Drying Wood

[Jack Wood]

Whats the best way to cure fresh cut wood , bark on or bark off?:confused:

[Gary Max]

bark off works best

[Bob Smalser]

Leave the bark on a log in 55-degree or higher weather and you'll get beetles in a couple months.

The bark left on a live edge board isn't the same problem as it dries quickly enough for the beetles not to bother it.

[Chris Padilla]

The bark on a board can help slow down the moisture loss and that is a good thing.

[Donnie Raines]

The bark on a board can help slow down the moisture loss and that is a good thing.
Not sure I agree. Higher concentration of moisture will lead to decay and checking....if the moisture is not allowed to evaporate. Thats why spalted wood becomes spalted....higher concentration of water and it rushes the decaying process.

I am not suggesting that leaving the bark on will give you spalting. I am simply suggesting that mositure trapped is not really a good thing.

Make sure you seal those ends real quick. The end grain dries out very rapidly and you loose useable boards when the checking starts in. Some end grain checking is to be expected.

[Paul Downes]

If the wood is kept inside with lots of air circulation through a stickered stack, then it will probably be o.k. This is not the norm however, there is not usually enough air circulation inside a building. What is conventional practice is to saw and edge the boards and sticker stack them outdoors for at least 2-3 months and upwards of one year per inch. These stacks need to be covered so that they are protected from direct sunlight. They also need to be elevated off the ground a few inches. You could probably get away with waiting a month or two and then knocking the bark off the edges. It should loosen up somewhat in that time.

[Chris Padilla]

Not sure I agree. Higher concentration of moisture will lead to decay and checking....if the moisture is not allowed to evaporate. Thats why spalted wood becomes spalted....higher concentration of water and it rushes the decaying process.

I am not suggesting that leaving the bark on will give you spalting. I am simply suggesting that mositure trapped is not really a good thing.

Make sure you seal those ends real quick. The end grain dries out very rapidly and you loose useable boards when the checking starts in. Some end grain checking is to be expected.
Donnie,

That is the whole point of leaving the bark on. You aren't trapping moisture...just slowing it down. You want the wood to dry slowly...not quickly.

[Jim Becker]

The only boards in my "sawn on property" stash that had indications of after milling insect activity were those that had bark on one or both edges. If I ever mill more, there will be no bark in my stack(s). Leaving it on also has no meaningful effect on moisture retention since it's not on the end-grain. As Donnie indicated, seal the ends of the logs quickly...preferably right after they are cut and before you mill into lumber. (It's easier that way)

[Scott Banbury]

Anytime I saw natural edged boards, AKA "flitches", I always remove the bark with a drawknife or a "bark spud" depending on the tenacity of the bark.

This gets rid of "cambium miners" and other larger borers like Prionus grubs. These insects will die anyway when the moisture content of the wood falls below 25% or so but they will leave little "trails" through the sapwood just under the bark in the meantime.

Powder Post beetle infestations have nothing to do with leaving the bark on. PPBs lay their eggs in exposed pores of sawn lumber--that's why they prefer open pored woods like Ash, Oak, Pecan and Walnut. They DO NOT lay eggs on or under bark. Unlike virtually all other beetles, PPB like dry wood and will infest and reinfest unless killed by heating the wood to 130 degrees or more. Even then, they will reinfest again if allowed access.

[Donnie Raines]

Donnie,

That is the whole point of leaving the bark on. You aren't trapping moisture...just slowing it down. You want the wood to dry slowly...not quickly.
The wood will not dry out to quick if you take the bark off...the majority of mills square a log up prior to slabbing it.

Boards that are sold as live edge normally sell for a lesser price...normally... becuase the sawyer simply slab it without squareing it...so there is labor involved. Boards that are live edge often have surface cracks near the edge to....but not always of coarse.

Were it my logs(and I have gone through lots of logs) the bark would be off.

[Jack Wood]

Thanks everyone for the advice! Now I have an additional question about drying. Several of you said to seal the ends, and my question is, with what?:confused:

[Jim Becker]

Several of you said to seal the ends, and my question is, with what?
Anchorseal from UC Coatings is what I prefer and use, but in a pinch you can use a couple coats of paint. Anchorseal is a wax emulsion product and was developed specifically for this purpose. You can buy it direct from UC Coatings and many turning clubs buy it by the 55 gallon drum to resell to members in gallons at the least cost. Lee Valley sells a similar product as does Woodcraft, although at "retail" costs.