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Thread: Air drying in basement shop

  1. #1

    Air drying in basement shop

    Hi guys,

    I'm an amateur woodworker, and have always used purchased/dried wood in the past, so am new to drying my own.

    I've read threads here and info elsewhere about how to ideally air dry outside - stacked/stickered/covered/wind exposure/etc.

    I just took 5 walnut logs to a local sawyer. Going to cut most of it into 9/4 to eventually build a 10' long dining table. Some 5x5" as well, for legs. (I'm going to have WAY more wood than I need for this project, but the trees needed to come down!) I realize this will likely take several years to dry. I have the room INSIDE to dry this. I can probably fit most of it in a small "John Deere" type garage in the basement that is pretty much house temp. This is a small garage room, probably around 15x10'. Figured I would put a fan on the wood to help with air movement. The basement is typically very dry, so I don't think humidity from the wood will be a big problem, but I could put a dehumidifier in the room as well, if that is needed. I'm going to end seal with AnchorSeal.

    Particularly at this time of year in Illinois, I don't think I would get much drying outside. Since I have the room inside, that would preclude me having to clear a level site outside, roof/cover it, etc. - and just seems a lot easier for me.

    Is there any reason this is a BAD idea? I've seen other videos/examples of people doing this, but wanted to get some input from the experts here. Thanks!
    Last edited by ToddH Petty; 11-12-2020 at 10:18 PM.

  2. #2
    Join Date
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    My concern is drying the wood too quickly can result in warping and checking. I dry a lot of firewood every year, but don't season lumber at home, and I have no experience with walnut. From the hip I think you will want to bring your rough planks in to the garage described to finish seasoning once they get down to a particuar moiture content, but I am newrvous about starting their with green planks. Maybe stickered and stacked and either strapped or weighted.

    I am sure someeone with more direct knowledge, actual experience, will be along shortly.

  3. #3
    Join Date
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    That is a bad idea unless you completely enclose the wood stack and control the humidity so that the wood does not dry too quickly and crack. Walnut is pretty tolerant, but there still are limits. I would be especially concerned about those 5 x 5" pieces. They need to dry VERY slowly to avoid cracking. Outside would be the ideal place to start the drying process. Winter is coming and the wood will dry very slowly from now through next Spring. I'd leave it outside until it gets down below 29% and then bring it indoors to finish drying. Also, that will eliminate the likely thousands of pounds of water that are going to be evaporated from going into your house.

    If you still want to do it indoors, from the start, you need to read up on dehumidification kiln drying. EBac shows their kiln drying schedules on their website. That would be a good place to start.

    John

  4. #4
    Are your 5x5's containing pith?

    I also would not let things air dry inside - at first.

    In my experience with green wood blanks for turning, much of the cracking happens in the first few months. Your logs will continue to dry even through the winter. Take the time to do it right or you'll be spending your time 2 years from now, cutting much of it up into firewood.

    Bringing them inside can cause it to dry too rapidly, can cause mold if there isn't sufficient airflow, and can introduce bugs.

    I HAVE brought wood inside to dry to the basement, but usually after an initial drying for several months outside - or at least in the garage. And never stacks; it's always just a bowl blank or two that I can observe every few days for bad developments.

  5. #5
    Join Date
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    It's fine to circulate the air but I understand it's generally a bad idea to blow air directly on the wood or through the stickered stack.

    And although walnut is one of the more stable species to dry (in my experience) if the indoor space is heated and cooled I would also be concerned about drying too fast and too much moisture accumulating in the closed space unless.

    I dry a LOT of woodturning blanks in my conditioned shop and a few planks, but only a few at a time compared to a big stack of lumber. Since green wood is soaking wet I'd prefer to do at least the first part of the drying outdoors, stickered and covered from the sun and rain, then bring it inside. If that's not possible, you might monitor the indoor humidity and exchange air with the outside as needed. BTW, before stickering some people first stand freshly sawn wood on end for a bit - in some species the water will drip out of the end grain.

    BTW, I monitor a typical sample piece or two by periodically weighing. When the weight quits changing the wood is dry for that environment. Weighing might be difficult if your boards are 10' long but monitoring shorter but full cross section samples cut from the typical boards and a 5x5 should work fine if the end grain is sealed well. For planks I also use a pinless moisture meter.

    JKJ

  6. #6
    What if I stacked this in my barn instead? It's not insulated/heated, so the wood wouldn't dry too fast. However, it's also not open, so I wouldn't have a lot of air movement.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by ToddH Petty View Post
    What if I stacked this in my barn instead? It's not insulated/heated, so the wood wouldn't dry too fast. However, it's also not open, so I wouldn't have a lot of air movement.
    A barn would be ideal but only if you can let outside air freely circulate.

    John

  8. #8
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    I have dried a lot of wood in my basement, cherry, walnut, hickory, maple. I just stick and stack, and sometimes paint the ends. Now, my basement is not specifically heated or cooled but it somewhat floats between 62 and 68 degrees pending the time of year, is fairly dry since i have a walk out. I never dried out that quantity at one time. The most i did was about 250 board feet. I would not be super concerned with the moisture over the winter in the house. Living in Il I bet it's cold and dry outside and if you have humidifiers in your HVAC system, they just won't need to work so hard this winter.

    However with that amount of wood, i'd agree with most here that outside to start than move inside. If the wood is showing 40-50% on a moisture meter, i'd leave it outside till it drops below 20.

  9. #9
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    Air drying lumber requires air flow through the stack to wick off moisture...that's best accomplished by stacking outside so prevailing winds do the deed. "Finishing" the process indoors can work in some situations, but that initial year or more is best outside.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  10. #10
    I got them all stacked - outside as recommended. Pad in front of the barn. Most is 9/4, the one row is 5x5 inch, and all 8-10' longwood.jpgwood2.jpg

  11. #11
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    That looks good.

    John

  12. #12
    Looks good. I’ve dried a decent amount of walnut and cherry, mostly outdoors for first year. I dried one batch of cherry in my attached garage, but opened the doors everyday I was home for a little while at least. Both methods worked Well.

  13. #13
    Join Date
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    That should work well. You should be able to relocate the stack into the barn in either late spring or early summer next year. That will help to reduce degrade.

    Once you move the lumber into the barn, I’d suggest three box fans on low about 10-15’ away from one side of the stack. Don’t put it too close to a wall so that the air can escape. You don’t want a high air flow, just a gentle breeze.

    Then next fall go ahead and move the stack into your basement to finish off (but leave the 5x5’s in the barn). Also keep the slow air going through the stack. By spring 2022 the 9/4 should be dry below 10%mc.

    Nice looking barn!

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