l53 exhaust vent

[Joey Grimes]

I've been looking at plans for my kiln chamber and I see the intake is on the back wall below the unit which is no problem but the exhaust is located on the opposite wall which I plan on using for my doors .I'm using a tractor to load so I need as much height as possible for my doors and I don't think it would be wise to cutout 10x10 opening in my door header!! My question is would it hurt performance of the kiln to to locate exhaust vent on one of the side walls? I am using a powered vent if that matters.

[Glenn1]

Hi Joey,

I have an L53 with the auto vent too.  I don't see a problem mounting it on a side wall  but keep it close to the doors.  You will want the intake and exhaust to be at opposite sides and ends of the kiln. 

An interesting sidenote is that Nyle had me place my exhaust below and to the side of the unit.  I think that the rationale is that the moist hot air will be exhausted rather than the dry air.  I guess that they have more than one way to skin the cat.  Stan at Nyle is a good source if you have specific questions.

Glenn

[GeneWengert-WoodDoc]

If the exhaust has a fan, then just about any location is ok.  In any case, the side wall is OK, as without a fan the circulating fans will make the vents work.

[WDH]

If you open the doors and look at the dehumidification unit at the back wall in the center, my intake vent is located on the left lower side wall about 2' back from the back wall.  The exhaust vent is located on the right side wall, high up, in the front, near the door, about 2' from the door.  Works great.   

[Joey Grimes]

On a 1000 bf load I will need to divide it up into 3 stacks my tractor handles 330 bf pretty good .If I use 3x3 bolsters between lumber packs how should I baffle between so I get similar air velocity to stickered lumber? Thanks everyone for your advice.

[YellowHammer]

I did the same thing before I got a higher capacity fork lift. Three packs, on three skids (an open bottom pallet) with chunks of 2 inch foam stuck between the runners to block airflow.  Works great. 
A note of caution when using thick bolsters.  Wide runners have too much contact surface and will cause sticker stain in some wood.  So 2x4's as pallet or skid runners seem to work the best. That's also why the pallet should not have bottom planks, too much contact surface with the top layer of the pack it is sitting on.   Nice thing is, loading, unloading, transporting, etc is a breeze when the lumber is stickered and put on the skids when it comes off the saw. 

[xlogger]

I use sometimes a junk layer of board on the top of a stack of wood (with stickers under) if I have room so the 4x4's or whatever you use over 1" does not hurt the good lumber. Only adds 2 more inches.

[GeneWengert-WoodDoc]

Blocking the bolster space is seldom done.  The benefit at low MCs is nil.  At higher MCs, very slight benefit overall.

The 3x3 (actual size is 3x3 but nominal is 4x4) often have several wide grooves in them to eliminate the risk of stain by letting air in the grooves...three grooves about 1/2" wide and 1/2" deep.