I need advice on choosing material for a stove.

[Sergey Ukraine]

I am planning to build a flue-curing kiln. It is still in the development stage. I am interested in choosing the material for the inner lining of the chamber, i.e., the material that will be in direct contact with the hot and humid air in the chamber. I also plan to use this chamber for kilning (>122°F to 128°F for 1 to 2 months, with humidity). I read your posts about ovens, but nowhere did I see any mention of what material was used. Perhaps the translator distorted the meaning of the sentence and I misunderstood. I would appreciate your advice!

 

[deluxestogie]

Both @Knucklehead's "exoskeletal" kiln and my "endoskeletal" kiln use wood for the framework, and 2-inch thick XPS foam board (extruded poly-styrene) for the wall structure. (Both are linked in our Index of Key Forum Threads.) That structure seems to be durable during both kilning and flue-curing temperatures and humidity.

Bob

 

[Sergey Ukraine]

Both @Knucklehead's "exoskeletal" kiln and my "endoskeletal" kiln use wood for the framework, and 2-inch thick XPS foam board (extruded poly-styrene) for the wall structure. (Both are linked in our Index of Key Forum Threads.) That structure seems to be durable during both kilning and flue-curing temperatures and humidity.

Bob

So, XPS foam board (extruded polystyrene) isn't covered with anything else? It doesn't give off any smell when heated?

 

[deluxestogie]

Correct. And I sealed the seams with Tyvek tape (which is not made of Tyvek, but is used to seal seams in sheets of Tyvek used in housing construction).

Before placing tobacco into the kiln, I brought it up to temperature for a couple of days, to outgas the materials, but really smelled nothing coming from it.

Bob

 

[Tuco The Ugly]

I have an old fridge that works great I’ve been using a few years.

 

[The Haroo ln]

I also use a big larder fridge to ferment my tobacco, but I'm more than sure that if you add some sort of ventilation to it, it can be used to flue cure. If you are going down the fridge route I would probably recommend a freezer as it would hold the temp for longer. The heat source wouldn't have to come on as often this way due to the insulation it already has

 

[Sergey Ukraine]

I also use a big larder fridge to ferment my tobacco, but I'm more than sure that if you add some sort of ventilation to it, it can be used to flue cure. If you are going down the fridge route I would probably recommend a freezer as it would hold the temp for longer. The heat source wouldn't have to come on as often this way due to the insulation it already has

I will build the oven entirely by myself, without using ready-made chambers or refrigerators.

 

[Knucklehead]

I will build the oven entirely by myself, without using ready-made chambers or refrigerators.

The 1x4 frame and polystyrene makes for a really lightweight unit with wheel castors. I used a bathroom exhaust fan (rated for humid areas) controlled by a ceiling fan controller for speed contol. A light dimmer is not rated to pull a fan and can be a fire hazard. I use a crock pot for heat and humidity with a temperature controller. A foam door seal helps to retain heat.

 

[The Haroo ln]

Then i would highly recommend @Knucklehead and @deluxestogie setup as they would be my alternatives to the fridge/freezer.

 

[Pasiasiainen]

@Sergey Ukraine - If interested, I can write a more detailed post of my custom kiln build that can be seen here with a short setup description: https://fairtradetobacco.com/thread...ny-advice-for-the-next-run.13273/#post-227684. Most of the ideas in my the kiln build are from FTT, so if you have read all the key threads about kiln builds, all info is available in those threads - a bit scattered though. I have been using my kiln for 2 months now and it has worked like a charm.

 

[Sergey Ukraine]

@Sergey Ukraine - If interested, I can write a more detailed post of my custom kiln build that can be seen here with a short setup description: https://fairtradetobacco.com/thread...ny-advice-for-the-next-run.13273/#post-227684. Most of the ideas in my the kiln build are from FTT, so if you have read all the key threads about kiln builds, all info is available in those threads - a bit scattered though. I have been using my kiln for 2 months now and it has worked like a charm.

Thank you. I have already come up with the design itself; all that remains is to choose the material and work out the finer details.

 

[Pasiasiainen]

Thank you. I have already come up with the design itself; all that remains is to choose the material and work out the finer details.

Excellent!

 

[GIL]

I built a leaf dryer with materials found around the house. It cost almost nothing, I ran it for almost a month, the fuel cost almost nothing. It has no fans, it is not connected to the electricity grid. I built it as a joke but it works beyond my expectations. Almost all of my harvest this year was dried this way. I don't have many pictures of it because I had no intention of making it public, but it is an idea worth considering.

 

[deluxestogie]

Color-curing vs. kilning vs. flue-curing.

Bob

 

[GIL]

Actually I didn't express myself well it is a flue curing installation, it works with wood fire. My harvest of 200 Virginia plants was processed with this. The only slightly unpleasant thing is that I had to wake up twice a night to make a fire.
It is not visible in the pictures but the foil is double, providing a small air chamber, over the entire surface, which acts as insulation.