Orton Sentry Xpress 4.0 User manual

The Sentry Xpress 4.0 micro processor is manufactured by the
Orton Ceramic Foundation and displays the CE mark.
Hr./Min.
When Lit
HIGHER
°C
°F When Off
When Lit
START/
STOP LOWER
Program
Review
Run
MICRO PROCESSOR TM
SENTRYXpress4.0
Enter
Program
Skip Seg.
Add Hold
Change Temp.
T/C Offset
Alarm
Delay
Review
1
START/STOP Key
Starts and stops a firing.
Press after each
programming step. It works like the
Enter key on a computer.
Down Arrow Key
From press
.Theprogram
you have selected will ap-
pear one step at a time.
When appears,
press .Page4
From
press .
Enter delay time. Press
.Page4
During firing, press
. The program you
entered will appear one
step at a time. Page 4
Indicator
Lights
Temperature Display
Tempera-
ture display is in °F.
Temperature display is in °C.
Seepage13forinstructions
on selecting °F and °C.
Time Display :Sepa-
rates hours from minutes. Ex-
ample: Display shown above
is 1 hour and 30 minutes.
°C Display Dot
Cone Fire/Ramp-Hold Version
°F
°C
Sentry Xpress
Digital Temperature Controller
IM-222/8-07
Light is
on during pro-
gramming.
Light is
on during pro-
gram review.
Light
blinks during firing.
Up Arrow Key
From
press .Press
to select Cone-Fire or
Ramp-Hold. Pages 6, 8
During a
Ramp-Hold firing, press the
.will appear. Press
. The current segment
ramp or hold number will ap-
pear. To skip, press
again. Page 10
During a
Ramp-Hold firing, press
repeatedly until ap-
pears. Press .Eachtime
you press the ,the
hold time for the current seg-
ment will increase by 5 minutes.
Then press .
Page 10
During a Ramp-Hold firing,
press repeatedly until
appears. Press .
Use the arrow keys to change
the target temperature for the
current segment. Then press
.Page10
During a fir-
ing, press repeatedly
until appears. Press
. Use the arrow keys to
change the alarm temperature.
Press .Tosilencethe
alarm, press any key. Page 10
At the display,
press .will ap-
pear. Use arrow keys to adjust
the controller to fire hotter or
cooler. Press to return to
.Page13
*These features are new with the Sentry Xpress 4.0. If your controller does
not have these features, it is an earlier controller.

2 Cone-Fire / Ramp-Hold
Contents
General Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Time and Temperature Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Operation Begins from the IdLE Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Thermocouple Inspection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
A Rapid Way to Scroll Numbers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Program Review & Repeat Firing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Delay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Power Failures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
CPLT Message: Firing Completed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Thunder Storms and Power Surges. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Canceling a New Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Two Firing Modes: Cone-Fire and Ramp-Hold . . . . . . . . . 5
Cone-Fire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Pyrometric Witness Cones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
How to Interpret the Bending of a Pyrometric Cone . . . . . 5
How to Correct for Under- or Over-Fired Cones . . . . . . . . 5
Cone-Fire Firing Instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Cone-Fire Hold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
When the Kiln Shuts Off Too Soon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
How to Customize Cone-Fire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Ramp-Hold Mode. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Storing Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Rate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Ramp-Hold Programming Instructions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Hold. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Temperature Over-Shoot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Programming a Cooling Segment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Advanced Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Skip Segment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Add Hold Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Editing the Target Temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
The Alarm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Lost Wax Burnout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Error Messages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
bAdP / Bad Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
EtH / Electronics Too Hot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
FaIL / Thermocouple Failure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
FE Error Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
FtL / Fired Too Long . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
HtdE / High Temperature Deviation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
PF 1 / Power Failure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
PF 2 / Power Failure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
PF 3 / Power Failure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
tC / Thermocouple Failure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
tCL / Thermocouple Lag. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
tCr / Thermocouple Reversed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Thermocouple Offset . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Selecting °F or °C Display . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Display Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Cone-Fire Schedules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Orton Pyrometric Cone Chart. . . . . . . . 17
Trouble Shooter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Problem: Controller display is blank. No heat in kiln. . . . 18
Problem: Controller display turns on. No heat in kiln. . . . 18
Problem: Kiln switch box ½ amp fuses keep blowing. . . 19
Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Introduction
Thank you for purchasing the Sentry
Xpress micro processor.
