About

Meet the designer…

My name is Kyle Van Horn. I designed the Paper Drying Box, and will build one for you. When I set out to create a drying box for handmade paper, I had a number of design requirements in mind. It needed to dry paper as quickly and flatly as possible. I wanted it to turn itself off after the set amount of time, to keep a minimum footprint, be mobile if needed, and simple and intuitive to use.

Since we started, I’ve watched these boxes put to use in a college-level studio setting. Undergraduate art students are a special kind of stress test, and their equipment needs to be robust and intuitive. If a design can survive this, it is probably good enough for the real world too. In one particular case study, I’ve watched 5 drying boxes running in a paper and printmaking department for more than 6 years. At that one school, after hundreds of students and thousands of running hours, all are going strong with very little or no maintenance.

Specs:

Our Standard Box holds a 24” x 32” corrugated cardboard sheet. This will conveniently fit a full 22x30” sheet of fine art paper, or multiple smaller sheets or prints. The box itself measures 35” wide, 37” deep and 48” tall. It should just fit through a standard 36” doorway, but it would be smart to measure yours.* They roll easily on double-locking casters, which will lock firmly and provide stability when you need it.

When shipping freight, the crate will measure approximately 42” x 42” and 56” tall. Be sure this will fit through your doorways, or be prepared to open your crate outside on the street.

The boxes run on standard 110v electricity and have a built in fuse for added safety in a wet studio. The fan motors also have thermal protective fuses which automatically turn off in the event of overheating.

*If size accommodations are a concern, our Standard Box can fit though a 31” doorway if you’re willing to temporarily remove the fan. This is a simple task and can be done with 2 screwdrivers in 10 minutes or less.

Useful for:

This drying system is intended to dry water-wet paper. It was designed for use in a papermaking studio to dry wet sheets after pressing, and is also very useful in drying damp intaglio prints and cyanotypes, or for use in a conservation lab. It quickly pulls moisture out of the paper fibers, allowing it to dry while restrained within the stack of corrugated board. Cotton blotters are not included, but are recommended to extend the life of your corrugated boards, and to provide a smoother drying surface for your paper. These blotters will also provide a buffer between your paper and the acidic, non-archival corrugated board. With time, usually many years of use, the corrugated boards will lose flatness and wrinkle, and will need to be replaced. Being careful to press your sheets well before drying will prolong the life of the corrugated cardboard.

If archival needs are a strong concern, acid-free, archival corrugated board can be purchased from other sources to instead the standard brown corrugated board that we provide.

Please note: This drying system is not useful for drying acrylic- or oil-based inks, and will not speed the drying time of lithographs, relief prints, screenprints, etc. Furthermore, when intaglio prints are dried in this system, only the paper will dry quickly. The ink may remain uncured for another few days.