Air Drying Rack and Time

[kirkdb]

I need to super simple ideas for a drying rack (the snowmobile trailer isn’t cutting it). I have no even ground or concrete. My thought was cinder block “rows” 18-24” on center To support up to 12ft boards. Stickers on top of the block and up from there. Any better ideas?

Also, for pine / dug fir is 24” sticker spacing good or do I need to go 18”?

I know the standard is 1yr per inch of thickness And I have ordered a moisture meter. That said, in Colorado at elevation of 10k ft, will it really take that long? We are pretty dry here. I’ve cut 2” slabs. I’d be surprised if it took 2yrs.

What is the minimum dryness I should achieve before I use the lumber for things like joists, picnic tables, workbench etc. No furniture, just functional use.

Is spraying with borax a good idea? We have beetles and ants galore. If so, what ratio per gallons of water?

Thanks!

Kirk

 

[Mad Professor]

I mill up 6 X 6 or 6 X 8" beams, Support those on concrete blocks. First row of "stickers" are 4 X 4" ~ every 18" .

 

[kirkdb]

I mill up 6 X 6 or 6 X 8" beams, Support those on concrete blocks. First row of "stickers" are 4 X 4" ~ every 18" .

Wow. A 4x4 sticker. So are your 6x6s parallel to the lumber I’m guessing?

 

[Mad Professor]

Wow. A 4x4 sticker. So are your 6x6s parallel to the lumber I’m guessing?

Yes. The beams make the stack even length wise. Use a level and boards to check both beams are in same plane. The 4X hold the weight of the whole stack.

Here is an old settled stack where the beams were on bricks. Fall time and leaves have filled in around beams. Bottom row is 12'

 

[BobL]

Lots of variables to consider.
When tree was felled and conditions under which logs are stored, Type/size of tree
How/where the timber is stored.
The exposure to prevailing winds/sunlight etc

Here in Western Oz timber our summers are very dry ( average Humidity <40% MC, Denver's seems to be ~ 50% all year round)
My experience is that I need just one summer for most 1" thick timber to air dry (protected from direct sun, loosely covered, outside) to around 12-14% MC. 2" timber takes 2 summers. If I mill at the end of one winter I find I can use the timber after about 18 months.

This can be speeded up (by as much as halving teh time) by putting the timber inside my vented sea container or shop which get pretty hot doing summer. However I then run the risk of greater warping/checking but pushing it is not so bad if you have surplus timber to play with

As an example is these Norfolk Island pines - the log I used was was felled about 2 years ago but was still wringing well >36% MC

Milled in Jan 2022 into 1 1/4" and 2" boards.


Stored in my shop from Jan-April. (most of summer and fal) these are the hottest months of our year.
By then MC was down to 16% for the 1 1/4 and 18% on the 2"

About 1/3rd was lost to warping bending etc but by May I had made this craft desk for my grandson.

The construction uses draw/pull bolts so if the frame dries/loosens up a little more - just tighten the bolts.
I don't usually do things this quickly but this one was a special case.

 

[kirkdb]

Yes. The beams make the stack even length wise. Use a level and boards to check both beams are in same plane. The 4X hold the weight of the whole stack.

Here is an old settled stack where the beams were on bricks. Fall time and leaves have filled in around beams. Bottom row is 12'View attachment 1003240

Did you use freshly mill 6x6s? I’m guessing that wouldn’t be to much of an issue?

 

[kirkdb]

Lots of variables to consider.
When tree was felled and conditions under which logs are stored, Type/size of tree
How/where the timber is stored.
The exposure to prevailing winds/sunlight etc

Here in Western Oz timber our summers are very dry ( average Humidity <40% MC, Denver's seems to be ~ 50% all year round)
My experience is that I need just one summer for most 1" thick timber to air dry (protected from direct sun, loosely covered, outside) to around 12-14% MC. 2" timber takes 2 summers. If I mill at the end of one winter I find I can use the timber after about 18 months.

This can be speeded up (by as much as halving teh time) by putting the timber inside my vented sea container or shop which get pretty hot doing summer. However I then run the risk of greater warping/checking but pushing it is not so bad if you have surplus timber to play with

I read an article where a guy milled and tested lumber from a log that had been felled 3yrs prior vs a log that had been felled that week. Both were similar in MC. Seems unlikely but then what do I know!

