The next step in drying?

To all

Background;
A few years ago I bought into a deal for some walnut logs with fellow 'Creeker, James White.
James milled the logs to 8/4 rough, sealed the ends and I now have two "flitched" walnut logs. One is about 8' long and 18" diameter. The other is roughly 12' long and maybe 22" diameter.
The logs have now been sitting, stickered, stacked, and banded, in a covered Shelter Logic, Quonset style, temporary building for 2+ years.

A week or so ago I took one of the odd cuts out of the pile, and just for fun milled it in the shop. The wood appears dry, and it is beautiful. Nice straight, tight grain. Uniform in color and dark. I'm pretty happy actually.:)

What is the next step in being able to use this lumber? Some I need to stay air dried because I have a project that will require steam bending, but the remaining I would like to have properly dried.

Where do I go next, and not screw up what I have??

Thank you

Check the MC with a meter that will give an accurate reading of the entire thickness, or do an oven test with an offcut. Acclimate it to in-service conditions. If you are not in a hurry just sticker it in a space that has the same conditions that it will face in use. It likely has stabilized to its current surroundings. Checking with a meter should confirm that, and a few more months in a heated space will complete the drying with little stress. A month or so in a solar kiln will do the same. A conventional kiln will be faster but needs more care to avoid problems (though the worst things tend to happen early in the process before the MC gets down below about 28%).

Congratulations, it sounds like you will have some nice material to work with soon.

Kevin

I was thinking of moving it into the basement this winter. We heat with a wood stove and I was thinking that may do it.
ix months in the basement with a wood stove, and the rest of the time a dehumidifier is running 24/7 down there.( It's a stone foundation.)

If I check air dried oak in February in our basement it runs around 6% so I think you're on the right track.

Use a hygrometer to be sure that the basement conditions are consistent with where the finished products will live. 7% MC is a good target and is in equilibrium with approximately 35% RH. Here in VT in my wood heated house the MC can drop below 6% in the winter and go as high as 10% in the summer.

Do not stack it near the wood stove. Often the room in which a wood stove is used has extremely dry air and will tend to pull the moisture out too quickly and uneven (the outside will be dry but the center not as dry, especially on thicker wood).
Walnut is very forgiving in my opinion and if the actual MC is now under 15-16% the drying process to get it down should not cause any damage as long as it is done at a reasonable rate..
Regardless of how you finish it off... It is very important to acclimate it to the environment it will be in when it is in use...
Good luck and sounds like you know what to do...

Thank you all for the info. Apologies that it's taken me awhile to get back.

Kevin and Ed
My basement is a dry stacked stone foundation, 33'x33', and completely open. Even with the wood stove running, it still stays pretty comfortable, humidity wise. There are also always a 1/2 dozen, full, 5 gallon pails of water in the basement, and the stove has a steamer on top. The rest of the year there is always a dehumidifier running.
The house and the basement breathe together. 1919 farmhouse with balloon construction and natural circulation.
I'll bring the wood in in the next week or so and store it away from the wood stove just to be sure.
Thank you all for the advice.