When you first connect the power, the
controller will display these messages, one
after the other:
or a software code
If your controller shows instead of a
software code before appears, then
the controller includes only Skip Segment
from "Advanced Features" on page 10. If
your controller shows a software code
before appears, then the controller
has all the features in this manual.
Do not worry if you hear a clicking noise
during operation. Mechanical relays click
as they turn the heating elements on and
off.
Please read the manual. Damage caused
by failure to follow instructions is not cov-
ered by warranty.
Once you learn the basic features of the
SentryXpress,youwillbeabletocontrol
every stage of firing. This offers learning
opportunities and convenience difficult to
imagine with a manual-controlled kiln.

3
General
Guidelines
Time and Temperature
Display
Center Dot: Time
A center dot appears dur-
ing time display. It separates
hours from minutes (Exam-
ple: 1 hour, 30 minutes dis-
plays as 01.30.) During tem-
perature display, the dot
disappears.
Right-Hand Dot: °C
When temperature
is displayed in °C, a dot
appears in the lower
right. In °F display, it
disappears. You can
choose between Fahr-
enheit and Celsius dis-
play. See page 13.
Operation Begins from
the IdLE Display
must appear before you can fire the kiln.
IIf , , or other message appears instead of
when the kiln is first turned on, press the
key (the key with the circular arrow).
will appear.
IIf you press during a firing, will ap-
pear. To get back to , press again.
IIf the display shows an error message such as in-
stead of , see page 12.
I(firing completed) appears at the end of a firing.
To make appear, press .
Thermocouple Inspection
The small rod protruding into the firing chamber is the
temperature sensor, or thermocouple.
CAUTION: Bumping the thermocouple can push it
out of the firing chamber. This could cause an overfire!
Bumping the thermocouple could also cause inaccu-
rate readings.
IA 1/8” diameter thermocouple should extend into the
firing chamber ½” - 58”.
IA ¼” diameter thermocouple should extend into the fir-
ing chamber 1” or more.
IKeep shelves, posts and ware 1” - 1 ½” away from the
thermocouple.
°F
°C
The center display dot indicates
time instead of temperature.
Safety
The warranty on your Sentry Xpress
controller does not cover damage from
overfiring, regardless of the circum-
stances. It is the operator’s responsibility
to make sure the kiln turns off at the proper
time.
When the kiln is not in use, disconnect the
power.
Do not leave the kiln unattended, especially
near the expected shut-off time.
Wear firing safety glasses when looking into the
firing chamber of a hot kiln.
Do not touch hot sides of kiln. Keep unsuper-
vised children away.
Install your kiln at least 12 inches from any wall
or combustible surface.
Do not open lid or door until kiln has cooled and
all switches are off.
Fire only in a well-ventilated, covered and pro-
tected area away from combustible materials.
Keep cordset away from hot sides of kiln or fur-
nace.
DANGEROUS VOLTAGE! Do not touch heat-
ing elements with anything. Disconnect before
servicing.
When vacuuming the kiln, keep the nozzle away
from the controller. Vacuum cleaners create a
static charge that can damage the controller.

4 Cone-Fire / Ramp-Hold
Note: Press during delay to end the delay and
begin the firing. The maximum delay is 99 hours and
59 minutes.
Power Failures
After a power failure, the controller will continue firing
provided that:
IThe kiln temperature is above 212°F / 100°C when the
power comes back on.
IThe temperature dropped no more than 180°F / 100°C
while the power was off.
Power Failure Messages
The power failed during a cooling segment, and
the kiln cooled past the target temperaturewhile the power
was off.
The power failed during firing and kiln tempera-
ture was below 212°F / 100°C when the power came back
on.
The power failed during firing and temperature
dropped more than 72°F / 40°C by the time the power came
back on.
