When my house was under construction as a kid there was this ditch where a patio was going to be placed. It had bright yellow and orange clay and I would just sit in that ditch for hours making things out of the clay and then let them bake in the sun on some bricks for a day. It worked fairly well. I still have 3 things that I made, theyre about 15 years old now.
Dear Mr Ward, I think you're a far better pottery teacher than most I've seen. I love your direct,practical and no-nonsense style. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
This is exactly the content that made me watch this channel. If you do things the way our ancestors did it, then you really don't need to buy anything. That's the reason this was so appealing to me and probably to many more people. And of course it gives us this connection to our past, which is kind of special as well.
More great ideas! Thanks so much, Andy. By the way, a common "minimal-kiln" firing we do in Japan is with "shichi-rin" (七輪) barbecue pots, using charcoal, and a hair dryer (to increase the temp.). Good for small pieces, like tea cups and saké bottles, etc. Cheers, and thanks again!
I am firing my pottery in my tiled stove. In the winter we heat our living room with it. I heat it in our kitchen oven then place it in the fire and stack some more wood on top. Works great.
@@osirusj275 I preheat my pottery to around 150° C in my kitchen oven. Meanwhile I burn some wood to create a bed of glowing coal. Then I place the pottery directly on to the glowing red coals and stack some wood above it. The next morning when the fire has burned out, I pic up the pottery and clean it. I never had any breaking, I did it like 10 times, I am still at the beginning. If you try it, tell us how it went.
No kilns over hear I prefer the traditional methods of ancient pottery n so far you are the best teacher of these methods I have found thank you for doing these videos and helping us in the comments who try to learn.
I’ve been obsessed with making things since I was little and hoarding natural clay, and trying to do things with it,, mostly failing…your advice is going to help so much !!!! Also what do I do when there’s creek pebbles in it…will they explode it when firing ? Do I squish it through a sieve….
Andy, I've recently. Discovered your channel and I'm feeling lucky, grateful, and motivated. I'm ready to start, however what clay should I buy and where from? I live in Grand Canyon so any local/regional clay suppliers? Andy, where can I get info on workshops you might be doing? Thank you so much. Also, the clay question is open to anyone that can. So excited to start... What a great feeling! Thank everyone and blessings to you and your loved ones.
That's awesome, thanks! You can purchase any old commercial clay and add temper to it, I will be doing a video about this in March. My workshops, both in-person and online can be found at this link ancientpottery.how I have a mug workshop next month that still has a few openings.
I am loving the videos. I fired my first ever pottery today in a pit. I must ask, why does the earthenware need to be not touching the fuel? uneven heating?
It just keeps the pottery looking clean and bright. Everywhere the fuel touches the pottery it will leave a dark blemish called a "fire cloud" so if you don't mind if your pottery comes out dark and grey you can go ahead and pile the fuel on top of the pot.
To learn more about no kiln firing techniques check out my "outdoor pottery firing" playlist ua-cam.com/play/PLxjk09ZJzrlsyEo-ickFHnMDwQBT1HP5b.html Thanks for watching!
This very interesting. Many thanks. My question is how long do you need keep the fires going for each method to complete the firings? Thanks again for a great channel.
That was great! You are so right. Thank you so much! I really like the idea of the pit firing. Why is it important to prevent the fuel from touching the pottery? Would it cause breakage? Or is it more a matter of discoloration?
Hi there, wonderful video. I am a beginner and live in a flat, is there any chance i can fire my items inside a home using gas stove. Will love it if you can share your knowledge.
Thanks. Unfortunately a gas stove will not even get close to hot enough to fire pottery. You would be better off if you could find a vacant lot or the corner of a parking lot to fire in.
Thanks for all this valuable information! Do you think it would get hot enough to fire smaller pottery like cups or bowls in my big steel Texas BBQ pit? Have you ever fired in one of those or something similar? Any advice?
Hello Dear Andy...thanks for sharing...question: i have one of those Eastern European ceramic tile stoves...do you think i would have luck in firing some of my small ceramics object in that? All tips apperciated, thanks
Volume. When mixing dry I scoop 4 of clay and 1 of temper, when mixing dry I just eyeball it. It's actually not rocket science although people would like to make it so. My friend John does it by feel, adding temper until the clay has the right feel.
Can i use clay from a kid's pottery wheel experience set for this?? I won a Japanese pottery wheel experience set from Toreba (a claw game) for nostalgia purposes because i desperately wanted a pottery wheel set when i was 7! Also can i paint it before firing? Also does it become food safe afterwards?
Wondering if my brick fire pit would work for my pottery? It’s a below ground fire pit with a clay ‘tube’ from a foot away that leads down to the bottom of the pit. I built it like this to provide the bottom of the fire with more oxygen in a sort of ‘Dakota fire hole’ fashon.
