wood storage question

[husky455rancher]

i have a small room under my sunroom its 9x9 i think. its blocked off with a door from my regular cellar. the only thing is it has a dirt floor. the rest of my cellar is cemented. now i have a tarp covering the floor in an effort to keep moisture down. do you think if i stored wood in there it would just suck up moisture with just a tarp on the ground? i was thinking of cementing the floor but im not sure what it would cost me to do it.


normally i just keep crap in there like kids toys and whatnot but i could stack a pretty fair amount of wood in there if i wanted to

 

[danrclem]

I believe I'd try some sheets of plastic. The tarp might let some moisture through.

 

[Mad Professor]

Put the wood on some pallets, lots of places give them away

 

[husky455rancher]

pallets i got no shortage of. i was just curious if enough moisture would come up in the room from the ground to soak into the wood. chances are im looking waay too far into this.

 

[excess650]

You could use pavers to cover the dirt, build a floor with pressure treated, or just go really cheap and use pallets.

 

[bore_pig]

If there is any air movement from the rest of the basement into the cellar I think you'd be okay.

 

[husky455rancher]

its totally secluded unless i leave the door open, only bad thisng about that it will make teh rest of the cellar colder. thats why i made the door in the first place.

 

[kevin j]

how about some venting to the outside world and leave the doors to the basement closed? not need much air changes, maybe a couple of small vents, one on each end wall or something.
otherwise I think it would get humid from wood moisture too.

k

 

[rburke65]

Well a space that is 9'x9' is 81 sq. foot and that equates to exactly a cubic yard of concrete at 4" thick. I don't know what it is going for around your area but here about $100, or so. Supplier will bang you extra for delivery for just one yard however.

 

[avalancher]

In the end, I think you might be happier with a concrete floor, makes clean up easier and will avoid any termites that might come up through the dirt looking for a meal. I dont know if termites are a concern where you are at, but here I would avoid putting any wood products right on the dirt close or in your home. The little rascals wont stop at the woodpile or the palets before they move on to your home.
If a concrete truck is out of the question, one yard is no big deal with a wheelbarrow and some bags of concrete. I poured the floor in our pump house with bags, its 8X8. An afternoons work.

 

[husky455rancher]

i thought about doing my own concrete with bags, how thick should i go? also anyone know how many bags i would need? and what kind of cement to get? i know theres a ton of different kinds, thanks

 

[avalancher]

i thought about doing my own concrete with bags, how thick should i go? also anyone know how many bags i would need? and what kind of cement to get? i know theres a ton of different kinds, thanks

If my calculations are correct (I think they are pretty close anyway)if you use the 80lb bags and pour a pad 9ft by 9ft 4 inches thick you will need 46 bags.
Quickcrete is the most common and one of the cheapest and found at any lowes, etc. You wont need the spendy 5000lb stuff to stack firewood on.
Lay a piece of plastic on the ground for a moisture barrier and pour the concrete on top of it.
You wont need any thicker than 4 inches, but it wouldnt hurt to lay some rebar or some wire mesh to strengthen the concrete to avoid cracks.

 

[NDtreehugger]

Sounds like a root cellar to me,

I would be hesitant to store wood in a cool damp environment.
You need to have circulation,
It would be better off storing the wood outside under a tarp with the sides flapping in the wind.