Kiln Ice
6 glazes / Amaco
Kiln Ice is Amaco's crackle line, modeled after Guan ware from the Southern Song dynasty. Every glaze in it crazes on purpose.
The glaze itself is translucent and goes slightly opaque along the cracks, so you end up looking through one surface at another. Amaco says the effect reads strongest over brown and buff clay.
Cone 5/6Bisque to Cone 041 studio favorites
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Kiln Ice by the numbers
6glazes on our shelves
6at Black Level
2good on texture
1studio favorites
Friendly studio tip for this glaze family
Crackle is the whole point of this line, so do not treat the cracks as a problem.
Go heavier than feels right. Three or four generous coats, each one dry before the next. A thin coat gives you a pale, quiet pot and none of the network you came for.
And keep it off the inside of anything you plan to drink from.
Every Kiln Ice glaze we have in house
Hover any tile to see a pot fired in it, or tap once on a phone.
How the Kiln Ice line works
Six glazes, all translucent, all crackled. Amaco released these as a mid-fire line rated for cone 5 and cone 6 over cone 04 bisque.
The crazing is the product, not a fault. That is worth saying plainly, because a crackle glaze is a network of hairline cracks and those cracks are why Amaco does not recommend this line for food surfaces.
Coats
Three to four coats, and Amaco says heavier than you would normally brush. Several brushed layers beat one thick one.
Thin application is the usual reason a Kiln Ice pot comes out looking like nothing much happened.
Layering
This line is its own finish. The crackle needs to be the visible surface, so covering it with another glaze defeats the point.
If you want to experiment, do it on a tile first.
Food and safety
Amaco rates these lead free and food safe as a material, and still does not recommend them for surfaces that touch food or drink, because a crazed surface is not durable enough for it.
Use this line on the outside of pots, on sculpture, and on anything that will not be eaten from. Amaco also puts a cautionary label on it restricting use to above grade 6.
Clays that suit Kiln Ice
Amaco fires this line's own sample tiles on No.32 Dark Chocolate clay at cone 5, and says the crackle shows best over brown and buff bodies.
Rated forCone 5 and cone 6 over cone 04 bisque.
Dark and warm bodiesBerlin Gray is the closest thing we stock to what Amaco photographs these on. The crack network reads hardest against a dark body.
Buff bodies52 Buff and Speckled Buff sit right in the range Amaco recommends, and the iron speckle plays well with a translucent crackle.
Light bodies#16 Porcelain, B-Mix and Half & Half will show the color cleanly but give the cracks less to contrast against.
Worth knowingAmaco notes this line works best with their manganese-free chocolate clays, which we do not stock. Berlin Gray is our nearest equivalent, not a match.
From The Clay Hole University
More info about Kiln Ice below, but first... Everything we teach about glazing, written down and taught properly. These are the glaze lessons, and they are a small corner of a library that runs from centering your first pot to selling your work.
GuideGlaze Brushing Techniques, Coat by Coat
GuideGlazing Big and Intricate Pottery Faster
GuideGetting the Most Out of the Mega Glaze Tool
GuideMaking, Logging and Dialing in Test Tiles
GuideGlaze Problems, Causes and Fixes
GuideGlazing on the Wheel for Even Coats and Clean Bands
GuideBubble Glaze with Dish Soap
GuideMixing Your Own Glazes: What It Actually Involves
GuideMaking a Glaze Catcher
GuideGetting Great Results with Crystalline Glazes
GuideOxide and Carbonate Washes
GuideWhen to Use Celadon Glazes
GuideHow to Use Dipping Glazes
RakuRaku Firing: Techniques, Tips and How It Works
UnderglazeHow to Use Underglaze: Techniques, Rules and Firing
UnderglazeMishima: How to Inlay Slip and Underglaze into Carved Lines
UnderglazeWipe-Away Texture: Underglaze and Oxide Washes on Bisque
Common questions about Kiln Ice
How many Kiln Ice glazes does The Clay Hole carry?
All six of them, and every one has its own page here with test tile and fired pot photos.
What cone do Kiln Ice glazes fire to?
Cone 5 to cone 6, published by Amaco as 2167F and 2232F on a medium speed firing, over bisque fired to cone 04.
Are Kiln Ice glazes food safe?
Amaco rates them lead free and food safe as a material, but does not recommend them for surfaces that touch food or drink because a crazed surface is not durable enough. Use them outside the pot.
Why is my Kiln Ice pot covered in fine cracks?
That is the glaze working. Kiln Ice is modeled on Guan ware and the network of hairline cracks, called crazing, is the effect Amaco built it to produce.
How many coats do Kiln Ice glazes need?
Three to four, and Amaco says heavier than a normal coat. Several brushed layers beat one very thick one.
Which membership level covers Kiln Ice?
All six are Black Level.
The Kiln Ice test tile pot
Every glaze family on our shelves has its own test tile pot, and it is the fastest way to decide what to put on a piece. It is a fired pot wearing the whole family, one numbered tile per glaze, on a surface built to show you what that glaze actually does rather than just what color it is.
Look for Amaco Kiln Ice written on the rim. Each glaze on this page carries its tile number, and the numbers run around the pot.
One trick worth knowing
Some glazes tell you loudly that they run. Others hide it. Look at how the brushed lines fired: crisp edges mean a stable glaze, and edges that went soft and fluid mean it moved, and it will move on your pot too.
About these images and what your pot will actually look like
We have done our best to represent every glaze here accurately, and you should still expect your pot to look different from what is on this screen.
Our glaze tile images are digitally created. They are built to show the character of a glaze, not to be a color match.
A screen is not a printout, a printout is not a test tile, and a test tile is not a finished pot. Each step in that chain shifts what a glaze looks like, sometimes a lot.
On top of that, the pottery itself changes the result: the clay body, how thick the glaze went on, whether it was brushed, dipped or sprayed, what was layered under or over it, where the piece sat in the kiln, how hot that spot ran, how fast it cooled, what was fired next to it, and how much texture the surface had. Two pots glazed from the same jar on the same day can come out different.
Treat every image here as a starting point, and treat a test tile fired on your own clay as the real answer.