@@AncientPottery I fired them last night. I went pretty good and the clay has an orange color now and minimal cracks. The only issue is that I wasn't able to make the wood tent. I had to make a cabin with the wood and it worked much better than the tent. Could you possibly I'm your videos offer more ways to stack the wood for things that aren't pots? Thank you so much! I have fired clay now
hey Andy! Just found your channel, any recommendations on where to buy clay for a decent price for a beginner? Love all your info and you've really helped me get started. :)
No, I never buy commercial clay so I don't really have any recommendations. Last year I did a video with the clay they sell at Hobby Lobby, it worked okay
Not really although I do mention safety precautions in some videos I have never made a video about safety. The gloves are really just more comfort than safety, I mean you can work around the heat and if you burn your hand it's not going to kill you or cause any lasting damage it will just make you uncomfortable for a couple of days while it heals. These are just standard welding gloves, you can buy these at a hardware store or online. Here is a link to Amazon amzn.to/3OusrDa
Thank you once again! A ton of info in 5 minutes, in an understandable way... 👍 Now, having said all that, maybe you could explore the woodstove thing a bit for us? It's a common amenity available to many, and once understood, can produce all ranges of woodfire atmospheres for earthenware heartwork. It also removes a lot of the climate variability you get at outside firings. I know it's certainly not traditional, but I'm sure that the Kingsford approach has its shortcomings in that department, as well. Thanks again, Andy, great vid. 👍 PS. Don't tell Sores I said anything about bags of Kingsford... 😂
Thanks. Hey, I'm not stuck on tradition and I explore many non-traditional methods in my videos. The trouble is I don't have a wood stove and I don't know anyone who fires in a wood stove to give me tips. I do have some friends who fire in a chimenea and I hope to make a video about that in the coming months.
@@AncientPottery You're doing a wonderful thing here, and I would love to host you at my ranch in Scholle, NM....where woodstove abound! I don't have any friends that fire in woodstove either, and I started doing it out of frustration with the weather, but what I've learned is, that depending on your damper control, you can produce both oxidized and reduction firings at will. It takes a few firings to understand the stove, but once I got it, the work is beautiful...with minimal breakage. Anyway, you have an open invitation to come over and see the woodstove thing in action...and bring some bushel baskets with you, there's a bunch of neat clay and minerals here, as well!👍
I'm down for that. I am very busy through March though, so it would need to be in early April. Send me an email using the contact form on my website so we can make plans.
That's hard to answer because there are so many variables. How much pottery you are fifing, what kind of wood, the amount of moisture in the wood, the relative humidity etc. Maybe watch of my other pottery firing videos to get a feel for it.
@@AncientPottery usually fire only 1-3 pieces at a time and the general woods I use are just old scrubby oak limbs or dead cottonwood branches or just random dead wood I find around. Good point about the moisture in the wood because that’s usually a bit of the problem in the winter months here but not so much the summer months. I’ll definitely go check out those other firing videos 😁!
No, I'm not into sanding pots, it is laborious work, it takes away from the natural clay texture and the ancient potters did not sand their pots. But lots of people do it that way.
So my grandparents own this cabin on a river built by my grandfather’s parents, and they have a pretty big clay bank near the cabin, and this is where I get most of my clay, now because it’s natural clay, should I still add temper to it?
@@AncientPottery so I did fire it , and there were no cracks when it dried and after firing, but I did turn a light reddish orange color after being fired, what could this mean?
Not if you don't mind the pottery coming out with dark carbon marked areas all over. Keeping the fuel away from the pottery allows the pottery to fire clean and bright.
Is 800°C enough to make dishes and other cooking pots ? I've read everywhere that, for this pottery, we need high temperature clay (1200°C). Maybe, with tour method, is 800°C is enough because temperature increases faster and you use 25-30% grog ?
800 C is enough to make clay into ceramics but it will be porous earthenware pottery. If you are going to use it for cooking or eating you may want to seal it. This video may help you understand ua-cam.com/video/SXxH9eQP8i8/v-deo.html
I read that the unique soil in the Amazon is littered with buried pieces of broken pottery and fire. The pottery shards absorbs water, where the fire was helped nutrients in the soil. It’s pretty cool because I couldn’t imagine why that soil is considered man made an the best soil on earth. Why would they have pottery shards on purpose? Well this may explain the answer!
I am still trying to figure out how best to thank my channel members in my videos. So in this video I was just listing the members who are joined at the "polychrome" level. My membership has 2 levels, "plain ware" and "polychrome", polychrome members pay a little more and get a few extra perks like a monthly behind the scenes video. I appreciate all of my members, so thanks a ton Clery Designs!
This is awesome! I have been thinking about adding seeds to some pieces and would like to burn them off in the bisque process. Is the open pit a good way to get these pieces to bisque? anyone done this before?
it would definitely burn the seed sup but when you say "bisque" does that imply that you will be glazing the piece later? Because a piece fired outdoors like this may still contain a lot of carbon in the walls that could cause problems if later glazed.
@@AncientPottery Thanks for your reply! I would definitely like the option to glaze such pieces, if I can develop a process which enables me to do it. My husband does not want me using our shiny new electric kiln to burn off organic materials (understandable lol). So I was thinking perhaps I could use one of these 3 processes to burn off organic materials, and then putting the piece into a bisque service in my electric kiln and later on glazing it. Do you think this would work? So, do the initial firing to burn off the organic materials (outside in the fire pit) and then later on put that piece in a bisque fire (or just glaze it directly and fire it). I use stoneware and porcelain high fire... thanks for all you do :D
another great video but I was wondering is there any way of firing pottery in winter? like building a pit fire or something and pushing and digging the snow away also you remind me a little bit like hopidiah plantar in the cartoon amphibia 👍
Thanks. I don't know anything about Hopidiah, I'll need to watch some cartoons to see how I feel about that comparison. Because I live in southern Arizona, I have zero experience with firing in the snow but I do know people who do it successfully. Check out this video for some ideas ua-cam.com/video/WY2M4K2rm7s/v-deo.html
I tried the 3rd method to fire my mini clay art piece with my charcoal stove. from my personal experience non glazed piece can be fired even with the fuel touching each other. but just with higher chance of it being cracked.
