Frank Gaydos on sat 20 dec 03
Ellen,
Your wax tip brings back memories.
Way back when in the 70's I was living with some friends who liked to make
candles, homemade candles were very popular at the time.
So was smoking wackey tobakey. The two did not mix. Picture heating a coffee
can of wax on the kitchen stove, getting stoned, forgetting about the wax
until it bursts into flame. No problem, right,? Just remove from heat, place
a lid on the can and snuff it out which I did. Waited a few seconds and took
a peek to see if it is out and of course it burst into flame again, at which
point a glass of water is flung into it in panic before I could shout noooo
and BLAM! All the wax explodes from the can turning instantly to a fire
ball and burnt me and anything hanging on the walls. ( Calendars, lamp
shades, post-it notes, dust bunnies, etc) I had minor injuries but moved out
the next week. :>)
There is a moral here, something like Don't mix H2O with WAX & THC. :>)
Thanks for the memory jog.
Frank Gaydos
http://mysite.verizon.net/vze778gn/
----- Original Message ----- >
A safe way to use melted candle wax is to melt it in one of those small
> electric potpourri (sp?) heaters that were so popular a few years ago and
can be
> had for a couple dollars in most thrift stores. >
> It is wise to be careful with all the materials we use, but probably more
> people are dead from fires caused by leaving candles burning in their
bedrooms,
> bathrooms,etc, than burning down their studios with melted wax. Save the
> world!. Get those candles out of their bedrooms and onto your pots!.
>
> Ellen Currans, >
____________________________________________________________________________
__
>
Ellen Currans on sat 20 dec 03
Dear Theresa,
A safe way to use melted candle wax is to melt it in one of those small
electric potpourri (sp?) heaters that were so popular a few years ago and can be
had for a couple dollars in most thrift stores. Mine came without a lid and I
made a ceramic one for it. It only holds about 3 cups of melted wax, but I
found that a larger one takes too long to reheat. You have to think ahead and
start your wax melting an hour or so before you are ready to wax pots. This
doesn't work for dipping pots, but then you can't dip pots in wax resist either
(at least it never worked for me). I use 3/4 inch and 1 1/2 inch coarse
brushes (cheap sturdy brushes for oil painting) to brush on the wax. My friends
and family give me their old half burned candles and I buy some when they are
cheap at the thrift store, or you can buy canning parrafin or candlewax at a
craft store. I add a couple tablespoons of lamp oil (unscented) to the melted
wax - just enough to make it flow at the right consistency. If the wax is
clear, I also add just a tiny nubbin of coloring agent (used when making candles)
so it is easy to see where I have waxed or not. There is an odor to the hot
wax but I don't imagine it is anymore toxic than burning candles or an oil
lamp.
I like wax better than wax resist because in dipping glazes, the glaze sheets
off the wax better than wax resist - especially on large flat trays. Also,
it is dry immediately. (I do use wax resist over glaze). I've found that on my
stoneware, bisqued to Cone 05, that if I scrape off drips of wax, first with
a metal rib, and then use a carborundum stone (the white stones we use to
smooth the bottoms of fired pots) that I can usually clean up drips well enough
to go ahead and glaze the pot.
Doesn't work on textures, but you tend to wax very carefully after awhile to
avoid the extra work. I make pots for weeks and then do 5 or 6 glaze firings
in a row, so I use the time of waxing pots to sort through the bisque, make up
a good kiln grouping and figure out the glazing. When I am through waxing
they are all organized on my tables ready to dip.
Most of my work either has a turned foot ring which makes it easy to tell
where to paint on the wax or they are flat slab pieces. For most of the slab
pieces I use a protractor to draw a line on the bottom to show where to wax.
Makes a much neater glazed bottom. (One leg of the protractor rides on the rim of
the piece - the other holds the pencil at the appropriate break for the flat
bottom.)
It is wise to be careful with all the materials we use, but probably more
people are dead from fires caused by leaving candles burning in their bedrooms,
bathrooms,etc, than burning down their studios with melted wax. Save the
world!. Get those candles out of their bedrooms and onto your pots!.
Ellen Currans, in foggy Dundee, about to go cut down some spindly little fir
tree growing where it shouldn't be. It is for the Grandkids but it will
raise my spirits as well I know.
Ron Roy on sun 21 dec 03
Just to back Frank up on this - a mistake with molten way can be very
painful and if you forget to turn the hot pot off - more than a few studios
have burned to the ground because of hot wax.
Not to mention the fumes - not good in any way.
RR
>Your wax tip brings back memories.
>Way back when in the 70's I was living with some friends who liked to make
>candles, homemade candles were very popular at the time.
