I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. Moisture meter reads 30%. How long can i expect it to take to get,to 10% or so if I stick stack them outdoors? I am going to see if there is a local kiln service, but I suspect they may want more than the $1.50/bf I paid for this. Like to work these before I forget why I bought them 😜

On Wednesday, May 8, 2019 at 9:36:49 PM UTC-7, Gramps' shop wrote:
I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. Moisture meter reads 30%. How long can i expect it to take to get,to 10% or so if I stick stack them outdoors? I am going to see if there is a local kiln service, but I suspect they may want more than the $1.50/bf I paid for this. Like to work these before I forget why I bought them 😜

It depends on the environment in which they are stored/stickered. If outside, to what environment will they be subject? To what temps and humidity will they be subject? You omitted those details.

On Thursday, May 9, 2019 at 12:20:14 AM UTC-7, wrote:
On Wednesday, May 8, 2019 at 9:36:49 PM UTC-7, Gramps' shop wrote:
I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. Moisture meter reads 30%. How long can i expect it to take to get,to 10% or so if I stick stack them outdoors? I am going to see if there is a local kiln service, but I suspect they may want more than the $1.50/bf I paid for this. Like to work these before I forget why I bought them 😜

It depends on the environment in which they are stored/stickered. If outside, to what environment will they be subject? To what temps and humidity will they be subject? You omitted those details.

Second thought: What is today's value of the slabs? They may be worth paying to kiln-dry. I've learned to not be stuck on what I paid for something; I value what it is worth today.

If you don't remember what you wanted to use them for, I could use a nice ramp from my back porch to my deck. ;-)

On Thursday, May 9, 2019 at 12:36:49 AM UTC-4, Gramps' shop wrote:
I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. Moisture meter reads 30%. How long can i expect it to take to get,to 10% or so if I stick stack them outdoors? I am going to see if there is a local kiln service, but I suspect they may want more than the $1.50/bf I paid for this. Like to work these before I forget why I bought them 😜

That's a tough question to answer without knowing the specific conditions under which the
wood will be stored.

This table doesn't discuss time, but it does provide a table that shows the "Equilibrium wood
moisture content (EMC) for a given relative humidity and temperature"

https://www.extension.purdue.edu/ext.../FNR_403_W.pdf

Bottom line, unless you control those two variables, you can't control the moisture content.

On Wednesday, May 8, 2019 at 11:36:49 PM UTC-5, Gramps' shop wrote:
How long can i expect it to take to get,to 10% or so if I stick stack them outdoors?

You might not ever get them to 10%, "drying" them in the open outdoors. Can you store them in your attic or in your shop's attic, where some heating/baking can occur? Your home's attic should have some ventilation tuit.

Sonny

On Wednesday, May 8, 2019 at 11:36:49 PM UTC-5, Gramps' shop wrote:
I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. I am going to see if there is a local kiln service,

Also, if your slabs have any significant burl, you may not want them kiln dried. Burl needs to be air dried slowly, over a good long bit of time. Kiln drying burl will cause the wood to split, check too much and/or odd/uneven shrinkage and the like. Depending on what you use them for, milling "warped" burl slabs can be lots of work, unless you have good tools for something that size, that thick.

Sonny

On Thursday, May 9, 2019 at 6:43:53 AM UTC-5, Sonny wrote:
On Wednesday, May 8, 2019 at 11:36:49 PM UTC-5, Gramps' shop wrote:
I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. I am going to see if there is a local kiln service,

Also, if your slabs have any significant burl, you may not want them kiln dried. Burl needs to be air dried slowly, over a good long bit of time. Kiln drying burl will cause the wood to split, check too much and/or odd/uneven shrinkage and the like. Depending on what you use them for, milling "warped" burl slabs can be lots of work, unless you have good tools for something that size, that thick.

Sonny

If you do have a reasonable $ kiln service, show them your lumber. They should be able to tell you whether your (burled?) lumber can be successfully kiln dried with no "warping" effects. They will/should know the degree of burl that is not recommended for kiln drying.

Sonny

On 5/8/2019 11:36 PM, Gramps' shop wrote:
I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. Moisture meter reads 30%. How long can i expect it to take to get,to 10% or so if I stick stack them outdoors? I am going to see if there is a local kiln service, but I suspect they may want more than the $1.50/bf I paid for this. Like to work these before I forget why I bought them 😜


General rule of thumb is 1 year per 1" of thickness.

On 5/8/2019 11:36 PM, Gramps' shop wrote:
I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. Moisture meter reads 30%. How long can i expect it to take to get,to 10% or so if I stick stack them outdoors? I am going to see if there is a local kiln service, but I suspect they may want more than the $1.50/bf I paid for this. Like to work these before I forget why I bought them 😜

Outside, uncontrolled environment they'll probably never get to 10%
unless you're in a very dry climate...average RH would have to be 50%
to come close--and, just air-drying for 8/4 thick stock would take years
-- how many depdendent not only on the 1"/yr thickness rule of thumb but
how long--moisture moves mostly longitudinal...

