Trailer-Glass Blowing

Type: Maker Table/Exhibit
Program Area: Garage

Day/Time: Saturday and Sunday 12:00 AM

Location: Outside Maker

I was blowing glass at facilities that had the usual rate per hour of $40-$45. Ouch! I started working on an idea to be able to blow glass on the beach someday. What if I could make a propane-fired system to blow glass? Making a gas-fired furnace to melt the glass is easy enough to do, as would be putting it on a trailer. But the hard part is how to make an annealer work on a trailer.

When a piece of glass is blown, it needs to be cooled down in an oven (annealer) to remove the strain and allow the glass to cool at a controlled rate (the science of this craft). If you do not anneal the glass, it will crack, sometimes violently. After some trial and error, I figured out how to do it. The whole system runs off a 110 20 amp plug and about a gallon of propane an hour. Way cheaper than renting per hour but there was a significant outlay of capital for the annealer and the furnace!

Related site: http://www.colquhounglassworks.com

Presented by

Doug Brown
colquhoun glass works

Doug is a glass blower, real estate broker, and mortgage broker.

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