Enamel cracks or pings off

Possible causes: 1) Enamel applied too thickly, and/or unevenly, 2) Piece was not counter enameled, 3) Metal is dirty, 4) The firing temperature of the top coat is too low for the base coat.

 

To fix: Counter enamel and fill in the holes before refiring, Before enameling be sure to clean metal and remove all dirt and finger oils. Refire closer to the correct temperature to get the base coat to fire.

 

Enamel has holes or appears to have bubbles caught in the glass

Possible causes: 1) Enamel was too wet when fired, 2) The enamel was too thickly applied,

3) Piece was a casting and impurities have come to the surface, 4) the firing temperature was too high.

 

To fix: Fill in the holes and refire. If the piece is a casting try another one. Avoid pickling before enameling, since liquid gets trapped in the casting and then comes to the surface when the enamel is fired.

 

The transparent enamel looks cloudy

Possible causes: 1) Enamel was not thoroughly washed, 2) metal was not thoroughly washed,

3) temperature of the kiln was too low, 4) enamel layer is too thick.

To fix: If the problem was due to improper cleaning of the enamel or metal, try to disguise the problem using opaques to cover or use scrolling to divert the eye. If it is a low temperature problem, refire. Remember, apply thin layers when using transparents.

Enamel has black edges or burnt out holesPossible causes: 1) enamel too thin at the edges, 2) the enamel was overfired.

To fix: Clean the edges by pickling and reapply more enamel.

Enameling on Silver

The flux is yellow and not a clear transparent.

Silver requires that you use the flux for silver number 2020. Any other flux will turn a pale to golden yellow.

The warm colors change and are not as expected, for example the pink fires an amber color.

The silver reacts with the components used to create the warm colors; yellows, pinks, oranges, reds and the resulting color is often not the color expected. To avoid this problem fire a layer of 2020 flux for silver down first. This will act as a buffer between the metal and the silver and allow the warm color of the enamel to be realized.

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email Schlaifer's at ses@enameling.com