LIQUID QUARTZ is a food safe, permeating sealer designed for use on unglazed ceramic ware, rendering it waterproof, stain resistant, & yet completely unchanged in appearance.
Liquid Quartz can be applied to all unglazed, stable, porous surfaces; bisque ware, vitrified ceramic ware (yes it is still porous) & alternatively fired clay bodies (pit, smoke, saggar, barrel, naked raku) to create an invisible, long lasting, protective barrier against moisture, food juices, & other contaminants.
Made from SiO2 (or Silicon Dioxide/Silica), a naturally occurring oxide & one of the most abundant minerals found in the Earth’s crust, most commonly in the form of Quartz. It is used extensively in the production of glass, glazes, underglazes, clay body stains as well as terracotta, earthenware, stoneware & porcelain clays. It is highly abrasion resistant (7 on the Mohs scale) & thermal shock absorbing.
Liquid Quartz is certified food safe to the stringent EU food safety standards (read more in the Instructional PDF found below) & is completely skin neutral. It is essentially self-cleaning, being hydrophobic & oleophobic; resisting staining from oil, grease, acids, alkalis & alcohol as effectively as any matt glaze, reducing the need for chemical cleaners & harsh detergents. Water will simply bead off, taking surface contaminants with it. (Note that just like a matt glaze, prolonged contact with some foods may still mark the sealed surface. To avoid this, plates should be rinsed clean as soon as possible, as with all your ceramic ware.) It cures completely within 24 hours without firing or further treatment, & is completely invisible once dry. It is dishwasher & microwave oven safe to 450°C (& also stable to -70°C, making it popular for outdoor sculptural work in extreme conditions). It is also antibacterial & will help prevent the formation of algae, moss, fungus, scale & efflorescence. It is UV stable, but may not completely halt the fading of all finishes, this is being tested by time now.
While Liquid Quartz is NOT for use over glazes, it has become very popular with artists who glaze only part of their work, to seal the unglazed sections & prevent staining from lips & fingers, as well as dishwashers, & to prevent water seepage under the glazed areas. It has also proven useful for sealing properly cured underglazes (fired to the manufacturer’s instructions). Liquid Quartz will not effect the glazed sections of your work, (it will simply bead & run off a non porous surface during application) nor will it change the look of your clay body or underglazes. We have also had reports of great results sealing leaky glazed wares from woodfirings, in between the cracks of crazed & crawled glazes from both electric & gas firings, & on the unglazed areas of raku fired work.
https://madeofaustralia.com/liquid-quartz/
YOUTUBE videos are available
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPcoNa4_Oj_01FIVc0l9Ovg