drop and dry or drop and mill?

ray299 · October 27, 2016, 01:08:22 PM

I'm interested in getting into post and beam construction and have a question about when to build. I've been reading both ways... drop your logs and let them dry before you saw them into timbers to be used for building to reduce the amount of shrinkage... but I've also heard if you mill them green, it's easier to mill (which I know that to be true) but also with that I've heard you should build green too so when it does dry and twist and turn, the structure is together and will all work together twisting and turning... so... timber framing... let my logs sit or mill them and build quick?

bkaimwood · October 27, 2016, 07:21:17 PM

I have little to no timber frame experience, but... leaving logs lay to dry works for OWB firewood applications, but not for lumber. A log will rot away to nothing long before it ever shows significant "drying"...along with significantly increased insect infestations before you've even made beams...coupled with increased, if not certain bacterial infections, which cause further degrade risks in final drying...
so I say, drop and mill!!! But oversized, for resaw after some dry time...

ray299 · October 27, 2016, 07:40:18 PM

Quote from: bkaimwood on October 27, 2016, 07:21:17 PM
I have little to no timber frame experience, but... leaving logs lay to dry works for OWB firewood applications, but not for lumber. A log will rot away to nothing long before it ever shows significant "drying"...along with significantly increased insect infestations before you've even made beams...coupled with increased, if not certain bacterial infections, which cause further degrade risks in final drying...
so I say, drop and mill!!! But oversized, for resaw after some dry time...

Makes sense... maybe there "dry" part was mentioned to after the beams were milled? I know I heard drying time one year for every inch thick outside... you got a 36" log... I'll be dead and gone before it's dried. Lol

GeneWengert-WoodDoc · October 28, 2016, 06:55:01 AM

Due to insect damage risk, decay risk and excessive time to dry, it is best (by far) to mill promptly and the dry the timber properly. Often, the green timber will be put in place and then dried in place.