temperature measurement

[botree]

how do us poor folks read the temp in a kiln without a monitor of some sort? we have a small kiln (paragon e14at) without amenities. I would like to be able to keep up with temp while annealing beads.
have ordered ceramic fire bricks to allow me to take the door off and fill the space with the bricks leaving an opening to place the mandrel/bead inside and cover the opening with fire blanket. I have a list of the temps for the various stages. think a babysitter would take on the job of keeping things cooking?

any ideas from you people who seem to be able to solve any problem??!!

Thanks...Bo Whalen

[MikeAurelius]

The only way to do it is with a thermocouple and a pyrometer calibrated for the particular thermocouple (they are usually purchased in a matched pair).

Typically, a pyrometer & thermocouple will run around $50-$75...

but keep in mind that this is an analog device and that using an infinite controller to control the heat isn't a perfect match. You can anneal your glass, but it will take time and patience.

[alissa]

It sounds like you could use a temperature controller. It would read the temperature of your kiln with a thermocouple and display the temperature. Also, it would allow you to program your kiln to ramp down without manually changing the power.

You can buy a controller for $300+ or build your own for 1/3 of that (depending on the controller you choose).

There's a very nice tutorial with wiring diagrams here (http://toblerglasscreations.com/fuji/), and Mark Wilson posted a tutorial on Wetcanvas for a simpler controller (http://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/showthread.php?t=126999).