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sealing end of board

Started by jmouton, February 15, 2013, 12:13:37 PM

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jmouton

i ve got a question  ,  how important is it to seal the end of the boards  after  i cut them , for instance  i just cut some red oak and stacked and stickered it , just wondering if i need to seal it  or not ,and how important it is and why . i made some 11 inch wide and some  24 inch wide  by 1 inch  by 8 ft long  any input would be helpfull.
                                   jim
lt-40 wide ,,bobcat,sterling tandem flatbed log truck,10 ton trailer, stihl 075,041,029,066,and a 2017 f-350,oh and an edger

Jay C. White Cloud

Hi,

Seal the log first, then boards are already sealed, or only need a touch up.  I find that it can make a pretty big difference in the quality of air dried wood.  Others here will speak to kiln drying.

Best of luck,

jay
"To posses an open mind, is to hold a key to many doors, and the ability to created doors where there were none before."

"When it is all said and done, they will have said they did it themselves."-teams response under a good leader.

Ron Wenrich

Most of the moisture in wood comes out of the ends of the boards or logs.  You'll slow the air drying time by sealing the ends.  I don't think that is necessary on many different species.

In oak, it may help by lessening the surface checking in the boards.  But, the only time I've had problems with that was when there were lots of air moving over it, like in the springtime.  If you put it in the kilns, those surface checks often close back up. 

Stickering is important, and you should have your stickers on top of each other, and close to the end.  If a board is going to split, it normally only goes to the sticker, unless there's a lot of stress.

24" boards look nice, but they have a tendency to have a mind of their own. 
Never under estimate the power of stupid people in large groups.

Tree Feller

Quote from: jmouton on February 15, 2013, 12:13:37 PM
...just wondering if i need to seal it  or not ,and how important it is and why .

Yes, you need to seal it and as Jay noted, it's a lot easier to seal the end of the log than it is the individual boards after they are sawed out.

The boards will loose moisture through the end-grain first. The ends of the boards shrink and that shrinkage eventually exceeds the strength of the wood, causing it to check (pull itself apart). You can lose several inches of lumber on each end. This is not as big a  concern for an individual stack but for large operations, it can be a significant loss in lumber and profit.

Sealing the end-grain slows down the moisture loss through it and lets the board dry more evenly which eliminates a lot of the end checking.

Seal the ends with something like Anchorseal and also place a sticker close to each end as end-checks will often not progress past the first sticker.
Cody

Logmaster LM-1 Sawmill
Kioti CK 30 w/ FEL
Stihl MS-290 Chainsaw
48" Logrite Cant Hook
Well equipped, serious, woodworking shop

Tree Feller

Quote from: Tree Feller on February 15, 2013, 12:46:03 PM
Quote from: jmouton on February 15, 2013, 12:13:37 PM
...just wondering if i need to seal it  or not ,and how important it is and why .

Yes, you need to seal it and as Jay noted, it's a lot easier to seal the end of the log than it is the individual boards after they are sawed out.

The boards will loose moisture through the end-grain first. The ends of the boards shrink and that shrinkage eventually exceeds the strength of the wood, causing it to check (pull itself apart). You can lose several inches of lumber on each end. This is not as big a  concern for an individual stack but for large operations, it can be a significant loss in lumber and profit.

Sealing the end-grain slows down the moisture loss through it and lets the board dry more evenly which eliminates a lot of the end checking.

Seal the ends with something like Anchorseal and also place a sticker close to each end as end-checks will often not progress past the first sticker.

I see Ron beat me with his post. The grandson was calling me.  ;D
Cody

Logmaster LM-1 Sawmill
Kioti CK 30 w/ FEL
Stihl MS-290 Chainsaw
48" Logrite Cant Hook
Well equipped, serious, woodworking shop

dboyt

On the other hand, if you've already milled the boards, end sealing is still useful, provided the boards have not already started to end check.  Latex paint isn't as good, but it is better than nothing.  If some old-timer recommends using tar, just nod.  I tried sawing some logs that the customer had sealed with tar.  Never again!
Norwood MX34 Pro portable sawmill, 8N Ford, Lewis Winch

hackberry jake

I wouldnt bother with red oak if you already have it cut up and stacked. As long as the wind isn't real high you shouldnt have much end checking. I have a bunch of fresh cut oak drying right now and the red oak is looking good.
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EZ Boardwalk Jr. With 20hp Honda, 25' of track, and homemade setworks. 32x18 sawshed. 24x40 insulated shop. 30hp kubota with fel. 1978 Massey ferguson 230.

zombie woods

I like clear end sealer
so I can better determine grain orentation ,
5 galons of anchor seal goes along way ,
5 gal of white glue from the big box stores watered down works well too.
for exotics I use melted parafine ,
A friend of mine uses old cans of varnish .
also need to keep ends shaded .

the saying goes
It dont matter when you seal your ends as long as you do it before lunch
(with the exotics)

POSTON WIDEHEAD

Jmouton.....I must have missed ya before but Welcome to the Forum.

