Ceramic Firing Temp

For success a potter must know their glazes temperature ranges at which they become mature.

Ceramic firing temp.

The temperature needed to transform soft clay into hard ceramic is extremely high and is usually provided by a kiln. When potters talk about ceramic firing ranges they are usually referring to the three most common. This is the most common temperature range for industrial ceramics. Mid fire earthenware should be fired between cone 2 and cone 7.

For mid range material a kiln should be firing at a temperature between 2124 and 2264 1162 1240. This is the hardening tightening and finally the partial glassification of the clay. The fancy name for this is vitrification or the ceramic chemistry that transforms a clay body into a hard non crystalline glass. Clay bodies have ranges of temperature that they can be fired to.

If the temperature goes too high the glaze will become too melted and run off the surface of the pottery. If fired at too low a temperature the glaze will not mature. Each ceramic glaze should be fired to a specific temperature range. The glass phase that forms during the firing of a ceramic material can be thought of as the glue that holds the finished work together.

We get many questions about clay firing temperatures. Low fire mid range and high fire ranges. First it is important to know that the maximum cone rating of a stoneware or porcelain clay is the temperature at which it vitrifies. The ware is returned to the kiln for a very low temperature firing in order to fuse the overglazes.

People want to know if they can fire a certain clay to a certain cone.