Question about stickering wood?

[jay hanks]

I have a large amount of lumber from my Grandfathers shop that I need to store. I am going to store part of it in the garage and part in shed outside. My questions is this as far as I know all this wood has been stored inside for at least the past 20-30yrs, some maybe longer. Becuase it isnt drying from recent cutting do I need to sticker it to prevent twisting and cupping? Or should I just sort and stack it as needed? Any replies are appreciated. Thanks Jay

[Kevin Gerstenecker]

Jay, while I am not an expert on storing wood, I think I would try to replicate the way it was stored in your Grandfathers Shop. If he had it stickered, and it has been out of the weather for that period of time, I would think that just carefully stacking it board on board on a good, flat rack surface would be fine. I have stored wood that way for a long time, and I have had no problems with the wood distorting. I am sure someone here will have the definitive answer for you, but I wanted to share what I have done with you. Another thought would be to contact a local Sawmill, I am sure they could steer you in the right direction........those folks sure have a lot of experience at stacking and storing wood! Good Luck! :D

[Todd Burch]

If this wood has been drying for 20 years, it has surely reached EMC (equilibrium moisture content). It can safely be stacked with no stickers. This is called "dead stacking". Stack it flat or you will introduce warp or bowing.

Todd.

[Steve Clardy]

I would suggest no stickers also. But, what I would do is run it through the planer, just skiming both sides. If it's 1 1/8" thick now, take it to 1". It will stack flatter that way. A lot of the lumber producers are doing that now to gain a little more room in their stacks, and can also haul a few more boards on the semi truck. It also removes a little of the cupping that the board might have in it.
Steve

[Glenn Clabo]

I agree with everyone else. There is no need to sticker wood that has equalized. I haven't done it in years. In fact if you do it may cause problems. Just make sure it's stored flat.

[Ken Salisbury]

There is no need to sticker lumber that is as old as that. I have done it board on board for many many years. I do however start out by making a flat platform for the bottom row using 4 x4 scraps spaced at 18" apart to elevate from the floor and provide a flat surface to begin with.

[jay hanks]

Thanks for the replies. I am going to be moving this wood to its new places here in about 2 weeks and this info helps greatly. Thanks Jay