemsoftenandbendbeforemelting.Placeconescloseto
eachothersothegroupmaybeeasilyseenthroughthepeep,flat
sidefacingforward,numberfacingyou,conethatmeltssoonest
first(ifconeorderisreversed,thefirstconetomeltwillknockthe
othersover).Itisdifficulttoget2wideconepacksonasupportin
frontofthepeep,sobalancetheneedtocatchthedripswiththe
logisticsofplacing2conepacksnexttoeachother.Notethatthe
conesinthebisqueillustrationarejuniorsizedlowfireconesfired
closetotheirmeltingpoint.Inthecone10reductionconepack,
youwillbefiringwaybeyondthelowerconepack,andthecones
willmeltintoaliquidandrun.Makeabigboatonthefrontofthe
conepacks.Makeconepacksaheadoftimeanddrythem.Glaze
Cone10reductionconepacksafterfiring.
kilnsareusuallyheatedfasterthanbisque(gasburnersareoften
Backconepack,ltor,cones011,010,09,4,
hardertocontrolatlowtemperatures),andwetconepacksmay
front,ltor,6,8,9,10.Notethatpacksare
blowup,scatteringbitsofclayontoglazedware.
facedinoppositedirectionstomake

sightingconesmoredefinite.Inspiteofa
Forhighfireyouwillneed2setsof2conepacks:
boat,theconesran.Helpstoputonakiln
1. Lowerconesfordeterminingwhentobeginreduction.
shelfshardforeasiercleanup.
Usuallowconesare011,010,09,4orsimilar.MAKEABIG
BOATONTHEENDOFTHELOWCONEPACK.THESECONESWILLMELTDOWNTOAPUDDLEINFIRING
ANDRUNIFNOTCONTAINED.Itisnotfuntochipthisoffofshelves,orfinditinglazedwork.

2. Glazematuritytemperaturecones.Glazeconepackshouldcontain6,8,9,10.Whilethe#6coneisnot
necessary,itgivesaguidepartwaythroughthefiringtotemperatureandkilnevennesstoptobottom
andisahelpfulindicator.Pleasemakesuretofillinakilnchartandlabelthenumbersoftheconesinthe
conepackssothefirersknowwhatthey'relookingat.

Placementofconepacks
Conepacksareplacedinfrontofthepeepholes,usuallywiththereductionconestothefront(theywillmeltout
ofthewaybeforetheglazeconesareneeded)facinginonedirection,andtheglazeconesinbackfacingthe
oppositeway.Checkpositionforvisibilitywiththekilndoorclosedusingaflashlightorapapertorchinthekiln.

Glazing
Mosthighfireglazedbenefitfromevenglazeapplication.Thisismosteasilyaccomplishedbydipping.See
informationonglazingandhighfireshopglazes.

Potbottomsshouldbewaxed(dryfooted,i.e.unglazed)toresistglazeapplication,aswellaslidseatsandlid
edgesifyouplantofirewiththelidinplacetoreducewarping.Highfireglazestendtomove(run)duringthe
firing,and1/8to1/4"shouldbeleftbetweenthepotbottomandthebeginningoftheglazedareatopreventruns
ontothekilnshelf.Manypottersconsiderthiswhenmakingwork,andmakeadeepbevelonthefootthatcreates

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Arbuckle: Reduction Firing

ashadowsothepiecevisuallysitsgracefullyandalsoliftsthepottheareaneededabovethekilnshelfw/o
showingaringofbareclayatthefoot.

Ifglazesticksthepiecetothekilnshelf,itmaybreakthepieceasitcontractsincooling,andtheworksownerwill
beaskedtochiseltheglazeoffthekilnshelf.Thickerglazeapplicationstendtorunmorethanthinones.
Combinationsofglaze(e.g.doubledips)mayformaeutecticberunnierthaneitheronealone.Ifyoufeelyouare
usingathickglazeapplicationand/ordoingexperimentalcombinationsofglaze,pleasemakesureyouworkis
loadedintothekilnwithaclaywasterofapieceofbrokenkilnshelfunderittocatchanyrunnyglazedrips.