I fire with fuel touching the pottery often. The problem is not breakage if you are tempered well, it is dark carbon spots left on the pottery, called "fire clouds". If you want clean, bright colors, then separate the pottery from the fuel, if you don't mind having some fire clouds then go ahead and let them touch.
@@AncientPottery if you don't have any galvanised containers, could you use a bisque fired pot with a lid, to put your greenware pieces in? Or some other type of container maybe? What sort of metals would be suitable? Thank you :o)
I have actual coal in my old coal cellar from back in the day when they used it to heat my old house. I also have an old pot belly stove coal/wood burner. I wonder if either can be used for this type of firing.
Maybe, I think the typical smoker is not intended to get as hot as a pottery firing needs to be. A firing gets up to around 800 C, that temperature would destroy a piece of meat.
You could fire them a second time in an electric kiln to glaze them. But this type of firing cannot get hot enough to melt glaze, this type of firing is typically used with single fire pottery.
@@AncientPottery thank you for a reply Andy, I just thought if I could do it that way I wouldn't need a kiln, and I'd be able to make a cup or something without it leaking, I'm not a potter, but I like trying new things, I'm still going to have fun making some pots though. Cheers!
I am working flat out just to produce the videos I am making, I don't even have time to add English captions and I'm not making enough money to hire someone to do it. So You will have to use the auto generated captions which are actually pretty good.
Hoping I can still get a response from this older video. I fired some hand dug and processed clay using your instructions from beginning to end (or I think I did) and the clay I found most available here in my area is red clay from the red river. When I fired it in my pit I covered it with a can and built a bonfire and kept it going for a while. And my pottery feels like ceramic but it is completely black? Is this normal or did I mistake somewhere?
Assuming that your temperature was high enough, you need to get good air circulation too. That is carbon that didn't have a chance to burn away. Prop the pot off the ground and prop the can off the ground too, also maybe put a few holes in the top of the can to allow air circulation under it.
@@AncientPottery Awesome! Thank you, I will try these tips in my next firing attempt. Any tips on how to get a hotter fire if that's the problem? And maybe how long I need to keep it going?
I measure by volume, but really it's not rocket science. Some people like John Olsen don't even measure they just add temper until the clay feel right.
Please anybody knew can we do the same with porcelain? And how to get higher temperatre? And also I would like to know if ceramic burn this way , can be glazed And burn in electric or gas stove? Thanks!
Look at what is recommended by the glaze manufacturer. But the highest tip I have achieved in a charcoal firing is a little over 900 C, I suspect that is not hot enough to melt glaze. I would recommend adding some temper to clay that will be fired this way, but you may be able to get clay through a firing like this if you are careful. Be sure to watch my video next week for clay recommendations.
3:52 Is it possible to do this process in the colder, winter months of the Midwest, or is it best to wait until warmer days of spring to fire items outside? Just wondering about drastic temperature swings when moving to and from the cold air.
You definitely need to be more careful in cold weather but it can be done. Here is a video my friend Wes who lives in Minnesota made about firing in cold weather ua-cam.com/video/i_WHtHX5_jU/v-deo.html
You can put a sagar or an old bucket or something over the pot to keep the fuel off of the pottery if you want. Check out this video on that subject ua-cam.com/video/80_kFeUMeuI/v-deo.html
Hmmm ... wonder about results if primitive earthenware was placed inside a cast iron Dutch oven pot lined with foil and burying under embers/coal in fireplace or iron/metal fireplace-stove.
@@AncientPottery Once under embers thinking could build and keep fire going around and above. BUT might have to line Dutch oven pot with ... oh can't think of name ... the fireproof batting (although not asbestos) ... just so not in direct contact. I DID finally find a video that showed technique using wood stove/fireplace and standard fireplace. Hardwood fire and coals, place them on the coals, and top with hardwood shavings, then add thin hardwood planks to form Teepee. Will probably give a try to see how that goes first. Not going for water proof .. just want to replace a couple shallow bowl pieces that got broken ... for collecting and displaying things (keys, pine cones, xmas ornaments, etc.)
These are useful techniques, and produce lovely results, but…. Aren’t these pieces pretty fragile and porous due to low firing? I usually fire to cone 5 or 6, occasionally cone 10. A pit fire won’t come close to that.
You are right that my temps are far below that but don't knock it until you try it. The pots are probably more fragile than yours but I don't break a lot of pottery they are sufficiently durable. Yes they are a little porous but there are ways to seal them or there are other things that don't require a 100% seal, I mean the water doesn't run through them like a sieve.
I have never used sawdust but I know people do. Give it a try and see how it goes, there are a million ways to fire pottery, the only wrong answer is one that doesn't work.
The trench fire looked like it would take a long time to get to coals (when it is smothered)...i.e. longer than the 15 or so mins for Salado...am I incorrect?
