Hello – I have been reading everything i can find about air drying black walnut. We are clearing a site for a new home and had to take down a black walnut. My nephew owns a sawmill and has offered to kiln dry the wood, however I have read that air drying preserves the color best…. and I hate to bother my nephew since they are so busy with orders. The logs were cut two weeks ago. Because i only have the one tree, which isn’t huge, someone with a portable sawmill offered to let me bring him my logs when he was close by, only charging me per board foot, and not for the minimum. I am taking him the logs tomorrow, and will bring them home same day.
I live in northwest Georgia. It is very hot right now with frequent afternoon thunderstorms and high humidity. We have a metal barn that we can use to stack the boards. Would it be better to stack in the barn or outside?
I have sealed the ends, will use stickers to separate… and thought about weighing down with concrete blocks placed inside a plastic bag to prevent concrete dust from getting on the boards.
The wood will be used to make a farmhouse table top (and maybe benches if I have enough wood)
The person making my table has said that if i mill to 1.75 inches I will have enough board to plain and make a nice table.
I understand that it will take a long time to dry… that’s ok, we are many, many, months away from having a house to put it in anyway.
Any advice will be greatly appreciated!!!
thank you
Nancy
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Good Evening!!! My logs were milled today and I LOVE them!!! I talked my better half into setting up a “babysitting” station. Using the advice I received here we ensured the blocks were level and stacked with stickers for spacing. We have two stacks, side by side (with a space between them). We strapped down the stacks in several areas. We placed some time over the top. I am going to put some seven dust as advised.
Question - is the tin hanging over to much? Want to protect from rain, but also want air to get in.....
Should the straps be tightened every couple of weeks, or sooner? Should we rotate every couple of months?
Once our house is built we will move the wood inside the barn or our basement.
I love this wood!!! When sweeping off the boards I probably drove my husband crazy with the constant “wow!! Look at the colors in this one!!!”
I love even the one with more white area.... if I don’t have enough wood... I’m thinking about using these for my benches.
Thanks for all the help!!!
Walnut won't give you any trouble in the drying process. Drying times may vary depending upon wood species, initial moisture level, lumber thickness, density, ambient conditions, and processing techniques....
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Hey,
The tin won't stop air from hitting the wood. Consider this, though. You might get some unwanted coloring on the edges from the sun heating the metal.
And rotating's a good idea. You don't want discoloration from the cauls holding the moisture in. The wood they're resting on will dry last leaving light spots, kinda like tan lines.
Mikaol
At 1.75" thick they should be dry about now, they started in 2018...
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