What project do you have in mind for 1 inch boards x 24 inches wide?

Good Luck on the sealing......these guys know what they're talking about.  smiley_thumbsup
The older I get I wish my body could Re-Gen.

Kansas

I guess I am in the other camp. As long as a log is cut at least 8'6", rarely does sealing become a factor. You can still get an 8 ft usable board. Unless you seal just as soon as its cut down, it won't do much good anyway. And if your depending on loggers for regular saw logs, its not going to happen.

Only exceptions might be a high end veneer log. We also suggest that a customer seal after sanding as soon as possible on a heavy mantle piece, trying to keep the moisture sealed in.

Ron Wenrich

The only logs that get end sealed in our operation are export veneer.  Domestic veneer and sawlogs get no treatment.  The lumber also gets not treatment.  I imagine someone's done a cost/benefit analysis on it.  None of the wood at the box stores have end treat.  How much do you gain vs the cost of the treat?
Never under estimate the power of stupid people in large groups.

Kansas

Ron, does the export veneer get treated because you are sending the best of the best of veneer overseas? Or is the time involving shipping before the logs get there. Also, do you put those S things in the ends of those logs to help prevent splitting? I do recall one company using those for veneer.

WDH

I have to end seal most species, especially red and white oak.  The appearance of the board is very important when retailing small volume sales to woodworkers.  If you don't seal pecan ( smiley_devil), it will take it out on you.
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Ron Wenrich

S hooks are put in logs, especially is there is some heart check.  There are some plastic fasteners that work just as well.  There was a stretch where we were in a quarantine zone for gypsy moth.  The feds would come out and inspect them, and if there were too many egg masses, we had to debark the logs.  Not a real problem for our setup.  There is no other treatment, like heat or the like. 
Never under estimate the power of stupid people in large groups.

jmouton

thanks  for all the info  guys  its very helpfull,     i just cut more of the same wood  and  stacked and stickered it  ,  we will see what happens , hopefully the 24 inch wide  dont move around alot  so i can get the most money out of it  ,   thanks again

                                                                jim







lt-40 wide ,,bobcat,sterling tandem flatbed log truck,10 ton trailer, stihl 075,041,029,066,and a 2017 f-350,oh and an edger

GeneWengert-WoodDoc

We did some actual measurements of end checks and found that end coating (we used Anchorseal) reduced end checking by 2-1/2" per end.  That is 5% on an 8-ft board.  Our test was 5/4 red oak.  There is no question that an end sealer that slows drying is very beneficial for denser woods that have higher shrinkage.

We found the same benefit for coating fresh log ends and fresh lumber ends.

The faster drying through the ends affects mainly the last 10" of the lumber, so on an 8-ft piece, over 6 feet dries only by the faces.

When stacking, if the stickers are at the end of the lumber, end checking is minimized.  This is because the faster end drying is not also accelerated by face drying...the sticker stops face drying for a few inches.
Gene - Author of articles in Sawmill & Woodlot and books: Drying Hardwood Lumber; VA Tech Solar Kiln; Sawing Edging & Trimming Hardwood Lumber. And more

Red Clay Hound

As others have said, my experience has been that sealing helps quite a bit with most hardwoods especially oak.  On pine, I wouldn't bother.  It dries so fast anyway, I haven't noticed many problems with end checking.
2007 Wood-Mizer LT40 Super Hydraulic with 51 hp. Cat; 2007 Wood-Mizer EG200 Twin Blade Edger; Woodmaster 718 Molder/Planer; Stihl MS460 and MS362 Chainsaws; 2011 John Deere 5065 with JD 553 Loader

Ljohnsaw

So is the consensus that sealing is best for hardwoods but not for softwoods? 

What about the thickness of the wood/timber cut.  Is sealing recommended for big timbers, regardless of species (say larger than 5") because the ratio of mass to surface area is great?  That is, the middle of the wood will take a long time to reach the surface vs. the ends.

John Sawicky

Just North-East of Sacramento...

SkyTrak 9038, Ford 545D FEL, Davis Little Monster backhoe, Case 16+4 Trencher, Home Built 42" capacity/36" cut Bandmill up to 54' long - using it all to build a timber frame cabin.

WDH

My experience is that with thick lumber or beams, the end checking can be serious.
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Jay C. White Cloud

John,

As a Sawyer and a Timber Wright, if it is a beam and you want to reduce checking, as WDH just stated, seal the ends well. 

Big wood, beam or slab, soft or hard, benefits greatly from end sealing and/or "cleating."

Regards,

jay
"To posses an open mind, is to hold a key to many doors, and the ability to created doors where there were none before."

"When it is all said and done, they will have said they did it themselves."-teams response under a good leader.

Magicman

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