>So was smoking wackey tobakey. The two did not mix. Picture heating a coffee
>can of wax on the kitchen stove, getting stoned, forgetting about the wax
>until it bursts into flame. No problem, right,? Just remove from heat, place
>a lid on the can and snuff it out which I did. Waited a few seconds and took
>a peek to see if it is out and of course it burst into flame again, at which
>point a glass of water is flung into it in panic before I could shout noooo
>and BLAM! All the wax explodes from the can turning instantly to a fire
>ball and burnt me and anything hanging on the walls. ( Calendars, lamp
>shades, post-it notes, dust bunnies, etc) I had minor injuries but moved out
>the next week. :>)
>
>There is a moral here, something like Don't mix H2O with WAX & THC. :>)
>Thanks for the memory jog.
>
>Frank Gaydos
>http://mysite.verizon.net/vze778gn/
>
>----- Original Message ----- >
> A safe way to use melted candle wax is to melt it in one of those small
>> electric potpourri (sp?) heaters that were so popular a few years ago and
>can be
>> had for a couple dollars in most thrift stores. >
>> It is wise to be careful with all the materials we use, but probably more
>> people are dead from fires caused by leaving candles burning in their
>bedrooms,
>> bathrooms,etc, than burning down their studios with melted wax. Save the
>> world!. Get those candles out of their bedrooms and onto your pots!.
>>
>> Ellen Currans, >
>____________________________________________________________________________
>__
>>
>
>______________________________________________________________________________
>Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
>You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
>settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
>Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@pclink.com.
Ron Roy
RR#4
15084 Little Lake Road
Brighton, Ontario
Canada
K0K 1H0
Phone: 613-475-9544
Fax: 613-475-3513
Kathy Forer on mon 22 dec 03
Frank,
I had a similar scary experience. Even though the wax was in a double
boiler as I'd done carefully for years, my sick dog had strayed and I
ran after him, and then when I remembered the hot wax the water had
boiled down and the wax was nearly evaporated. It was smoking so I
unplugged the AC, but then I too, upset by my ill dog, unthinkingly
removed the top, dumb! It combusted immediately and I only barely
escaped with minor hand and bad foot burns and narrowly avoided an
inferno. Luckily there were lots of handy bath-type mats on the floor
(for my dog) that served to put out the lightning-terrible flames.
Moral of the story, don't ever leave wax unattended and it's probably
best not to cover it at all. A crock pot filled with water works nicely
with a smaller insert of wax. Water can be on simmer.
Kathy Forer
kforer.com
On Dec 20, 2003, at 11:30 PM, Frank Gaydos wrote:
> Ellen,
> Your wax tip brings back memories.
> Way back when in the 70's I was living with some friends who liked to
> make
> candles, homemade candles were very popular at the time.
> So was smoking wackey tobakey. The two did not mix. Picture heating a
> coffee
> can of wax on the kitchen stove, getting stoned, forgetting about the
> wax
> until it bursts into flame. No problem, right,? Just remove from heat,
> place
> a lid on the can and snuff it out which I did. Waited a few seconds
> and took
> a peek to see if it is out and of course it burst into flame again, at
> which
> point a glass of water is flung into it in panic before I could shout
> noooo
> and BLAM! All the wax explodes from the can turning instantly to a
> fire
> ball and burnt me and anything hanging on the walls. ( Calendars, lamp
> shades, post-it notes, dust bunnies, etc) I had minor injuries but
> moved out
> the next week. :>)
>
> There is a moral here, something like Don't mix H2O with WAX & THC. :>)
> Thanks for the memory jog.
>
> Frank Gaydos
> http://mysite.verizon.net/vze778gn/
Jon Brinley on mon 22 dec 03
Ron=20
To which pot where you referring.
Jon in Midland=20
----- Original Message -----=20
From: Ron Roy=20
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG=20
Sent: Sunday, December 21, 2003 8:46 PM
Subject: Re: Using Melted Wax Safely
Just to back Frank up on this - a mistake with molten way can be very
painful and if you forget to turn the hot pot off - more than a few =
studios
have burned to the ground because of hot wax.
Not to mention the fumes - not good in any way.
RR
>Your wax tip brings back memories.
>Way back when in the 70's I was living with some friends who liked to =
make
>candles, homemade candles were very popular at the time.
>So was smoking wackey tobakey. The two did not mix. Picture heating a =
coffee
>can of wax on the kitchen stove, getting stoned, forgetting about the =
wax
>until it bursts into flame. No problem, right,? Just remove from =
heat, place
>a lid on the can and snuff it out which I did. Waited a few seconds =
and took
>a peek to see if it is out and of course it burst into flame again, =
at which
>point a glass of water is flung into it in panic before I could shout =
noooo
>and BLAM! All the wax explodes from the can turning instantly to a =
fire
>ball and burnt me and anything hanging on the walls. ( Calendars, =
lamp
>shades, post-it notes, dust bunnies, etc) I had minor injuries but =
moved out
>the next week. :>)
>
>There is a moral here, something like Don't mix H2O with WAX & THC. =
:>)
>Thanks for the memory jog.
