DIY Dehumidification Kiln Build

Here is my diy dehumidification wood kiln. I built it to dry lumber that I mill with my chainsaw mill. I did skip over a large amount of the building process. I only did this because I was only building a box with 2x4's and OSB sheathing. I then insulated it with 1.5" insulation. If you do have any questions on the construction feel free to ask.

When I started doing research before this build I was surprised how little information there was out there to help people build one of these. There is a wealth of information for solar kilns, but very little for a dehumidification kiln. I hope this video will help you if your planning on building one of your own.

Here are links to the moisture meter and thermometer I purchased.

Samshow Hygrometer Thermometer

Dr. Meter Pinless Moisture Meter

Thank you for watching! If you like this video don't forget to subscribe and like this video.

[bobfalk]

I built a similar sterilization kiln (4x4x10), however I used surplus 3" foam insulation as a box (no OSB and only a few 2x4's to support the roof). Temperature inside the box gets up 140F using only the heat from the running dehumidifier. No heater (potential fire hazard!) needed.

[edsmith]

I scaled this up to a 1, 000bdft kiln and use an old 22k BTU window AC unit to run it. Works great.

[johnkelly]

I'm getting ready to build a kiln, I really like your design, going to.model mine after yours. Was the space heater sufficient? How did the kiln work?

[RisaldiWidyatama]

Hey, My name Risaldi. I'm 19 years old from Indonesia. How long you are get result with MC 12%.

[mohsinali]

What do you think that for industrial use whic system is good steam or deuhumdifer?

[rickcichon]

Ken, I did this for a couple years. The dehumidifiers in the beginning were easy to bypass the high temp shutoff. Now they all seem to be computerized. I kept my kiln at 110°'-120°until no more water came out, then would get the temp up to 135°-140° for 12 hours to kill any bugs. Is there a dehumidifier that will take those temps?

[IntoTheDirtshop]

Have you had any issues with the dehumidifier or the heat fan running in a "wet" environment? what temperature would you guess that kiln is?

[seibert]

Hey Ken,
I'm setting up a small kiln like this, and i'm having issues with my dehumidifier - it won't run if the humidity is too low, and lately it isn't collecting any water at all. I bought another one, and its having similar issues. Do you have any recommendations for getting this to work, or humidifiers that just run without all the circuitry getting in the way?

[pcguides]

Thanks for the video I have been looking for something like this. How well does it work? and about how long does it take to dry lumber?

[shawnmchenry]

$250 for materials???!!! oh wait this it from 2017... that makes sense. 2022 this is gonna be more like $750