Which Kiln - Drying milled boards

[arboriculturist]

Milling as we know is the easy part, selling the product is the issue and there are many, many millers on here who realise if they could force dry their milled timber it would be far more marketable. Several generations exist where the 'go to' is 'kiln dried'.

 

I think as there is plenty of space here I would follow Big J's example and buy a 20ft shipping container, insulate the outside, profile sheet roof and provide the heat source from 25/  250w solar panels I have here not utilised.

 

Still thinking there will be a lot of research needed to design the internal layout, plus calculate an average drying schedule and humidity control.

 

Others may disagree, however why are all the commercial setups so dependent on computer controlled drying / humidity control schedules ?

 

If anyone running a similar setup would like to put forward suggestions I am sure they would be very welcome. ?

[Rough Hewn]

It's not a simple build it and go.
Different species, thickness, grain, character...........etc
All have different drying preferences.
[emoji106]

[arboriculturist]

2 hours ago, Rough Hewn said:

It's not a simple build it and go.
Different species, thickness, grain, character...........etc
All have different drying preferences.

100% agree - which is why my post said - all the commercial setups so dependent on computer controlled drying / humidity control schedules.

 

There are hundreds of people all over the country who force dry wood, so there is a strong possibility that a lot of timber gets totally ruined unintentionally, which is why I posted.

 

I am sure there of those on here with a wealth of experience who will comment in time. ?

[Forest2Furniture]

42 minutes ago, arboriculturist said:

I am sure there of those on here with a wealth of experience who will comment in time. ?

And inexperienced!

[CDMR]

Only air drying slowly then finishing in the kiln slowly works for everything. The big commercial set-ups are about putting big batches through quickly so they can hone in on an optimum balance between speed and quality. If you are producing specialist timber you can't realistically go through this process.

 

The other issue that gets forgotten is that kiln dried timber is only kiln dried when  it comes out of the kiln. If you store it anywhere other than in house like conditions it will soon go back to an air died moisture content again. If you have a large stock that could get pretty pricey. 

 

You could be better off offering all your timber air dried and then offering a 'finishing' service of kiln drying it where required.

[arboriculturist]

3 hours ago, CDMR said:

Only air drying slowly then finishing in the kiln slowly works for everything. The big commercial set-ups are about putting big batches through quickly so they can hone in on an optimum balance between speed and quality. If you are producing specialist timber you can't realistically go through this process.

 

The other issue that gets forgotten is that kiln dried timber is only kiln dried when  it comes out of the kiln. If you store it anywhere other than in house like conditions it will soon go back to an air died moisture content again. If you have a large stock that could get pretty pricey. 

 

You could be better off offering all your timber air dried and then offering a 'finishing' service of kiln drying it where required.

Thanks for the generous advice.

 

Yes, my plan with my solar array was long and slow especially in Winter,  when even my 25 - 30 panels wont be producing many Kw.  

 

Loving your Website !?

[pie eater pete]

My plan for this season is shipping container heated with woodburner fed with softwood. ?