Drying Small Pieces of Wood?

[Steve H Graham]

The trash wood I cut up last night turned out to be mahogany, and it's nice enough to keep. I have a few boards around 18" long, a foot wide, and 2 1/2" thick.

Is there a quick and reliable way to dry small pieces of wood? I have noticed that some people use freezers, ovens, and microwaves. I also have the option of simply leaving them in the back of an SUV, where the Miami sun will roast them for weeks.

I am hoping to cut these things down to 3/8" thickness and make boxes. Should I leave them thick until they dry, or go ahead and slice them up?

I applied Kilz to the ends of the wood; it was the only waterproofing agent I had on hand, other than truck bed paint.

[Daren K Nelson]

I also have the option of simply leaving them in the back of an SUV, where the Miami sun will roast them for weeks.

I am hoping to cut these things down to 3/8" thickness and make boxes. Should I leave them thick until they dry, or go ahead and slice them up?


There you go a mini-portable solar kiln ;).

I personally would, if in fact you are committed for sure to using thin pieces, cut them in 1/2 for thickness...they will dry twice as fast.

Can you access your attic ? That has been the way to 'kiln dry" wood for centuries, especially in your hot climate. A few weeks up there they will be plenty dry.

I am not sure about Kilz :confused:, got any old exterior latex house paint laying around (or anyone you know) a couple coats of that will help.

[Mike Wilkins]

Agree with the other poster to cut them into 1/2" slabs to speed drying. It should lessen the possibility of splitting the ends of the planks. I have cut small logs into 1/2" to 5/8" planks, stickered them and placed them to dry near the ceiling in my shop. So far so good. Your find should make some nice projects.

[george wilson]

Don't get the wood too hot,too soon,or it will warp and split badly. I would put them in a place that isn't hot for several months first. Then,you could put them in a heated area. If this is real hard wood,like true Cuban mahogany,I can tell you that the harder the material is,the worse it will be to warp and crack,ivory included.

It isn't a god idea to cut the wood too close to what you will actually use,because any warping will ruin it for you.

In Williamsburg,one year per inch of thickness is considered good drying time for gunstocks. Gunstocks,however,are all in 1 piece,not subject to joint movenent,etc.,as is cabinet wood.

I made some London pattern chisel handles last year,from boxwood we cut in 1996. i was looking at the handles yesterday,because I wanted to get them mounted on a set of chisels. 2 had warped so badly that they are not usable. All have warped some,but 2 were extreme.

The boxwood was stored in our heated and air conditioned toolmaker's shop in Williamsburg. After turning cylinders out of the logs,they laid around quite some time before I finished turning them to final form.

[Steve H Graham]

I decided to freeze a piece overnight, just to see what happened.

The attic tip sounds interesting. I don't have much of an attic, but I could fit a few pieces up there.

[Daren K Nelson]

I decided to freeze a piece overnight, just to see what happened.


I will save you the suspense...it will freeze ;). Frozen water will not leave the cells, so no drying. EMC (equilibrium moisture content) is temperature and relative humidity related. http://www.csgnetwork.com/emctablecalc.html
You need warm/dry air.

[Steve H Graham]

You need to read up on the topic.

[george wilson]

Frozen water will most certainly dry,just more slowly.When I was in Alaska in the early 50's,we hung laundry outside to dry. The bed sheets would dry like cardboard. We folded them and they looked as if they were ironed.

I see no reason to freeze the wood,though. It would just slow things down.

[Daren K Nelson]

You need to read up on the topic.

Who does ?

[Daren K Nelson]

Frozen water will most certainly dry,just more slowly.

When I was in Alaska in the early 50's,we hung laundry outside to dry. The bed sheets would dry like cardboard. We folded them and they looked as if they were ironed.

I see no reason to freeze the wood,though. It would just slow things down.

Yes WAY more slowly...not quite sure the OP was looking for that, just the opposite.

Dying bedsheets and wood are sorta 2 different things :confused:

So we agree :D

[Steve H Graham]

The freezing idea is not based on the strange idea that water evaporates faster after being frozen. I suggest you read up and see what it's about.