CPLT Message: Firing
Completed
When the firing has success-
fully completed, the Sentry
Xpress will shut off power to
the elements and sound an alarm for 30 seconds. Then
three messages will cycle one after the other:
(complete)
Firing time in hours and minutes
The current kiln temperature
Thunder Storms and
Power Surges
Unplug the kiln or disconnect the power when the kiln is
not in use, especially during thunder storms and in areas
with frequent power surges. If the kiln is part way through a
firing when a storm begins, it is probably okay to continue
the firing with close supervision. Do not leave the kiln unat-
tended.
Canceling a New Program
If you do not touch the keys for one minute during pro-
gramming, the controller will go back to the display.
The controller will also discard the program you were en-
tering and will retain the previous program in memory.
This is useful if you change your mind during program-
ming and decide to keep the previous program. Instead of
completing the new program, wait a minute and let the con-
troller return to .
ARapidWayto
Scroll Numbers
During programming, hold an arrow key down several
seconds, and numbers will begin to scroll rapidly. Ordi-
narily, you would press to raise a number and
to lower it. But sometimes it is faster to press
the opposite key. This is because the numbers scroll below
0000 to the highest number, and vice versa. Examples:
ITo program a 99.59 hour Hold when the display shows
00.00, press the once.
ITo program a FULL rate when the display shows 0000,
press the once.
ITo program a temperature of 200°F when the display
shows 1800°F, press the . That is faster than
pressing the .
Program Review &
Repeat Firing
Program Review lets you check that the information
programmed into the controlleris correct. Program Review
shows the values for the program in active memory. Use
Program Review from to repeat the last program you
fired.
IPress the
key. The rate, temperature, hold, etc. will
display one after the other. Firing will continue.
I
Press the key. After rate, tempera-
ture, hold, etc., will appear. Press .
will appear, and the kiln will begin firing the program
just reviewed.
Delay
Delay is a count-down timer. The kiln begins firing when
the timer runs out of time. Use delay to fit a firing into your
schedule.
CAUTION: For safety, do not leave the kiln alone dur-
ing a delay or a firing. We cannot guarantee your kiln
against overfiring even though the controller is auto-
matic.
After you have selected a program and the control-
ler is ready to begin firing, will appear.
Press the key once. will ap-
pear, alternating with .
Use the arrow keys to enter delay time. (The deci-
mal separates hours and minutes. Example: 1 hour
and 10 minutes = 01.10) Then press twice.
will appear, alternating with time left until
the firing begins.

5
We suggest using the witness cone to trouble shoot prob-
lems with the ware. If china paints appear faded and you
suspect it is due to over-firing, test fire with a witness cone.
Anotherexample: glazecrazing dueto under-fired bisque.
How to Interpret the Bending
of a Pyrometric Cone
The cones illustrated here are called self-supporting
cones. They are the easiest type of witness cone to use.
1. Correct Bend
When the self-supporting cone
bends so that the tip is approxi-
mately even with the top of the
base, the cone has been exposed to
the correct amount of heat work
for that cone number. This is called
a 6 o’clock bend.
2. Under-Fired Cone
The cone in this photo has not
bent far enough. It indicates that
the kiln did not fire long enough or
hot enough.
3. Over-Fired Cone
When a cone collapses or pud-
dles, it indicates that the kiln
over-fired the ware rated to that
cone number.
Note: Do not be overly concerned with achieving an ex-
act 6 o’clock bend. The difference between a 3 o’clock
and a 6 o’clock bend is only a few degrees of
temperature.
HowtoCorrectforUnder-or
Over-Fired Cones
Before changing a firing because of an under- or
over-fired cone, make sure the correct cone was in the kiln.
For instance, if you fired to cone 05, make sure the cone in
the kiln was not a cone 5 instead. (See the cone temperature
chart on page 17.)
Compensating for an Under-Fired Cone
IFire to the same cone number next time, but add hold
time. How much hold time to add is a matter of experi-
mentation. Ageneral guidelinewould be10-30 minutes.
An over-fired cone.
Two Firing Modes:
Cone-Fire and Ramp-Hold
To give you greater flexibility, your controller has two
firing modes: Cone-Fire and Ramp-Hold.
