The Forestry Forum

Well I just bought a Nyle L53, and want to set up my kiln very soon.  So my intentions are to use a large walk in cooler (4" thick panels) as my insulated box.  I bought this large 30x16x8 cooler cheaper than I could build anything and the best part about it is that they are in 4' x8' sections so I can easily change the size of the kiln as needed (if I ever upgrade to bigger unit). My plan as of now is to make it 16x8x8.

Now the questions I have...

- The building I am putting this in has a gravel floor so I has going to build a HD wood insulated floor. does anyone see any issues with this?

-I'm not sure how I am going to build the doors yet but I would like to have atleast 12' opening as I plan to load and unload with my tractor. Any pics or ideas on how to do that?

- The cooler is lined with galvanized on both sides.  Should I proactively paint the inside with aluminum room coating or should I see how it will hold up prior making that mess (I know the stuff is a mess from my roofing days).

- I plan on using halogen lights for supplemental heat source, but was looking for a good option for fans.  I don't want to spend a crazy amount but I also don't want to keep replacing cheap ones.  Any good recommendations for fans?

- Anyone Else using walk in cooler for their insulated Box?


I know that's a lot but I'm trying to gather as much info as I can prior to building so I don't have to do it again.  Any other tip or tricks are welcomed

There are several problems with this.

Your chamber size is too big for the L53. Think 8x8x13 that is the maximum chamber size for a L53.

Yes, you do want to do an insulated floor, just make sure it has enough support for the load.

Galvanized is not a good idea in a kiln, coat it with the aluminized roofing paint and pay attention to when it needs to be redone.

The problem with refrigerator/freezer panels is that often the insulation can't take the heat and will break down from it. They are only made for cooling.

I also wondering about the heat thing but thought if I had to maybe I could line the inside with polystyrene. I'm not sure what else I could do if the foam doesn't hold up to the heat. I'm going to test it as best I can by putting halogen light next to it and see if it breaks down or not (obviously outside in a safe location in case of a fire). 

These are all good things to consider. It's not out of the possibility I build the kiln as per the manual but i is was trying to use this cooler as it would be faster cheaper and probably more air tight 

I doubt it will be air tight.  I have two walk ins and quality is not something they can boast about.  I suspect you will have a significant moisture migration problem into the foam.  On mine they are definitely not made of waterproof foam.