Loading
Beforeyouloadcheckthatthekilnisfreeofdebrisaroundtheportsandbehindthebagwall.Thetargetbrick
behindthebagwallistheretodeflecttheflameandshouldremaininplace,butcheckforshardsofwork,etc.
ChecktoseethatallthegasvalvesareclosedandtheblowersystemareOFF.Ifyouhaveanyreasontosuspecta
problemwiththekiln,testlightitbeforeloadingtomakesureitisworkingproperly.

Usetheblacksiliconcarbideshelvesforthegaskilns.THESESHELVESAREHEAVY.THESESHELVESAREEXPENSIVE.
Pleasebecarefulanddonotpropthemagainstmovableitems.Findhelpifyouhavetroubleliftingandplacing
highershelvesinthekiln.Checkeachshelfforproperkilnwash.Thisprotectstheshelffromglazedripsandmakes
iteasiertochiseloffanyglazeruns.Kilnwasshouldbemixedupinacontainerbythesinkinthekilnroom.Dry
mixisinthecupboardunderneath.Applyw/abrushorpaintroller.Kilnwashshouldbetheconsistencyofcream.
Severalthinnerlayersstickbetterthanonethickone.WASHONLYTHETOPOFTHESHELF.Washonthesidesor
underneathmaypopoffandfallintotheworkbelow.Kilnwashforlowfireandregularreductionis50silica+50
EPKbyweight.

WARNING:ifyouareusingthethin,blackbondedsiliconcarbideshelvesDONOTEVER
firethemwetordamp.Iftheyneedtobekilnwashed,theymustbecompletelydried
beforeusingthem.Iftheseshelvesareheatedwet,theymayEXPLODE.

Postthefirstshelfseveralinchesoffthekilnbottomforadequateheat/aircirculation.
Generallyshelvesaretriposted,sharingendposts.Postsarealwaysputaboveeachother
whenloadingsubsequentlevelssothattheposts,nottheshelves,beartheweightofthe
load.

Wareisgroupedbyheight,andsimilarheightsareloadedonthesameshelftousethespaceefficiently.Verytall
piecesareoftenputonthetopshelfsothatmultiplepostsdonthavetobeusedtoachievetallheights.Theware
selectedforthebottomshelfshouldbeatleast6"high.Averylowfirstshelf(say,platesortiles)sometimesdoes
notletheatandgassescirculatewell,andmayresultinunderfiredorunderreducedworksonthebottom.Check
thebottomsofallwareasyouloadtomakesurethereisnoglaze.AlsochecktomakesuretheclaydoesNOTlook
liketerracotta.Iflowfireclayisaccidentallyfiredtocone10,itwillmeltintoapancake,sticktothekilnshelf,and
hasthepotentialtoruinadjacentworks.Ifanythinglookslikeitmayruntoomuch,putitonapieceofbrokenkiln
shelforabricktoprotectthekilnshelf.Glazedwaremaybeplacedtotheedgeoftheshelf,closetogether,butnot
touching.Makesureyounotethepositionofthepeepsandleaveroomfortheconepacks.

Firing
Whenyouaredoneloading,checkthekilnchartandmakesuretheconesfortheconepacksarenoted.Withthe
damperopen,theairoff,lightthepilots.Wegenerallycandlethegaskilnonverylowheatovernighttogetthem
firedoffatareasonablehourthenextday.Itssafetohavethepilotson.Turningtheburnersonlowsettingisa
judgmentcall.Ifthisisdoneearlyandthenextpersonwatchingthekilncomesinlate,youcouldheatthekiln
enoughthatyoumisstherighttimetodoreduction.Generally,weturntheburnersonverylowovernightonlyif
thekilnisturnedonlateintheevening,andsomeoneiscominginearlytocheckonit.

Glazedwareholdslessphysicalwaterthangreenware,andthechemicalwaterhasalreadybeenfiredoff,soitis
lesslikelytoexplodefromwaterturningtosteamat212Fthanbisque.However,recentlyglazedpieces,
especiallythickonesthatarestillcoldtothetouch,mayholdwater.Temperatureshouldbeincreasedgradually

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Arbuckle: Reduction Firing

untilthekilnispastredheat(about1000F),whichisalsoquartzinversion,wheresilicachangesshapeandgets
2%bigger.

