Whether you're a member at our community pottery studio, or you're an independent potter in the Eau Claire area, we'd be excited to help finish your work.
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We rent kiln space in our 2 electric kilns, and even offer glazing and firing consultations if you have questions about your home setup.
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Read more about our kiln service costs here
Email: halfmoonclay@gmail.com to get started​
Kiln Firing & Glaze Consultations
Need a little help? We can get you to a good spot:
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Glazing / firing troubleshooting issues
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Glaze application techniques and pointers
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Underglaze / decal / lustre application techniques
$25 per 1/2 Hour
Kiln Firing Services
We have 2 electric kilns that fire from cone 022 - Cone 6.
We only fire oxidation in our electric kilns. We fire everything at medium speed, bisque ^04 and glaze ^6 with a 5-15 minute hold.
If you need your work fired slow, want a long pre-heat, or need a customized firing schedule we can accommodate, but you must rent the entire kiln and pay an additional $20 slow firing fee.
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When estimating your firing cost, please note: pieces more than 8" tall count as two shelves, and pieces more than 16" tall count as three shelves.
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To schedule a 10 minute drop-off appointment for your firing, please email halfmoonclay@gmail.com
The rule police...what we won't do
We won't: Preheat / candle kilns pre-firing
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If your piece explodes and ruins other artists' work, you will incur an additional charge & we will all have a crummy, sad day.
Half Moon will refuse any solid or very thick work, in addition to enclosed forms with no air hole. Pieces must be completely dry before firing. Do not bring them here to dry. We are not responsible for any cracking or explosions that may occur.
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We won't: Fire anything but clay
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We cannot fire anything other than clay in our kilns. This means no: glass, cardboard/newspaper, wood, stone, metal, or anything else that isn't clay rated for the temperature you've chosen.
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If you're making jewelry and need hi-temp wire, we will evaluate on a case-by-case basis. Contact the team to get started.
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We won't: Single Fire to cone 5/6
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That's some fancy-wish firing. We're not into it.
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​We won't: Identify your clay / glaze
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"CSI Clay" is almost impossible to do before work is fired. Potters wishing to use our firing services must know their clay body, the temperature (cone) it matures to, and the consistency/fit of their glazes to their clay body.
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If your pieces / glaze runs and damages our kiln, you will incur the cost to repair &/or replace (21" shelf: $60, 26" shelf: $90)
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We won't: Rent Half-Shelves
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It's all or nothing, baby! If you don't have enough work for a full shelf, you're welcome to share space with a friend and split the cost. Drop-off boxes must be clearly labeled with both names name if sharing shelf space.
How it Works
Bring in your fully dry pieces in a sturdy box with along with a completed firing form.
We treat your pieces like they're our own and would hate to make a mistake. That means we will not fire anything without a firing slip from you.
Our firing form gets important information like:
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Your contact information
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What firing temperature
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Your clay body - if you can't prove what it is, we won't fire it.
Once your work is dropped off, we'll be able to give you an estimate of when you'll get it back. Typically turnaround time is about a week, but can be longer depending on our class schedule & how many projects are in the queue ahead of you.
What we expect from you
Know Your Numbers
If you're churning out your own work, it's time to get a little nerdy with your specs! We expect all potters using Half Moon Clay's kiln firing service to know the clay’s firing temperature (cone number), the type of glaze you are using/what temperature (cone number) it matures at, and make sure it is a good fit for the clay.
If your pieces / glaze runs and damages our kiln, you will incur the cost to repair &/or replace (21" shelf: $60, 26" shelf: $90)
Have the Cleanest Bottom in Town
All bottoms of pieces must be clean to avoid sticking to our shelves.
If your pieces / glaze runs and damages our kiln, you will incur the cost to repair &/or replace (21" shelf: $60, 26" shelf: $90)
Stilt Your Work
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If you are not practicing the 1/4" glaze rule you must put your work on a stilt or cookie. If you need us to stilt your work for you, the charge is $1 per piece.
Any cookies / stilts ruined by running glazes will be purchased by the customer.
How long til it's ready?
Turn-around time can vary based on our class schedule & how many projects are in the queue ahead of you. Typically, you'll receive your pieces back with a week.
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We hate long goodbyes…that's why it's important to pick up your work when it's ready. Any work that isn't collected within 30 days of being finished will be considered "abandoned" and will be discarded.
We will not refund firing fees for abandoned work we've had to discard.
Member Firing Costs
Test tiles are always free for members, and are fit into firings whenever there's room.
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KMT 1027 (7 cu FT)
Bisque Firing (cone 04)
$9 shelf (1/4 kiln)
$14 1/2 kiln
$30 3/4 kiln
$35 full kiln
Glaze Firing (cone 6)
$16 shelf
$30 1/2 kiln
$40 3/4 kiln
$50 full kiln
Luster Firing (whole kiln only)
$50
KMT 1227 ( 9.9 cu FT)
Bisque Firing (cone 04)
$15 shelf (1/4 kiln)
$30 1/2 kiln
$30 3/4 kiln
$40 full kiln
Glaze Firing (cone 6)
$22 shelf
$30 1/2 kiln
$44 3/4 kiln
$90 full kiln
Luster Firing (whole kiln only)
$50
Non- Member Firing Costs
KMT 1027 (7 cu FT)
Bisque Firing (cone 04)
$18 shelf (1/4 kiln)
$35 1/2 kiln
$53 3/4 kiln
$70 full kiln
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Glaze Firing (cone 6)
$28 shelf
$53 1/2 kiln
$79 3/4 kiln
$105 full kiln
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Luster Firing (whole kiln only)
$85
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KMT 1227 ( 9.9 cu FT)
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Bisque Firing (cone 04)
$25 shelf (1/4 kiln)
$50 1/2 kiln
$74 3/4 kiln
$100 full kiln
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Glaze Firing (cone 6)
$38 shelf
$75 1/2 kiln
$112 3/4 kiln
$150 full kiln
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Luster Firing (whole kiln only)
$85