12% or so is probably what you can expect to get to in a couple-three
years for most places other than AZ desert...

--

On Wednesday, May 8, 2019 at 11:36:49 PM UTC-5, Gramps' shop wrote:
I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. Moisture meter reads 30%. How long can i expect it to take to get,to 10% or so if I stick stack them outdoors? I am going to see if there is a local kiln service, but I suspect they may want more than the $1.50/bf I paid for this. Like to work these before I forget why I bought them 😜

TWO things:

It all depends on where you live as to how dry they will get. I live in the southern half of Alabama and two stacks of oak (red and white) have been air drying for nearly a year. I just checked them with my moisture meter a couple of days ago - 14% I then checked a kiln dried 2x4 near them, - 14% As I said, "It all depends on where you live."

The other is make sure, make doubly sure, you spray the slabs for powder post beetles. You can get Tim-bor, or something similar. You can put it on with a hand spray bottle. If you do not, again depending on where you live, the beetles will riddle you slabs.

On Thursday, May 9, 2019 at 11:18:22 AM UTC-4, Dr. Deb wrote:
On Wednesday, May 8, 2019 at 11:36:49 PM UTC-5, Gramps' shop wrote:
I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. Moisture meter reads 30%. How long can i expect it to take to get,to 10% or so if I stick stack them outdoors? I am going to see if there is a local kiln service, but I suspect they may want more than the $1.50/bf I paid for this. Like to work these before I forget why I bought them 😜

TWO things:

It all depends on where you live as to how dry they will get. I live in the southern half of Alabama and two stacks of oak (red and white) have been air drying for nearly a year. I just checked them with my moisture meter a couple of days ago - 14% I then checked a kiln dried 2x4 near them, - 14% As I said, "It all depends on where you live."


"It all depends on where you live."

IIRC the number I got for my area (Western NY) was 17%. Meaning you'll never
get wood stored outside below 17% no natter how long you let it sit.

If I used the average annual temp and humidity from the following document,
~14% is the best I could do. I know it doesn't work like that, but the point
is, I'd never reach 10% - at least not on the way down. ;-)

https://www.extension.purdue.edu/ext.../FNR_403_W.pdf

DerbyDad03 on Thu, 9 May 2019 11:04:45 -0700
(PDT) typed in rec.woodworking the following:
On Thursday, May 9, 2019 at 11:18:22 AM UTC-4, Dr. Deb wrote:
On Wednesday, May 8, 2019 at 11:36:49 PM UTC-5, Gramps' shop wrote:
I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. Moisture meter reads 30%. How long can i expect it to take to get,to 10% or so if I stick stack them outdoors? I am going to see if there is a local kiln service, but I suspect they may want more than the $1.50/bf I paid for this. Like to work these before I forget why I bought them ?

TWO things:

It all depends on where you live as to how dry they will get. I live in the southern half of Alabama and two stacks of oak (red and white) have been air drying for nearly a year. I just checked them with my moisture meter a couple of days ago - 14% I then checked a kiln dried 2x4 near them, - 14% As I said, "It all depends on where you live."


"It all depends on where you live."

IIRC the number I got for my area (Western NY) was 17%. Meaning you'll never
get wood stored outside below 17% no natter how long you let it sit.

If I used the average annual temp and humidity from the following document,
~14% is the best I could do. I know it doesn't work like that, but the point
is, I'd never reach 10% - at least not on the way down. ;-)

It would seem to me, that were you to get boards down to 10%, and
then use them in an environment with 14% humidity, you will be getting
some swelling of the boards as they absorb atmospheric moisture.
Add in that "average" can cover some extremes, and that "average"
RH in a house is also very dependent upon the heating and cooling
inside the house, as well as what's the RH outside. That old "bone
dry, sparks when you touch anything" inside climate because the heat
has "dried" the air, relatively.

tschus
pyotr
--
pyotr filipivich
Next month's Panel: Graft - Boon or blessing?

On 5/9/19 7:31 AM, Leon wrote:
On 5/8/2019 11:36 PM, Gramps' shop wrote:
I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. Moisture meter reads 30%.
How long can i expect it to take to get,to 10% or so if I stick stack
them outdoors? I am going to see if there is a local kiln service,
but I suspect they may want more than the $1.50/bf I paid for this.
Like to work these before I forget why I bought them 😜


General rule of thumb is 1 year per 1" of thickness.

Never use your thumb as a rule, you'll hit it with a hammer,
--Uncle Bob


(sorry 8^)

-BR

On 5/8/2019 11:36 PM, Gramps' shop wrote:
I came into three 8/4 walnut slabs today. Moisture meter reads 30%. How long can i expect it to take to get,to 10% or so if I stick stack them outdoors? I am going to see if there is a local kiln service, but I suspect they may want more than the $1.50/bf I paid for this. Like to work these before I forget why I bought them 😜




This might shed some light on the subject. This guy tends to be more
correct than wrong.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vH9lqXkN-wM