This has to be exactly how Terra Pretta was made. For those of you that are unfamiliar with Terra Pretta it is this amazing soil found in the Amazon that a lot of gardeners are trying to recreate.
I do too, but I'm not letting that stop me. I was able to find pottery studios that offer kiln services for a fee based on the space your pottery occupies in in/cm. You may be able to find places in your area that offers that.
It can but keep in mind that beach sand usually has a lot of pieces of seashells. Shells are made of calcium which can cause pots to break if fired over about 820 C. So if you use beach sand you will probably want to keep your temperature low.
True, I live in Arizona and I used to be a wildland fire fighter so I am aware. This video of course did not go into the safety considerations in building fires, assuming that people are smart enough to figure that out for themselves (maybe a poor assumption on my part).
When my house was under construction as a kid there was this ditch where a patio was going to be placed. It had bright yellow and orange clay and I would just sit in that ditch for hours making things out of the clay and then let them bake in the sun on some bricks for a day. It worked fairly well. I still have 3 things that I made, theyre about 15 years old now.
That's pretty cool. You should see if you can fire that clay.
Is t that so fun!
Dear Mr Ward, I think you're a far better pottery teacher than most I've seen. I love your direct,practical and no-nonsense style. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Wow, thank you!
This is exactly the content that made me watch this channel. If you do things the way our ancestors did it, then you really don't need to buy anything. That's the reason this was so appealing to me and probably to many more people. And of course it gives us this connection to our past, which is kind of special as well.
Yes, thank you, I agree wholeheartedly.
Well, you need to buy a house, but other than that yeah you're good to go
More great ideas! Thanks so much, Andy. By the way, a common "minimal-kiln" firing we do in Japan is with "shichi-rin" (七輪) barbecue pots, using charcoal, and a hair dryer (to increase the temp.). Good for small pieces, like tea cups and saké bottles, etc. Cheers, and thanks again!
Excellent tips, thanks! I'm off to look up videos about "shichi-rin" firings now.
I am firing my pottery in my tiled stove. In the winter we heat our living room with it. I heat it in our kitchen oven then place it in the fire and stack some more wood on top. Works great.
That's great, getting double use from that heat.
Hi u place it directly on your stove or is there like a wire mesh place on the stove then u put your pottery?
@@osirusj275 I preheat my pottery to around 150° C in my kitchen oven. Meanwhile I burn some wood to create a bed of glowing coal. Then I place the pottery directly on to the glowing red coals and stack some wood above it. The next morning when the fire has burned out, I pic up the pottery and clean it. I never had any breaking, I did it like 10 times, I am still at the beginning. If you try it, tell us how it went.
@@BaconIover69 thanks 👍 will do...
I tried it in my wood burner, but it didn't bisque.
i started ceramics in school this year and i genuinely like it so my mom and i are going to try this this summer
Cool, let me know how it works out.
How did it go?
This is so helpful! I'm just starting out at pottery and these are some great alternative methods to a kiln. Thank you so much!
Glad it was helpful!
No kilns over hear I prefer the traditional methods of ancient pottery n so far you are the best teacher of these methods I have found thank you for doing these videos and helping us in the comments who try to learn.
You are welcome, thanks for watching! I am glad to help out.
Andy, you crack me up! I haven't even finished the video and I'm already vastly enjoying it. Thanks!
Andy, you did Great! Informative direct and encouraging. Excellent!
Thanks, that's my intention.
This video is so wonderful and informative. Thanks for offering this!!
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
I love you videos an the amount of knowledge I pull from every video I watch of yours.
Thanks
I found this man channel today by accident and I'm hooked. Thank you good sir :')
You're welcome
Thanks Andy, this gave me a good idea of which direction I can go given my resources.
Andy I love your videos! You are a great teacher, very necesary at the modern times.
Thank you!
I love ur channel and ur vedio ur a amazing teacher. God bless you ❤
Love your videos I’m so grateful making my own off grid kiln, I love pottery but can’t use massive power as I am without mains
Wonderful!
@@AncientPottery thankyou so much for all of your videos 🥰
I’ve been obsessed with making things since I was little and hoarding natural clay, and trying to do things with it,, mostly failing…your advice is going to help so much !!!! Also what do I do when there’s creek pebbles in it…will they explode it when firing ? Do I squish it through a sieve….
Andy, I've recently. Discovered your channel and I'm feeling lucky, grateful, and motivated. I'm ready to start, however what clay should I buy and where from? I live in Grand Canyon so any local/regional clay suppliers? Andy, where can I get info on workshops you might be doing? Thank you so much. Also, the clay question is open to anyone that can. So excited to start... What a great feeling! Thank everyone and blessings to you and your loved ones.
That's awesome, thanks!
You can purchase any old commercial clay and add temper to it, I will be doing a video about this in March.
My workshops, both in-person and online can be found at this link ancientpottery.how I have a mug workshop next month that still has a few openings.
Amazing, I'll try it. Thank you for this amazing video
You're welcome
Thank you for you very informational video. I’m going to give #3 a try.
You're welcome
I am loving the videos. I fired my first ever pottery today in a pit. I must ask, why does the earthenware need to be not touching the fuel? uneven heating?