OXIDATIONiscompletecombustionoffuelinthepresenceofadequateoxygen.Theflamewillappearblue,short
andbushy,thekilnatmospherewilllookclear,andthekilnmakesaroaringsound.Nobackpressure(flames)from
damperorpeeps.Thegascombustsattheburnertips.Thisisthemostefficientcombustionandwillcause
temperaturetorisethefastest.Oxidizeuntilreduction(about010).Itishelpfulforsmoother,brighterglaze
surfacestooxidizefor1530minutesattheendofthefiring(beginaroundcone9softforacone10softfiring).

REDUCTIONisincompletecombustionoffuel,causedbyashortageofoxygen,whichproducescarbonmonoxide.
Reducingflameswillappearsoft,licking,long,orange/yellow.Thekilnatmospherewillbemurky.Backpressure
(incompletelyburnedgasses)willbeseen(visibleorangeoryellowflamesatthedamperandpeepholes).Black
smokeindicatestoomuchgas(waste),andcancauseblackcoringofclaybodiesanddullglazes.Itisnotnecessary
toreducethismuch.Duringreduction,thelackofsufficientoxygenforcombustioninthekilncausesthewhole
kilntobecomeacombustionarea.Thisisinefficientcombustion,slowsthetemperatureclimb,butwillhelpeven
outthekilntemperature.Youshoulddoreductionaboutcone010,andreducefor2030mintues.Ifyoubegin
reducinglaterthen06,youmayhavemissedreductionandwillnotgetany.

NEUTRALorslightreductionatmospherewillproducegreenishflamesandconditionsbetweenoxidationand
reduction.Afterreduction,itiscommontoleavethekilninaneutralatmospheretilcone9,thenoxidize.

KilnControl
ControlsonthekilnconsistoftheGASvalve(generallyameterisattached,althoonsomekilnsyoumayregister
justthepositionofthehandletoindicateamountofgas),thePRIMARYAIR,whichisthebloweronforcedair
kilns,andSECONDARYAIR,ortheairsuckedinaroundtheburnerportsandcontrolledbytheDAMPERonthe
flue.

Thesecontrolsworktogethertoproducethedesiredeffect.Toproduceanoxidizingflame,turnofthegastothe
desiredlevel.Youmayopenthedamperand/orincreasetheprimaryorforcedairorreducetheamountofgasto
produceablue,bushyflame.

Toputthekilnintoreduction,closethedamperpartiallyand/ordecreasetheprimaryair,and/orincreasethegas
pressuretoproducereducingconditions.Makesurethatyougetbackpressure,oratleastcanseeswirlinggasses
inthekilnatthebottompeepforgoodreduction.

Thefiringisoxidizedfromthebeginninguptoaboutcone010.Thekilnisreduced,thenputintoaneutral
atmosphereuntilcone9isdown.Ascone10beginstomove,thekilnshouldbeputintocompleteoxidationto
finishthefiring(usuallythelast20minutesorso).Thiswillallowglazematerialstosettledown.Oncethekiln
reachestheglazematuritypoint(forourshopglazessomeplacebetweencone10beginningtobendandcone10
over),turnoffthekiln.Ifyouturntheelectricalswitchesoff,everythingwillturnoff.Closethegasvalves.Note
thetimeonthekilnchart.Closethedampertokeepcoldairfromblowingthroughthekiln.Mostglazedbenefit
fromslowcooling,andallneedtimeafterfiringinamoltenstatetoallowbubblestosmoothout.Colddraftscan
causeunevencoolingduringquartzinversionorcristobaliteinversionmaycausedunting,orcrackingthoughthe
bodyduringcooling,fromstresses.

Safety
Pleasetielongand/orfluffyhairbackbeforecheckingthekiln.Removeandreplacepeepplugsfromthesideto
avoidanybackpressure.Ifyouhavetroubleviewingtheconesw/backpressurecomingoutthepeeps,reducethe
backpressurebyturningdownthegasand\oropeningthedamperabit.Whenviewingkilnsaboveorangeheat,
useprotectivedarkglassesintendedforeyeprotection.

TROUBLESHOOTING

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Arbuckle: Reduction Firing

Youneedtoreviewthekilnconditionstomakeappropriatejudgmentsforadjustments.Downdraftkilnsreact
somewhatdifferentlythanupdrafts,andeachkilnhadit'sownpersonality.Differencesinloadingandweather
mayalsoaffectfiring.Generalizationsbelowarefortheupdrafts.

