Replies

1. 
   tms | Feb 17, 2005 08:20pm | #1

   The general rule of thumb is one year per inch of thickness for stickered lumber.

   Tom

1. 
   dutchy | Feb 17, 2005 09:47pm | #2

   thanks tms   means i got to waite 3 yrs yet?   3'' thick

1. 
   tms | Feb 17, 2005 10:27pm | #3

   Yep,Since it's only pine, you won't lose much in the way of color or character by having it kiln dried. See if you can find a lumber prcessor in your area that will dry it for you. If you have a small lot, you may need to wait while a full load is assembled to get a good price, but it beats three years.Tom

2. 
   bobhallsr | Feb 18, 2005 06:39am | #4

   The rule of thumb only works for a one inch thumb.  12/4 will likely take more that three years.  I have found that a small electric heater with a fan speeds things up a bit.

   BJ

   Gardening, cooking and woodworking in Southern Maryland
3. 
   UncleDunc | Feb 18, 2005 09:18am | #5

   Depends somewhat on where you live. If you heat the house in winter or air condition in summer, it's not really air drying. The wood will dry faster than it would in an outbuilding. You can tell when it's dry by weighing a piece periodically. When the weight stabilizes, it's as dry as it's going to get.

   You can calculate the moisture content by cutting a piece small enough to fit in the oven, weighing it, and drying it at low temperature until the weight stabilizes. Original weight minus dry weight is how much water was in it. Weight of water divided by dry weight times 100 is percent moisture content.

   Or you can skip all that and buy a moisture meter.

   
   

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   Edited 3/25/2005 8:46 pm ET by Uncle Dunc