After mixing with water run the glaze.
Using wood ash spray in ceramic firing.
The work in wood kilns reveals the story of the firing with pieces showing ash deposits and the path of the flame through the kiln.
Wood ash is caustic so work in a well ventilated area with a respirator and wear safety goggles and chemical resistant gloves.
Used as very thin wash dipped brushed or sprayed over shino this mix promotes carbon trapping and can give the look of wood firing.
You can build a simple raku kiln and fire your work with wood to get stunning results.
In a salt firing the salt vaporizes and the sodium chloride splits into sodium and chlorine gas.
I only mix up what i ll use in one firing 1000 grams of each since the ash glaze does not store well.
Shino ash wash from sylvia dales 70 potash feldspar g 200 30 wood ash bentonite 2.
At this temperature the ash will easily melt and the result to the non purist is almost indistinguishable from pottery fired in a wood firing kiln.
But not all wood kilns are built.
Traditionally ash glazes were fired between cones 9 and 10.
Now with so many fuel options available to the potter wood fired kilns are more of a choice than a necessity.
So check out nesrin s post today.
The minerals from the wood are restored to nature where they can be reused again.
The next step is to weigh equal amounts of ash and redart clay.
Using up wood ash in your yard and garden is a natural solution.
Does it have detrimental effects on your elements or bricks in an electric kiln.
While wood kiln firing isn t easy the results are incomparable.
The salt easily glosses up a piece and helps the wood ash flux out.
This complex interaction of ash salts minerals in the clay and the flame itself are what give wood fired pots their unique characteristics.
Is it only used on bare bisque fired clay or can it be used over a glaze coat under a glaze coat or over underglazes.
Salt vaporizes at a fairly low temperature and can work its way into all sorts of nooks and crannies.
The process that i m talking about is wood firing with salt thrown in.
I remember visiting a well known pottery in japan renowned for its wood fired pots and seeing a woman swathed in indigo cloth spraying wood ash in a fairly thick coating onto the pots.
Nesrin during shows us how to combine wood firing and raku firing as you ll see wood firing isn t just about high firing.
The japanese have always held wood fired ceramics in high esteem wood kilns can not only produce temperatures of 1400 c 2 500 f wood fires also produce fly ash and volatile salts.
It requires a very hot dirty firing to look good but also it holds up well in multi day super hot wood kilns.
Jennifer poellot harnetty editor.
Yard garden uses for wood ash.
Putting one and one together the potters discovered that wood ash with very little else added forms a glaze.
