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Drying Cherrybark Oak

Started by Magicman, April 03, 2011, 04:55:08 PM

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Magicman

OK drying specialist, as well as others that know how.

My job is sawing, and it's normally for sheds, barns, etc. and very seldom for furniture or inside paneling.  I have absolutely no kiln experience.

I have an upcoming job sawing freshly felled Cherrybark Oak that will be used for inside wall paneling.  The customer wants 1X8's, which will be kilned and T&G.

My question concerns the time that it needs to be stickered under a shed before kiln.  I've seen Oak and Pecan stickered under a shed of a furniture builder for 6-9 months before kiln, but I don't know if it needed to sit that long or that was just their rotation.  My feelings were if it went directly to a kiln, it would do bad things.  Also it would surely have to be monitored very closely and stay a long time.

Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

tyb525

I've heard both, but I think a good kiln operator can successfully dry oak fresh off the saw.

With air drying first, it can be hard to control the rate of drying. The lumber could lose moisture too fast and cause honeycomb, checking, and other problems. If you could make sure it won't dry too fast, air drying shouldn't be a problem.
LT10G10, Stihl 038 Magnum, many woodworking tools. Currently a farm service applicator, trying to find time to saw!

red oaks lumber

talk to the kiln operation see what they would like to see, for me if people want to bring green wood in i'll sticker the wood that way its done right .might not go in for a couple of months .
the experts think i do things wrong
over 18 million b.f. processed and 7341 happy customers i disagree

woodsy

I don't own a kiln and I don't operate one but I have had a fair amount of my wood dry kilned over the years.  When having wood kd-ed I have always tried to get it to and in the kiln as quick as possible after sawing to help avoid any degrade of the lumber and I have never had problems with the wood (for the most part).

As I am sure you know a kiln is a controlled environment so the operator can control the rate at which moisture is removed from the wood.  This isn't so true when air drying, as Ty said, when you're at the mercy of the weather.  

As far as the time needed for the wood to be in the kiln, there are more qualified people on this forum to answer that question but it boils down to species and thickness of which a kiln schedule exists that shows the maximum amount of moisture you can remove per day without degrade.

I think the advantage of air drying before putting it in the kiln is the wood has less moisture to remove so kiln costs might be lower (shorter cycle).  Your kiln costs might be lower but you might have lost wood to degrade during air drying which might cost you more money in the long run than if you went green off the saw into a longer kiln cycle.  

Red Oaks gives good advice to talk to the kiln and see what they would prefer.
LT40HDG38, Logrite T36 log arch, 42 hp Kubota, 6 foot cross cut saw, lots of axes and not enough time

Magicman

What I kept hearing on here was to tell the customer to talk to his kiln operator, and that is exactly what I did.

Since I do not provide a drying service, I also do not want to get into the advice service.
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

red oaks lumber

the advise service dosen't pay worth danG ! wish it did. sure seems like everyone that calls or stops at the shop all want advise. should do like lucy from charlie brown answers are $15.00 correct answers are $50.00
the experts think i do things wrong
over 18 million b.f. processed and 7341 happy customers i disagree

scsmith42

MM, you're at the tail edge of the best time to air dry oak in the south.  If you wait much longer, the heat will probably cause surface checking.  You should still be ok though.

At this time of year, if you air dry under a shed for about 4 - 5 months the 4/4 oak should be down to around 18% - 22%, which you can then finish off in the kiln.

You can also go directly into the kiln with it fresh off the sawmill - I do this every month.

Sending the customer to the kiln operator is indeed your best option though.
Peterson 10" WPF with 65' of track
Smith - Gallagher dedicated slabber
Tom's 3638D Baker band mill
and a mix of log handling heavy equipment.

Magicman

Weather permitting, we will saw Friday & Saturday.  I told the customer last weekend to talk to his kiln owner/operator.
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

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