February 25. 1922 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



23 



ments himself, but he desires me to specify the best possible doors. 



There will be two cars in each kiln, and I am making the rooma 



16' wide by 18' deep. The cars will enter endwise and stand parallel. 



What kind of a door would you recommend for such kilns? 



Architect. 

 Answer to Question 6 



Your inquiry does not state whether these kilu doors will open 

 onto the inside of a building or will be located outdoors. If 

 expense must be closely considered this would make some differ- 

 ence. Our presumption is that these kilns are intended for the 

 drying of hardwoods, in which case the more air-tight these kilns 

 can be constructed the better results will they produce. This, of 

 course, applies with force to the doors, which should be made so 

 that they will retain indefinitely their original tightness in contact 

 with the sills, lintels and jambs. 



There is not a very great variety of door design applicable to 

 dry kiln use. For inside openings, protected from the weather, 

 canvas curtains may be used, if installed double, with about 

 12" air space between, and if proper and practical provision is 

 made to secure their side edges to the door jambs when in closed 

 position. For outside openings, exposed to the wind and rain, these 

 canvas curtains cannot be recommended, for reasons of operation 

 and of economy in maintenance, although their first cost is less 

 than any other form of dry kiln door. 



A better door, which can be made and kept reasonably air-tight, 

 if properly constructed and hung, is the so-called Hussey door. This 

 is a light but tight combination of cypress strips and asbestos 

 roofing board made full size of the opening, which it 

 must lap 2" at top and either side. Plans are usually 

 furnished by the makers of the hanging and operating 

 apparatus. When closed, this door is held suspended tight against 

 the lintel and the jambs by inclined slotted guides and hangers. 

 To open the door it is lifted from its supporting brackets by a simple, 

 one-man device, and its weight is transferred to a carriage run- 

 ning on a rail attached to the door lintels by brackets. 



Usually a small inspection door is located near the center of 

 the big door. This may be 24" wide by 36" high, rabetted to close 

 air tight. It is intended for the passage of the kiln operator. 



A still better door, from the standpoint of air-tightness, heat- 

 insulation and general durability is a hinged double door, built up 

 of three or four crossing layers of good, clear pine or cypress lum- 

 ber, on the refrigerating door principle, thoroughly painted before 

 assembly, and set into steel door frames of angle and Z-bar con- 

 struction. 



These doors are applicable only to kilns which employ endwise 

 piling of lumber, and the same cannot be used in connection with 

 cross-wise piling kilns, because for their proper installation and 

 working they require a 12" center pier between the two tracks and 

 a clear opening, at least 12" greater than the width of the pile of 

 lumber on each track, so as to provide 6" clearance on each side of 

 the lumber car when passing through the door. 



Special heavy hinges and heavy refrigerator door lever latches 

 are used. These latter must be arranged to open from inside as 

 well as the outside for safety of the operator. 



The right hand half of the right hand door of each kilu is 

 usually cut in two horizontally, so as to provide a smaller inspection- 

 door for the operator's passage. 



Metallic rolling doors have been used with considerable success. 

 These are air-tight and will withstand the weather and kiln mois- 

 ture if properly painted at regular intervals. This painting is 

 exceedingly necessary to the maintenance of any kiln door. 

 Metallic rolling doors preclude the possibility of a small inspection 

 opening, which is rather important, since the raising of the full 

 width door, if only for a short time, completely upsets the air con- 

 ditions within the kiln, and thus prevents the operator from obtain- 

 ing correct information of the temperature and humidity conditions 

 within the kiln. In this respect the Hussey door and the hinged 

 door, arranged as herein stated, are the most desirable. The opera- 

 tor can enter quickly and close the door behind him and thus realize 

 the actual conditions of the kiln. Xylos. 



High Humidity Dry Kiln 



The Modern Kiln Delivers 



a constant and uniform cir- 

 culation of automatically 

 humidified air with auto- 

 matic temperature control. 



And You Get 



quicker drying of entire 

 kiln charge — better qual- 

 ity throughout — greater 

 holding capacity. 



And You Can Dry Green 

 Lumber 



*^The Kiln with the Circulation You 

 Can Understand'^ 



HAVE YOU WRITTEN FOR YOUR 

 COPY OF OUR NEW CATALOGUE? 



Larijr 



the World Vr ' ; • . : 

 Molding Equipment 



Manufacture of Air 



B. F. STURTEVANT COMPANY 



HYDE PARK, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS 



Atlant.i, Ga., Boston, Mass., Chicago, III., New York, N. Y., 



Philadelphia, Pa., Rochester, N. Y., Seattle, Wash., 



San Francisco, Calif. 



