A ceramic bowl can be fired in a kiln.
A kiln is an insulated oven used to heat and harden materials, often used for creating glass and ceramic art. There are major differences between glass and pottery kilns, including the temperature, power source and controls. When deciding which type of kiln to buy, consider your space availability, intended use and price range. Although you can use a ceramic kiln to work with glass, it will limit your options slightly.
Temperature
A glass kiln can reach a maximum temperature of 1,700 degrees, while a ceramic kiln can reach 2,300 degrees. Because of this temperature difference, you can fire glass in a ceramic kiln, although there are some limitations and drawbacks to using it for this. You can't fire ceramics in a glass kiln because ceramic pieces require a much higher temperature to harden.
Power Source
Glass kilns are almost always electric, meaning that they must be positioned to be plugged into an outlet when being used. Pottery kilns can be electric, gas, oil or wood-fired. Many pottery kilns are built to stand on their own, outside of a structure, and are heated by gas or a wood fire.
Design
Ceramics pieces require surrounding heat to fire them evenly on all sides, so ceramics kilns are designed with heating elements in the floor, ceiling and walls of the kiln. Glass kilns are designed to work with glass pieces that are flat and less dimensional, so their heating elements are generally solely in the ceilings or door of the kiln. Because the temperature radiates evenly from the top of the kiln, cracking in the glass is reduced.
Controls
Glass kilns generally have a programmable controller that allows you to set the temperature during the critical warming and cooling phases of firing. Ceramics require much less specificity of temperature, and the controller is often optional.
