Weigh at 4 this afternoon. Had to cook roast beef and turkeys so lowered the oven temp. to 200 degrees and the larger piece got put in when I placed the meats in the oven. Four hours at that temp plus the cooling time. Maybe somebody wants to do a more controlled experiment but I am convinced that I need a kiln as by adding air flow to it a 6lbs. piece of wood should be just about ready in 3 to 4 days running 24 hours a day.
There's alot to learn about kiln dry wood because I just put s oak splits in my heated shop at 50 f it amazed me in under 3 weeks it dropped from 45% down to 32% and week later 20% that was only ceiling fan at 50f so there is air flow and humidity to consider.. It proved to me that air flow is key in drying process . We're talking 32x32 shop with just a 52inch ceiling fan . It surprised me .. Sent from my LGL84VL using Tapatalk
That’s not crazy at all. Try over $2000 per cord from this guy... I suppose happy customers are willing to pay a premium... Ultra-Dry Seasoned K/D Firewood, Fireplace Cord Wood, Del'd & Stacked
I've given this concept some thought. Not as a firewood seller but as a homeowner. I calculated that I can pretty easily put 8 cords of wood in a 20' shipping container, with room to spare for a fan and/or dehumidifier. I could paint the container black, install a solar panel to power the fan/DH unit, load the kiln in the spring with wood for the fall, and let it cook all summer. No additional heat needed. Of course, this is just a supposition based on my past experience with heat inside shipping containers and semi-trailers. I owned a semi-trailer box that I sold a few years back, I could have kept it to use as a kiln but it was UGLY and the wife and neighbors would not have been happy). $2500 for the container, another $500 or so for the rest of the supplies and paint, and I can have dry wood by fall. Even oak. It will pay for itself over time.
Would be good to use your solar powered fan to push air through a hundred feet of black corrugated pipe and then push that into the container and distribute it under the stacks. I imagine that would help the container warm up more quickly when the sun comes out as well as push the moist air out.
Another thought would be to build a solar kiln for drying lumber, and then simply load it with firewood when you don't have lumber in it.
I run two green houses with a box fan in the door and 3 floor vents on the backside. If it is the warmer months it takes about 3 weeks to dry maple, elm, ash, etc. About 6 weeks for oak. I aim for 15% moisture. Ends are cracking up in a couple days. When the sun is out it is over 120 degrees by 9am. I run the fans from 1pm to 6pm. If I am in there at midnight the wood is much warmer by touch than the exterior temperature. I have less than $300 into each and can dry 12+ cord at a time. On a 10 degree winter day with the sun shining it will get above 35 degrees in there. I shut the fans off and cover the opening in October. I actually have some grass in the front corner of one that is still growing where I ripped my ground tarp. damm dog follows me in there to chew on it.
That's awesome. Do you have any pictures of the operation? Do you move the wood by hand or is it palletized for ease of movement?
Because it is less than 15' from my OWB I don't move it except to burn it once it is in there. I do have a couple older pics. First pic I changed my flooring. Went to a heavy duty tarp for flooring. You can see the floor vents in the back. I leave a small opening in the bottom of the stacks for air to come from the back vent. 2nd pic I changed the door after the first season. I boxed in a lasko all weather fan to increase air movement. I used true green house film instead of poly. It is supposed to last longer and have increased inside temps.
The first year I wasn't sure how it would work so I didn't go crazy with how I made it. I knew my end wood was great but was nervous about the inside of the stacks. Once I burnt enough to get to those they were as dry as the outside so I tightened up my build and decided on a second. Rather easy and it allows me to split wood in march and burn in October. Right now I am burning some wood I loaded in the second unit in early August. Edit: Should add what I am burning now was not fresh cut in August. Was cut in the spring and left in 8' lengths until I cut to size and split. Mostly elm, ash, sugar maple, and a bunch of pin cherry.
Yes. They worked well to tighten it together and I did not have to worry about wire poking through my green house film. I trimmed them close once I was sure this operation was successful and they are holding steady.
Has anyone gone the other way, and just tried a laundry mat dryer? Some of those machines are fairly large and it’s only take 6-8 loads to make a cord? . Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Might have to use some bubble wrap so you don't damage your firewood.. Wouldn't want those splits banging against each other!!!
the kiln is, in a way, fundamentally flawed. it simply allows you to burn the wood after 10 days. but it will increase your wood consumption. so (by your estimates) it would increase your wood consumption by 5 cords per year. (idk the actually amount) couldn't you simply increase your production now? and save the hassle of building the kiln? also all the time loading and unloading the kiln could be used for firewood production, right? if you increased your firewood production by 5 cords per year you'd be a year ahead in 3 years. plus whatever increased production you could gain from not spending time or money building loading/unloading a kiln. sorry If I'm coming across as argumentative. not trying to do that. I'm in the same boat as you. 15 cords per year, owb, can't seem to get a year ahead. perhaps I need to build a kiln too? just throwing out ideas. I would be interested in seeing what you build, if you decide to build one.