IFyouhavethedamperwideopen,youmaybelosingsomuchheatoutthefluethatthebottomwillbecoldin
spiteofalow,busy,oxidizingflame.Ifthebottomseemscold(oftenthecaseearlyinthefiringasthekilnheats),
closethedamperabit.

IFyouhaveveryhighprimaryairyoumaycauseagreatdealofturbulenceinthekilnandsuchastrongdraftand
intakeofsecondaryairthatthebottomstayscold.Reducetheprimaryair(blower)andadjustthegasanddamper
forproperflame.

IFyouhavethedamperclosedtoomuch,youmayfinditdifficulttogetaclean,oxidizingatmospherew/oback
pressure.Openthedamperabitand/orreducethegas.

IFyoudonothaveenoughturbulenceinthekiln,youwillhavedifficultygettinggoodreductionofthebottom.
Increasetheprimaryairand/oropenthedamperabit.Turbulencehelpstheheatandkilngassescirculatetoall
partsofthekiln.

IFthekilnseemstostalltowardtheendofthefiring,checkthegas.Sometimesveryhighgasandenoughairfora
neutralatmospherecausestoomuchdraftandheatislost.Turningdownthegasabitforbettercombustionwith
thedesiredamountofairmayactuallyincreasetherateofclimb.

REMEMBERthatanychangeyoumakemaytake1530minutestoshowinoveralleffect.Constantlychangingthe
kilnsettingsmayslowfiring.Noteallchangesandresultsonthekilnchart.

Whenyoureachthedesiredtemperature,turnoffthegasvalves,flipofftheelectricsystem,turnofftheblowers,
andshutthepilotvalves.Closethedampersothatcoolairdoesnotcontinuetoflowthroughthekiln.Notethe
timeonthekilnchart.

Cooling/Unloading
Althoughitispossibletospeedcoolakilnbyleavingthedamperopenfromtheendoffiringthroughredheat,this
ishardonthekilnstructureandmaynotproducethebestglazesurfaces,especiallyincrystalsurfaceglazes(the
crystalsformduringcooling,andslowcoolingpromotesmorecrystals).Aroundredheatquartz(1000degF)goes
throughQUARTZINVERSION,andthepiecebecomesabout2%smaller.Thisshouldhappenslowlytoavoid
dunting(coolingcracks).Freesilicaintheclaycanbeconvertedtocristobalitewhenfiredaboveabout1940degF.
Thiswillinvertandgetabout3%smalleroncoolingat439degF.Thiscanalsocauseduntingifithappensquickly.
Aclassictestforwhetherakilniscoolenoughtopullthepeepsandcrackthedoor/lidistoputpaperintoaspy
hole.Whenapapernolongerignites(paperburnsat451degreesF),youmaypullthepeepsandopenthe
damperacrack.Unloadwhencool.

Personsunloadingshouldnoteanyunusualresultsfromreductionorlackofwhilethekilnisstillloadedandnote
positionsofanyunreducedorunderfiredwork(notethisonthebackofthekilnchartforreference).Unloadthe
workontoacart.Removeshelves.Chipanyglazerunsoffwithachiselandhammerand/orruboffw/apieceof
blacksiliconcarbideshelf.Toavoidcrackingtheshelfwhenchippingglazeoffshelves,itishelpfultoputtheshelf
onaresilientsurface(e.g.wood),orleanagainstanimmovableobjectatanangleand/orchipatanangle,not
straightdown.Reapplykilnwashandstack.PLEASEWEARSAFETYGLASSESTOPROTECTYOUREYESFROM
FLYINGCHIPSOFWASH.Replacetheshelvesintheholder,stackingtheshelvesfacetofaceandbacktoback(to
preventwashchipsonthebacksofshelvesthatcouldfallintotheworkinstackingthekiln).Restackkilnposts.
Sweepoutthekilnifneeded.Sweepuptheareaaroundthekiln.

Bibliography
Hamer,FrankandJanet,ThePottersDictionaryofMaterialsandTechniques4thed,Univ.OfPAPress,A&CBlack,
1997.Thoroughdiscussionofcristobalite,reduction,andmanyothertopics

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