How to Heat Up a Glass Piece

Glass blowing is a hobby that's been around for centuries. It's the process of manipulating glass with fire to design art. The artist uses ordinary glass beads along with proper heating and technique to create a glass flower vase, a colorful bowl or other works of art.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• borosilicate glass
• propane or natural gas flame

1. Use glass from the borosilicate family, such as Pyrex. This type of glass has adequate resistance to heat, thermal shock, low thermal expansion and is known for its chemical durability. Pieces generally come in 4-foot sections.

2. Light your handheld torch or stationery burner using natural or propane gas. Adjust your flame size according to the intended glass project. Use a bigger, more intense flame if you need to reach a higher temperature to heat a larger area of the glass.

3. Move a piece of glass in and out of the flame or use laboratory stand with adjustable clamp. Keep the glass in one place when heating it for shaping.

4. Melt and shape your glass piece as the temperature rises. Use tools, like a long-bladed knife, as a guide to shape and design the glass into your desired piece.

5. Brush away stress areas by treating the flame as a paintbrush and softly moving the glass against the flame.

6. Join two sections of glass that are similar sizes together by rotating their ends into the flame. Remove glass pieces from the flame when ends are red hot, then fuse together.

Tips & Warnings

• Pay attention to the glass under the flame because once it becomes hot enough to alter its form, you may close an opening you wanted or misshape the glass.
• Wear safety goggles with Didymium lenses so your eyes remain protected from the UV light, but you can still see the glass.
• Don't wear loose clothing when working with the flame. Know the location of fire extinguishers, first-aid equipment and the gas shut-off valve.