Tell me about your "Hot Box"

[msdeluca]

Painted the box and doors and am in the process of wiring it up.

Tested the fans and variable speed controls, they are working great.  This photo shows the thermostat being wired.

Thermostat barely fit the 3/4" material thickness, but it snapped into place.  All the wires are now pulled into the single-gang cut-in junction box.
Drilled a hole for the thermostat sensor on the right side.  It is that chrome pin to the right of the screwdriver about 6" up the right side.  I'll probably silicone it in place.

 

Write up and resources...

[msdeluca]

140º baby...!!!

I'll post up pics of the interior later.

 

Write up and resources...

[msdeluca]

I'm anxious to try this thing...!!!

 

 

Some testing results:

• Epoxy failed on the dowel rods.  Will try J-B Weld next.
• Shelves can't be removed without flexing or removing doors.  Will glue some extensions to the shelf cleats.
• Thermostat read out is consistent with oven thermometer.
• 120º F - 15 minutes
• 130º F - 22 minutes
• 140º F - 30 minutes
• Thermostat interval 140º to 137º - 2 minutes
• Reheat to 140º cut off - 3 minutes

I may change the cycle interval from 2 degrees to 5 degrees to reduce wear and tear on the thermostat.

Write up and resources...

[stu925]

On 10/10/2016 at 10:58 AM, msdeluca said:

I'm anxious to try this thing...!!!

 

 

Some testing results:

• Epoxy failed on the dowel rods.  Will try J-B Weld next.
• Shelves can't be removed without flexing or removing doors.  Will glue some extensions to the shelf cleats.
• Thermostat read out is consistent with oven thermometer.
• 120º F - 15 minutes
• 130º F - 22 minutes
• 140º F - 30 minutes
• Thermostat interval 140º to 137º - 2 minutes
• Reheat to 140º cut off - 3 minutes

I may change the cycle interval from 2 degrees to 5 degrees to reduce wear and tear on the thermostat.

Write up and resources...

That looks awesome.  Much more ambitious than anything I'll be building I think, although I would love to have one like it. 

[msdeluca]

Pegs kept failing...

Bought some 10-24 all thread, cut it into 6" lengths, covered them with heat shrink tubing, and capped them brake bleeder caps I had laying around.

Cannot fail now...

Write up and resources...

Edited October 25, 2016 by msdeluca

[Joon1911]

On 8/22/2016 at 5:07 AM, msdeluca said:

Updated the wiring schematic...  Added a couple of PWM variable fan speed controllers and figured out the wiring on the MH1210F thermostat...

 

Been following this thread with interest.  Now I've gotta build one.  

 

Didn't see the particular PWMs listed in your parts list.  Do you have a link for the particular one you use?   Also can you tell me what advantage adding the PWM in the mix does?   Thanks. 

[msdeluca]

17 hours ago, Joon1911 said:

Didn't see the particular PWMs listed in your parts list.  Do you have a link for the particular one you use?   Also can you tell me what advantage adding the PWM in the mix does?   Thanks. 

Added the PWM switches to the list.  These are used to control the speed of each cooling fan.  I wanted to be able to control the fan speed independently from the heat lamps.  Too much air flow will negate the heat being generated by the heat lamps.  These controls also have an off position which will allow either fan to be turned off if not needed.

[klaykrusher]

Well, finally had some time to tinker with this.  I just wanted to keep it real simple.  Picked up a 30x15x12" unfinished cabinet at Hone Depot and a couple 150w max utility lights and 2 100 watt bulbs.  Figured I would just start with the basics and see how it plays out. I decided to keep the cabinet on it's side to match my needs.  I cut a couple holes for the light fixtures and then used the spring clamp metal clips to hold the fixtures to the cabinet. 

With my room at about 70 degrees it took the 2 bulbs about 35 minutes to bring the interior up to 104 degrees.  That seems to be about the max temp.  I let it cool back down to 70, then used a heat gun to bring it back up to about 100.  That took a couple minutes, then the lights just maintained at 104 again.

Right now I'm good with the lights on top, but it will be easy to mount the cabinet on a wall and have them on the bottom, I can just switch the hinges for the door if it becomes a hassle.

Appreciate all the guidance in this thread and Lobo's HotBox thread. 

[electrathon]

On 10/10/2016 at 7:58 AM, msdeluca said:

I'm anxious to try this thing...!!!

 

 

Some testing results:

• Epoxy failed on the dowel rods.  Will try J-B Weld next.
• Shelves can't be removed without flexing or removing doors.  Will glue some extensions to the shelf cleats.
• Thermostat read out is consistent with oven thermometer.
• 120º F - 15 minutes
• 130º F - 22 minutes
• 140º F - 30 minutes
• Thermostat interval 140º to 137º - 2 minutes
• Reheat to 140º cut off - 3 minutes

I may change the cycle interval from 2 degrees to 5 degrees to reduce wear and tear on the thermostat.

Write up and resources...

What an absolute overbuild on such a simple project.  Good job, looks very nice.  Pushing things beyond is how we get better at doing exceptional work.

[msdeluca]

2 hours ago, klaykrusher said:

Well, finally had some time to tinker with this.  I just wanted to keep it real simple.  Picked up a 30x15x12" unfinished cabinet at Hone Depot and a couple 150w max utility lights and 2 100 watt bulbs.  Figured I would just start with the basics and see how it plays out. I decided to keep the cabinet on it's side to match my needs.  I cut a couple holes for the light fixtures and then used the spring clamp metal clips to hold the fixtures to the cabinet. 

With my room at about 70 degrees it took the 2 bulbs about 35 minutes to bring the interior up to 104 degrees.  That seems to be about the max temp.  I let it cool back down to 70, then used a heat gun to bring it back up to about 100.  That took a couple minutes, then the lights just maintained at 104 again.

Right now I'm good with the lights on top, but it will be easy to mount the cabinet on a wall and have them on the bottom, I can just switch the hinges for the door if it becomes a hassle.

Appreciate all the guidance in this thread and Lobo's HotBox thread. 

Looks good... I've found that the fans decrease the drying time significantly.

19 minutes ago, electrathon said:

What an absolute overbuild on such a simple project.  Good job, looks very nice.  Pushing things beyond is how we get better at doing exceptional work.

Lol... yeah, I know.  Part of it is the challenge and the other is the execution for me.  I enjoy this kind of crap.  You're right, it does make us better and I'm trying to bring the same trait to my leather work.