Cone-Fire Mode (see below)
Cone-Fire mode fires the ware to a pyrometric cone
number using the Orton cone tables on page 17. This mode
is for ceramics, pottery, stoneware, and glazes. Your sup-
plier can tell you which cone number to program.
Ramp-Hold Mode (see page 7)
Use Ramp-Hold mode to create custom firings. Select
your own firing speed, temperature, and temperature hold
time in up to 8 steps, or segments.
The chart shows the recommended firing mode for sev-
eral types of ware:
Type of Firing Suggested Firing Mode
China Painting Cone-Fire
Ceramic Decals Cone-Fire
Ceramic Glaze Cone-Fire
Ceramic Greenware Cone-Fire
Glass Bead Annealing Ramp-Hold
Glass Fusing Ramp-Hold
Glass Slumping Ramp-Hold
Lost Wax Ramp-Hold
Cone-Fire
Cone-Fire mode fires the ware to a pyro-
metric cone. Cone-Fire is not designed
for heat treating, glass fusing and enamel-
ing. For these firings, use Ramp-Hold
mode (page 7). You can also use
Ramp-Hold to fire ceramic pieces that re-
quire a custom firing schedule.
Pyrometric Witness Cones
It is important to understand pyrometric witness cones,
because clay and glazes are rated to cone numbers. Pyro-
metric cones are small pyramids of clay that bend when ex-
posed to the correct amount of heat work. Cones are rated
by number. See page 17 for a list of cone numbers and their
temperatures.
When a witness cone bends during firing, the clay and
glaze in that firing, rated to that cone number, have re-
ceived the correct amount of heat.
Place the pyrometric witness cone on the kiln shelf near
the ware you are firing. Use the cone to check for firing ac-
curacy. The cone is the most accurate measurement of heat
work in a ceramic firing. This is because the cone measures
the combined effects of time, kiln atmosphere, and temper-
ature.
A cone fired to maturity.
An under-fired cone.

6 Cone-Fire / Ramp-Hold
Cone-Fire Programming
Instructions
From , press .
Using the key (not the ),
skip past and se-
lect . Then press .
The last pyrometric cone you fired, and its tem-
perature, will appear. Use the arrow keys to
change the cone number. Then press .
(slow) (medium) or will
appear. Use the arrow keys to change speed.
Then press .
and the hold time from the last firing will
appear. (Example: 1 hour and 10 minutes =
01.10) Use the arrow keys to change the hold
time. Then press .
will appear. Press . will ap-
pear, the Run indicator light will begin blink-
ing, and the kiln will begin firing.
To stop a firing before completion, press
. will appear, alternating with kiln
temperature.
Note: Do not be concerned if your kiln makes a
clicking sound during firing. Kilns use relays to
power the elements. The relays click each time
their electrical contacts come together.
Note: The kiln’s actual firing rate may be less than
the rate you programmed, depending on the kiln
model, available voltage, and density of the load
you are firing.
When the kiln fires to completion, it will beep for 30
seconds. The display will show the following:
IFiring time
IPresent temperature
I= fired to completion
To return to , press .
IIf the kiln still does not fire hot enough, then fire to the
next hotter cone number, without hold time.
IAdjust the Thermocouple Offset. See page 13.
ICustomize the firing in Ramp-Hold.See the nextpage.
Compensating for an Over-Fired Cone
IFire to the next cooler cone number.
IIf firing to the next cooler cone number results in un-
der-firing, add hold time.
IAdjust the Thermocouple Offset. See page 13.
ICustomize the firing in Ramp-Hold.See the nextpage.
Cone-Fire Hold
Cone-Fire Hold heat-soaks the ware at the cone temper-
ature at the end of the firing. Without Hold, the kiln shuts
off after it reaches the cone temperature. Hold maintains
the cone temperature for the period you specify.
Hold is not needed in every firing. Experience will help
you decide when to use Hold. Some of the reasons you
might consider using it:
ITo even out the temperature throughout the kiln.
ITo allow heat to penetrate more completely into the
clay. (Rapid firing is like cooking: the turkey will be
done on the outside but not on the inside.)
ITo help glaze absorb china paint.
ITo heal glaze defects such as bubbles.
