Paragon Fusion 16 for next kiln?

[Katherine]

I had thought my next kiln would be at least 22" square, perhaps the Skutt clamshell, for example, but see the Paragon is making the 16" square Fusion which fires on 120.

So far, my home kiln was a Hot Start, which felt pretty restrictive at 13". The Fusion 16 is attractive as a way to get to a 16" without having to hire an electrician. Seems a compromise between household wiring and the limitation of size.

Anyone using this kiln? Does the fact that it fires off of normal household current mean that it's going to be much slower than my Hot Start was? I'd love to hear whether this kiln presents a good compromise.

Thanks.
Katherine

[JestersBaubles]

IMO, the 16" is pushing it on 120V power for a fire brick kiln. If you are going that large on 120V, I would suggest looking at a fiber kiln. (Jen-Ken has one... I don't have any experience Jen-Ken kilns, but others report good success with product & customer service).

I have the Fusion 14. I LOVE the kiln, but it does fire slowly compared to my small Paragon SC2 and my big Skutt GM1414. For most things this is not an issue, but if you plan to do a lot of high fire projects, I would consider alternatives.

Just my opinion, experience, 2 cents, etc.

Dana W.

[gottev]

The Fusion 16 is the kiln I got 3 yrs ago and really like it. I did replace the top with a fiber lid so I'd suggest you just order it with the fiber lid to start. And about the 120 - you need a dedicated outlet, you can't just plug it into your regular socket.

[Kevin Midgley]

Not just a dedicated outlet, a dedicated circuit with the right wiring gauge used.
Usually by the time you get everything sorted out to run a 120 volt kiln there isn't much cost difference between having 220 volt circuitry installed.

[Katherine]

Is it "safer" to run 120 than 220? I suppose that correctly wired, a higher-capacity line would win.

I also noticed that the Fusion was markedly cheaper than the other Paragons I would consider.

Crap. I thought there might be a way around the expense of jumping to 220 to get to a more viable kiln size.

Thanks.

[gottev]

"Not just a dedicated outlet, a dedicated circuit with the right wiring gauge used."

Yes, that is what I meant to say. Thanks for the clarification Kevin.