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This mug is made from a test clay body firing to about 3% porosity. While plenty strong it is capable of absorbing some water. But a thin layer of transparent glaze on the base solves that issue. I applied it by adding water to a brushing glaze version of G2926B transparent and carefully painting it on. A thin layer of silica sand on the kiln shelf completely solved the problem of sticking. And there are no sand grains stuck on the bottom of the piece either.
The bases of many artware pieces can actually be glazed and then fired on the kiln shelf without using stilts. How? A thin layer of silica sand and a super thin layer of clear glaze on the bottom - just thick enough for the melt to soak in a little and seal the body against water penetration (of course the side walls are the regular three coats). How thick? Just experiment. In this example, I watered down some Spectrum 700 clear and applied one quick coat. It does not seem like enough but it produces a glassy surface that picks up very few grains of silica sand during firing. In the worst case, when applied too thickly, some grains of sand will stick, but even then they can be rubbed off and the piece is still ok.
Typecodes |
Clay sealers
Many ceramics are either porous by nature or by necessity. For example, stonewares need to be non-vitreous enough that they do not warp or blister on firing. Red earthenwares must be porous in order to have the red color (they go brown when fired higher). White talc or dolomite low-fire clay bodies always have high porosity. Bricks must have minimal firing shrinkage, which guarantees substantial porosity. Even porcelains can blister and it is common to cut back on feldspar to give them more margin for overfiring - that brings porosity. If water penetration must be prevented all of these need to be sealed, these are some of the methods. |
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