Newbie SOS

[Lightweeder]

There may be more than one question here - apologies in advance but, if I'm not to lose all my wood, I'll have to move quickly. I've had a lot of help from you guys already regarding my logs, which I've now put on the staging in my greenhouse as they were cracking as I looked at them. Someone said the other day that they would never dry in log form. Does everything have to be roughed down first ? If I keep in log form, what do I use to wax them?

Second question if I may. I had a small green log of apple which I turned into a goblet, which had a bad crack in it the next morning. How should I have done that? Thanks in advance.

 

[wizer]

I'd say that they are getting far too warm in the greenhouse and to move them out or cover the glass with something dark.

 

[Blister]

Not a good idea to store them in a greenhouse , too much heat and no air flow

Best to store them outside away from direct sun light , you must seal the cut ends to stop them drying out too fast

It takes about 1 year per inch of wood to dry naturally so 12" log will take some time

You can cut the logs in half with a saw again you must seal all open cuts

You can use PVA glue watered down a bit or a oil based paint

If you can or have the room make some racking with a roof on , shelves to keep the logs off the floor and hang some sacking down each open end to keep the sun off , they need to have a natural air flow around them

You can either Finnish turn wet wood and hope it survives or rough turn and leave to dry , to help the drying put the item in a plastic bag with some of the shavings this will slow down the drying and may help to stop cracking or going out of shape

Wood is living so has a mind of its own and will move when the stress is removed so its up to the wood to do its own thing :lol:

all you can do is try and save it :wink:

 

[CHJ]

Lightweeder, in all cases you must seal the endgrain to slow moisture loss as this is where it will evaporate most rapidly and cracks will start to propagate.

In log form if you don't expect to use them within a few weeks then leave them in as long a length as possible, then any cracks that do form in each end will only be a small percentage of the log. Leave bark On.

If you intend to use the logs within a short period of time or are intending to rough turn them green to speed up the drying then cut them about 1/3 longer than the diameter, split them through the core and seal the ends, do not remove the bark or seal the split face.

If you cut the logs with a bandsaw to to form a Blank in a rough approximation of a bought item then you need to seal the whole of the periphery, to make sure you have got all the endgrain but not the faces.

The slower you can dry the wood the less likely to split, outside on a north facing or sun sheltered rack is good, don't be too worried about some rain getting on it, wetting the outer surface balances the slow migration of inner moisture reducing cracking, its not unknown to put the hosepipe on a pile of split logs during very hot weather to help prevent splitting. However do not leave Laburnam or Cherry exposed to the wet, the sapwood rots rapidly, dry under cover.

If you store the sealed pieces in somewhere like your greenhouse then keep vents or a door open and loosely cover the wood with plastic sheet, this cocoons the wood in a semi enclosed environment so that the airborne moisture gradient across the wood pile is more even, (upping the local humidity) but not so much as to cause mold or rot.

Basic need is to let the moisture leave the wood at an even rate all round.

If it dries too quickly from any given surface then the surface wood will shrink and split before inner moisture has a chance to migrate outwards to maintain a balance.

 

[CHJ]

Lightweeder, as far as your goblet is concerned, the chances of you turning an item such as that from green wood and retaining it's form are very remote.

Fruit woods are notorious for being difficult to dry without care and most readily split on you, moisture is slow to migrate out and most have a high shrinkage differential across the grain orientation.

If you turned one with very thin walls, 2mm or less, then you may get away without it cracking but it will distort considerably as the wood shrinks at differing rates dependant on grain direction, even whilst you are turning.

 

[mrs. sliver]

Hi lightweed. for advice.. see above.

I had a lot of problems when I first stared with green wood! The problem is the various layres of the tree are at differing moisture content, and once the end grain of the centre is exposed to the air all hell breaks lose in the dying process!

So, as already stated, you need to seal the ends (I use old candle wax) and (provided the log is big enough) split it lengthways through the core, that way, all the layres are exposed and it allows the full length of the centre to dry.

If this fails and the wood splits while drying, but is still turnable, make sure you get all the crack turned off or it will keep going. or if it is possible, go with the split and work with what is left. ...... not that mine ever split you understand! :-$

 

[hog&bodge]

Great advice for us all guys Thanks have logs drying myself in back
yard under a tarp no splits but having probs with mold, have moved them
higher off the ground should I split them and wax them...??? or is it to late
once there is mold growth on them?

