Building a Small Scale Wood Fired Kiln, Steve Mills Backyard Philosophers Kiln , pt1 the Big Picture

[@jimherchak7505]

I was with you the moment you said "pretty much everything on this Kiln got put up and taken down and put up and taken down multiple times". Planning is good, but even the best plan on paper (or computer) can fall flat without allowing for trial and error as it steps off the page and into the real world. Love this build, and looking forward to your next video.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Thanks so much! I had considered inviting potter friends to help, but wisely decided against it. I learned so much by the back and forth and ups and downs. Hoping to light her up again early to mid June and film it this time.

[@CruzQuinteroCeramics]

I just had a similar dream but of a soda kiln built it up and took it down 4 times before it was working great!

[@tendingahandmadelife]

@@CruzQuinteroCeramics patience and perseverance pays! ✨🌟💫

[@DarrinMoneer]

I am in. Really good vid

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Thanks! Working on part two now with all details of costs, materials and options.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Just uploaded Pt 2. All the specifics are in the written description.

[@cavemandancer]

What a great video. Love your explanation.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Thanks so much! Hope it was helpful! 🙏

[@cavemandancer]

@@tendingahandmadelife I just bought a house in Rutherfordton NC. i have a traditional skutt kiln but I plan on and would love to build a wood fire kiln. I bought the booklet that you suggested and read thru it...thank you again. really helpful.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

@@cavemandancer super cool! You’ll do well with the nice Skutt for bisque firings as I only have a teeny electric kiln that I use for metal clay. I just fired up my Philosophers kiln on Tuesday. It really wants to go fast and furious. We went 10 1/2 hours and got a bit carried away. We flattened ^10 and I’m not sure how hot it got, probably cone 12. It’s an excellent design. Good luck and thanks for watching and taking the time to comment! 🙏✨🌟💫

[@credenza1]

Just wonderful. A dream come true.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

@@credenza1 feels borderline miraculous!

[@andrewwilson507]

Very inspiring, perfect construction

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Thank you! I had good directions, but a LOT of trial and error.

[@evilmonkey1911]

Amazing video! Loved all the details on the building process 😊

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Thank you! Hope it proves helpful ... 🙏

[@texastx8247]

Fabulous!

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Why thank you!!! 🙏🙏🙏

[@sunwu101]

Like you I'm a potter, but unlike you I'm still dreaming. Honestly shed tears seeing this. Reminsing myself to be patient as im sure this accomplishment was woth the wait. Congratulations. Whishing you the best with your kiln and looking forward to seeing some of your creations!

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Thirty years for it to all come together, but absolutely worth the wait. Firing it up for real in two weeks! Best of luck in your own clay journey. Thanks so much for taking the time to watch and comment. 🙏💙

[@SurvivalAussie]

Awesome video.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Thank you!!! Hope it's helpful ... 🙏

[@Jeff-si2fw]

Good job!

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Thank you!

[@Finding_Arcadia]

Thank you for the link to backyard kilns! You're definitely living a version of a future i want, now if only i could get out of an apartment so i could actually get to work on building it instead of dreaming. Hope this works out well for you!!

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Oof, boy howdy do I know how you feel. Having the right space to build my kiln has been my biggest obstacle. Once I got to a property to build it, I was afraid the cost would squash my dream ... but miracles happened and my dream came true. Hold on and keep dreaming ... you'll get there!

[@jasongannon7676]

It's been fun watching you build your kilm I'm getting ready to build mine this summer and and still working out the design. I can't wait

[@tendingahandmadelife]

@@jasongannon7676 thanks! It’s a labor of love for sure and the design turned out to be a really good one. Simple, straightforward and easy to construct. Good luck and all the best on your own build… super exciting! 🙏🙏🙏

[@deepashtray5605]

Sweet. From my own kiln building experience I've tried to use as much stainless steel as possible, and would highly recommend using stainless strap clamps, (a.k.a. hose clamp or worm screw clamp) in place of the galvanized wire. It comes in various lengths, but runs roughly just under a buck per foot or less on Amazon, and surprisingly goes a long ways. I got a 32' coil with 12 clamps for ~$25. It is impervious to corrosion and melts at a ridiculously high temp, somewhere above 2,500F and it's very strong. Stainless steel wire is also available.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Excellent info, thank you! I went with the galvanized wire to start, figuring I would upgrade at some point. Will look into your suggestions. 🙏🙏🙏

[@JenniKnight-ct1yp]

This was great! Thank you. Inspiring.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

It’s totally doable!!!

