Need to sticker or not?

[Joe Tonich]

A place I know was getting rid of 1 1/2 pallets of 3"x12"x10' boards & a pallet of 8"x8"x10' ( I think it's all White Oak ) that I was able to score. I'll be picking it up Sat. and need to know if I need to cut stickers for it. The wood has been sitting outside for at least 4yrs. uncovered. There's a lot of checking on the top boards (firewood or stickers) but I'm hoping the boards underneath are OK. :confused: As there's no room anywhere inside to store it, it will have to be stored outside for a while (tarped). Also, I was planning to cut the ends so they wouldn't check more. Do I need to seal the ends after I cut them?

Thanks,

Joe

[Steve Clardy]

Joe, if the lumber has been outside uncovered, the lumber probably has mold between the boards. So you need to sticker it, give them some air.
You might want to run one board through the planer to see how far the mold has gone into the lumber. 4 years is a long time for lumber to be outside to not have any damage. Steve

[Todd Burch]

Sounds like you just scored some nice stacking firewood. Todd.

[Lee Schierer]

Not only would I sticker the wood, but I would suggest adding a whole bunch of weight to the top. Those boards are going to want to curl up as they dry out. Hopefully as others have indicated the mold and decay have not ruined all of the wood. You may have some nice spalted Oak or lots of kindling.

[Glenn Clabo]

Joe,
My take...If you are going to completely cover the wood...there will be no air movement so there is no reason to change anything. If you are just going to cover the top...and allow air to flow I agree with Lee. You may get a few pieces out of the deal...but it's going to be a very few.

[Joe Tonich]

Thanks.

If it is all bad, at least I'll have enough wood to heat my garage all winter. :) I figured that White Oak, being a good "outside" wood, would be OK left out in the elements. Firewood or WW'ing, free is still a good thing. :D Thanks for the advice.

Joe