Beautiful desk by the way and from your own lumber. I’m quickly getting addicted to the idea of milling. How many people in the western world can say they felled a tree, milled it, and turned it into something functional? Not too many. Good on all of you. I’m … I guess … two years from saying it myself.

We are decently far from Denver. Further southwest near a town called Cimarron. Seems like we are closer to your conditions.




So … for something less decorative … say side rails for a trailer or a quick workbench or saw bourse, what MC would you hold out for? I see these guys that mill it and use it same day. I don’t want to be “that guy” but I also don’t want to hold out for 7% MC … unless absolutely necessary.

 

[BobL]

I read an article where a guy milled and tested lumber from a log that had been felled 3yrs prior vs a log that had been felled that week. Both were similar in MC. Seems unlikely but then what do I know!

Beautiful desk by the way and from your own lumber. I’m quickly getting addicted to the idea of milling. How many people in the western world can say they felled a tree, milled it, and turned it into something functional? Not too many. Good on all of you. I’m … I guess … two years from saying it myself.

Thanks. Can do slightly better. 44 years ago we moved into our current home and we are still there. We've been away to US, Japan and Europe for periods up to 2+ years but always retained the house and now we are retired so my guess is they'll carry me out in a box from it..

A year of so after we moved into the house we planted 6 x 50c Eucalypts. 20 years after this we did a renovation and unfortunately all the trees were in the way so had to come down.By then several had reached 18+" in diameter and one was milled and the slabs put under the house (most are still there). In 2011 I renovated and enlarged my shop and for some quick and dirty storage I scavenged 2 lab cupboards from a skip at work and they needed bench tops so I grabbed some of the slabs from under the house and did this.

They are still there.

We are decently far from Denver. Further southwest near a town called Cimarron. Seems like we are closer to your conditions.

yes looks similar.

So … for something less decorative … say side rails for a trailer or a quick workbench or saw bourse, what MC would you hold out for? I see these guys that mill it and use it same day. I don’t want to be “that guy” but I also don’t want to hold out for 7% MC … unless absolutely necessary.

I reckon with a bit of care a summer for 2" thick is not unreasonable although my preference would be two summers.
For 1" you could halve that.

 

[JRM]

I think desired moisture content largely depends on whether the material will be used indoors or outdoors. I store my lumber in a corner of my greenhouse. It speeds up the process through the cold winter months by taking advantage of the limited sunlight warming the space.

 

[kirkdb]

I think desired moisture content largely depends on whether the material will be used indoors or outdoors. I store my lumber in a corner of my greenhouse. It speeds up the process through the cold winter months by taking advantage of the limited sunlight warming the space.

That brings up an interesting challenge for me. We are at 9,400ft elevation here in CO. We get a snow cap between 6ft-10ft. We are in AZ during the winter. My simpleton mind figured I’d just cover everything in a tarp during the winter. Now I’m wondering if the ground freezing will tweak any “platform” I build for stacking wood. Ground stays pretty well frozen for 4-5 months. Maybe I’m over thinking this but don’t want to go through the effort and time to end up with big box twisters.

Eventually, I’ll have a garage/shop and that will solve most of my issues. However, or cabin is priority #1 and we are holding off on that until the world gets back to normalcy. So, the shop is likely 4 years out. I may consider a make shift solar kiln at some point but not this year.

 

[JRM]

I don't think storing them outside is a problem other than having to keep the snow swept off the stack and likely taking longer to dry. We average 100 inches of snowfall annually here too and I have seen people stack outdoors.

 

[BobL]

That brings up an interesting challenge for me. We are at 9,400ft elevation here in CO. We get a snow cap between 6ft-10ft. We are in AZ during the winter. My simpleton mind figured I’d just cover everything in a tarp during the winter.

Covering with a tarp depends on how tight you cover them. Too tight/enclosed could result in mould. Air does need to be able to get in and out. Rather than tying tarps tightly around stacks I've covered stacks with tarps so's the tarp is staked into or held onto the ground by some timber. Of course if you have to leave them unseen for months you can come back and find winds have torn tarp off and left timber uncovered.

 

[kirkdb]

By January it will be permanently encased in snow. I like the idea of Timbers but also have to consider critters taking up refuge. Suspect I can tolerate a chipmunk or two as long as they provide a security deposit and first and last months rent