Q:

I’ve read that wood should be allowed to acclimate to the shop before use, but wouldn’t this put moisture back into wood that’s been kilndried to 7% moisture content? How did woodworkers of the past get around this problem?

David Wenzel, San Antontio, Texas

A:

You want wood in equilibrium with its environment. If the air has high relative humidity, the wood will readily reabsorb moisture, no matter how low its moisture content. That’s what acclimating the wood to your shop atmosphere for a couple of weeks is all about.

However, you don’t lose all the benefits: Once dried to between 7% and 8%, wood still sees slightly less annual shrinking and swelling when going from dry winters to humid summers. I air-dry my wood and have no problem getting its moisture content this low in my heated shop in winter. Woodworkers of the past did the same, but didn’t have to contend with the dryness of our well-heated houses.

—Garrett Hack is a contributing editor.

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