>
>Frank Gaydos
>http://mysite.verizon.net/vze778gn/
>
>----- Original Message ----- >
> A safe way to use melted candle wax is to melt it in one of those =
small
>> electric potpourri (sp?) heaters that were so popular a few years =
ago and
>can be
>> had for a couple dollars in most thrift stores. >
>> It is wise to be careful with all the materials we use, but =
probably more
>> people are dead from fires caused by leaving candles burning in =
their
>bedrooms,
>> bathrooms,etc, than burning down their studios with melted wax. =
Save the
>> world!. Get those candles out of their bedrooms and onto your =
pots!.
>>
>> Ellen Currans, >
=
>________________________________________________________________________=
____
>__
>>
>
=
>________________________________________________________________________=
______
>Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
>You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
>settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
>Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at =
melpots@pclink.com.
Ron Roy
RR#4
15084 Little Lake Road
Brighton, Ontario
Canada
K0K 1H0
Phone: 613-475-9544
Fax: 613-475-3513
=
_________________________________________________________________________=
_____
Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at =
melpots@pclink.com.
Ron Roy on tue 23 dec 03
I'm not sure I understand your question Jon.
I assume you are asking about the pot used for melting and maintaining the
wax in a liquid form. Some one used a kind of crock pot - most potters use
an electric fry pan with a thermostat - the problem usually is - wax too
hot and ignites or pot left on and eventually burns. I suppose there could
be problems with those thermostats - then there is the hot wax spilling on
somebody.
Tricky stuff - you have to make sure you keep an eye on it - easy to forget
and leave it cooking.
RR
>Ron
> To which pot where you referring.
>Jon in Midland
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Ron Roy
> To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
> Sent: Sunday, December 21, 2003 8:46 PM
> Subject: Re: Using Melted Wax Safely
>
>
> Just to back Frank up on this - a mistake with molten way can be very
> painful and if you forget to turn the hot pot off - more than a few studios
> have burned to the ground because of hot wax.
>
> Not to mention the fumes - not good in any way.
>
> RR
Ron Roy
RR#4
15084 Little Lake Road
Brighton, Ontario
Canada
K0K 1H0
Phone: 613-475-9544
Fax: 613-475-3513
Kathy Forer on wed 24 dec 03
A double-boiler is the safest way to go.
http://www.guitarnuts.com/technical/electrical/doubleboiler.html
http://users.lmi.net/~drewid/wax_faq.html
On Dec 23, 2003, at 1:00 AM, Ron Roy wrote:
> I assume you are asking about the pot used for melting and maintaining
> the
> wax in a liquid form. Some one used a kind of crock pot - most potters
> use
> an electric fry pan with a thermostat - the problem usually is - wax
> too
> hot and ignites or pot left on and eventually burns. I suppose there
> could
> be problems with those thermostats - then there is the hot wax
> spilling on
> somebody.
>
> Tricky stuff - you have to make sure you keep an eye on it - easy to
> forget
> and leave it cooking.
Steve Mills on fri 26 dec 03
Coming in late on this subject: if you mix Candle Wax 50/50 (approx.)
with light machine oil/sewing machine oil, it produces a resist which
won't fry brushes, and softens by setting the container in a bowl of hot
water. It is softer than straight Candle Wax - good for decoration - and
a whole lot safer.
--
Steve Mills
Bath
UK
Elzbieta Sekula on sat 27 dec 03
Can that be used in an electric kiln w/o damaging the elements?
In a message dated 12/26/03 9:50:59 PM Central Standard Time,
stevemills@MUDSLINGER.DEMON.CO.UK writes:
> Coming in late on this subject: if you mix Candle Wax 50/50 (approx.)
> with light machine oil/sewing machine oil, it produces a resist which
> won't fry brushes, and softens by setting the container in a bowl of hot
> water. It is softer than straight Candle Wax - good for decoration - and
> a whole lot safer.
Steve Mills on sun 28 dec 03
Yes, the fumes given off are no worse than straight wax or the rubbish
in our clay that we burn off in a bisque firing.
Steve
In message , Elzbieta Sekula writes
>Can that be used in an electric kiln w/o damaging the elements?
>
>In a message dated 12/26/03 9:50:59 PM Central Standard Time,
>stevemills@MUDSLINGER.DEMON.CO.UK writes:
>
>> Coming in late on this subject: if you mix Candle Wax 50/50 (approx.)
>> with light machine oil/sewing machine oil, it produces a resist which
>> won't fry brushes, and softens by setting the container in a bowl of ho=
>t
>> water. It is softer than straight Candle Wax - good for decoration - an=
>d
>> a whole lot safer.
--
Steve Mills
Bath
UK
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