This afternoon I took delivery of Kevin the Kiln from the lovely rockpooljewels.
But despite being wonderfully well packed, Kevin has suffered in transit.
When I opened the box the window glass had slipped - and the insulation has come away from the door so when I shut the door the insulation is coming part way out.
The insulation in the main kiln looks as it it has slid backwards - the vent hole in the blue metal and layer underneath line up, but the hole in the insulation layer looks to be almost an inch further back.
I know very little about kilns, so am not sure if this is something I can fix easily or if the kiln needs to go for repair. If a repair is needed, I'd welcome suggestions for the best place to use.
Many thanks
Joy (who might have to do some housework tomorrow instead of melting glass.
boohoo to this Joy...but we shall get it sorted by hook or by crook my love. Absolutely gutted...hope Lee passes by soon with some words of (cheap) wisdom for how to fix it, and if not all my Law Studently powers will be put to use to sort Yodel out.
xxxxx
LOL - I might have guessed you were a law student when I saw the letter you sent the courier!
I feel sorriest for poor Kevin - he was so well packed I think they must have used him as a football.
Me thinks it is nil point to Yodel. I bought Mandy's wonderful stash of glass and frit and despite excellent packaging, 'this way up' and 'fragile' stamped all over it there were breakages but nothing on the scale you have. Perhaps the man who arrived at my door with the massive box slung over his shoulder (not 'this way up'), who then kindly put in on my hall floor, with a bit of a thump before diosappearing back to his Thrifty rental van is indicative of them. He was out of earshot by the time I said 'oi, careful'. Perhaps I should have triend 'yodel-ling'?
Hope you get the kiln sorted. Am sure it is fixable - Cherry Heaven in Dorset are the Paragon dealers in the UK; I've heard good things about them.
[I always get hubby to edit my complaint letters - he has a law degree so can turn my rantings into something with punch].
Well at least we all know Yodel are off our Xmas card lists.Actually in fairness I booked and paid using DHL not Yodel...they appear to be a branch of DHL, but it's a bit off to substitute with someone else me finks!!!
Sue didn't I use HDNL for yours..jeez I'm lost. I think Parcel2Go are out the window in future, either that or we all chip in for diesel and have a little holiday delivering items ourselves....lol..
We shall see how this pans out, hopefully it won't be anything too dramatic with the kiln, but if it is Gawd help them, I will be throwing the might of my 1sy yr studies at them!!!
Mandyxx
According to the HDNL site, they are also Yodel - or they have a link to Yodel on their home page. I thought Yodel was the new name for them? Hubby was looking for a green Yodel van so was disappointed with a white rental van. He's a sad soul.
I suspec they are all as bad as each other. I've used Hermes in the past and have been lucky to get everything there in one piece, including framed pictures, but look on the Ebay forum and there are loads of unhappy bunnies who've used them.
I'm sort of glad that your courier didn't like me now Mandy :o I mean, Parcelfarce are much better ......
If you need any annealing done in the meantime Joy? :(
Seems like you had a lucky escape Sue ;) good old royal mail...mind you mandrels are hard to mangle...
Honestly this whole thing has been so stressful...damn idiot drivers at(yodel/DHL/HDNL) lol..or maybe me for trusting them.
xx
Thanks for the offer of annealing - that's really kind. I'll drop you a pm if I need to take you up on that.
Poor Mandy - no wonder you're stressed about this.
But it will get sorted - so keep smiling.
Joy x
Listen mate, before you go and get any expensive door replacements or the likes, can you stick a picture or two up on here and we can at least make a educated assessment.
Might not be a magic cure but at least we will know.
Thanks Lee
I don't think it's just the door though - the insulation under the vent hole looks to have moved by about an inch as the holes don't line up.
Photos tomorrow - camera battery charging now.
Joy
Thats the way. Unfortunately I'm being dragged by the missus to watch flamin Take bloomin That tomorrow so I may not get an answer to you untill Sunday sometime.
I'll fit in perfect, me with my red Mohican and green glasses at a Take That gig ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Aren't the company that delivered responsible?
Yes they are but if you don't flag it with them virtually instantly you are widdling in the wind.
