Bulk Lumber Storage?

[jgfore]

I have the wall mounted storage area for my lumber, and I am assuming that most people have some sort-of the same type of storage. This would include a nice lumber rack to a pile of wood on the floor. But what I am wanting to know is, does anyone store BULK lumber. Let me explain.

My father is about to cut down a LARGE oak tree and a pretty good size cedar tree. I have already spoke to a portable sawmill about cutting it up into lumber for me. My problem is that I do not have a place for........2000 board feet of lumber. I am going to trade a good portion of the lumber off to the sawmill for cutting it up, but this will still leave me with enough lumber to fill my entire basement. Does anyone else store bulk lumber like this? Can I just store it outside? I am afraid that the wood will rot or mold if just left in the elements. Unfortunately, I do not have a shed or barn to get it in out of the rain.

If I can not do anything else with it, then I will just have to sell what I can not store.

Thanks

Jeff

[peterrum]

Nice to have the problem you are facing. i have a mill and store the vast majority of my wood outside. The three priorities are 1. Get it off the ground by at least a foot either with timbers or concrete blocks. 2. Sticker it properly that being 1x1 sticks between each board and spaced 18-24 inches apart to allow for proper air circulation. 3. Cover the top of it with whatever you have on hand, tarp, plywood, metal roofing, and weight it down. You don't want to cover the sides as you want to have the air circulating through it.

I prefer to keep my wood stacked and drying in a shady area as you want it to dry slowly, usually the slower the better, and if it is in a sunny area it could dry too quickly.

As a general rule it will take 1 year/inch to air dry hardwoods and that will get the moisture content down to a level where you can then bring some inside when you see a future need and let it acclimatize to the indoor environment.

If you are not able to do any of this just send it all to me and I will take care of it for you

[peterrum]

One last thing that is quite important as well. When your father cuts those trees down, ASAP seal the ends of the logs with some latex paint or a product called Anchor Seal. I have used parrafin wax as well but on smaller logs. That seals up the ends of the pores and that stops the moisture from evaportaing out of the ends of the boards too quickly and will reduce your checks and cracks. I would do that on the oak but wouldnt be so concerned about doing it on the cedar.

[peterrum]

Here are some files you may find useful.

Drying hardwood lumber.pdf

Drying softwood lumber.pdf

[jHop]

I spoke with a guy at my local Woodcraft who recommended a Teepee like structure, for a handful of logs and branches used for turning. The logs were to be stood on end, about a foot off the ground, and the tarp (or whatever) that made up the Teepee was about three feet away from the bottom. The idea being the rain / moisture/ snow would be kept off the wood while it dries, and still allow for air circulation because the tarp does not go all the way to the ground. Unlike a traditional Teepee, however, the top is not open to the sky.

The other thing I have seen (in photos, anyway) is a drying shed, but that's from a larger mill. Concrete foundation, raised 4x4 timber frame for drying, and a corrugated roof.

Not having any of these things, I have stacked some on the front porch. The problem seems to be that the local cats have come by and implemented their own solution to removing the moisture by "remoisturizing" the material. (that's the most polite way I can think of to state it, anyway.)

[Guest Trace]

Jeff, I have the perfect solution for you. I will be down to pick up all of your wood. I will bring it back to my place and store it in the barn. After it is well dried, I will return it to you (Maybe). Actually there have been some good answers posted to your question. Keep the wood dry, flat, and inside. Even if you have to put it overhead in your garage. Or possibly in a mini storage rental. At the cost of wood today it will take a while to become non-cost effective. Good luck.

[Vermont Carpentry]

I had a bad experience a few years ago using a tarp. Luckily it was only KD spruce for wall construction. I placed the wood on blocks which put it about 16 in. off the ground. I put a tarp on top and some blocks to weight it down. The tarp did not extend to the ground, so there was at least air flow to the bottom. About 6 months later when I went to use the lumber it had the start of mold growth. Now I use sacrificial plywood CDX 1/2" to keep it covered and no problems.

Good luck,

Mark

[jHop]

I had a bad experience with a tarp a few years ago, although it was not wood related. I used to keep a tarp over the rusted out back window of my Golf, and the tarp shredded. If you use a tarp, I'd recommend making a PVC frame for it to be pulled almost taught against, and keep some space between the top of the stack and the tarp for air movement. The sharp edges of various materials will shred most blue tarps (especially those offered at Harbor Freight) because most of them are actually woven strands of nylon, not solid sheets. Step up a few notches to protect some of your investments, and buy either more tarps and rotate them, or higher-quality tarps.

I'm not saying the basic blue tarps are worthless. The basic blue tarps should not deteriorate immediately if used properly and not stretched too taught, but accidents will happen. Sometimes, you need to upgrade for peace of mind. It depends on how long your storage will be there.

There's also several products out there to link tarps together. I forget the name of the one product I'm thinking of, but it's inspiration was a dowel and a strip of garden hose. (It's yellow plastic, ribbed, and I think I've seen it for sale at Harbor Freight, or some knock-off of it.) But there's a couple of dozen other ways to link smaller tarps together.

[jgfore]

I think that I may just try and work out a deal with my sawmill to either store it or take it in on credit for different wood later on. I do not know if they will do this, but it is worth a try.

[jab73180]

my father gets a tarp that doesnt fray. its black plastic and it is reinforced with string. he usually buys an acre of it to cover a large sand pile for the winter. as the winter goes on they cut it to get to different parts of the sand pile. He usually brings it home in large pieces and we cut it down for our needs. it works pretty well to cover a wood pile, shed or house.

[ssrt3]

a good place to get a tarp is http://www.billboardtarps.com/ they are the best tarps that i have ever used and cheap like me.

[garygrant]

I have the wall mounted storage area for my lumber, and I am assuming that most people have some sort-of the same type of storage. This would include a nice lumber rack to a pile of wood on the floor. But what I am wanting to know is, does anyone store BULK lumber. Let me explain.

My father is about to cut down a LARGE oak tree and a pretty good size cedar tree. I have already spoke to a portable sawmill about cutting it up into lumber for me. My problem is that I do not have a place for........2000 board feet of lumber. I am going to trade a good portion of the lumber off to the sawmill for cutting it up, but this will still leave me with enough lumber to fill my entire basement. Does anyone else store bulk lumber like this? Can I just store it outside? I am afraid that the wood will rot or mold if just left in the elements. Unfortunately, I do not have a shed or barn to get it in out of the rain.

If I can not do anything else with it, then I will just have to sell what I can not store.

Thanks

Jeff

Jeff,

I generally work with air-dried lumber, often harvesting the logs myself, getting them sawed by a portable mill, and stickering them in my polebarn. I basically get the lumber for 16 cents per board foot (the cost of the bandsawing). I have over 3,000 board feet of cherry, maple, black walnut, beech, and poplar (and a few lengths of ironwood log) air-drying currently. There was a good article in Fine Woodworking magazine a few issues ago detailing a method for outdoor drying. It sounds like it might be just right for your situation. Unfortunately, I am not at home to look up the issue for you, but you can probably find it online or at a library.