CAUTION: Use hold sparingly. A little hold time can
yield dramatic results. But too much can overfire your
ware and burn out colors.
One way to add hold time without over-firing is to fire to
one cone cooler than needed. Then add enough hold time
to bend the next hotter cone. Hold time needed to bend the
next cone will vary. As a rule of thumb, 45 - 60 minutes of
hold = one cone of heat work.
Example: to fire to cone 05, program Cone-Fire for 06
and add 45-60 minutes of hold time.
If your kiln has a peephole, watch the pyrometric witness
cones during firing. Press when the correct witness
cone bends. Note how much Hold time was needed. Pro-
gram that much Hold time the next time you fire the same
type of ware.
Note: During Hold, the display temperature will alter-
nate with time left in Hold. To figure hold time for the
next firing, subtract time left in Hold from the total hold
time entered.
When Hold is set to 99.99 hours, the Sentry Xpress will
remain at that temperature indefinitely, until is
pressed.

7
Ramp-Hold
Mode
Theory of Operation
The temperature you are firing to is called the target
temperature. After the controller reaches the target tem-
perature, it can also hold that temperature.
The controller fires at a controlledheating rate. The rate
is figured in degrees per hour. If you selected a rate of 100°
per hour, it would take 10 hours for the kiln to reach 1000°.
Rate is similar to “miles per hour.”
In summary, the controller does three basic tasks:
1) It fires at a controlled heating rate, or speed, mea-
sured in degrees of temperature change per hour.
2) It fires to a target temperature.
3) It can hold the target temperature.
The controller fires in segments, or stages. A segment is
a given heating rate to a target temperature. Shown in the
chart above is a segment with a target temperature of 1250°
and a rate of 625°, with a hold of one hour.
Heating rate is figured in degrees per hour. The recom-
mended heating rate for the material you are firing is usu-
ally available from your supplier. It also varies depending
on the thickness of the material.
To figure how long a firing segment will take, subtract
the current temperature from the target temperature and
divide the resultant temperature by the heating rate. In the
diagram above, the firing time is 1250° - 80° (room tempera-
ture) = 1170 ÷625 = 1.87 hours.
The controller can fire up to 8 segments per firing. One
segment is often all that is needed, though.
After the controller has finished firing the last segment,
it will turn off power to the elements.
Note: If you enter a rate of 0000 in segment 1, or if the
target temperature in segment 1 is lower than the cur-
rent temperature, will appear in the display.
When the Kiln Shuts Off
Too Soon
If the kiln shuts off before the pyrometric witness cone
bends, you can turn the hot kiln back on and keep firing.
Press twice.
From , program the next hotter cone in
Cone-Fire.
will appear. To begin firing, press .
will appear and the Run indicator light will
begin blinking. The hot kiln will begin firing, taking
up where it left off.
How to Customize Cone-Fire
You can customize a Cone-Fire program using
Ramp-Hold. (See the next section.) On pages 15 and 16, ta-
bles show the segments used to program each cone number
in Cone-Fire. For instance, a cone 016 firing at medium
speed ( )uses these two segments:
Rate Temp.
Segment °F/°C °F/°C Hold
1 396 / 220 1314 / 712 00.00
2 108 / 60 1422 / 772 00.00
Suppose your 016 witness cone, at a medium speed fir-
ing, only barely started to bend. To fire 25° hotter, raise the
target temperature of segment 2 by 25°:
1422 + 25 = 1447
This is the program you would enter in Ramp-Hold:
Rate Temp.
Segment °F/°C °F/°C Hold
1 396 / 220 1314 / 712 00.00
2 108 / 60 1447 / 786 00.00
You could also easily add a slow cooling segment:
Rate Temp.
Segment °F/°C °F/°C Hold
1 396 / 220 1314 / 712 00.00
2 108 / 60 1447 / 786 00.00
3 100 / 55 1000 / 537 00.00

8 Cone-Fire / Ramp-Hold
Storing Programs
The controller can retain four Ramp-Hold programs in
memory even when power is turned off. Programs are num-
bered 1 - 4.
The first message to appear after you plug in your Sentry
Xpress is a software code and then . Press .