[@schinderiapraemeturus6239]

Very cool. I'm wanting to build a kiln for heat treating and preparing useful chemicals. Look forward to your future videos to see how your kiln is working out😊

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Wow, that sounds very cool! If you’re not doing big volumes, you could build an even smaller version.

[@nkazz35]

Thank you!! Question: the Mills guide names scaffold poles for the fire bars… is this just regular scaffold galvanized steel?

[@tendingahandmadelife]

@@nkazz35 I think this kiln is all about using the materials you can salvage or scrounge. I got my pipes for the firebox crossbars and my angle iron at a metal scrap yard. Good luck! BTW, there’s some potters in the UK getting ready to fire up an old Philosophers Kiln as we speak. Check out shiny_rubbie_people on IGM. Thanks for taking the time to watch my little video and leave a comment! 🙏🙏🙏

[@natashacloutier3285]

I just watched your first video. Looking forward to seeing what else you have in the future. Good luck to you.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Thanks so much for tuning in and saying HI! There’s for sure more wild clay and wood firing to come and no idea what else … time will tell. 🙏🙏🙏

[@toi_techno]

Cool

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Thanks!

[@db4704]

Love it! I am presently in year 1 of the same dream of building this exact kiln. Maybe i will get to where you are at some day. :) Congrats!!

[@tendingahandmadelife]

I’m firing it up for real on April 22nd. Video will follow. Best of luck to you on your own kiln building journey. 🙏💙

[@quantumofconscience6538]

Regular shale and clay brick can take the temperatures, but regular brick does not like fast speed up and fast cool down. Firebrick can take that up and down, no problem. If you have a good amount of "red brick" heat up slowly.... and....... bring down slowly..... This is where those dampers probably help keep the heat IN, but I'm not sure where they are. The Russians, in their brick stoves, have a damper very high up in the chimney (they may even use a pole,) to keep the heat IN (after the fire goes out) and to keep the cold air from flowing down the chimney into the firebox. This way, the bricks radiate out heat for 12 hours after the fire has gone out.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Thanks for the info! The original plans called for using regular clay house bricks, but I was incredibly fortunate to be gifted enough hard and soft firebrick to complete the kiln with double walls for the whole chamber. The dampers are just at the base of the chimney. For the August firing, I’m going to slow it down, hopefully from an 8 hour firing to 10 or 12 hours with a reduction cooling at the end, per Euan Craig’s firing schedule. We’ll see! 🤞🙏

[@twestgard2]

Wow, I’m trying to build a kiln. That’s thousands and thousands of dollars worth of materials and labor to build the structure and then the kiln.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

It can be a chunk of change for sure, but there are options. The pole barn was the most money, but our choice was to make it nicer rather than cheap. I’m working on the second video with all the specifics of cost and materials and options therein. Hope to have it uploaded later this week.

[@twestgard2]

@@tendingahandmadelife cool, that sounds very interesting.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

Just uploaded Pt 2. All the specifics are in the written description.

[@twestgard2]

@@tendingahandmadelife thanks for the heads up!

[@LastEmpireOfMusic]

2 hours and 1000 degree.... sounds very unrealistic. maximum 300 you can get within that time frame

[@tendingahandmadelife]

@@LastEmpireOfMusic my first time firing it up and it was empty … took it MUCH slower when fully loaded! Still blows me away how fast it wants to climb in temp. We have to be very diligent to rein it in. Thanks so much for watching my little video and taking the time to comment! 🙏

[@LastEmpireOfMusic]

@@tendingahandmadelife i think i was also off cause you use fahrenheit not celsius. anyway i am struggling to get above 950 right now with mine.

[@tendingahandmadelife]

@@LastEmpireOfMusic maybe chimney height? Although mine is quite tall and this vintage one is quite short, instagram.com/p/DBCHoqCA6x4/?igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== . I follow these ladies on IGM and am amazed by their firings. They get to ^12 in a very short time with a seriously wonky kiln. Also, I start off with bigger wood, but switch to long and thin pieces once I've got a good bed of coals. Type of wood makes a difference as well. I use really dry pine and poplar, the thinner pieces combust almost immediately. Good luck!