Solar Wood Drying Kiln Plans

Constructing and operating a small solar heater lumber dryer paul bois national wood drying specialist.

Solar wood drying kiln plans.

A solar kiln is the simplest and safest way to dry green wood quickly. Plans for a solar wood drying kiln. I viewed the wwgoa video logs to lumber and i m interested in building a solar kiln. Solar kiln plans and dimensions september 3 2009 by reader submitted filed under blog plans and projects woodshop projects woodworking projects woodworking q a.

The kiln is simple to construct and utilizes a passive solar collector four insulated walls and an insulated floor. The objective of this fact sheet is to give a basic understanding of solar drying of lumber and its elements from the point of practical applications. Unlike air drying it ll dry wood to the moisture level needed for interior use. When planning your kiln shed size which is determined by how much lumber you plan on drying per load and door location are the first things to consider.

Kiln dried wood typically sells for a third more than green lumber and eliminates the need for. Virginia tech solar kiln design the solar kiln described in this publication was designed constructed and tested at virginia tech. We constructed this nifty 8x8x12 passive solar kiln. This design is based on 25 years of research and development on the solar drying of lumber in the united.

Information on designing and building a solar wood drying kiln. For interior use however lumber must be kiln dried to a moisture content of 7 to avoid splitting or warping in use. The roof is made of clear greenhouse rated corrugated polyethylene. Drying lumber with solar kiln workshop.

Air dry 1 inch lumber 60 to 90 days in a breezy warm not too humid place to reach 20 moisture. And boy does it work not to mention save money. Three options are shown above. Minus the drying equipment a shed kiln is just an insulated storage space with a host of possible uses.

Wood mizer dehumidification and solar wood kilns range from 300 to 35 000 board feet capacity for drying lumber. Solar drying of lumber is one of the more efficient and the least expensive methods to reduce moisture content of wood. Better still we developed a plan for our kiln so you can build one just like it. Solar kiln plans construction and operational information.

A homemade solar lumber kiln. The following procedures apply to drying in a solar kiln. Publication describing virginia tech s solar kiln construction and operation 2000 board ft kiln plans pdf 16kb. Kiln drying of lumber requires some attention.

This is 2nd generation design that has been tested and produces good results.