Homemade kiln that everyone would like to own
Bob damstrom has built what is arguably the finest homemade kiln I have ever seen, the sheer genius of his system makes it look simple to build your own kiln.Click on the images to enlarge
Bob’s opreation
Bob’s system uses the wood waste generated by his sawmilling business to heat the kiln, he can dry 6000 BF of lumber in about 100 hours using only the waste from his woodmizer, the system was cheap to build and most of the lumber for it was cut on his sawmill, the basis for the system is a non pressurized boiler.
The boiler
This boiler consists of a firebox and water jacket, the fire heats the water which is circulated through a very large radiator 36 inches wide by almost 40 feet long
Heating radiator
The radiator is made out of heat tube which is easily available at many heating and plumbing suppliers
Heat tube
The hot water is circulated through the radiator with a small pump
Circulating pump
As you can see the boiler that powers this system is quite small so Bob intends to replace the boiler with a new one
New boiler
This boiler will be used to heat Bob’s house his kiln and his hot tub, the capacity is larger than his old one.
Fire box of Bob's new boiler
The kiln has a set of tracks just like the big kilns do
Tracks and door
The kiln can hold up to 7000 BF of lumber depending on the thickness of the boards
Inside the kiln
The kiln is fed air by 2 furnace blowers mounted to the wall
Furnace blower
Several circulating fans keep the air moving
Circulating fans
The walls are 8 inches thick made from laminated 2x8 cut on bobs woodmizer
Laminated wall
Over all this kiln represents the finest in ingenuity and craftsmanship, cheaply made and smartly designed, the kiln dries wood almost every day including the winter months when it often gets to 30 below.
Have a look at bobs site www.damstrom.com
Click here to view a thumbnail gallery and more pictures of Bob's kiln and his operation