I don't claim it works, but you're talking about a completely different idea.

[Daren K Nelson]

I own a sawmill/lumber business and design and sell dehumidification kiln plans based on one I "invented" in 2005. 300+ of them are running around the country right now. I personally air dry and kiln dry 1000's of bft of lumber a month here at the mill (not a solicitation moderators...just my credentials which are relevant to this discussion) Thank you for your suggestion I read up on the subject, I think knowledge is important and one should never stop learning. I did not say freezing will not help dry the wood, eventually...but I thought we were looking for the most practical solution. In Florida the minvan-attic are the ticket, not the deep freeze IMO. Even the microwave idea in the first post is more practical (assuming the pieces you want to dry will fit) 30-45 seconds on and 3-5 minutes off to cool, repeat. I have posted on microwave drying here before. http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=100101&highlight=microwave+drying
I chimed in trying to help with wood drying suggestions, but I guess you have "read up on it" and know more about it than I do.

[Steve H Graham]

Don't take offense. If you look at what I wrote, you will see that I never claimed to know how to dry wood. The whole post would have been pointless if I already knew how to do it. What I'm trying to tell you is that the people who endorse the freezing method are not basing it on the idea that cold equals dry. Their thinking is not simplistic and based on ignorance of the way temperature and humidity affect drying. If you Google for two minutes, as I did, you'll find out this is true.

I was hoping to avoid explaining, but I will go ahead and point out two things they claim. One is that freezing ruptures the walls of areas that hold water, allowing the water to get out of the wood. Another is that it increases pressure in the wood and drives out ice crystals.

I do not know whether these things are true, but your post suggests you were not aware of them. This is why I suggested you read up.

[Kevin Jaynes]

I don't normally like to jump in, in the middle of a discussion like this but can't help it so fire away if I am out of line. I'm a big boy and can take it. :D

Steve, your suggestion to Daren . . . "If you Google for two minutes, as I did, you'll find out this is true." . . . is, well, how can I say this without offending you; well it is preposterous.

You can read anything online or in a book. It certainly doesn't make it true. In fact when people cite Wikipedia for example I cringe. Wikipedia is useful when you realize what it is and how it should be used, but it is full of inaccurate information and sometimes highly inaccurate.

Articles and websites gleaned from Google, or any search engine are subject to the same unfortunate possibility. The internet is amazing and useful and indispensible even for some, but it should not used as the inerrant fountain of indisputable wisdom.

Now I am sure you do realize this but words are words, and must be taken at their face value or else we have to assume. i don't want to do that. Now after all that groundwork, i can to the point of my post. I know Daren personally. Not casually but very well. But even if I didn't, to tell someone with vast experience they need to Google for two minutes to essentially bring themselves up to your plane of knowledge, someone admittedly with little or o experience, well it comes across as pretty smug and I doubt you meant to come across that way.

When someone shares their experience with you, you may believe or disbelieve, or somewhere in between maybe, the veracity or accuracy of the way they covey that experience but heck, at least show some respect and appreciation to the person for spending their time to share their experience. People like Daren have invested a great deal of time and money to gain their knowledge, and to freely share it like that and then be told by someone seeking the help, to read google for two minutes is, offensive.

No offense meant to you, I might add just calling it like I see it. If the main thrust of a forum is not for sharing our experiences with each other to make each other more knowledgeable then it ceases to serve its primary function, IMHO.

[Daren K Nelson]

I am well aware of the practice and the science behind it...I was just saying I don't think it your best option and saw no reason to expand on it any further. You could also boil it dry (yep, Google that) or put it in a vacuum to extract the water from the cells, 2 other methods not temperature/rh dependent. But why do all that if you can stick it in the attic or the back seat of the minivan ? To quote you "Their thinking is not simplistic and based on ignorance of the way temperature and humidity affect drying"...well it can be just that simple, why do it the hard way is all I was saying ? (doing it the easy/safe way is not ignorant last time I checked ;))

[Steve H Graham]

I did not intend to be rude. I seriously thought you misunderstood the practice. I apologize if I sounded obnoxious. If I can get make myself get up on a ladder, I will try the attic method.