Replies

1. 
   jeanlou | Feb 22, 2007 11:33pm | #1

   Willy

   Is this kiln dry wood that you purchased and are acclimatizing or wood that you are drying? If you are air drying the wood, it will take about 2 years per inch of thickness if you have good air movement.

   If it is already dry, then you should measure the moisture level daily, and record the readings. You will see when the wood is in equilibrium. Here is a link to a moisture meter supplier.  http://www.qasupplies.com/woodmoismet.html

   It will probably be OK in a month or so ( maybe earlier - maybe later )...but nothing works better than taking readings.  JL

2. 
   SgianDubh | Feb 22, 2007 11:34pm | #2

   What you need to know willy is the average Relative Humidity (RH)) in your basement. For this you need a hygrometer. Electronic ones can be got for about UK£15, or about US$20. RH varies from hour to hour, day to day, and importantly the typical RH values vary over the seasons.

   For example, you'll probably find typical RH in an American home at this time of year will be something close to about 40%. During the summer this number would be likely to rise to about 60% RH. These numbers are just typical, and there could be quite different numbers found in different areas of the US due to climatic conditions, proximity to large bodies of water, etc.. On top of that your basement may exhibit typical RH values that are at variance to the main body of your house. Perhaps you keep it cooler for example.

   Once you know what the typical RH range of your basement you can fairly quickly work out what sort of wood Moisture Content (MC) you can expect at that RH. For example, if you establish that 40% is fairly normal for this time of year then your wood will be about in equilibrium with that RH when it reaches about 7% MC. To find out what the MC of your wood is you'll need a moisture meter.

   However, you could with care, wing it. If you purchased kiln dried wood that only recently came out of the kiln then it's likely (in the US) that it's already close to about 7%. A couple of weeks in your basement  with the conditions I described above (~40% average RH) then you should be able to use it relatively safely. Make sure you sticker the planks up to let the air circulate.

   Actually, this is just a very short description of a possible scenario, and there may be good reasons why the above suggestions, pointers, and thoughts may not suit your situation. Unfortunately, I don't have the time and space to go into too much detail. I can only hope that what I've said roughly suits your circumstances. Slainte.

   Richard Jones Furniture

1. 
   willy | Feb 23, 2007 04:03am | #3

   Thanks Jeanlou & SgianDubh for your comments. The wood is kiln dried so I'll "wing it" and start planning after 4 - 6 weeks. I placed a fan at a strategic location to keep the air circulating. The relative humidity in our house is around 40 % this time of year and it may be slightly higher in the basement. The wood was stored in an unheated location when I bought it so it has been in a temperature of minus 10 - 20 degrees celcius for the last 4 - 6 weeks.

1. 
   SgianDubh | Feb 23, 2007 03:49pm | #4

   Willy, with those sorts of temperatures I wouldn't be surprised to find that the typical RH the wood has been stored in has been around 10- 20%. Very cold air carries very little moisture, and of course is a significant cause of dehydration in animals, e.g., humans.

   During storage the wood may even have dried somewhat below the 7%MC it was probably kilned to, depending on if it was close stacked or stickered up. If it was close stacked then only the ends, faces and edges of boards exposed to those dry conditions might have been affected to any noticeable degree.

   Typically in an enclosed shed with no climate control wood moisture gain or loss in response to raised or lowered RH conditions is about 0.2% or 0.3% per month. Slainte.

   Richard Jones Furniture

   Edited 2/25/2007 12:21 pm by SgianDubh