Bought a $200 annealing blanket and it saved my last project

I was working on a big vase last week and my old kiln just couldn't keep up with the slow cool down. The piece cracked overnight, which really got to me. So I spent about $200 on a fiber blanket made for annealing, wrapped my next piece in it, and let it cool for two full days. It came out perfect, no stress marks at all. Has anyone else tried using one of these instead of relying only on the kiln? What's your slow cool method for bigger work?

3 comments

3 Comments

terryr462mo ago

Glad that blanket worked for you, but two days seems like a long time. Did you check the piece at all during that cool down, or just trust the blanket completely? I’m always nervous about leaving things wrapped up that long without peeking.

colemartinez2mo ago

What's the worst that could happen if you peek? Does it mess up the cooling that much?

lily39417d ago

Peek at it and you'll let all that heat right out, @colemartinez, that's the real problem. The blanket works because it keeps the temperature steady while the glass cools slowly, but if you lift even one corner you get a rush of cold air that can shock the piece and cause a crack or warp. I've seen people ruin perfectly good work that way, especially if they're impatient and check on it every hour. Better to just trust the blanket and wait the full time, even if it feels like forever.