Air-Drying Lumber
It takes patience and a watchful eye, but the benefits go far beyond cost savings
Synopsis: Lee Grindinger explains the benefits of drying your own lumber without a kiln, then tells you how to proceed. He describes the shrinkage you can expect, what to tell the mill operator, how to end-coat the log, choose stickers, build a solid stack, how to watch it, and when to stop. An equilibrium moisture chart helps cut down on the guesswork.
Whether you want to save a neighborhood walnut tree from becoming firewood or you’re tired of paying $6 a board foot for cherry, there are plenty of reasons to dry your own lumber.
Of course, cost is the great motivator. Hiring a bandsaw mill and drying your own lumber can buy you many projects’ worth of furniture-grade wood at less than $1 per board foot. These portable saws mean you don’t have to truck your logs to a local sawmill. Also, the cheaper sawblades used by bandsaw mills…
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