Figure 18. --Curing barn for Connecticut cigar binder. 

 Flue-curing (flue-cured types) 



Type of barn . Two types of barns are used for curing flue-cured tobacco, 

 the conventional barns and the more recently developed bulk curers. The con- 

 ventional barns are small and simply built (figs. 21 and 22). They are usually 

 square, with inside measurements 16, 20, or 24 feet, and contain tier poles 

 spaced about 4 feet apart. The vertical spacing is about 26 inches. The 

 barns have solid walls and ventilation is provided at the top and around the 

 bottom. 



Formerly, all flue-curing barns were heated with wood-fired furnaces of 

 stone or brick built partly outside the barn at ground level. Metal flues 

 from the furnace extended around the floor of the barn radiating heat for cur- 

 ing the tobacco. The next development was oil-fired furnaces to replace wood. 

 Most conventional barns now use oil-burning heaters or open-flame gas heaters 

 located inside the barn. 



Flue-cured growers are converting to the "bulk curing" system. The cur- 

 ing barn is a specially constructed building (fig. 20) with built-in devices 

 for more precise temperature, humidity, and ventilation control. The curing 

 procedure is the same as in the old barns except that fans are used to force 

 the heated air through the tobacco which is very closely spaced on special 

 meta 1 racks instead of sticks. As mechanical harvesting machines are per- 

 fected, bulk curers will replace the conventional barns. 



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