Then use the key to scroll through these mes-
sages: .
To use Ramp-Hold mode for the first time, select
. You do that by pressing the key after
appears. Then follow the boxed instructions in the next
column to enter temperature, heating rate, etc.
is Program 1. When you fire the kiln again, you
can repeat Program 1 by selecting . When you are
ready to fire a different program, select , which is
Program 2. Then enter temperatures, heating rates, etc. Se-
lect Program 3 and 4 the same way.
To over-write a program, select it and enter new rates
and temperatures.This automaticallyover-writes the previ-
ous program. Write down your programs in a notebook and
record firing results for all firings.
Rate
Each segment must include a rate, which is degrees of
temperature change per hour.
The kiln will fire at full power when the rate is 1799°F /
999°C. Full power displays as .
Note: To select full power from , press the
key once.
Ramp-Hold Programming
Instructions
Note: You have up to 8 segments available in
Ramp-Hold. If you don’t need all 8, zero out the
unused segments. See step 6 below.
From , press .
Press the key (not the ).
and are
Ramp-Hold programs. When the one you
want appears, press . (Ignore .)
will appear. Enter firing rate (tempera-
ture change per hour) for segment 1. (1° =
slowest rate. 1799°F / 999°C = full power.)
Then press .
or and the target temperature from
the last firing will appear. Use the arrow keys
to change the temperature.Then press .
and the hold time from the last firing
will appear (Example: 1 hour 10 minutes =
01.10). Use the arrow keys to change the hold
time. Then press . (No hold = 00.00)
Continue entering values for the segments
needed. When appears for the next seg-
ment that you don’t need, select . Then
press . This will zero out the remaining
segments. (Example: You need only 1 seg-
ment. When appears, enter .)
will appear. Press to begin firing.
will appear and the Run indicator light
will begin blinking. The kiln is now firing.
To stop a firing before completion, press
. will appear, alternating with total
firing time and kiln temperature.
Note: Do not be concerned if your kiln makes a
clicking sound during firing. Kilns use relays to
power the elements. The relays click each time
their electrical contacts come together.
Note: The kiln’s actual firing rate may be less than
the rate you programmed, depending on the kiln
model, available voltage, and density of the load
you are firing.
When the kiln fires to completion, it will beep for 30
seconds. The display will show the following:
IFiring time
IPresent temperature
I= Fired to completion
To return to , press .

9
Hold
Hold is the length of time that you want the kiln to re-
main at the target temperature. Hold is also called soak or
dwell time. Hold maintains a steady temperature for the
length of time you specify. You can use Hold in both heat-
ing-up and cooling-down segments.
When Hold is set to 99.59 hours, the controller will re-
main at that temperature indefinitely, until you press
. To enter a 99.59 hour Hold, press the
once from 00.00 during programming.
Note: During firing, the display shows Hold tempera-
ture and time left in Hold.
Temperature Over-Shoot
When a kiln is heated too fast, it may over-shoot the tar-
get temperature, especially in small kilns at lower tempera-
tures. To avoid this, add an extra segment in a Ramp-Hold
program to slow the firing. The segment with the slower
rate should begin approximately 40° - 60° below the target
temperature.
Programming a
Cooling Segment
For controlled cooling, program a segment to a lower
target temperature than that of the preceding segment.
Example: You fire at a rate of 500°F per hour to 1450°F
with your first segment. You want the kiln to cool at a rate
of 100°F per hour down to 700°F. Here is how you would
program the two segments:
Rate Temp.
Segment °F/°C °F/°C Hold
1 500 / 277 1450 / 788 00.00
2 100 / 55 700 / 371 00.00
The first segment is the heating segment. The second
one is the cooling segment. The controller does not use mi-
nus numbers for cooling. Just enter a lower target tempera-
ture than that of the previous segment.
If you prop the lid or door for a fast cooling, program a
fast cooling rate for that segment. If you lower the tempera-
ture quickly by propping the lid but program a slow cooling
rate, the controller will just raise the temperature again.
Example: Some glass artists flash-cool the glass just after
it fuses. They open the door a few inches to remove heat,
then close it again. This takes the glass down rapidly
through the devitrification range. To program a flash-cool,
use maximum rate. This shuts off the heating elements dur-
ing that segment, allowing the kiln to cool rapidly.
