I don't know the exact temp, but a commercial sawmill near me dries
basswood in about 7 days and oak in about 32. I used to test-dry small
pieces of wood ( 5 pounds) in our kitchen oven which had a standing
pilot. I was about 100 degrees in there. I would dry the piece,
checking daily until the weight didn't change anymore to get the actual
weight of wood with no moisture. For a 2 inch thick piece of white
oak, it took a couple of weeks to reach that point, so I don't think
commercial kilns get too much hotter than that. I have a friend who
uses the upper 2 feet of his shop walls for drying wood. He has
shelves all the way around and stacks and stickers his fresh wood
there. He says in 6 weeks his wood is down to the 8 to 11 percent
moisture area. I'd guess that the temp up there isn't even 100 degrees
(10 foot ceiling) and he does turn the heat down at night.

Pete Stanaitis
-----------------------------------

marc wrote:

Thanks for all the good advice. I've now blanked up the pieces,
sealed the end with 3 coats of exterior grade paint, and put them in
a
brown paper bag and covered them all with wood shavings. I'll check
on them in a couple months and see how they have made out. Old
guy...my friends name is Chris. Also...one reply made mention of
using a microwave to speed up the drying process. Is there any truth
to this?? Is there a temperature and time frame that I could put the
blanks into a regular oven, and use it as a makeshift kiln?? I am
not
sure what temp and time goes into a commercial kiln to dry lumber??