Kiln plug caught FIRE

NickHFSS

NickHFSS

Joined
Jun 26, 2020
Messages
164
So I plugged my new kiln and as I tried to push the switch it zapped me , I have been zapped when I was small but damn this was so bad I was shaking for almost 30 seconds.
Thought it could be grounding problem as I aint no electric , so I took the grounding wire coming from the kiln itself and reconnected it better this time on the balcony (the metal balcony goes all the way to the ground) also connected the grounding wire from the kiln to the control box with a screw on the body.
plugged it again in the power strip and boy it lit up ! threw flames like a torch from all 3 non plugged units took it out of the wall fast before the floor caught fire, nothing was damaged thank God , the strips last plug was not working for like 10 years now and thats where it burned, been using it to charge the laptop and phone just before that and no problems, last time I used the kiln it worked whole day without any problems....

Tomorrow Im taking it to an electric but can you tell me was this the power strip issue or is there anything wrong with the wiring?

Checked ten times all wires are good and nothing is touching anything.....

please any advices?
THanks
 
Sounds like one of your hot leads is shorting to ground? Maybe even the element itself. Is it 220V?
If you can provide pics, we may be able to help narrow it down, but taking it to a professional is the best option in this case.
 
NickHFSS said:
please any advices?
Click to expand...
I'd guess that the fault was with the (if I'm reading correctly) 10+y/o power strip. If that strip has been in the shop for a while, who knows how much dust (from grinding or just natural) has collected in there and that's what I would guess was the fuel for the flames. One thing I do on a regular basis is vacuum out my shop (including electrical outlets) because I do everything (forging, HT, grinding) in one room (2-car garage) and dust is everywhere. I even have to vacuum off the outside of the garage door regularly because it turns from white to grey from all the grinding dust, even when open. Which reminds me, I noticed yesterday that it's about time again.

There was a thread on another forum just the other day where the plug was getting hot (not fire yet) and the fault was with the wiring in the old plug and the connections going bad. The user just had to replace the older plug and the problem was solved.
 
You did who knows what, you show us no photos. We can tell nothing.


Toss that power strip, ten years ago when you first had problems
Plug in directly
Get it elechickened. Have him come to you. Half the problems are still in the house.

I would not call the balcony a proper ground.
 
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I would tend to agree with WEO that the power strip would be high on suspicions. In failure analysis you typically lookfor where things got damage first / more than extensively for the actual cause. That sounds like the strip n this case. If you had a dead short in the kiln, you would have tripped your breaker - no?
 
Ok, I re-read the original post a bit better, and it sounds like you're trying to "ground" your kiln circuit on a steel balcony that goes into the ground

This is NOT anywhere close to an acceptable substitution for an actual copper grounding rod that has been properly bonded to your home or shop's electrical system. Besides that, even if your balcony's steel framing goes several feet into the ground, it's highly unlikely that it's connected in anyway with the electrical panel that your kiln (or power strip?) is plugged into, therefore there is no real path to your system ground, and little to no circuit protection from the breaker (or even the power strip).

Now that doesn't necessarily explain why you may have completed a path to ground when turning on your kilns power switch, or why simply "grounding" the kiln to your balcony made the sparks and smoke come out. Something is apparently touching where it shouldn't be, or it's wired incorrectly. Now, if you're using a power strip, I assume it's a 110V kiln? Is it a homemade kiln? A commercial unit? We definitely need more info here. Why is the ground wire separated from the power cable in such a way that you can connect it to a steel balcony?

Bottom line: Plugging something into the earth doesn't magically "ground" it in such a way to make a complete or acceptable circuit. This is one of many reasons we have electrical codes and standardized outlets and power cables.
 
Drew Riley said:
This is one of many reasons we have electrical codes and standardized outlets and power cables.
Click to expand...
I learned the lesson of a proper ground about 30 years ago. The house I lived in had no ground wires on the outlets , only a 2 prong plug would plug into the outlet. So I put one of those 3 prong to 2 prong adapters on my electric guitar amp and pluged it into the wall and when I touched the strings POW :eek:
 
I would take an ohms meter and look for any continuity between the case of your kiln and each of the three prongs on its plug. There should be continuity to the ground plug (the round one) and there should be no continuity to the neutral (the big one) or the hot (the small one). There should also be no continuity from the ground plug to either of the other plugs. There's a pretty good chance you have a short in your kiln and if so this will confirm it.

Another way you'd get a shock would be if the circuit you're plugged into is using ground as neutral. They're bonded together in the power panel, but if they touch outside of that panel and your ground path is less than perfect any grounded equipment can become energized and cause a shock when touched if you are grounded. It might possible for your power strip to could cause this condition depending on the placement and condition of the varistor inside of it. They can fail in interesting ways. And they do fail. All the time. Eventually they all fail. Which is one reason I wouldn't use a power strip in a high current application.
 
NickHFSS said:
So I plugged my new kiln and as I tried to push the switch it zapped me , I have been zapped when I was small but damn this was so bad I was shaking for almost 30 seconds.
Thought it could be grounding problem as I aint no electric , so I took the grounding wire coming from the kiln itself and reconnected it better this time on the balcony (the metal balcony goes all the way to the ground) also connected the grounding wire from the kiln to the control box with a screw on the body.
plugged it again in the power strip and boy it lit up ! threw flames like a torch from all 3 non plugged units took it out of the wall fast before the floor caught fire, nothing was damaged thank God , the strips last plug was not working for like 10 years now and thats where it burned, been using it to charge the laptop and phone just before that and no problems, last time I used the kiln it worked whole day without any problems....

Tomorrow Im taking it to an electric but can you tell me was this the power strip issue or is there anything wrong with the wiring?

Checked ten times all wires are good and nothing is touching anything.....

please any advices?
THanks
Click to expand...
Take some picture from oven,plug and power strip , lot of question here .........
Guys he is in Europe .....220V
 
Hard to tell definitively, but the brown and blue power leads inside your controller box look like they've seen better days. With your kiln unplugged, I'd check them a little more closely for cracks and brittle/hardened insulation. They could likely stand to be a heavier gauge, and are probably getting pretty warm during use.
 
Drew Riley said:
Hard to tell definitively, but the brown and blue power leads inside your controller box look like they've seen better days. With your kiln unplugged, I'd check them a little more closely for cracks and brittle/hardened insulation. They could likely stand to be a heavier gauge, and are probably getting pretty warm during use.
Click to expand...
the blue one has a small crack , its brand new Im using the kiln for second time since it was assembled
 
yes we have 220v , i plugged it in the wall plug and its working good , the head of the plug is cool but the wire coming out of it is a bit warm , just a tidy bit
 
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