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WebGL could not be initialised, so the interactive view has been replaced with a static schematic. Every control below still works and the numbers are still calculated.
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Schedule
Presets
Playback
Schedule output
| Total time | — h |
| Peak temp | — °C |
| Heat work | — °Ch |
| Suggested cone | — |
| Energy estimate | — kWh |
Segments
| Seg | Program | Time |
|---|
Firing is a schedule, not a temperature
A kiln does not care about your peak temperature in isolation. Clay and glaze respond to heat work — the combined effect of how hot it got and how long it stayed there. Two firings that both reach 1222 °C will produce different pots if one soaked for an hour and the other did not. That is why potters measure firings in cones, not degrees.
The four segments of a firing
- Candle — a hold at around 100 °C. This drives off mechanical water slowly. Skip it on thick or damp work and you risk a steam explosion.
- Early ramp — up to 600 °C. This is where chemically bound water leaves the clay and organic matter burns out. Keep it slow; most kiln failures happen here.
- Main ramp — 600 °C to peak. The glaze begins to melt and the body densifies.
- Soak — a hold at peak. This evens out the load and lets a glaze heal over pinholes.
Reading the chart
The curve is drawn from the segment maths, not from a lookup table. Change any slider and the whole schedule is recomputed: the total time, the heat work figure and the energy estimate all follow. The colour of the curve tracks temperature — clay orange low down, kiln gold at the peak, glaze blue as it cools — and the kiln graphic beside the chart changes with it.
An early ramp faster than 110 °C/h below 600 °C, and a main ramp above 200 °C/h. The first risks blowing up your load; the second gives uneven glaze melt and shortens element life.
Crash cooling puts the glaze in tension against the body, which is a reliable way to produce crazing. The cooling segment here assumes natural cooling with the lid shut.
Try these experiments
- Load the Bisque 06 preset and note the total time. Now raise the early ramp to 250 °C/h and watch the warning appear while the total time drops.
- Load Glaze 6, then increase the soak from 20 to 90 minutes. The peak temperature does not change but heat work climbs — that is the whole point.
- Compare the Raku and Stoneware 10 presets. Raku is fast and short; stoneware is slow and long. The energy estimate reflects that difference.
Related tool references
- Electric Kiln — Controlled, repeatable heat — the studio's most consequential machine.
- Pyrometric Cone — A small clay pyramid that measures heat work, not just heat.
- Kiln Shelf — The floor of every layer in the kiln.
- Kiln Vent — Remove the fumes before they reach the room.
Try the rest of the studio
Wheel Thrower
A parametric pottery wheel. Drag the clay to change height and diameter, tune the rim, neck and wall thickness, then read off capacity, dimensions and the clay weight you will need.
Glaze Painter
Paint glaze straight onto a rotating 3D pot. Eight preset glazes, a brush, a sponge, a dip tank and a wax resist, all mapped to a live texture as you work.
Clay Cutter
Slide a cutting plane through a thrown form and inspect the section. Read wall thickness, base thickness and cavity depth, then score how even the wall really is.