Chapter 378 Problem Solving (1)

Xia Tian first estimated the orientation of the entire cave, observed the smoke-emitting points around the earthen kang, then touched the surrounding earthen walls, twisted the earthen clods with her fingers, and felt the sticky touch on her skin.

Si Ye came over, lowered his head and examined it with his hands. After a moment, he stood up from his half-squatting position. "Xia Xia, what do you think?"

Xia Tian tilted her head and said softly, "What do you think? Have you found anything?"

To be honest, regarding the idea of ​​building a kang, she just proposed it and then demonstrated it simply with tools. She didn't think about what problems would be encountered in the process, so now she just has some guesses and cannot be sure.

But Si Ye was actually in the cave, repairing the earthen kang with other people in the tribe, so he should have more say on this issue.

"This problem has never occurred in our family." Si Ye first confirmed that Xia Tian's suggestion itself was fine, and then put forward his own speculation, "Since there is no problem in our family, there are only two reasons. Either someone's method is wrong and it didn't work. Or... it's the problem with this cave itself."

He also felt it when he came in. Because it was a newly dug cave, the humidity in the cave was very high, obviously exceeding the normal living conditions, and it seemed as if there was a layer of water vapor everywhere.

The cave he and Xia Tian had lived in had been well ventilated for a long time, so it was dry enough and there was no problem of firewood not being able to burn.

It’s just that the people in the tribe are used to living a rough life, so even though they feel uncomfortable here and really want to move here as soon as possible, they don’t care too much.

However, it is difficult for firewood to continue burning when it is wet. Combined with the rough workmanship, the problems mentioned at the beginning arise.

"I agree with your guess." Xia Tiantian nodded. "First of all, the cave is too humid and the moisture is too heavy, so the firewood is not burning very well. My suggestion is to wait a few days before moving in, and then dry it inside and out to remove the moisture as soon as possible. Otherwise, living in such an environment for a long time will be harmful to your health."

This goal is easy to achieve, just wait a few days for good ventilation.

Just listening to Xia Tian's tone, it seems like there may be other reasons?

"Is there any other reason? Is ventilation enough?" everyone asked.

"The second reason is probably that the gaps in the earthen kang were not filled, causing smoke and dust to not escape through the vents and therefore flow back into the house."

Xia Tian raised her hand and touched the stone slab on the earthen kang. "Because the stone slab is irregular, there are many gaps of various sizes. If they are not filled, smoke will naturally leak out from these places. Oh, there is another detail you should pay attention to, which is that the fire inlet must be lower than the air outlet."

Because of the principle of thermal expansion and contraction, the air expands when heated and rises, and cold air is drawn in from below, forming a complete circulation system.

But if the upper and lower positions are reversed, the original vent is lower, but the firewood inlet, which is closer to the house, is lower, then the whole cycle will be reversed.

"As for how to solve this problem, it's also very simple. Just pay attention to the height relationship, then fill the gaps with moist soil, and then harden it over a fire."

(End of this chapter)