CAUTION - USE THIS ONLY AS A STARTING

POINT IN LEARNING THIS PROCESS

IMPORTANT NOTE: There are many kinds of loads
fired in kilns with infinite variations. There is bisque
firing, glaze firing, variations in clay bodies,
variations in the wetness of the clay and, of course,
many other kinds of firing like glass, crystalline
glazes, various industrial processes, etc. This guide is
meant ONLY as a starting point. Rely on your own
experience and that of other people who know to
compliment and expand on this starting point.
Unfortunately we can not be your ultimate resource
for firing information. If you have further questions
please contact your local distributor, Orton Firing
Institute or local pottery guilds or organizations.
TYPE OF SWITCHES
Zone Switches on L&L kilns come in two varieties; 4
position switches which have settings for Low, Med,
High, and Off, but nothing in between, and Infinite
Switches which have Off, then 1, 2, 3 through 11
ending at High - basically an infinite number of
choices between Off and High. The 4 position
switches were used on our old K Model and H & C
Model kilns (typically before 1975). All J Series,
Jupiter and DaVinci Series kilns use the Infinite Zone
switches.
USE PYROMETRIC CONES
It is always wise to fire the kiln using self-supporting
cones that melt at the temperatures your clays mature
at, or a pyrometer, or some other way to tell the
temperature in the kiln. As you load the kiln, place
these cones so they can be seen easily through the
peepholes.
PYROMETER SYSTEM
Consider using a Tru-View Pyrometer. This allows
you to see what is happening in the kiln as it reaches
maturity and allows you to adjust the manual switches
with more precision.
ONE POTTER'S SUGGESTIONS
Set the kiln sitter up with one cone # hotter than your
self-supporting cones.
If you have an automatic vent like the Vent-Sure use
it. If not prop the lid open about 4 or 5 inches with
something non-flammable, and leave all the peephole
plugs out. It is important to vent the water vapor and
other fumes (such as carbon monoxide) that are
generated in the beginning of the firing cycle. Glazes
can also give off toxic fumes later in the firing cycle.
Turn on the Dawson Timer. The first time, turn it up
very high, and keep track of how long the firing takes,
the next time set it for about an hour longer than your
first firing took.
Press the Dawson's white or silver button in so it stays
in. Turn all the switches to Low or 1. Leave it that way
for three hours if you think the clay was dry. Leave it
for 8 to 20+ hours if the clay seems at all wet. On
L&L Kilns switches have pilot lights next to them.
On Low they may be on something like 7 seconds,
and off 23 seconds in a 30 second cycle. The closer
you turn the switches to High, the longer they will
stay on, and the shorter they will stay off in that 30
second cycle. (30 seconds is not what it will
actually be, but probably something close). When you
get to High they will be on all the time.
Assuming the clay was dry, you have left it on for
three hours, now, close the lid. Turn the top two
switches to 5. Turn the bottom switch to 6.
As soon as you see Red Heat (any visible color) in the
kiln, plug the bottom two peepholes. Leave the top
one open during the entire firing (if you don't have an
automatic vent). If you do have a vent leave it on and
the peephole plugged.
As soon as you see quite a bit of Red Heat (about
1400 F if you have a pyrometer), turn the bottom two
switches to High, and the top switch to 9. Check the
cones you can see through each peephole often.
As you start to see movement in the cones, as their
surfaces start to look runny, look closely to see that all
three sections of the kiln are doing the same thing, at
the same temperature top to bottom. You can fine-tune
the switches now to add or subtract a bit of heat from
the top or bottom to get to this point. As the cones all
slump, turn all your switches off. Also if possible turn
the electrical breaker off as well.
Wait for it to completely cool before opening it.
FIRING INSTRUCTIONS FOR L&L MANUAL KILNS
fire-manual.pdf 3/1/2004 Rev 1.0 Page 1
2004 L&L Kiln Mfg, Inc. P.O.B 1898, Boothwyn, PA 19061 P:610.485.1789 F:610.485.4665 E:sales@hotkilns.com www.hotkilns.com
FIRING INSTRUCTIONS FOR L&L MANUAL KILNS
ANOTHER POTTER'S SUGGESTIONS
(For a bisque firing)
Put a ^08 into the kiln sitter, and prop the lid open
with a 2 to 3" piece of softbrick. (using a hard post
gouges the lid)
0.00: Put the bottom elements on LOW. leave the
peepholes in (this prevents a chimney effect from
cooling the front of the kiln.) Leave the bottom on
LOWfor 1 hour.
1:00 Put the middle elements on LOW. Now the
bottom and middle are both on LOW. leave the kiln
like this for one hour
2:00 hold a small mirror near the front of the open lid.
if condensation appears, let the kiln go for another
hour. If it does not, drop the lid.
3:00 turn the top element to LOW
4:00 turn all switches 1/3 of the way on (8:00 if you
liken it to a clockface)
5:00 turn all the switches to 1/2 on (6:00 on a
clockface)
6:00 turn all switches to 3/4 on (3:00 on a clockface)
7:00 turn all switches to HIGH. Dull red heat should
begin to appear within the hour. When it does, set the
timer on the Dawson to 2 hours.
The kiln should shut off within that two hour period,
most likely before the timer runs out.
This firing schedule has worked for the type of work
I make on the wheel, my claybodies, the density that
I load my kiln, and the dryness of the ware that I feel
comfortable loading into the kiln. This is just an
example of a typical firing schedule for me, and may
need adjusting at different places depending on your
own conditions.
ANOTHER POTTERS SUGGESTION
This is from potters.org:
Load the kiln, place the witness cone packs on each
shelf, (at least one must be visible from a peephole,)
and put a cone in the sitter. Choose a cone that's about
one cone higher than you actually intend to fire. You
may need to recalibrate the sitter later, but this will do
for a first attempt, since sitter cones often equal a
lower numbered witness cone.
Leave the lid propped open a few inches, and turn
your switches to the lowest setting. Leave it that way
for a few hours; more if your work is thick. Then shut
the lid. Wait an hour or so, then turn the switches to
about halfway. Wait another hour or so, then turn it up
to the highest setting. (You can do this in smaller
increments but more often; it's up to you.) Thicker
work must be fired slower.
Keep an eye on your cone packs. With a new kiln, you
won't know how long you'll have to wait, but if you
have an eye for the color of various temperatures,
you'll have some idea of how fast it's firing. When the
guide cone(s) drop, start checking on it often.
When the proper cone drops, turn the kiln off or turn
the switches to low for a soak - it's up to you. If the
sitter turns it off before the witness cones say it's time,
just tape the sitter flap up into place again and push
the 'on' button. Then wait for the witness cone to tell
you when you're finished, and turn it off or soak.
Witness cones are ALWAYS more accurate than the
sitter.
fire-manual.pdf 3/1/2004 Rev 1.0 Page 2
2004 L&L Kiln Mfg, Inc. P.O.B 1898, Boothwyn, PA 19061 P:610.485.1789 F:610.485.4665 E:sales@hotkilns.com www.hotkilns.com