Kilns

Rick Otts

Rick Otts

Well-Known Member
Ok I been checking them out and I believe I am going to get the Paragon km14D 120v.Wat is the real difference between the 120 v 240?
 
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In most cases, the time it takes to come up to temps. If a small oven, it may do well enough, but if a large oven, you would likely do better with 220v.
 
240 volt kilns typically have more power for the same volume of kiln. before buying a furnace, look at your short term/ long term knifemaking goals. what kind of steel do want to use? most high carbon steel is heat treated at 1500F/800C, stainless will need about 2000F. how big a blade do you want? finally, shop. the difference between a pottery kiln and a heat treating kiln that are the same size and temperature rating is a label with the HT kiln being more expensive.
 
What's important in an oven is the amount of wattage in the heating coils. A 3,000 watt range oven will normally be 220 vac, while a 120 vac oven might be more along the lines of 1500 watts range. Next is the cubic volume of oven. For the same cubic volume, it will take about twice as long for the 1500 watt oven to heat up as for a 3,000 watt oven.
 
The difference in power cost will be small between 120 vs 240vac. It costs the same to run a 1500 watt oven for 2 hrs as it does a 3000 watt oven for 1 hr. My choice was a 220 vac oven because of the faster heating.
 
a 110v takes a long time to chug up to +1950F.
Energy costs, in theory, should be slightly less using 220v.

Generally, I only see 110v systems sell if there is an outlet issue such as renters or people in apartments that just don't have access to a 220v outlet.
 
I started with a 120v Paragon pottery kiln and it was SUPER SLOW!!!! I would turn it on, go eat dinner, watch the news, play with the kids, then go back to the shop and it "might" be up to temp. Worked but, drove me crazy waiting around. To get to stainless temps I bet it took 2 hours. I bought an 18" Even Heat 220V through Boss and it gets up to temp fast, real fast. Minutes, not hours.
 
Anthony - "minutes to get to SS temps?" My oven EvenHeat KF18 with 220 vac coils will get up to 1500ºF range is well less than an hour - perhaps 45 minutes? To get to SS temps in the 1950ºF range along with the 4 fire bricks I have laying in bottom of oven to put blades up next to TC tip, AND it helps oven to level out in temp better also.... I'd guess it takes darn close to 2 hrs for leveling out. Without the 4 fire bricks it will get to 1950ºF in a bit over an hour, but then needs to sit there cycling for another 15 to 20 minutes or so to level out, so the total heat up time isn't much difference with or without the firebrick. With firebrick there is enough mass inside oven the temps don't drop so bad when putting blades in or removing blades.

As Tracy says, "IF" you can possibly swing 220vac, (KenH: even with using an extension cord) I wouldn't recommend 120vac at all.

Ken H>
 
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KenH said:
Anthony - "minutes to get to SS temps?" My oven EvenHeat KF18 with 220 vac coils will get up to 1500ºF range is well less than an hour - perhaps 45 minutes? To get to SS temps in the 1950ºF range along with the 4 fire bricks I have laying in bottom of oven to put blades up next to TC tip, AND it helps oven to level out in temp better also.... I'd guess it takes darn close to 2 hrs for leveling out. Without the 4 fire bricks it will get to 1950ºF in a bit over an hour, but then needs to sit there cycling for another 15 to 20 minutes or so to level out, so the total heat up time isn't much difference with or without the firebrick. With firebrick there is enough mass inside oven the temps don't drop so bad when putting blades in or removing blades.

As Tracy says, "IF" you can possibly swing 220vac, even with using an extension cord, I wouldn't recommend 120vac at all.

Ken H>
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+1

I have the Evenheat KF225, 240VAC, 15 amps, 3600 watts and it will hit 1600ºF in about 45 minutes. And I do power it using a 10' extension cord I made myself using 10 gauge 3 wire SO cable.
 
Ken, would I exaggerate? :biggrin: Well, not intentionally anyway. I guess I need to time it someday, but I usually start the oven ramping, then clean the blades, make my foil pouches, get my quench plates ready, air compressor ready, etc. And by then it's usually about there, seems like less than an hour to me, but never timed it. My first kiln was so slow, maybe I'm giving this one more credit than I realized. Either way, its super fast compared to where I started.
 
Anthony: - Nope, you'd NEVER exaggerate, not even size of fish caught {big grin}

I've sorta timed my oven - need to do a test sometime, remove brick, actually time how long it takes to get to 1600ºF, then time how much longer to get to 1950ºF so I could be sure of the times. When waiting for the oven it sure seems to take forever!

I do know it takes longer for the oven to reach temp with those 4 firebrick inside, but they do help on temp swings and positioning the blades right next to TC tip.

Ken H>
 
I've been building a 27" x 7" x 6" chambered HT oven with 3 kW of elements (the maximum power realistically available from a UK domestic 230V, 13A socket).

The first test run gave the following times/temperatures:

800degC (1272 degF) was reached in 22 ½ minutes , 1100 degC (2012 degF) took 54 ½ minutes, thetemperature at an hour was 1125 degC (2057 degF) and 1177 degC (2150 degF) took71 minutes.

The second test run was for 90 minutes at full power and the temperature reached in that time was 1253 degC, 2287 degF.
 
Self Made Knives said:
I started with a 120v Paragon pottery kiln and it was SUPER SLOW!!!! I would turn it on, go eat dinner, watch the news, play with the kids, then go back to the shop and it "might" be up to temp. Worked but, drove me crazy waiting around. To get to stainless temps I bet it took 2 hours. I bought an 18" Even Heat 220V through Boss and it gets up to temp fast, real fast. Minutes, not hours.
Click to expand...
I have a Duncan 220v 45amp model EA-1029N pottery kiln. Does anyone have experience wiring a digital temp controller to a pottery kiln?
 
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