WarmGlass.com

I have a small square kiln that I use for test purposes. It's a top loader and it's brick on brick when I drop the lid. What would be the best material to adhere to the top of walls where it meets the lid that would provide a softer landing when I close the lid? It would probably need to be 1/16 or no more than 1/8" thick as to not interfere with hinge closure. The fiber paper strips that are sold for lining ss rings & such wouldn't be durable enough I'm guessing.

Why are you dropping the lid when you close it? You shouldn't really need any kind of cushioning if you're just closing the lid gently. Is there a reason why you need to drop it?

When I said drop I didn't mean that literally, though I did drop it once accidentally. I'd still prefer to have a bit of cushion as the 2 surfaces meet.

use 1/8" fibre

DonMcClennen wrote:use 1/8" fibre

As in the 2" fibre paper strips sold for dams? Is that stuff durable enough? I haven't been around it but I thought it was more like thick thinfire..... which I would think would fall apart after a few firings.

I've been opening and closing Brick lids on Brick wall kilns (some as big as 30"x 45") for 30 years.. Never felt the need for a gasket material.

DonMcClennen wrote:I've been opening and closing Brick lids on Brick wall kilns (some as big as 30"x 45") for 30 years.. Never felt the need for a gasket material.

Me either.

Ok, so I need to improve my lid closing skills . Perhaps had I uploaded the pic I'm about to and further explained why I want a durable gasket I might have gotten a more definitive answer. As I eluded to, I have dropped the lid accidentally once or twice. It caused a crack in the wall and some little chunks have fallen out. There's not enough of a gap to get any kind of furnace cement into it to heal the wound, and it's not that loose that I can move it enough to acquire the necessary gap. So I figured that if I could cement a durable band-aid across the top of the crack that it might stabilize it enough to keep from degrading further, assuming I can keep from dropping the lid too hard . And a little extra cushion would not hurt. Make sense?

You could patch that with kiln cement/brick mortar.

Alternatively, you could replace the entire brick, but the mortar would be easier.

Add a layer of fiber paper on top would probably not help that much anyway.

thanks Brad!

It usually isn't too difficult to rig up a counterweight so your lid isn't so heavy that it bangs down if you accidentally let it drop.

jolly wrote:It usually isn't too difficult to rig up a counterweight so your lid isn't so heavy that it bangs down if you accidentally let it drop.

yep..... that's my next trick in a row!

The counterweight, if a coffee can, should have some vintage cachet. You can build one with a Costco or Kroger generic can that you have around, but best results are achieved if you eventually score an old Maxwell House or Hills Bros, Chock Full of Nuts.....you know what I mean.

"vintage cachet".... I like that!