iDRY Vacuum Kilns

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can you start a Nyle L200 in a cold environment?

Started by jimbarry, February 03, 2020, 01:51:13 PM

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jimbarry

a couple pics.

update on controller;



 

Here's the loop I put in place.



 

Here's the drain outdoors, wrapped in pipe insulation.



 

This is the man door, note the moisture wicking along the left side.



 

jimbarry

update 3:30 pm day 2

No draining occurring. I turned the heat back on as per K-Guy indicating it would not matter it was on or off.



 

I took the screen on the intake and its bone dry in there.




 

Should I be concerned at this point that something is not working?


YellowHammer

Quote from: K-Guy on February 05, 2020, 09:30:58 AM
On the L53 only one can run at a time due to the power restriction placed by using a 15 amp circuit.
 
I didn't know it was different on the L200, so at the risk of being wrong the second time this year, then I would say that if there is water dripping out of the door from condensation moisture, then, yes, there is a problem if the unit is calling for the compressor to run and there is no condensation on the coil.
Reach in and put you hand on the coil in the picture.  Is it cool but not cold to the to the touch?  Is the compressor actually running?  Is the low pressure line cold?  How old is the unit?
  
YellowHammerisms:

Take steps to save steps.

If it won't roll, its not a log; it's still a tree.  Sawmills cut logs, not trees.

Kiln drying wood: When the cookies are burned, they're burned, and you can't fix them.

Sawing is fun for the first couple million boards.

Be smarter than the sawdust

jimbarry

Quote from: YellowHammer on February 05, 2020, 02:57:42 PM
Quote from: K-Guy on February 05, 2020, 09:30:58 AM
On the L53 only one can run at a time due to the power restriction placed by using a 15 amp circuit.

I didn't know it was different on the L200, so at the risk of being wrong the second time this year, then I would say that if there is water dripping out of the door from condensation moisture, then, yes, there is a problem if the unit is calling for the compressor to run and there is no condensation on the coil.
Reach in and put you hand on the coil in the picture.  Is it cool but not cold to the to the touch?  Is the compressor actually running?  Is the low pressure line cold?  How old is the unit?
 
Fins are very warm. Whether or not the compressor is actually running, I can't tell, other than the fan on top is on and blowing air. Where is the low pressure line? Other side of the machine behind the large panel?
Its a new unit bought from Stan in Dec 2017. It took us all of last year to get the bldg built. This is my first run with the machine.

jimbarry

Hi Stan, 

Thanks for the phone call. I followed you advice and reset the compressor. This is the button I depressed as per your instructions.





 

jimbarry

So what would be next to consider? Its been an hour since resetting that button and no change in the unit. Fins are still really warm.



 

YellowHammer

So the line with the foam is the low pressure side, it will be frosty cold if the compressor is operating properly.  

There are a couple options to consider, but I assume it's still under warranty so it's best to let Stan help with the troubleshooting.

It could be wired wrong, or it could be out of Freon and if so, then the low pressure safety switch will be tripped and open.  Thats the little round thing with the blue wires coming from it, on the line with the foam sleeve.

If the Freon is low, and the switch is behaving correctly and preventing the unit from running, the switch will read open circuit.  You can trace those two blue wires to the terminal block, and see if it reads an open circuit across them.  If so then you are most likely low on Freon.  

All this assumes the controller is behaving correctly.  

Stan also can help trace the proper voltages
YellowHammerisms:

Take steps to save steps.

If it won't roll, its not a log; it's still a tree.  Sawmills cut logs, not trees.

Kiln drying wood: When the cookies are burned, they're burned, and you can't fix them.

Sawing is fun for the first couple million boards.

Be smarter than the sawdust

jimbarry

From 8 pm last evening and the last report, to this morning's check in, the controller is showing about a 10ºF drop in temp. That would be because I turned off the heat last evening and just left the unit and the three fans running. No drainage overnight. Waiting to call Stan to review Yellowhammer's suggestions and anything else. 

Here's the status this morning.



 

On the bright side, its surprising how little electricity the kiln is using. I thought it would be a lot more.

Escavader

I use an oil burner and steam boiler to get up to temp .3 of my kilns hold 15000 feet one hols 18000 .the lumber in the winter is frozen ice covered popsicles.usually 2 hrs tops to thaw and get to temp.my older units have seperate switches .just system ,heat ,fans ,and steam.once up above 70 i start compressor and vents.vents open at 95 degrees.at end of drying i shut off compressor and vents,use steam to bring it to 160 ish to set pitch at that temp and condition and equalize mc.

Alan Bickford
Hammond lumber company/Yates American A20 planer with dbl profilers Newman feed table multiple saw trimmer destacker automatic stacking machine Baker resaw MS log corner machine  4 large capacity Nyles dehumidification kilns JCB 8000 lb forklifts woodmizer lt 15 and mp100 and blower

jimbarry

Many many thanks to Stan at Nyle for helping us through this initial stage. The reason the compressor was not engaging was due to a issue with the timer in the controller.



 

So that's now been replaced and I fired up the kiln yesterday afternoon about 3 pm. Temp in the kiln was about 35ºF.



 

This morning about 10 am the temp was up enough to trigger the compressor.



 


Water is now dripping from the drain.

20200224 kiln drying firewood - YouTube



jimbarry

Attached is a spreadsheet for this run of firewood. Just about 30 hrs. One thing I am wondering about is why is the average probe MC reading climbing over the last 6 hrs or so?

jimbarry

5 days and we're done. MC to 20%. On the 4th day we experienced a 12 hr power outage due to high winds in the area. 

The hardwood we've had has consistently weighed in or around 1,730 kg for a full cord, split and stacked. The kiln dried firewood tipped the scales at 1,430kg. A 300 kg difference equates to 300 liters of water. That equivalent to filling one standard sized bath tub.

Its been a great learning experience. I have a lot more confidence in my abilities to do this. I would like to thank some of the guys on this forum. 

Without hesitation, a special acknowledgement to Stan (K-Guy) whose technical understanding of his product and his patience in working with a newbie like me. I had a lot of questions :)

Here's a video of the unloading process.

20200229 unloading kiln dried firewood - YouTube


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