November 2025 PyranhaGama

This was a firing to remember! Along with a stack collapse as we finished loading, there was a halted firing and restart. So many challenges this time around. My mindset is to find solutions to problems. Luckily, by and large, the crew was understanding, trusting, patient and supportive as we fixed the problems. 

Regarding the shelf collapse...luckily, the work was all mine and my friend, Mike Perham's. Mike is on the local crew and I knew he's understand and deal with the setback and loss of work! Thanks Mike!
The issue arose from a fired wad atop one or more posts. Lesson learned, all posts will be tuned up on the wet saw for each firing into the future.

The firing halt/restart was another...possibly related story.  The top two sections of the second stack in from the firebox leaned forward. Luckily, this was visible via the side firebox stoke port. After finding that the lean was gradually progressing...there was no choice but to stop stoking! An experience entirely foreign to me and one not to be repeated anytime soon.

After conferring with Pascal Chmelar and Jack Troy, we moved forward with a crash cool. Years back, when firing my first anagama for the first time, I overlooked closing down the active dampers. The pieces were unscathed by the fast-cool...although the colors were oxidized; residing in the grey/yellow range. This recollection gave me confidence to crash cool the Pyranha. Knowing a sutema offered further thermal shock protection, that part of the solution was set. 

Finding that the kiln was 500F the next morning gave me reason to expect that an unstack/reload was a possibility for that afternoon. Joseph Lyon, Pamela Woodworth, Rachel Dove and Matt Johnson met with me that day, executed the preparations and we successfull restarted the firing that evening.

Moving on to the firing proper, the rest of the burn was relatively smooth cruising.  Knowing that the kiln was filled with vitrified work, we had reached cone 10 up front, the gradual heat progression was key. I topped the kiln with a kiln shelf. I noticed, in the previous firing, that a blocked chimmney serves to drive heat accumulation to the tail while shortening the "campfire" flame...thus protecting the firebox pots. Mistakes and information provided the solution. So cool.

As we progressed in temperature, we arrived at body reduction under full draw in the back and generous incoming air in the front.  A half hour of moderate reduction with active dampers closed did the trick. After BR, we tuned the kiln to "hover" with all passives open both top and bottom. Front primary, secondary and stoke port were positioned to open. We arrived at the front being entirely open in response to monitoring the exit flame. The initial long flame died out at about eye level. Once mature, the firebox flame died out just as it exited the sutema as witnessed through the floor level passive damper openings. 

In retrospect, the flame was riding high on the kiln ceiling for longer than necessary. 18 hours or so of soft flame, that rode the ceiling, was proving to fall short of feeding the side firebox. Once the lower passives were blocked, the flame fanned out from the ceiling and fed the side firebox. We had been using pine in the side in order to close the heat differential from front to back. Eventually, we switched over to hardwood stokes in the side. The kiln ate it up. The hover-stoke method showed itself to be forgiving in that stokes up front rebounded in temp with consistency throughout the firing. The front cones moved gradually while allowing the back to catch up. This is the first firing that we've avoided knocking 13 down. Cone 11 on the side was on the move and finished at 1/2 way down at 9o'clock. The tail was at ^10 and above for 18 hours. The front had top cones on the move...very slowly...for the better part of two days.

In lookin back, a lot of ash missed the pots while the flame was lazily drifting from the firebox...this was early on as mentioned. We can adjust next time for sure. I'd also like to bring the back up more in tandem, temp-wise, next time around. 

One of the interesting things about the hover is that the fired effects range from heavy reduction at the core to strong oxidation at the front and tail. Seeing the same clay bodies and glazes respond in their own ways in relation to the atmospheric conditions provides a wider color pallet and lots of information to process for next time. Although we've employed the hover in the smaller kilns over the last 9 months, since Feb. 2025, there was question as to whether the larger Pyranha could hover-rise....I'd only hovered the kiln for the fun of it in the past. It was only last Feb. that I found a use for the hover beyond playing around.

Paying close attention to the burn cycle was another benefit...especially as the stoke door remained open throughout each stoke cycle. The initial spiraling smoke which was followed by intense flame, then dank off-gassing to clearing was a cycle that repeated itself. I found myself monitoring the stoke timing through visually witnessing the atmospheric conditions rather than keeping an eye on the ember bet. I've grown accustomed to assessing the condition of the cordwood first and atmosphere second. It's always thrilling to take clear and present steps in a new direction...whether at the wheel, among the stoke crew or running the kiln....mental breakthroughs happen constantly! 







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