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Curing Chamber from the box up My Build

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AmaxB

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I have spent a part of my day making another heater this one will go inside my chamber, I will be able to put it in or take it out at will. I will use it for yellowing and wilting only to start with until I know how it is going to work out.
My venting will run as normal but no out side heat for yellowing. I am trying to make it more efficient than it is, and get the heat in the chamber more uniform over all.....
If good I'll post the information about it....
 

DGBAMA

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Airflow and heat distributionis something i have been thinking a lot about too. Compared to "barns" where most of our baseline curing guidelines come from, our small enclosures and high load density present some unique challenges.
 

AmaxB

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You got that right DG...
For load 8 I'm going to create space between the walls and the tobacco to try to get even heat around the mass. The heater I made is like a flue I tested it but it did not glow inside had it hooked up to 110Vac was a little slow warming up. Tomorrow I'll hook it up to 220VAC and will ether fry it or crank it. Don't remember what the voltage was these things took they been laying around awhile. Am going with yet another hanging method to.
I saw a youtube vid the other day, this guy washed his tobacco in the sink than put it in this fancy chamber had the prettiest yellow leaf you could ever ask for - it was perfect. Tried to find the video again but couldn't....
 

workhorse_01

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Did he run it for the first couple of hours without the introduction of moisture? I can see that working fine as the heat source will try to strip the moisture from the leaf. We have different setups than the commercial guys, so some things that are no no's for barn cure's will work to our benefit. My chamber's heat source is inside at the top. It blows against the back wall. It has a wire rack at the back, about 2" off the wall, to keep the air circulation open, all the way to the bottom. It then pulls the heat up through the leaf. Your pvc idea will do the same thing.
I saw a youtube vid the other day, this guy washed his tobacco in the sink than put it in this fancy chamber had the prettiest yellow leaf you could ever ask for - it was perfect. Tried to find the video again but couldn't....
 

AmaxB

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That's the video, looked for it again last night could not find it. I read through the comments I think he is steaming it.
I figured out where I went wrong with the new heater, I think...
Yep need to think outside the box a little.
 

AmaxB

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Did he run it for the first couple of hours without the introduction of moisture? I can see that working fine as the heat source will try to strip the moisture from the leaf. We have different setups than the commercial guys, so some things that are no no's for barn cure's will work to our benefit. My chamber's heat source is inside at the top. It blows against the back wall. It has a wire rack at the back, about 2" off the wall, to keep the air circulation open, all the way to the bottom. It then pulls the heat up through the leaf. Your pvc idea will do the same thing.
I was thinking of heat top and bottom
 

workhorse_01

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Mine draws in at the fans, and blows toward the back and down. It blows through the humidifier pad to pick up moisture. Then the heat rises up and through the bacca. So far so good a very even cure.
I was thinking of heat top and bottom
 

AmaxB

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Am uploading a video when done I'll post it. Latest changes 12VDC fans, griddle heat, multimeter for Wet bulb & Dry Bulb improved air flow.
 

AmaxB

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The video with the changes, it is pretty damn stable in yellowing stage, and makes me think it will work out for drying....
.
 

AmaxB

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The circular air movement in the chamber has made a difference in yellowing if looking at the tobacco as a whole. Not counting the black sea I have in there (it is not a Flue Cure Variety). In prior runs I would get a degree of variation due to leaf thickness, stalk position, and flue cure variety. With the air flow moving constantly in a motion up one side and down the other of the chamber while keeping heat steady (a 3 degree difference top and bottom to no difference) with 89 to 98% humidity has yellowed much the same. I consider this a break through all this season I have been trying to get a uniform cure with out selecting leaves that are the same (near impossible to do). Also for the first time my stems are turning white and not staying green.
The way I am running the chamber is proving to be a good set-up. Meaning a flue cure can be achieved with a simple heat device, proper air flow, and humidity control. I believe the Cozy Can can be improved if air flow is applied.

An appropriate box for chamber, a dry heat device, a few fans, and manual venting can get you there with a few controls. The humidity while yellowing will be high at start and due to the heat device will slowly drop as yellowing progresses. There is no need for venting when yellowing. But there should be a way for water that will build up on the floor of the chamber to weep out. Venting will need to be done when drying the lamina and stems, this can be accomplished with 2 vents one on top and the other on the bottom of the chamber (they should seal well). The vent on the top should have a fan to draw air out and the vent on the bottom needs only to open.

The Keys: Humidity, Temperature, and Air Flow.
 

AmaxB

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I must add my goal is not and has never been to simply cure my tobacco and do it faster. A garage will work for that it is slower but there is no heartache.
It has been to achieve a real flue cure with real flue cure results.
 
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