Lucas Beaumont
Working on glass is not less then a hobby for many people. But a successful glass worker is needed to be extremely efficient and highly skilled in his work. Many things can be done with a glass. One can cut glass in any desired shape, one can make holes in the glass, one can use glass for decoration and one can even melt the glass.
By using some simple tips you can easily melt a glass even at your home. And after melting a glass you can mold it into any desired shape to produce many things. For example- jewelry, household decorative pieces, vases, candle holders etc. So, you can learn melting of glass as an exclusive skill. This article will provide you some easy instruction to melt a piece of glass.
Materials which are required for melting a glass piece-
1. Glass piece
2. Blowtorch
3. Kiln
4. Safety equipments (welding helmet, gloves etc)
Steps to melt the glass
Step 1– Arrange a free glass piece (to be melted). If you are doing it for the first time, then you should use a special glass that is generated only for the crafters (for melting). Examples include- borosilicate or some other soft commercial glass products. But if you are not a new glass worker then you can melt just anything made from glass like- wine bottles, vases etc.
Step 2– You should have a Blowtorch or a Kiln with you to melt a glass piece at your home. A kiln is actually an expensive equipment to afford; it costs around $4,000 to $10,000. On the other hand a Blowtorch costs around a few hundred dollars.
Step 3– You should have complete theoretical knowledge about the nature of glass and its melting procedure. Melting of glass is a very tedious work. Because its very complicated to melt a glass under extremely high temperatures. If you are inexperienced then it can be dangerous for you. So, you should try to learn the detailed theory of the precautions about the process. Internet is the best way to explore the answers to your quarries.
Step 4– You should be clear about your aim of final product. What is your desire from melted glass- jewelry or some other heavy material? With the concerns of recycling, you should use old glass bottles for melting. By using them you can produce lovely wind chimes and cheese boards.
Step 5– After melting the glass with the help of extreme temperatures of Blowtorch or Kiln; try to mold it into your desired shape, by using the concerned equipments available in the market. You should not feel frustrated if your results are not good, because you can again re-melt the glass to try again and again.
Warnings
1. Before starting the melting procedure, read all the precautions mentioned in the module of concerned equipments.
2. Make sure that you are not needed to get any permissions or permits from your town’s administration for melting the glass at home.
3. Glass melting is a skilled technique, so you should not try it as a funny task.
Though this is a specialized job but if you follow the steps and these warnings, it can be done successfully.
