How to maintain kiln furniture?

Kiln furniture is crucial in a number of industrial manufacturing processes where high temperature exits. Kiln furniture, like all the other tools, needs maintenance after a period of using time. Choosing the proper methods of maintenance for kiln furniture is of great importance because good maintenance helps to lengthen the life of ceramic kiln furniture to some extent. In this passage, ways to maintain ceramic kiln furniture are provided and you will become aware of some effective methods after reading it.

-  How to maintain kiln furniture?

    o   Use of kiln wash

    o   Cover maintenance

    o   Sidewall maintenance

How to maintain kiln furniture?

Ceramic kiln furniture consists of more than one part and each part requires to be treated differently. But generally speaking, the most common maintenance of kiln furniture is to apply kiln wash before putting kiln furniture into use.

Use of kiln wash

Kiln wash is a protection layer between the pot and kiln shelves, aiming to avoid sticking during the glaze firing process. If the clay becomes vitrified, the unglazed pot will stick to the ceramic kiln furniture. The kiln washing liquid is mainly made of silica sand, hydrated alumina and kaolin. It is also suggested that the bricks at the bottom of the kiln furniture should be washed in order to prevent the soft bricks from being damaged by the glaze drops. But remember not to apply kiln wash on the “hot surface” of the cover of kiln furniture since there is already a protective coating on it.

Cover maintenance

In the process of firing, the lid of ceramic kiln furniture will expand and contract, so it is necessary to tighten the belt clamp of the cover from time to time, taking care not to over tighten and strip the thread. If debris or cracks are present, reparations should be made to prevent "screening" or enlargement. You can use refractory cement to attach small pieces back in place. Sometimes it is necessary to dig out some bricks, and then fix the new bricks into proper shapes and proper positions of the kiln furniture. Grinding smooth to form a flat surface again.

Sidewall maintenance

Before firing, you should remove all foreign matters (such as glaze, mortar, clay, glass, silica sand) from the side wall. Otherwise it may lead to further damage to the side walls of the ceramic kiln furniture and even damage to the heating elements. Remove the material using a small screwdriver or knife. Remember to be careful since bricks are fragile. Small pieces of brick may break free from the sidewall. Although this is normal and will not affect the operation of the kiln furniture, the pieces can be bonded again in place using cement. Take care not to stick cement on the heating element of the kiln furniture as this will damage the element. Please also keep in mind that while it seems logical to use kiln wash on sidewalls, we strongly recommend that you do not. It is worrisome that in the process of use, kiln wash will enter the heating elements. If this happens, the heating element of the ceramic kiln furniture may fail.