Building a drying cabinet for horse blankets

[Markus P]

This horse hobby... It feels like most of my construction projects lately have somehow been tied to my daughter's riding interest. So a hot tip to all you not yet lost fathers, if the horse discussion ever lands on your dinner table, use your veto! Or be prepared to set aside other projects for a long time to come.

That being said, there is now a need to dry large amounts of horse blankets. For hygiene reasons, we can't bring them into the house (they smell awful) and I don't have any other heated space to bring them into. However, we have plenty of cold storage, so an idea has slowly started forming around a homemade drying cabinet. The problem I'm facing now is material choice and drying technique, and I'd gladly receive tips on that. I'm thinking of a wooden frame (I feel most comfortable building with wood) with insulation of polystyrene or mineral wool, and drying as well as limited heating with the help of a cheap dehumidifier. The cabinet needs to have space for about 4 blankets and thus needs to be about 1.5-2m wide, about 1.5m high, and maybe 0.8m deep (just estimating for now). Will this be able to work? What do I need to consider? What I'm mostly pondering is the choice of material inside (it will be very humid) and whether I need ventilation or if the dehumidifier is enough to capture the moisture as water (which is then led out of the cabinet via a hose). Other thoughts or ideas?

Regards, Horse Dad

 

[Alexander Go]

This horse hobby... It feels like most of my construction projects lately have been somehow tied to my daughter's riding interest. So a hot tip to all you not yet lost fathers, if the horse discussion ever lands on your dinner table, use your veto! Or be prepared to set aside other projects for a long time to come.

That said, there has now arisen a need to dry large amounts of horse blankets. For hygienic reasons, we can't bring them into the house (they smell awful) and I have no other heated space to bring them into. However, we have plenty of cold storage, so an idea has slowly started to form around a homemade drying cabinet. The problem I'm facing now is the choice of materials and drying technique, and I would like to receive some tips on that. I'm thinking of a frame made of wood (I feel most comfortable building with wood) with insulation of polystyrene or mineral wool, and drying with limited heating using a cheap dehumidifier. The cabinet needs to hold about 4 blankets, so it needs to be about 1.5-2m wide, about 1.5m high, and maybe 0.8m deep (just estimating for now). Will this be able to work? What do I need to consider? What I am most wondering about is the choice of materials inside (it will be very humid) and whether I need ventilation or if the dehumidifier is enough to bind the moisture into water (which is then led out of the cabinet via a hose). Any other thoughts or ideas?

Best regards, Horse Dad

Did the drying cabinet happen?