Contact Austin Zimmer | Show Schedule

Austin recently finished building a salt/soda kiln (30 cubic feet) in Mystic, CT. The kiln is now fully operational.  Once the studio (house) expansion is complete there will be a large electric kiln in a winterized studio (300 sq. feet); attached to house.  The house is planned to go from 1,300 sq. ft to 3,200 sq ft.  Stay tuned to ZimmerCottage.com for details.

Kiln Construction Plan:  The kiln was built on a 70" x 70" cement slab.  One row of cement block was then created(layer #1).  A double row of Super Duty hard-brick was then layed down.  The interior of the kiln is 44" (wide), 36" (deep) and 40" high.  The stack is 12' tall, with a 10" by 8" interior chimney dimension.  Two primary (B3) Venturi burners, supplied by Ward Burner Systems, power the kiln from the rear (floor) of the kiln.  There are five 100lb propane tanks (roughly 115 gallons of fuel) on site.  The kiln is a down-draft style, with 5 peep holes.  The damper, which is built into the chimney stack, is 16" x 14" (Austin used a high alumni shelf and cut it to size). 

FYI -- I used a dry cutting saw (see picture below) to cut bricks and shelves (Rigid brand).

Kiln shelves were purchased from Bailey Pottery Supply (Advancer Shelves / pricey but excellent).  All the bricks, roughly 1500 Super Duty straights and 300 #1 arch bricks, were purchased from Sheffield Pottery Supply (approx. $3,500).

Austin plans to post pictures of the finished work in about a week or so (should be posted by 7/30/08).  FYI -- Austin is bisque firing and glaze firing in the same kiln, until the electric kiln is ready in the new studio.  The house and studio should be complete in about 2-3 years (permits in progress).

Finished work will soon be available for sale in two local galleries/shops (Mystic CT & Stonington CT).  Austin  also plans to do one or two high-end craft shows per year; one in Bethesda MD (October) and the other CT (summer).

I hope the information above is helpful to other potters and artists.  Keep in mind that there are plenty of artists that are willing to share and help one another, so just dive in and ask for help and help will come!  Feel free to e-mail Austin Zimmer directly at Austin@ZimmerWorks.com or call 301-365-8286 (Maryland number).


Here's the view from the studio; it's a rough life, but someone has to do it.

Helmar Flashing Slip (cone 10) -- Mix thin for application to bisque ware (no fit problem).  Normal thickness for application to greenware.  A wonderful flashing slip for salt and/or soda firing.