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back yard raku

updated wed 6 mar 02

 

primalmommy on fri 1 mar 02


I live on a street where lots of us have woodburning stoves; the guy
across the road from me heats his house with coal (now THATS a memorable
smoke.) The folks in the new development behind our funky blue collar
street have a homeowner's association, no fireplaces/stoves, only gas
grills, and a different attitude about such things.

Since we have no homeowners association, I have half a dozen chickens, a
big veggie garden, and clothes (formerly diapers) flapping on the line.
It's about par for my street, but the residents of the new development
can see our little operation from their decks, and therein lies the
problem.

We battled zoning for the right to keep 6 hens (no roosters of course)
and I'm not keen on calling zoning for permission unless it comes up...
I once made an anonymous call to see about teaching lessons from home
(piano, yoga, uh maybe clay...) and learned that it would require a $125
application fee and meetings with two boards which may or may not
approve it. So I just keep my business to myself. I am permitted to put
up a sign for my studio but it had to be 2 feet square and attached to a
house.

You might call and find out what the regulations are for those little
chiminea jobs so popular for patios (they're like a long necked pot
maybe 4 feet tall, with an opening where you can build a little fire...
)

Based on the rules for chimineas in our township, and inspired by the
Rhodes book I got at the library, I figure I can make some kind of
little pit-kiln, woodburning, clay-covered igloo looking thing in my
garden, put a few lawn chairs next to it, and call it a horizontal
chiminea (which just happens to have pots inside.) Maybe decorate the
outside like the geometric patterns on those African clay dwellings...

Meanwhile I've put up a 6 foot stockade fence and planted arbor vitae
across the back of the property.. and I do my pit firing at night, when
they're all shut in with the TV and air conditioning... so far, no
sirens...

Yours, kelly leaving for Ohio in the morning...
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Richard G. Ramirez on fri 1 mar 02


Hello all,
Just reading the tail end of this thread on Raku. Let me tell you how I
deal with doing Raku behind my classroom, where we're not suppose to have a
" no open flame policy". First, we do it early in the morning, then when the
pots go into the reduction chamber, I cover the reduction chamber(trash can)
with an old wet bed sheet and I continue to mist it if it smokes to much.
Works for me, seems smoke is attracted to the moist bed sheet! Hardly any
smoke! Try it. You'll like it!.
Richard Ramirez ( The Clay Stalker) in Sacramento!
----- Original Message -----
From: "primalmommy"
To:
Sent: Friday, March 01, 2002 2:44 PM
Subject: back yard raku


> I live on a street where lots of us have woodburning stoves; the guy
> across the road from me heats his house with coal (now THATS a memorable
> smoke.) The folks in the new development behind our funky blue collar
> street have a homeowner's association, no fireplaces/stoves, only gas
> grills, and a different attitude about such things.
>
> Since we have no homeowners association, I have half a dozen chickens, a
> big veggie garden, and clothes (formerly diapers) flapping on the line.
> It's about par for my street, but the residents of the new development
> can see our little operation from their decks, and therein lies the
> problem.
>
> We battled zoning for the right to keep 6 hens (no roosters of course)
> and I'm not keen on calling zoning for permission unless it comes up...
> I once made an anonymous call to see about teaching lessons from home
> (piano, yoga, uh maybe clay...) and learned that it would require a $125
> application fee and meetings with two boards which may or may not
> approve it. So I just keep my business to myself. I am permitted to put
> up a sign for my studio but it had to be 2 feet square and attached to a
> house.
>
> You might call and find out what the regulations are for those little
> chiminea jobs so popular for patios (they're like a long necked pot
> maybe 4 feet tall, with an opening where you can build a little fire...
> )
>
> Based on the rules for chimineas in our township, and inspired by the
> Rhodes book I got at the library, I figure I can make some kind of
> little pit-kiln, woodburning, clay-covered igloo looking thing in my
> garden, put a few lawn chairs next to it, and call it a horizontal
> chiminea (which just happens to have pots inside.) Maybe decorate the
> outside like the geometric patterns on those African clay dwellings...
>
> Meanwhile I've put up a 6 foot stockade fence and planted arbor vitae
> across the back of the property.. and I do my pit firing at night, when
> they're all shut in with the TV and air conditioning... so far, no
> sirens...
>
> Yours, kelly leaving for Ohio in the morning...
> _______________________________________________________________
> Get your own FREE email account at iVillage.com!
> http://webmail.ivillage.com/
>
>
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Michelle M. on tue 5 mar 02


Hello...I'm new to posting, but have been "ghosting" for some time on this
list. All the info. has been extremely helpful and I appreciate all the
help I can get. So here is my small contribution.

I raku in my yard, and was concerned about the smoke. I read somewhere
that if sand is put into the container it will virtually elliminate smoke.
I was rather pessimistic that the solution could possibly be THAT simple.
However, it really works! It not only keeps the neighbors from being
alarmed, but also keeps me from inhaling smoke, as sometimes occurs.

Happy RAKUING.
I may have read this info from this list...I cannot remeber....so, my
apologies fro not giving credit to him/her whose great idea this was.

Michelle