intentional creosote buildup for project

[mrbrb]

Hello,
I am working on a little project where I am trying to create tinted glass using wood smoke buildup. Im doing this for decorative purposes.
The smoker is a 4x4x4' particle board box. My piece of glass is 24x24", tempered. The glass sits on a couple of rails, flat-ways, towards the roof of the smoker. There is very little ventilation, and the only smoke that escapes is through cracks in the edges of the box. A three gallon metal can is filled, lit, and then smothered with a pie tin. It produces lots of smoke for about 3 hours, and then needs to be recharged.

I have been smoking this piece of glass for about 12 hours, using a mix of dry chunks of hickory and oak.


initially I was disappointed with the results because the surface was soft, kind of sticky, yellowish, and cloudy..

But I discovered that the surface is now gradually being overtaken by this dark amber coating, almost the consistency of hard candy, but not sticky. More of a glassy surface, which is what I want. It is pretty durable and will not scratch with a fingernail, but will scratch with a razor blade. It is also optically clear.

Any ideas on what the 'transition' is that is occuring. Obviously it is creosote, but any ideas on how to get the buildup to be more consistent? I'm trying to achieve something akin to a 'tinted window' that you would have in your car...

Let me know if you have any wild ideas..

Thank you!

  

 



I know this looks like soft caramel, but it is actually rock hard..  basically im looking to have the entire surface look like this, without all of the little pin holes..   
I think the holes are gradually closing as it is smoked more.

[mrbrb]

also, I got the idea for this from someone on the forum who was taking about 'smoking' shingles and siding as a preservative treatment.

[thecfarm]

No ideas from me,but I bet you will know how to do it next time.  :D
What's the "smoked"glass going to be used for?

[Ljohnsaw]

also, I got the idea for this from someone on the forum who was taking about 'smoking' shingles and siding as a preservative treatment.

While it would be a good preservative on the shingles, I would worry about the increase in flammability!

Nice color on the glass.  In the final use, will it be out of harms way, never needing to be cleaned?  What kind of wood are you using?  I think that will have a lot to do with the buildup quality.

[mrbrb]

yeah it will be in a safe space and wont require cleaning. After another 8 hrs of smoking the orange peel effect seems to be getting worse. Those little holes are actually getting larger. Trying some different wood types...

[Ljohnsaw]

Odd, never had a problem with my glass sooting up or building up creosote evenly ;)

Did you thoroughly clean the glass?  The spots look like oil (finger prints) causing it to not adhere.  I'd go with softwood (pine) with lots of sap.