It just keeps the pottery looking clean and bright. Everywhere the fuel touches the pottery it will leave a dark blemish called a "fire cloud" so if you don't mind if your pottery comes out dark and grey you can go ahead and pile the fuel on top of the pot.
This was so helpful!!!! Thank you ❤
You're welcome
To learn more about no kiln firing techniques check out my "outdoor pottery firing" playlist ua-cam.com/play/PLxjk09ZJzrlsyEo-ickFHnMDwQBT1HP5b.html
Thanks for watching!
This very interesting. Many thanks. My question is how long do you need keep the fires going for each method to complete the firings? Thanks again for a great channel.
That was great! You are so right. Thank you so much! I really like the idea of the pit firing.
Why is it important to prevent the fuel from touching the pottery? Would it cause breakage? Or is it more a matter of discoloration?
Discoloration. Anywhere the fuel contacts the clay will cause a dark patch. Keeping the fuel separate will keep the colors bright on the pot.
@@AncientPottery thanks so much. I can't wait to try it. Who knows, maybe I'll end up retiring my big old gas monster!
Hi there, wonderful video. I am a beginner and live in a flat, is there any chance i can fire my items inside a home using gas stove. Will love it if you can share your knowledge.
Thanks. Unfortunately a gas stove will not even get close to hot enough to fire pottery. You would be better off if you could find a vacant lot or the corner of a parking lot to fire in.
I love this channel so much.
Thanks!
Amazing video, as all yours. Thanks a lot for sharing! 💚
You are welcome, thanks for watching
Thanks for all this valuable information! Do you think it would get hot enough to fire smaller pottery like cups or bowls in my big steel Texas BBQ pit? Have you ever fired in one of those or something similar? Any advice?
I haven't tried it but I'm sure it could be done
Hello Dear Andy...thanks for sharing...question: i have one of those Eastern European ceramic tile stoves...do you think i would have luck in firing some of my small ceramics object in that?
All tips apperciated, thanks
No idea, I have never even seen an Eastern European tile stove. I guess try it out and see how it does.
When you determine the amount of tempering agent to add, do you measure that 20 to 30 percent by the weight of the clay or the volume?
Volume. When mixing dry I scoop 4 of clay and 1 of temper, when mixing dry I just eyeball it. It's actually not rocket science although people would like to make it so. My friend John does it by feel, adding temper until the clay has the right feel.
Can i use clay from a kid's pottery wheel experience set for this?? I won a Japanese pottery wheel experience set from Toreba (a claw game) for nostalgia purposes because i desperately wanted a pottery wheel set when i was 7! Also can i paint it before firing? Also does it become food safe afterwards?
Wondering if my brick fire pit would work for my pottery? It’s a below ground fire pit with a clay ‘tube’ from a foot away that leads down to the bottom of the pit. I built it like this to provide the bottom of the fire with more oxygen in a sort of ‘Dakota fire hole’ fashon.
I was going to say that oxygen flow might be limited but it sounds like you have taken care of that. That may work perfectly.
I found clay at my campgrounds lake a couple days ago. Will the above ground firing work even if I'm not making pots with it?
It should but what are you making with it?
@@AncientPottery so far a bird and snake
@@AncientPottery I fired them last night. I went pretty good and the clay has an orange color now and minimal cracks. The only issue is that I wasn't able to make the wood tent. I had to make a cabin with the wood and it worked much better than the tent. Could you possibly I'm your videos offer more ways to stack the wood for things that aren't pots?
Thank you so much! I have fired clay now
hey Andy! Just found your channel, any recommendations on where to buy clay for a decent price for a beginner? Love all your info and you've really helped me get started. :)
No, I never buy commercial clay so I don't really have any recommendations. Last year I did a video with the clay they sell at Hobby Lobby, it worked okay
@@AncientPottery then can I ask how you aquire your clay??
@@zenchilladas I dig it from the earth. ua-cam.com/video/ca20JkKFAcE/v-deo.html
@@AncientPottery thank you 😊😊
Hi Andy what kind of sand did u use to knead the clay do I need to use sand to make a coil vase or soup bowls? Thanks
If you are firing in a primitive way then the sand is highly recommended. I just collect sand from a nearby creek.
I loved this Andy, thank you 😊
Glad you enjoyed it
Do you have a video where you talk about safety, like what kind of gloves you're wearing, that kind of thing?
Not really although I do mention safety precautions in some videos I have never made a video about safety. The gloves are really just more comfort than safety, I mean you can work around the heat and if you burn your hand it's not going to kill you or cause any lasting damage it will just make you uncomfortable for a couple of days while it heals. These are just standard welding gloves, you can buy these at a hardware store or online. Here is a link to Amazon amzn.to/3OusrDa
great video! thank you
You're welcome
Thank you once again! A ton of info in 5 minutes, in an understandable way... 👍
Now, having said all that, maybe you could explore the woodstove thing a bit for us? It's a common amenity available to many, and once understood, can produce all ranges of woodfire atmospheres for earthenware heartwork. It also removes a lot of the climate variability you get at outside firings. I know it's certainly not traditional, but I'm sure that the Kingsford approach has its shortcomings in that department, as well.
