SC2 KILN PROBLEMS

[meliom]

Hi my sc2 kiln arrived with bead door and viewing window.  Asked someone who knows what they are doing to help and set up four programs and started it up for the first time tonight.

The first program was for annealing on the go heating upto 520 and holding but it made beeping noises and said it was too hot so stopped and started again and everything seemed OK but then the temperature kept rising upto 540 and I opened the door to cool it and it dropped down but then rose again upto 542.  Has anyone had these problems or should I contact the supplier or am I just being plain stupid?

Mel

[Mary]

Someone else had that problem, heating too fast and over shooting. Try heating it more slowly, instead of on full.

[meliom]

Thanks Mary will try that.

Mel

[Shirley]

One of the annealing programmes in beginner basics has a schedule that slows down the initial ramp. I think.

[meliom]

I slowed down the heating up and held it at 510 and the temperature only varied between 509 and 512 so I think it worked.  Thanks very much I was worried I had broke it on the first go!

mel

[turnedlight]

That happened to me, in may. I got very frustrated! I followed the annealing schedule in the handbook, which says to go at full steam ahead, which is why it kept overshooting. In the end I spoke to Laura at Paragon Kilns (told to ask for her by name) who was really helpful. I did suggest they revise their handbook.. 

[Lee - Kilncare]

Yes, to put it in laymans. When a lot of programmers are set to full on they by pass many of their control features and just go flat out. They don't start to think about what's going on until they get near to the temperature they are set to reach but this can often be too late. You see a kiln should be thought of as a ship. When it is rising in temperature quickly it will carry on rising after it has been told to stop and eventually come to a gradual halt, hence the term "overshooting", but while it is doing this the controller may believe that the kiln is not stopping when it was told to and the controller will go into a protective fault mode.
Hope that helps explain.

[Fired Silver]

Hi Mel

Just thought I'd make you feel a bit better - I did break my first ever kiln on it's first firing!!!  It wasn't completely my fault, the instruction manual was in oF and the pyrometer in oC!!  Nothing anywhere on the pyrometer to show it was in oC!!  The company I bought it from were very nice about it and swapped it for me.  They've also had the instruction book re-written!

I can laugh about it now!

Rebecca

[Mary]

I'm glad it worked, Mel! I think it will become less of a problem as your kiln gets older, mine takes longer to heat up now than when it was new.

[meliom]

Thanks for the advice. 

I even read the booklet twice, highlighting the important bits, sat and looked at the kiln for a week, terrified of turning it on!  Then, when I built up the courage to turn it on and it does strange things.... 

Anyway all seems well now.  if I feel brave I might try fusing some glassy bits at the weekend, so I may ask more questions!

mel

[Robin]

hi

if you need help programming the sc2, there's a video on www.electrickilns.co.uk.

your room central heating may be set to 21C, but the rooms probably hover around 20 to 22. same with a kiln.

set to full-rate heating at 800, it will go to 830, drop to 770, and gradually level out - although not completely. a slower heating rate reduces the overshoot. a little bit of testing, and keeping a kiln log, will help you to learn more about your kiln's firing characteristics.

rob

www.paragonkilns.co.uk

[mariag]

Thanks Rob, just added it to my favourites

[glassworks]

we have revised out standard programmes to avoid precisely this - we had higher overshooting in the beginning - and although everyone wants ther kilns to heat up as fast as possible the SC2 (probably because it is much smaller internally) seems to suffer more than the SC3 or Bluebird etc?..

[Mary]

What are you doing here? Can't stay away? Lol!