Alcohol drying?

Re: Alcohol drying?

Mike Schwing from Md.

>Answer to question number 1: As long as you like. Number 2: yes.

Please do a search on the alcohol drying process and get back to us with any lingering questions. This has been discussed nearly to death in the past month, and you'll find more detail than people are probably willing to key in all over again.

Re: Alcohol drying?

Mk

>Ok. I just needed to know that kind of info, cause I have it soaking from last night and needed to know if I had to call the wife to ask her to get take it out. Thanks!

Re: Alcohol drying?

Mike Rubes, Apex, NC

>Hi MK,

I've left a few in the bucket for 3 days with no ill effects that I could find. I've been having pretty good luck with this method so far.

Good luck,

Mike

Re: Alcohol drying?

Kevin Mac Luskie

>I forgot one in a bucket for about a week. When I finally got back to turning, and went to put a piece in, I found it. Doesn't seem to have hurt it.

-Kevin

Re: Alcohol drying?

Shawn - in ID

>For all future answer seekers doing searchers on the length of alcohol searching question. You can not soak in alcohol too long! Let it sit for months, you may loose time but it won't hurt the drying of the wood. You could speed up full drying by refreshing the alcohol but nobody should be worried about leaving a piece of wood too long in the alcohol.

Re: Alcohol drying? The maximum time for soaking..

Russ Fairfield

>The maximum time limit for soaking the wood is self regulating - when all of the alcohol has evaporated.

Prolonged soaking in alcohol will not harm the wood. The lignin that binds the wood together is not soluble in alcohol.

That assumes, of course, that the alcohol will not leach out any of the color or natural oils from the wood. Has anybody seen any changes in color or natural oils after soaking??

Prolonged soaking could have the positive effect of killing any bugs that may be in the wood.

Re: Alcohol drying? The maximum time for soaking..

Mike Schwing from Md.

>I've mentioned several times that alcohol soaked woods feel "fake" to me (for lack of a better term). Better said, they don't feel "normal" but instead they feel like..hmmm..can't come up with a good descriptor...freezer burned meat. Yeah, they feel like freezer burn. The don't seem to work or finish any differently but I believe the oils are being dissolved by the alcohol. They just seem to have had the oil soaked out of them, too.

As said, I can't detect any difference in the working or finishing properties, but there is a definite texture difference to me.

Re: Alcohol drying? The maximum time for soaking..

Ron in Drums PA

>As Mike mentioned, I also feel the difference once wood has soaked in alcohol and dried. But I've had some cherry that I rough turned back in the spring and a piece left over that I turned and dipped recently. I finished them both recently and once the finish is applied, I don't feel the difference anymore.