Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1873-12-12
The New Dry House Of Bronsons, Weston, Greene
COMPANY.
IMPROVEMENTS IN DRYING LUMBER. - TIL
CHICAGO DRIER.

The New Dry House Of Bronsons, Weston, Greene
4 Company.
IMPROVEMENTS IN DRYING LUMBER - THE
CHICAGO DRIER.
We visited yesterday the new playhouse
or kiln for drying lumber, just erected by
Bronsons, Weston. Greene L Co, and as 1t
is novelty in its line in this part of the
country, and possesses important adyant-
ages over ordinary kilns, 4 description of
it will interest our readers.
All who know anything about lumber
are aware that it must be dried before 1t
can be planed by machinery and ia pro
portion to the perfection of the process OF
drying, other things being equal. will be
the perfection of the planning, and value OF
the dressed article Lumber dealers have
heretofore depended largely on the Amos
phere to dry their lumber. This involves
keeping the sawed lumber piled in the
yards for six months or more, during
which the wind and sun gradually extract
the moisture. of late years, where more
speedy drying became necessary, or where
the lumber, As that uSel in making mould
Ings, required to be isolutely dry, arti-
fetal heat has been used. The best kins
heretofore constructed for this purpose,
some of which we have described in previous
articles, have been tight rooms or compart-
ments, heated by a series Of steam pipes,
laid across the bottom, over which the
lumber is piled In this arrangement, the
heat is of course unequally applied to the
| lumber. the boards nearest the pipes being
| heated the most 1t is also a long process,
occupying weeks, as the moisture expelled
| from the wood remains in the air of the
dry-room and is only gradually dissipated.
In March. 1872, Mr.. f. j Sumner of Chi
cago, patented an improved kiln, known As
the " Chicago Drier." which IS superseding
all other kinds in that great lumber mart,
and the use Of which is extending through
out the country.
Messrs. BronsonS. Weston Greene i Cos.
new dry house, is of this pattern.
1t is situated few feet north Of their
large planning mill Its dimensions are 30
by - feet with three tall wooden chimneys
sixty-iye feet high. The house is in two
compartments, each exactly alike. Each
of these is closed at the ends by broad
doors, which rise. in grooves. when requir-
cd, being balanced by weights, and throw
open the whole end Of the compartments.
Each compartment is simply long room
| with a railway track through the centre.
No sign ofany steam pipe or heater appears
in the room. The heaters are beneath the
floor and are Of the usual arrangement, con
sisting of 10 600 feet of wrought iron pipe,
arranged in rows foot or 80 apart. The
outer air is admitted to thel heaters at one
end, and passes under the kiln becoming
strongly heated by the steam pipes in lis
passage) to the other end, when it rises
through trap doors into the compartment,
and passes back through the whole length
Of it, to the chimneys, through which it
rises and is discharged at the top.
The process OF drying is as follows The
Lumber l. loaded at tie end Of the dry
house, on low cars. which stand ON plat
forms At the end Of the dry house When
a car Is loaded the door is raised, and the
car runs 10y its own weight, the track being
little inclined, to the other end of the
compartment. Another loaded ear follows
it, and another, till Ten cars, carrying i5,-
600 feet Of lumber, have been run into each
] v.1o h., -
draft Of the chimneys the heated air is then
drawn through the whole, and out at the
chimneys, carrying with il the moisture ex-
tracted from the lumber. of course the car
loads at the further end. where the heated
air Is admitted at temperature Of lsn
degrees, dry first, when the doors at that
end are raised and they are run ont, giving
place for new carloads at the other end.
Under this arrangement, the process Of
drying in each carload begins at a moder-
ate heat. and a. the car moves down the
compartment the temperature gradually in
crcases. till At last the fall heat of l-O
degrees is applied. ~ consequence, the
drying j. not only very rapid, but is con-
Quoted without any checking or injury
10 the lumber We saw lumber passing
through the planners which had been thor
oughly dried in Is hours. And Mr.. Greene
informed Us that they had passed through
lot Of rather ''>haky'' stuff, which il an
ordinary kiln would have been badly checked
in drying, which came ont no Shaker than
it went in
Lumber men and their customer Will APP
preciate the advantages of this w. n. the
saving Of the heavy amount of capital
represented by stock Of lumber which
? mus, take six months to dry, in the
yard. is of course very great item
Then the advantage of being able to fll at
short notice, orders for kiln-iried lumber,
to almost any amount is an important one.
The dry-house We have been describing, viii
, turn out with ca-e thirty thousand feet of
dry lumber day With the various labor-
, saving appliances used, the drying isa very
: cheap process, Toy this patent II amounts,
indeed, to little more than the cost Of hand
ling the lumber. Either exhaust or direct
: steam may he used Mes,rs. Brou~ons.
Weston, Greene 4 Co. uss live steam
from their boilers bat Mr.. Greene informs
, Us that it does not appreeiably increase the
, amount Of fuel they consume The danger
from fire is reduced to the lowest point, a.
there is no Ere about the house, and no hea
greater than the boiling point Of water
; All in all, this invention seems to be very
valuable one for lumber men.
The dry-hou>e has been erected under th,
Z capable supervision of Mr.. r. } Rundcll
- agent for the patentee, and being one Of tn,
last erected, We presume it is one of tn,
best in existence.
Personal.
/ Mr.. q. G. Bromley, formerly night clerI
at the American Hotel. and for two year
Das1 the successful travelling agent f,r III,