Thanks again, Andy, great vid. 👍
PS. Don't tell Sores I said anything about bags of Kingsford... 😂
Thanks. Hey, I'm not stuck on tradition and I explore many non-traditional methods in my videos. The trouble is I don't have a wood stove and I don't know anyone who fires in a wood stove to give me tips. I do have some friends who fire in a chimenea and I hope to make a video about that in the coming months.
@@AncientPottery You're doing a wonderful thing here, and I would love to host you at my ranch in Scholle, NM....where woodstove abound! I don't have any friends that fire in woodstove either, and I started doing it out of frustration with the weather, but what I've learned is, that depending on your damper control, you can produce both oxidized and reduction firings at will. It takes a few firings to understand the stove, but once I got it, the work is beautiful...with minimal breakage.
Anyway, you have an open invitation to come over and see the woodstove thing in action...and bring some bushel baskets with you, there's a bunch of neat clay and minerals here, as well!👍
I'm down for that. I am very busy through March though, so it would need to be in early April. Send me an email using the contact form on my website so we can make plans.
@@AncientPottery Sounds great, Andy. I'll shoot you an email tomorrow! 👍
@@AncientPottery A chimenea? I have a chiminea and now I'm super excited, looking forward to your video!!!
Are you lighting that charcoal fire from the top or the bottom?
I’ve actually done it both ways. I’m not sure it makes any difference.
How much wood should you generally use for an above ground firing?
That's hard to answer because there are so many variables. How much pottery you are fifing, what kind of wood, the amount of moisture in the wood, the relative humidity etc. Maybe watch of my other pottery firing videos to get a feel for it.
@@AncientPottery usually fire only 1-3 pieces at a time and the general woods I use are just old scrubby oak limbs or dead cottonwood branches or just random dead wood I find around. Good point about the moisture in the wood because that’s usually a bit of the problem in the winter months here but not so much the summer months. I’ll definitely go check out those other firing videos 😁!
Good video, I’m gonna have to make a few more soon 😀
Thanks, you totally should. Me and others are waiting.
Have you ever tried completely drying ur pots then sanding smooth finish then polish/paint it before u fire?
No, I'm not into sanding pots, it is laborious work, it takes away from the natural clay texture and the ancient potters did not sand their pots. But lots of people do it that way.
thank you
very cool! thanks for sharing :)
Thanks for watching!
So my grandparents own this cabin on a river built by my grandfather’s parents, and they have a pretty big clay bank near the cabin, and this is where I get most of my clay, now because it’s natural clay, should I still add temper to it?
All clay is different. You can try using it without temper, but if you find that it cracks when it dries or it breaks in the firing, then add temper.
@@AncientPottery so I did fire it , and there were no cracks when it dried and after firing, but I did turn a light reddish orange color after being fired, what could this mean?
do aluminium oxyde work as temper? cuz if you metal cast Al u gonna have it for free
Hey Andy. For the charcoal firing method ,is it really necessary to put a bucket covering the pottery or is it optional.
Not if you don't mind the pottery coming out with dark carbon marked areas all over. Keeping the fuel away from the pottery allows the pottery to fire clean and bright.
Is 800°C enough to make dishes and other cooking pots ? I've read everywhere that, for this pottery, we need high temperature clay (1200°C). Maybe, with tour method, is 800°C is enough because temperature increases faster and you use 25-30% grog ?
800 C is enough to make clay into ceramics but it will be porous earthenware pottery. If you are going to use it for cooking or eating you may want to seal it. This video may help you understand ua-cam.com/video/SXxH9eQP8i8/v-deo.html
@@AncientPottery Thanks !
I read that the unique soil in the Amazon is littered with buried pieces of broken pottery and fire. The pottery shards absorbs water, where the fire was helped nutrients in the soil. It’s pretty cool because I couldn’t imagine why that soil is considered man made an the best soil on earth. Why would they have pottery shards on purpose? Well this may explain the answer!
That's cool. It would be fun to go there and examine those sherds.
Totally brill as usual … but what is the polychrome channel?
I am still trying to figure out how best to thank my channel members in my videos. So in this video I was just listing the members who are joined at the "polychrome" level. My membership has 2 levels, "plain ware" and "polychrome", polychrome members pay a little more and get a few extra perks like a monthly behind the scenes video. I appreciate all of my members, so thanks a ton Clery Designs!
💡
This is awesome! I have been thinking about adding seeds to some pieces and would like to burn them off in the bisque process. Is the open pit a good way to get these pieces to bisque? anyone done this before?
it would definitely burn the seed sup but when you say "bisque" does that imply that you will be glazing the piece later? Because a piece fired outdoors like this may still contain a lot of carbon in the walls that could cause problems if later glazed.
@@AncientPottery Thanks for your reply! I would definitely like the option to glaze such pieces, if I can develop a process which enables me to do it. My husband does not want me using our shiny new electric kiln to burn off organic materials (understandable lol). So I was thinking perhaps I could use one of these 3 processes to burn off organic materials, and then putting the piece into a bisque service in my electric kiln and later on glazing it. Do you think this would work? So, do the initial firing to burn off the organic materials (outside in the fire pit) and then later on put that piece in a bisque fire (or just glaze it directly and fire it). I use stoneware and porcelain high fire... thanks for all you do :D
Awesome topic.
