New furnaces or electric furnaces that have not been used for a long time must be baked before use. During the baking process, it is advisable to use old rods or other heat sources as much as possible. After the silicon carbide rods pass through the rod holes on both sides of the furnace wall, they should be rotated freely by 360°. Forced installation and knocking must be strictly avoided. Before installing the rods, trial installation can be done using an iron pipe with the same diameter as the rod ends. Silicon carbide rods are hard and brittle, so special care must be taken during transportation, unpacking, installation, and replacement. Handle with care, avoid mechanical impact to prevent rod breakage.

When initially powering a new furnace, to prevent rod breakage, the voltage should be increased gradually. Generally, it is appropriate to start at half the rated voltage. Once everything is normal, the voltage can be gradually increased. During the heating process, water vapor is discharged. The resistance furnace must have exhaust vents to remove water vapor or other harmful gases from the kiln, which may affect the service life of the rods.

During storage, the rods must be protected from moisture. If the aluminum-sprayed ends of the rods are found to have deteriorated or deliquesced, they can be re-sprayed with aluminum after surface treatment. If aluminum spraying is not feasible, wrap the aluminum-sprayed section with several layers of aluminum foil before use. Overloading of silicon carbide rods is strictly prohibited. If a rod breaks or exhibits uneven heating, with sections appearing incandescent or dull red, this indicates inconsistent aging of the rod, with significant resistance differences between sections. The furnace should be shut down for maintenance and rod replacement.

Silicon carbide rod electric furnaces must be equipped with voltage-regulating transformers or silicon-controlled voltage regulators, as well as voltage and current meters, and automatic temperature control instruments. During use, as the rods oxidize and their resistance gradually increases, the operating voltage must be raised to maintain normal furnace temperature. When the voltage reaches the maximum limit of the transformer and still cannot meet the requirements, the furnace should be shut down, and the wiring of the rods should be reconfigured before resuming operation.