Firing Services

Drop Off Time & Things to Know Before You Come:
Non members of the studio in need of firing services can bring their work to Choplet. Please refer to the front desk hours listed on the Contact and Hours page. We strongly recommend you purchase your cone 5-6 clay or slip from the studio which will insure you can also use our glazes. We have 12 different cone 5-6 clay bodies available for purchase and maintain an inventory of 40 to 50 cone 5-6 glazes at all times. If you bring pieces made with non-studio clay, you must provide proof of purchase and exact cone reference for the clay and the glazes you intend to use.

Hourly Rental and Use of Our Glazes:
If you decide you would like to glaze your work at our facility, you must pre-register for a 2 hour Drop In time slot ($50). You can use your own glazes (subject to our review and approval) or use our studio glazes if you are doing both bisque and glaze firing cycle at Choplet in the collective firing. Our glazes are not included with single firing or kiln rental firing options.

Collective Firing for Non-Members:
Join our collective firing for 12 cents/cubic inch which covers bisque and glaze firings (6 cents/cubic inch for bisque firing + 6 cents/cubic inch for glaze firing). Rushed firing service (48-72 hours turn around per firing) is available for 24 cents/cubic inch for bisque and glaze firing.

For Bisque only or Glaze only firing the cost is 8 cents/cubic inch. Rushed bisque only or glaze only firing is 16 cents/cubic inch.

How to estimate your collective firing cost:
If you would like to estimate your firing cost, you should multiply LxWxH=Cubic inch.
(Please note there is a 2″ minimum for height and measurements should be made on 1/4″ increment.)
Then take the cubic inch amount and multiply by 0.12 cents (or other amounts listed depending on the service you are requesting) to get your dollar amount.

Turn Around Time for Collective Firing and Deadline to Pick Up:
Do not call us to find out if your work has been fired. We fire thousands of pieces a week and cannot go search for yours. Please come back to the studio 10 days after dropping your piece to be bisque fired, this is generally enough time to ensure your piece has been fired and unloaded from the kiln. You should expect another 10 days for your piece to go through the glaze firing. Please note that if you are firing low fire glaze items, they will be unloaded onto the bisque work shelves because they are being fired with greenware items. Rushed bisque and glaze firings (2-3 days turn around for each firing) can be requested. The studio does not have the capacity to store pieces for an extended period of time. Work not picked up after 30 days (1 month) from Bisque drop off or glazing date will no longer be available for pick up.

Disclaimer and Refund Policy:
Please make note that we are a cone 5-6 mid-range clay studio. Low fire glaze requests will be accommodated in our bisque fire kiln. This means you assume the potential risk of a piece exploding in the kiln and sticking to your work and releasing moisture that could interfere with certain low fire glazes. Each one of your low fire glazed pieces must be labeled with the cone fire information of the glaze you are using.

The studio will not fire glazed greenware. Your pieces must have been bisque fired before being glazed.

Payment must be made at drop off and there is no refund available for breakage, cracking, explosion or imperfect firing of any kind.

Please, come prepared with the list of items you are dropping off and their dimensions.

Kiln Rental and Loading fee:
We have several different kiln sizes to fit any size load or budget. Prices are for any Cone up to Cone 6 and for a standard firing cycle. Loading fee is $25-$60 depending on the size of the kiln and how many pieces are being loaded.

• Kiln #1: 22 W x 22 L x 26 H
  $150
• Kiln #2: 26 W x 26 L x 26 H
  $170
• Kiln #3: 26 W x 26 L x 31 H
  $200
• Kiln #4: 31 W x 41 L x 25.5 H (up to cone 2 only)
  $220