Thanks Anthony
Can you cook with these? Maybe not to make a casserole in the oven with lol but like hot tea or coffee or something?
Absolutely. ua-cam.com/video/Oboza8SfaZI/v-deo.html
another great video but I was wondering is there any way of firing pottery in winter? like building a pit fire or something and pushing and digging the snow away also you remind me a little bit like hopidiah plantar in the cartoon amphibia 👍
Thanks. I don't know anything about Hopidiah, I'll need to watch some cartoons to see how I feel about that comparison. Because I live in southern Arizona, I have zero experience with firing in the snow but I do know people who do it successfully. Check out this video for some ideas ua-cam.com/video/WY2M4K2rm7s/v-deo.html
@@AncientPottery thanks
I tried the 3rd method to fire my mini clay art piece with my charcoal stove.
from my personal experience non glazed piece can be fired even with the fuel touching each other. but just with higher chance of it being cracked.
I fire with fuel touching the pottery often. The problem is not breakage if you are tempered well, it is dark carbon spots left on the pottery, called "fire clouds". If you want clean, bright colors, then separate the pottery from the fuel, if you don't mind having some fire clouds then go ahead and let them touch.
@@AncientPottery if you don't have any galvanised containers, could you use a bisque fired pot with a lid, to put your greenware pieces in? Or some other type of container maybe? What sort of metals would be suitable? Thank you :o)
Any steel bucket or can would work fine, Tony Soares uses a clay flower pot in this video ua-cam.com/video/ahqMJTSf_2o/v-deo.html
Be creative!
For the fire pit one, can you can put it next to the fire and then it’s good? Bc I’m planning to get into pottery
I have actual coal in my old coal cellar from back in the day when they used it to heat my old house. I also have an old pot belly stove coal/wood burner. I wonder if either can be used for this type of firing.
Yes, I haven't tried it but I think that could work just fine.
@@AncientPottery thank you for confirming. I’ve heard coal burns hotter than wood, though it needs to be started with wood first.
@@tagladyify Check out this video about firing pottery with coal ua-cam.com/video/wFTsvDO5BlU/v-deo.html
@@AncientPottery wow! Beautiful pottery. Who knew they used coal way back then?
Great video!
Glad you enjoyed it
Wonder if with low temperature fireing could be done in an oven
No, ovens don't get anywhere close to hot enough
"Only then will you truly be free" lol
I just discovered this channel and it rules
Ha ha, thanks.
I wonder how well an Orion Smoker would work in this scenario? Guessing it would work but may need fuel added to extend duration of heat.
Maybe, I think the typical smoker is not intended to get as hot as a pottery firing needs to be. A firing gets up to around 800 C, that temperature would destroy a piece of meat.
I havent heard anyone call the description "dooblydoo" in ages :)
I'm bringing it back! What the world needs now is more dooblidoos.
@@AncientPottery I agree!
Can you use commercial coloured or clear glazes to seal the functionalware in any of these processes? Thank you for sharing.
You could fire them a second time in an electric kiln to glaze them. But this type of firing cannot get hot enough to melt glaze, this type of firing is typically used with single fire pottery.
@@AncientPottery thank you for a reply Andy, I just thought if I could do it that way I wouldn't need a kiln, and I'd be able to make a cup or something without it leaking, I'm not a potter, but I like trying new things, I'm still going to have fun making some pots though. Cheers!
@@howlingwind1937 there are other ways to seal pottery.
@@AncientPottery well, now that is interesting! Do you have a video on that?
@@howlingwind1937 ua-cam.com/video/SXxH9eQP8i8/v-deo.html
Can glazing be used with these methods?
Por favor......seria posible que sea traducido al español.....
Los videos son muy interesantes!!!!!
Gracias
I am working flat out just to produce the videos I am making, I don't even have time to add English captions and I'm not making enough money to hire someone to do it. So You will have to use the auto generated captions which are actually pretty good.
Loved it.
Thanks
Can you do an oval shaped cup
Hoping I can still get a response from this older video. I fired some hand dug and processed clay using your instructions from beginning to end (or I think I did) and the clay I found most available here in my area is red clay from the red river. When I fired it in my pit I covered it with a can and built a bonfire and kept it going for a while. And my pottery feels like ceramic but it is completely black? Is this normal or did I mistake somewhere?
Assuming that your temperature was high enough, you need to get good air circulation too. That is carbon that didn't have a chance to burn away. Prop the pot off the ground and prop the can off the ground too, also maybe put a few holes in the top of the can to allow air circulation under it.
@@AncientPottery Awesome! Thank you, I will try these tips in my next firing attempt. Any tips on how to get a hotter fire if that's the problem? And maybe how long I need to keep it going?
Hi Andy, when you say add 20% temper, is that by weight or by volume (size/amount)?
I measure by volume, but really it's not rocket science. Some people like John Olsen don't even measure they just add temper until the clay feel right.
So what’s the temp for the smothered pot fire?
I love your videos!
Please anybody knew can we do the same with porcelain? And how to get higher temperatre? And also I would like to know if ceramic burn this way , can be glazed And burn in electric or gas stove? Thanks!
Can i used commercial glaze for the charcoal method? Do I have to temper the clay for this method?
