Hello everyone
This morning I went on a walk looking for a branch with a specific shape for a project. I found it. But it’s so green that my moisture meter won’t even measure it.
What can I do to rocket-accelerate the drying process? It’s maybe 3-4cm thick and not very long. For now I stuck it into a floor vent, hoping that the furnace will do a lot of the drying for me, but I’m not willing to wait more than a week or so.
Would putting it into my kitchen oven for a couple of hours do anything? What temperature would I use?
I’m not really worried about checks or movement. Whatever shape it settles into is fine. But I don’t want it to twist significantly after it’s installed.
Replies
Patience is a virtue. The pleasures of delayed gratification are amplified by the delay. Nature likes to take its course........
A 4cm stick will naturally air-dry out in a month or two, with the bark off. Longer with the bark on.
Here in civilization (West Wales) the dogs have many stick banks at the beginning of this dog walk and that through the forest. (They enjoy a selection of various lengths, thicknesses, shapes and chewiness). The 2cm diameter sticks dry out in a week after the tree-murdering machine chops them orf the tree. Those of 4cm diameter take a month.
This is outdoors in the Welsh climate, which consists of most weathers you've heard of.
Lataxe
If you want the bark off, take it off first. Bark on slows drying. Some woods, such as birch, will rot underneath with the bark on.
Putting it in the oven is fine. It's just a stick -- unless you stole it from Hogwarts.
Hm. I was thinking to leave the bark on. If it stays on - it will look good. But if it's not going to stay on - I better take it off now, sand and finish the branch with some Spar.
Maybe I'll take an offcut and see how hard it is to debark it and how it looks. I'll probably have to stain it since no matter the species - it's sapwood on the outside.
If you want the bark on, leave it on. It's a stick. What's the worst that can happen?
Sticks. It's not like they grow on trees.
I needed one with a very specific shape. It's not like I mind a walk through the woods, but it would take some time effort to find a replacement.
There is nothing to stop you from putting it in the oven. I suggest something like 250 degrees for maybe 10 hours to start. If you have a little lab scale weigh it before you start so after you'll have an ideal of the loss.
If you can get another branch of similar diameter you can put it in alongside and you'll have a test sample to try to snap to judge flex after drying.
The color of the wood will darken a bit, or maybe alot depending on species.
After sticking out of a floor register overnight it's down to 22%. So looks like that may get it down to air-dry in 2-3 more days.
10 hours in the oven sounds expensive :)
I think I'll take the bark off. Then I won't have to worry about it falling off on its own later.
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