Glaze Q&A Videos Archives – Sue McLeod Ceramics

When you flocculate a glaze with Epsom salts, how long does the effect last?

When you flocculate a glaze with Epsom salts, how long does the effect last? Question: When you use Epsom salts to flocculate a glaze, how long does that effect last? How often do you have to add more Epsom salts? Using Epsom salts to flocculate glazes Epsom salts are...

How to achieve consistency with brushing glazes?

Ceramic Glazes, Glaze Q&A Videos

Question: “Brush on glazes are less consistent in my experience. How do we know the ideal consistency with a brush on glaze?”

Can you use bentonite instead of epsom salt for hard panning?

Ceramic Glazes, Glaze Q&A Videos

Can you use bentonite instead of epsom salt for hard panning? Question: Can you use bentonite instead of Epsom salt for hard panning? Dealing with hard-panning In my free Strategic Glazing class, I talk about flocculation. Flocculation is a way of increasing a...

How to deal with glazing tong marks?

Ceramic Glazes, Glaze Q&A Videos

Question: When using tongs, what is a reliable method for covering the small holes left behind in a way that doesn’t show as a different color in the fired piece?

What’s the role of witness cones in a kiln-sitter kiln?

Ceramic Glazes, Firing, Glaze Q&A Videos

What’s the role of witness cones in a kiln-sitter kiln? Question: Any suggestions for using witness cones when your kiln has a kiln-sitter rather than a controller? I have a small, old school doll kiln and can’t create a schedule. All I can control is on,...

What’s the difference between Orton self-supporting cones and large cones

Firing, Glaze Q&A Videos, Studio Tips

What’s the difference between Orton self-supporting cones and large cones Large cones vs Self Supporting cones Question: Orton temperature equivalents – I thought self supporting and large cones were interchangeable, but the table shows slightly different...

Can I speed up my kiln’s cooling cycle?

Ceramic Glazes, Glaze Q&A Videos, Studio Tips

Can I speed up my kiln’s cooling cycle? How can I speed up my kiln’s cooling cycle? Question: “What can we do to make big kilns cool down faster? Keep the door slightly open at a certain temperature?” There isn’t really a practical way to speed up...

Why does my kiln fire unevenly?

Firing, Glaze Q&A Videos

Why does my kiln fire unevenly? Why does my kiln fire unevenly? Question: “Why do I get different results on my cone pack based on which shelf– top, middle, or bottom– the pack is located?” Our kilns tend to fire unevenly and I’ve also had the same...

Sodium silicate turned my glaze into thick sludge

Ceramic Glazes, Glaze Q&A Videos

Sodium silicate turned my glaze into thick sludge Can you save a glaze that has turned to pudding after adding too much sodium silicate? Question: I added way too much sodium silicate to two big buckets of glaze. They were too thick and water wasn’t helping so I...

Doesn’t high speed mixing create bubbles in the glaze?

Ceramic Glazes, Glaze Q&A Videos

Doesn’t high speed mixing create bubbles in the glaze? What if mixing creates bubbles in our glaze? Question: When high speed mixing, is it necessary to allow the glaze to sit for some period of time before dipping to avoid tiny bubbles? What to do about those...

How long will a five gallon glaze bucket stay homogenized for?

Ceramic Glazes, Glaze Q&A Videos

How long will a five gallon glaze bucket stay homogenized for? How long will my glaze stay suspended for? Every glaze is going to be different depending on their composition. Some glazes will settle very quickly, and other glazes will just stay mixed and homogenized...

If I sieve my glaze, am I sieving out good particles?

Ceramic Glazes, Glaze Q&A Videos

If I sieve my glaze, am I sieving out good particles? We sieve glazes to break down clumps (and sometimes remove foreign objects) All of your glaze particles and ingredients should go through the sieve. All we’re really doing when we’re sieving is...