ᐅ Clay bricks – Is drying with a construction dryer acceptable?

Hello everyone,

I came across this forum because I have a question regarding the drying of clay bricks.

Next to my house, I have an old wooden barn that I am converting. Part of it will become a small wine cellar. The interior dimensions of the wine cellar are approximately 2.3 x 1.8 m (7.5 x 5.9 ft) and it was built with facing bricks. The wine cellar has no windows, only the entrance opening for the door that will be installed later, with an opening size of 180 cm x 80 cm (71 inches x 31.5 inches).

The ceiling is made of old floorboards about 8 cm (3 inches) thick, and on top of that we applied about 5 cm (2 inches) of clay filling. The base of the wine cellar is a concrete slab, and on that we have now laid clay bricks (30 x 15 cm / 12 x 6 inches) with a thickness of 8 cm (3 inches).

Everything turned out great, but now I’m wondering about the drying of these clay bricks. I can’t provide good ventilation since there are no windows, only the door opening. At the moment, we have a construction dryer set up at the door opening, and the remaining opening is practically sealed with plastic sheeting.

Is this method okay? Is it possible that the clay bricks will dry too quickly and develop cracks? Should I rather skip the construction dryer and let the bricks dry naturally (but without ventilation)?

Thank you in advance for your expert advice.
Best regards, graebsch