George,
And your point is...?
I am happy for you that you know how to dry 4/4 planks of local hardwoods in
Michigan. I'm also impressed that you know where the rule of thumb some of
us here use came from. And as I mentioned, it tends to correlate well with
observed weight loss in my circumstances. I should probably acknowledge
that the blanks I cut from English tend to range from 12 inches square by 4"
thick to 20" square x 4" thick. The Black Walnut burl varies in dimensions
up to 12" x 12" x 20" and I can cut it much larger if I choose to.

But if you re-read my original post, I was seeking information from those
with experience with small kilns on materials and operating conditions.
Perhaps the other information you have provided will be of interest to other
readers, but for me it is OT. Nevertheless, thanks for your effort.


"George" George@least wrote in message
...

"Greg Lyman" wrote in message
...
Our rule of thumb here in the desert (Albuquerque, NM) for air drying
most hardwoods to EMC is one inch per year plus a year. Tracking the
change in weight tends to confirm that this is a pretty good guide for
this climate, at least for the wood I get. I'm just interested in
reducing this time to reduce storage space. Thanks again for the
references.

Well, that rule of thumb is for planks drying in outdoors New England.
Also assumes spring saw. Winter produces no drying. FPL experimental
data shows a summer's dry as adequate for most domestics. My rule of
reality in Michigan is to take 4/4 planks of local hardwoods (hard maple,
cherry, birch) sawed in June after the crops are in, sticker and stack
for the summer. Bring indoors in October when the nights get cold.
Sticker, stack in basement, and by January the stuff's at 6% by meter and
oven dry.

Of course, you're not drying planks, and end grain dries at 10-15 times
the rate of face grain. Scientific and valid. That's the bad news. With
solid pieces short relative to their thickness, accommodating the drying
schedule to the end grain while waiting out the slower lateral (inverse
square rule) transfer from cell to cell takes special effort. It's the
good news when you speak of roughed containers with any depth, because no
place is more than an inch or so from open air through end grain.