Note: During fast cooling, do not open the door all the
way. Do not force-cool the kiln with a fan.
A Ramp-Hold
Practice Program
To practice using the controller, we will enter a program
that includes three segments. The last segment is a cooling
segment.
Using the programming instructions on page 8, enter
this firing schedule. Then use Program Review (page 4) to
check for accuracy.
PrO1
rA1 = 250
°F1=750
HLd 1 = 00.00
rA2 = 900
°F 2 = 1425
HLd 2 = 00.30
rA3 = 150
°F3=750
HLd 3 = 00.00
rA4 = 0000 (zeroes cancel segments 4-8)
Make a simple chart like the one above when planning a firing program.

10 Cone-Fire / Ramp-Hold
Editing the Target
Temperature
While the kiln is firing, you can change the target tem-
perature. You can edit only the segment that is firing. So if
the first segment is the current one, you can edit only the
first segment. To edit other segments, wait until the firing
has progressed to those segments.
Even if the current segment has already started its hold
time, you can still edit the segment's target temperature.
The controller will go back out of hold and fire to the new
target temperature at the original rate. (You cannot edit
the rate, however.)
During a Ramp-Hold firing, press the re-
peatedly until appears.
Press . The target temperature for the cur-
rent segment will appear.
Use the arrow keys to change the target tempera-
ture.
Press . The normal kiln temperature will ap-
pear.
The Alarm
While the kiln is firing, you can set the alarm, which
sounds when the kiln reaches the alarm temperature. Use
the alarm as a reminder to look at the glass during fusing or
slumping, to look at witness cones, to close the lid from
vented position, etc.
You can enter only one alarm temperature at a time.
However, after the alarm beeps, you can set the alarm for
another temperature, as many times as you want, during the
firing. Entering an alarm temperature automatically erases
the previous alarm temperature.
Note: The alarm temperature that you set during a fir-
ing must be higher than the current display tempera-
ture. The alarm is designed for higher temperatures
and not for cooling temperatures.
During a Cone-Fire or Ramp-Hold firing, press
the repeatedly until appears.
Press . The current alarm temperature will
appear.
Use the arrow keys to change the alarm tempera-
ture.
Press . The normal kiln temperature will ap-
pear.
To silence the alarm when it sounds, press any key.
Note: If you do not want to use the alarm, set the alarm
temperature to 32°F / 0°C. This setting will turn off the
alarm feature.
Advanced
Features
Skip Segment and Temperature Edit work only in
Ramp-Hold firings. Add Hold Time and Alarm work in
both Cone-Fire and Ramp-Hold firings.
Skip Segment
Skip Segment jumps the firing from the current segment
to the next one.
During a Ramp-Hold firing, press the .
will appear.
Press . The current segment ramp or hold
number will appear.
Press again. (If you change your mind and
don’t want to skip that segment, don’t press
after appears. The firing will continue in the
same segment and the temperature will appear af-
ter one minute.)
Skip Segment skips to the ramp of the next segment from
either a ramp or hold of the current segment. (Skip Seg-
ment does nothing during the final segment. To end the fi-
nal segment, press .)
Skip Segment Example You have pro-
grammed a target temperature of 1425°F for glass fusing,
followed by a segment for controlled cooling. Watching the
glass through the peephole, you notice that the glass edges
have rounded nicely at 1315°. Use Skip Segment to end the
firing segment and to begin the one for slow cooling.
Note: Make a note of the temperature at which the
glass fused. Program that temperature for the next fir-
ing of that type of glass.
Add Hold Time
Add Hold Time adds 5 minutes to a hold. It is designed
for ceramists who watch witness cones and for glass artists
who inspect the glass near the end of firing.
During a Cone-Fire or Ramp-Hold firing, press
the repeatedly until appears.
Press . The hold time for the current seg-
ment will appear.
Press the . Each time you press the
, the hold time will increase by 5 minutes.
Press . The normal temperaturewill appear.
Note: Add Time will add 5 minutes to a hold even if no
hold had been programmed.