Robert Lewis of Kapowsin, Washington took it to the next level and created drying cabinets and began his company SGGWoodworks.
Rob came up with the idea because his wife has food allergies. Because of chemicals that are put in food, an allergic reaction could put her in the hospital for a week. They grew a garden during the summer and needed a way to dry what they harvested from it. His wife uses the cabinet to dry fruits and vegetables to make trail mix also.
He used his knowledge of farming to come up with the idea for the cabinet. He states that "if you're harvesting a damp crop you put the grain in a wooden bin. The same holds true for my drying cabinet, I make them out of wood with air circulation inside a sealed cabinet and it will dry and cure whatever you want to dry better than any of those plastic contraptions. Nothing will ever dry and cure the way wood does, nothing."
Rob is actually in heavy construction and has begun this business part time on the side. After 30 years of heavy equipment, he is hoping to one day build these cabinets full time. "It seems that when you are younger you feel you are invincible, but as I get older, I feel every bump and bruise from those younger years in my bones today."
Custom Drying Cabinet
Rob and his wife, Ronnie work hand in hand. She is in charge of screening the shelves, sanding and putting the finish on the outside of the cabinet. Rob does all of the cutting the wood and assembling the cabinets.
On the web site one standard size is offered. Rob tried to find the perfect size that most people would find useful. He is more than willing to custom build cabinets in any size to fit your needs.
The first prototype he made for his wife he refers to as a monster: it weighed a ton. At the time he built it he couldn't afford to go to the lumber yard and buy the wood, but there were places out there that put out free wood for the taking. Most people use it in their fireplaces, but he was able to find enough larger scraps and got the cabinet made. He then robbed the fan out of an old milk house heater, for air circulation. "This thing was UGLY, I had to put caster wheels on it and it took the both of us pushing on it to get it moved, BUT my design was flawless, and it worked beautifully." He has since come up with a way of using his design with quality lumber to develop a beautifully working drying cabinet that is no longer hard on the eyes.
If you're a gardener wanting to dry your fruits and vegetables, or a florist making dried floral arrangements, he can build a cabinet to fit your needs. Maybe you’re a Botanist out in the field who finds that flower or plant that's never been discovered before, and wants to start it drying as soon as it is plucked. He can build a cabinet that sits in your vehicle and the fan runs on 12 volt battery instead of house current.
Rob has more ideas in the works. He is considering a design for a flameless burner to go into the bottom of the cabinet, which it then could be used as a meat smoker. He is also toying with the idea of jewelry boxes and even worked out a design for an efficient solar collector system. "There's always some kind of idea rattling in my head."
This is how so many companies begin. Our crafts are a valuable resource. If you would like to share your original idea, write me at crafts@suite101.com.
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