Look at what is recommended by the glaze manufacturer. But the highest tip I have achieved in a charcoal firing is a little over 900 C, I suspect that is not hot enough to melt glaze. I would recommend adding some temper to clay that will be fired this way, but you may be able to get clay through a firing like this if you are careful. Be sure to watch my video next week for clay recommendations.
@@AncientPottery thank you so much
Maybe call the fire shape conical as opposed to tipi style, but excellent video 👌👌
Why?
I love your videos.
Thank you so much
3:52 Is it possible to do this process in the colder, winter months of the Midwest, or is it best to wait until warmer days of spring to fire items outside? Just wondering about drastic temperature swings when moving to and from the cold air.
You definitely need to be more careful in cold weather but it can be done. Here is a video my friend Wes who lives in Minnesota made about firing in cold weather ua-cam.com/video/i_WHtHX5_jU/v-deo.html
@@AncientPottery Thanks for the tip!
Is this type of traditional firing useful after applying glaze? Does it in anyway ruin the glaze colours on the product?
I am pretty sure that you cannot get hot enough to melt glaze using these techniques. Move beyond glaze ua-cam.com/video/V5eiGaFdeuw/v-deo.html
Hyy.....can you please suggest any clay which do not need fire.....or something like that..... Because I live in apartment so.....
No I can’t. My pottery is all about doing things like the ancients and they loved fire.
For the first one do I put anything on top of the Pottery
You can put a sagar or an old bucket or something over the pot to keep the fuel off of the pottery if you want. Check out this video on that subject ua-cam.com/video/80_kFeUMeuI/v-deo.html
Which one would be best if you're wanting to glaze your piece
I imagine any could be used to bisque fire a piece but none of these methods will get hot enough to melt glaze.
How do you fire high fire clay
Hmmm ... wonder about results if primitive earthenware was placed inside a cast iron Dutch oven pot lined with foil and burying under embers/coal in fireplace or iron/metal fireplace-stove.
I doubt you would reach the desired temperature, but give it a try and find out.
@@AncientPottery Once under embers thinking could build and keep fire going around and above. BUT might have to line Dutch oven pot with ... oh can't think of name ... the fireproof batting (although not asbestos) ... just so not in direct contact. I DID finally find a video that showed technique using wood stove/fireplace and standard fireplace. Hardwood fire and coals, place them on the coals, and top with hardwood shavings, then add thin hardwood planks to form Teepee. Will probably give a try to see how that goes first. Not going for water proof .. just want to replace a couple shallow bowl pieces that got broken ... for collecting and displaying things (keys, pine cones, xmas ornaments, etc.)
These are useful techniques, and produce lovely results, but…. Aren’t these pieces pretty fragile and porous due to low firing? I usually fire to cone 5 or 6, occasionally cone 10. A pit fire won’t come close to that.
You are right that my temps are far below that but don't knock it until you try it. The pots are probably more fragile than yours but I don't break a lot of pottery they are sufficiently durable. Yes they are a little porous but there are ways to seal them or there are other things that don't require a 100% seal, I mean the water doesn't run through them like a sieve.
Are you talking about adding Grog or similar material 20 to 30 percent by volume or weight?
Volume.
Brilliant! What is your opinion on using sawdust? It's just that I have a free potential source of sawdust, and I'm considering trying this :o)
I have never used sawdust but I know people do. Give it a try and see how it goes, there are a million ways to fire pottery, the only wrong answer is one that doesn't work.
The trench fire looked like it would take a long time to get to coals (when it is smothered)...i.e. longer than the 15 or so mins for Salado...am I incorrect?
Yes, that is an all day project, much longer.
How much time it take??
This has to be exactly how Terra Pretta was made. For those of you that are unfamiliar with Terra Pretta it is this amazing soil found in the Amazon that a lot of gardeners are trying to recreate.
Is there danger from the zinc from the galvanized bucket burning?
Don''t stick your head in the smoke
I would love this but sadly I live in an apartment.😢
I do too, but I'm not letting that stop me. I was able to find pottery studios that offer kiln services for a fee based on the space your pottery occupies in in/cm. You may be able to find places in your area that offers that.
Grab a tent and head to a local campground. Most have fire pits you can experiment with
Is that 20-30% temper added to clay body by weight or volume?
volume
Will Beach sand also work as temper?
It can but keep in mind that beach sand usually has a lot of pieces of seashells. Shells are made of calcium which can cause pots to break if fired over about 820 C. So if you use beach sand you will probably want to keep your temperature low.
Can i paint my creation in white and fire them like this.. Won't they turn black cuz of smoke i wanna make that cute Pinterest plates
I'd love to try this, but i feel like it'd be very illegal where i am haha 😅
NB: Fires outside can cause wildfire! Some places it is forbidden during the spring, summer and autumn
True, I live in Arizona and I used to be a wildland fire fighter so I am aware. This video of course did not go into the safety considerations in building fires, assuming that people are smart enough to figure that out for themselves (maybe a poor assumption on my part).
Can you use semiprecious stone instead of grog temper 2:26
You can use anything for temper as long as it is non-plastic and doesn't react in the high temperature of the firing.
Good video
Thanks
Great!
Could I add sand to slip I'm pouring into molds?
No idea, I have no experience with slip casting.
@@AncientPottery No problem. Thanks for the honesty. Gonna try it and see what happens.