Quick question about storing wood

poolhalljnkie

poolhalljnkie

House cue conversionist
Silver Member
I have used the search function & I have researched about a dozen exotic wood suppliers websites & I cant find an answer.....

I have been buying some stock & some of it is green & completely waxed, & some of it is "dried" with just the ends waxed....Do I need to take the wax off when storing it or leave it on, & if I need to remove it what is the best way....heat or scraper??

Also & Im sure this makes some difference....I am in Texas, its already reaching 90's & Im sure we have another very dry, very hot summer on the way. Where the wood is stored is not climate controlled, just on wire rack shelves for airflow in the garage. What effect will this have on the "green" wood?

Thanks
 
How about in between turns also?

Sorry to hijack. How about in between turns? Does resealing the ends only become ok or the entire piece need it?
 
wood

I the wood is dry, (8 0r 9%) I let it sit around in my shop for a month or so to get acclimated to my humidity.......40 to 55%. I leave the ends waxed but I run the sides through the jointer to clean them. Once I start cutting on a piece of wood, I never use any sealer on it again until it's a cue.

If the wood is wet (10% or more) I wish I had not bought it. It may take 2 years or more to dry. I skin it as above and let it sit. If it is totally green I would put in in a paper bag and let it sit for years.....

Actually I am trying something new. I have some wet wood that I bought cheap but it is nice. I skinned the sides and left the wax on the ends. It measures anywhere from 12% to 23% moisture. I weighed it and measured the moisture content. I wrote it on a tag with the date and attached it to each piece. I put them in my attic in Feb. I live in GA and the attic gets to 140 deg in the summer. I will check them at the end of Aug to see how it worked.

Kim

Kim
 
poolhalljnkie said:
I have used the search function & I have researched about a dozen exotic wood suppliers websites & I cant find an answer.....

I have been buying some stock & some of it is green & completely waxed, & some of it is "dried" with just the ends waxed....Do I need to take the wax off when storing it or leave it on, & if I need to remove it what is the best way....heat or scraper??

Also & Im sure this makes some difference....I am in Texas, its already reaching 90's & Im sure we have another very dry, very hot summer on the way. Where the wood is stored is not climate controlled, just on wire rack shelves for airflow in the garage. What effect will this have on the "green" wood?

Thanks
Click to expand...

Leave the wax on and if the wood is green, going from cooler to your hot dry garage, I would not put on wire rack but stack in a corner out of the air stream. What needs to be done depends on species. Not knowing how much you can push drying in any species than assume the worst and dry the wood slowly.
Personally, I never use any woods until they have been in my shop at least 1 years for dry stuff and at least 2 years if the wood was wet when I bought it. Kiln dried boards for laminated shafts sit for 6-8 months and then process over almost 1 year. Not in any hurry.

Bob Danielson
 
A very accurate way of knowing when your wood is at it's optimum is to accurately weigh each piece and then every 2 or 3 months weigh it again. When it no longer loses any weight then it is stabilized to the atmosphere where it is being stored and is dry as it will get.

Dick
 
With green wood, someone here told me a tip, store in basement (unless your basement is a swimming pool in the summer) and put it at the bottom rack or shelf. Keep measuring the weight or moisture or both and over months of this, place it a shelf higher as it drys. More humidity at the floor level than at the ceiling, so the wood won't dry too quickly and crack or check. A garage isn't to bad, but I would suggest to store it lower to the ground if it's green. Also keep an eye out for wood boring insects..
Kim, I don't think you'll be happy with the results of a uncontrolled 140 degree attic. You may end up with a lot of cracked pieces.
Dave
 
bdcues said:
Not in any hurry.
Click to expand...

Im definately not in any hurry. Im working with a CM here & mostly practicing, old house cue conversions, etc....., I dont even own any of my own equipment yet, so the wood can sit for several years before I start messing with it. I was given the advice to buy wood, wood, wood, before I even thought about purchacing equipment, so thats what I'm doing.

I didnt think about weighing each piece & measuring its moisture content, on a regular basis, but I will certainly do that.

My main concern was whether or not to leave the wax on...seems to me that moisture will not be able to "escape" if it is all waxed.

The wood will be in my garage, door is closed 90% of the day, not a lot of air flow & more than likely we will be having 45+ 100 degree days with low relative humidity over the next few months.

Thanks for all of your replies,
 
Be carefull striping the wax this time of year in Tx. Feb of last year I bought a bunch of wet ebony. I striped the wax on the sides, leaving the ends waxed, and stacked it to dry. Every few weeks I would weigh it. It lost about 8% over 6 months without cracking or checking. June I bought some zircote and did the same thing with it. Temp in June went to 100+ degrees real quick. In two weeks the zircote lost 10% of it's weight and was cracked badly. Anything I buy now will get dewaxed this fall. Just another cuebuilding live and learn.

Larry
 
Dave38 said:
With green wood, someone here told me a tip, store in basement (unless your basement is a swimming pool in the summer) and put it at the bottom rack or shelf. Keep measuring the weight or moisture or both and over months of this, place it a shelf higher as it drys. More humidity at the floor level than at the ceiling, so the wood won't dry too quickly and crack or check. A garage isn't to bad, but I would suggest to store it lower to the ground if it's green. Also keep an eye out for wood boring insects..
Kim, I don't think you'll be happy with the results of a uncontrolled 140 degree attic. You may end up with a lot of cracked pieces.
Dave
Click to expand...

Yea... I expect to lose some. The attic is cool in Feb and gradually warms up over the summer. I am hoping the temperature ramping up will treat the wood nicely. It was an experiment. I will post the results later in the year.

Kim
 
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