Storing lumber, a learning experience
Mike G.
>Storing Lumber 101
Having over 20 years experience in the carpentry and woodworking trades, I should have known better. I tore down an old cotton mill warehouse/feed store a couple of years ago. I got a bunch of lumber from it, enough to build a huge shop with a lot left over. I had about 2000 sq ft of 2x8 t&g YP flooring, some of it Heart Pine. There were probably about 100 3x10x12's, also Long Leaf Pine (YP).Probably about 600 sq ft of quartersawn 1x3 Heart Pine flooring, along with about 3000 sq ft of Poplar, White Oak, and Pine boards. Not to mention the several hundred ft of beaded board and lap siding, all Heart Pine.
I stored the lumber on my property, trying to stack and sticker it properly, but a lot of the lumber still had the nails in it. It didn't stack too good. Of course, my property is still undeveloped, so the dunnage was placed on the ground and the lumber stacked on top of it. I also ran out of stickers so the wood was, in a lot of cases, in contact with each other. I did sell quite a bit of the lumber when I first had it, and used some of it myself. The thing is, right now, I'm burning all of it because of improper storage. I didn't know there were that many termites in South Carolina. *^(
Anyway, the point of this article is to tell you that if you have an opportunity to tear down an old building, go for it. BUT, if you don't have the proper facilities to store the lumber on your own property, rent a storage building, something with a concrete floor, and a roof. Remove the nails immediately and sticker it properly. Air circulation is the most important aspect of storing lumber, even if it's 100 year old lumber.
I brought one of my hand planes with me so I could scavenge a board here and there. Some times it was just so I could see what kind of board I was throwing away. For instance, yesterday, I threw a 2x8x14 foot White Oak board on the fire. It looked beautiful on one side, but flipped over, it looked like someone had gone at it with an adze and a chain saw.
I hope Y'all can learn from my mistake, because I'm probably burning at least a couple thousand dollars worth of lumber right now.
Published on 01/05/03 at 10:26:10 CST by
Mike G. Mild mannered Carpenter by day, knuckle draggin' Galoot by night