A friend of mine, who is now seriously into Pottery is aquiring a kiln and jokingly suggested that I might like to dry wood in the kiln from time to time. Soes anyone know where I can get the relevant information about temperatures and times in case I get to use the kiln?
John
It's not the same kind of kiln. The pottery kilns use extremely high temperatures that aren't appropriate for drying wooden items. It's not just the temperature but also the control of humidity, air circulation, etc. that is completely different between the two.
Sorry,
- Andrew
Just say no.
A wood kiln and a pottery kiln operate at entirely two different temperature ranges. You'd end up with charcoal and ashes.
But... here's a thought for you that one of our AAW members does. He acquired a tall, stainless insulated cabinet at an auction. What he does is put a hotplate into the bottom of it and wood that he wants to dry onto the racks. It already had a couple of holes in the top, which lets the moisture escape. Put the stuff in, let it sit and dry for a week with the hotplate on, and he's good to go.
Of course, anymore, we just turn all our wood wet, leave it thick, coat it with the white junk (that I can't remember what it's called right now) and let it sit for 9 months so that it will dry on its own.
"He acquired a tall, stainless insulated cabinet at an auction"
Old water pressure tanks (for those with their own water wells systems for example) or hot water heaters work well here too. They can be found for free as well. I've also made them out of buckets, styrofoam coolers, discarded refrigerators, freezers and then just ones made from simple plywood boxes. Anything that'll resist heat and humidity for awhile works. Free doesn't hurt either.
"What he does is put a hotplate into the bottom of it"
A simple 40 - 60 watt lightbulb will work too. If it's a large homemade kiln, you can use a few bulbs
- Andrew
A ceramic/pottery kiln may reach temperatures of 1300F (a bright orange color) - that should ignite dry wood in a matter of seconds. A wood drying kiln that a local saw mill has is made of a sheet of transparent (translucent plastic sheet) that faces the souih (towards the mid-day sun) I doubt that the temperature in that gets over 200F, more likely in the range of 120-150F.
I'd say stay away from the pottery kiln.
mike
hmm i have a large old oil tank, quite old, would it do?
Well, depending on its condition, I'd be concerned with any residual oil left in the tank getting on the wood. Is there a way to make it so that you can control the heat (bulb or heater of some sort) and ventilation on those? You'll want a domed top or make it somehow so the condensation will roll down the sides and not hit the wood too. We don't have the oil tanks that I think you're thinking of in this part of the USA so I can't quite make them out in my mind.
- Andrew
InspirePoint website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.