Thanks Lee - very much appreciated, especailly as it's not one of your kilns.
Enjoy take that!
Jx
Lee, we did flag it with them same day as delivery, we now have 14 days to provide all the evidence they require.
Just hoping it doesn't come to that and you can somehow work your magic :)
Mandyxx
OK - pictures as promised
This is the door and insulation when I've puhed the insulation in as far as it will go (otherwise the glass in the window falls out)
(http://i823.photobucket.com/albums/zz151/theknittinggoddess/monkey/beads/003.jpg)
This is how much the insulation moves when I close the kiln door then open it again
(http://i823.photobucket.com/albums/zz151/theknittinggoddess/monkey/beads/004.jpg)
This is the gap between the end of the insulation and the bottom of the kiln
(http://i823.photobucket.com/albums/zz151/theknittinggoddess/monkey/beads/005.jpg)
The gap between the insulation and side
(http://i823.photobucket.com/albums/zz151/theknittinggoddess/monkey/beads/007.jpg)
And finally a picture of the vent hole, so you can see how much the insulation has shifted
(http://i823.photobucket.com/albums/zz151/theknittinggoddess/monkey/beads/006.jpg)
I've tried to ease the insulation forward but it's not moving. I can see where it should be as I can see screw holes in the edge of the insulation and matching screws - but there's now a gap of a good 2cm.
I could try and move this with a bit more force, but wouould appreciate some advice before I make things worse.
I should also say that I've switched the kiln on and set a program and started it - so I know its' working. Only let it go to 60 degrees before switcihing it off as I don't know if the insulation is now touching anything ot shouldn't be.
Many thanks
Joy
Blimey Joy,
Looks like its had a good hard smack off something. Hope its shoveable back in Joy. sure Lee will be along soon. If not we chase Yodel!
Mandyxx
oh no! poor Kevin! looks like they dropped him or something!
hope he can be put back together again!
I'd bet on dropped seeing how much everything has moved - but the plus side is that the electrics and heater seem to be working.
On the plus side, it's so hot here this afternoon that I don't know that I'd want to run a kiln.
What's really sad though is that we've staretd saying hello to Kevin every time we come into the kitchen...........
Can you gived me a full shot of the door, I am struggling to work out if it is the metal of the door that has "grown" or the insulation that is the problem.
With regards to the chamber. There is a strap across the rear of the chamber block that stops the insulation moving backwards. Ether that strap has come off or it has dug into the chamber as, after all, it is only hardened fibre.
To check this you will need to take the back off.
To be honest, off what I have seen there doesn't seem to be any need to be spending any dosh to get this sorted.
(http://i823.photobucket.com/albums/zz151/theknittinggoddess/monkey/beads/001.jpg)
(http://i823.photobucket.com/albums/zz151/theknittinggoddess/monkey/beads/002.jpg)
Thanks Lee
I've taken the back off - the strap had dug into the fibre, and I've pushes the insulation forward until it sits tight against the front of the kiln.
This has also helped the problem with the door - as there isn't a gap the insulation is staying in the door when it is closed. It still moves a little when the door is opened, but only by a couple of mm rather than falling out.
Well that's great news. With regards to the chamber, just keep an eye on it that it doesn't start to mooch it's way back. If it does you may need to add a bit of metal under the strap to stop it digging in.
Now then, that door looks pretty good to me. Basically what holds the insulation in the door is the screwws that hold on the catches and hinges etc around the sides of the door. As the door has had a knock you can see where the insulation has ripped past the screws. A good bet is to simply screw some slightly longer screws. Remove the ones that are there now, nip down B and Q and get some more, say half inch longer. That should do the trick then Kevin is happy once again.
Thanks Lee
I picked up some longer screws today so I could do that - so will get the screwdriver out, then go do my first batch anneal.
Huge thanks for your help with this - I owe you a drink at the very least.
Jx
Pah, don't mention drinks, I nearly drunk Manchester dry yesterday whilst suffering Take That ;D ;D ;D ;D
Actually they were fab but I will deny ever saying that if you tell anyone ;D ;D
More excellent news - first batch anneal seems to have worked a treat - I've check a couple of clear beads with filter and it all looks good.
Happy, happy dance.