 

[CHJ]

... have logs drying myself in back
yard under a tarp no splits but having probs with mold, have moved them
higher off the ground should I split them and wax them...??? or is it to late
once there is mold growth on them?

Specific advice is difficult as your location, town or countryside, altitude, average humidity of the location etc. It's something you have to determine by experiment really.

What type of wood, is it a variety like Beech that can have dramatic spalting figuring? Fungal growth is not necessarily bad.

Basically increase the airflow around the wood to inhibit fungal growth if not required.

I would treat a percentage of your wood in differing ways, for any given species, leave some in long logs until needed, cut some in shorter length, split some, Always seal the ends.

Then try storing the different samples in various locations around your property and even under the bench and see what happens over the next 6-12 months or longer.

This will be what teaches you the most about what might be most effective in your particular location.

 

[Bodrighy]

Goblets turned in wet wood nearly always split on the foot and warp at the top IME. This is because often they are turned stright from a log and so you usually have the pith at the bottom. I had one that I turned experimntally out of a small peivce of mahoniqa that bent the stem almoat 45 degrees. One of my daughters nicked it so can't show a pic.

I bought a cheap moisture indicator from Axminster and according to that some chery I cut a year ago hasn't changed its moisture content yet.

Pete

 

[hog&bodge]

Then try storing the different samples in various locations
around your property and even under the bench and see
what happens over the next 6-12 months or longer.

Hi I have a cellar that has good air flow but as I am moving in to my shed
It will always be in the dark.
My yard is small I have posted a few pics in the off topic section
of the forum, here is one it is a North facing house.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v302/ ... sition.jpg
Have some cherry, beech, sycamore and ash.
Know someone in the parks and gardens who lets me know when
they are culling trees...lol

 

[Lightweeder]

Thanks to all. I really appreciate your time in responding.

You won't know this, but my greenhouse is freezing - :lol: - it's more of a glass workroom really. I only had one place to locate it and it was under the trees, in the shade, which is great if you need a workspace in the garden, but it's not over warm.

I can't get my head around having to wait ages to use a bit of wood, though I appreciate I may have to work on that. I watched a Utube masterclass last night, and someone said that, if wood is waxed at the ends, one should assume it is 'wet'. :?

But I'm grateful for your time and indulgence.

Mrs Silver - nice to meet another woman. I hope there are more

 

[CHJ]

........
I can't get my head around having to wait ages to use a bit of wood, though I appreciate I may have to work on that. ........

You can always rough turn the items to speed drying and finish off later, depending on wood type & how and where you dry them they could be ready in as little a 3 weeks.

Turn a simple bowl 150 mm dia to something like 1.5cm thick, wrap the outer surface in several layers of newspaper and put it aside somewhere in the house where it will get reasonable air movement. (Upside down on a cake cooling rack helps air movement.)

 

[Jenx]

Mrs Silver - nice to meet another woman. I hope there are more

L/W .. I'm not certain about this, ok .. ( and may live to really regret this )... isn't TEKNO-MAGE a lady turner too ?

Please forgive and excuse me if I am wrong 8)

 

[cornucopia]

hello- it sound like you would enjoy micheal o-donnels green woodturning book or dvd.
you can do allot of things with green wood but it is another learning slope compared to working with dry wood. I used to do lots of rustic natural edge goblets with wet branch wood, laburnum and yew look stunning worked this way. sharp tools very thin wall thickness and a angle poise lamp all help... but most of all lots of pratice
heres a pic of a laburnum piece i did years ago using wet wood

 

[hog&bodge]

Nice work cornucopia..and thanks to all advice on log/wood care..

 

[wizer]

Doh

I finally got around to sealing my logs today. I used a concoction of PVA glue and eggshell paint. Mainly because I only had a bit of each.

I didn't realised you shouldn't seal the exposed long grain #-o

I'm about to become the owner of a lot of greenwood logs and was wondering the best way to keep it. Would an open fronted shed work? i.e 3 sides and a roof? Or should I just pile them up neatly against the fence with sealed ends?

Also if I want to season some of it, should I seal it and bring it indoors? Maybe on racks in the workshop?

Lots of questions on this lately. I'd love to see the DVD\Book George mentioned. Next month maybe

 

[Bodrighy]

Theoretically the faster you dry it out, the more likely it is to split. As I forage wood and don't generally pay for it mine is left out in the rain until I want it and then turned wet. I do get splits sometimes but not as often as you'd expect perhaps because it gets as wet on the outside as the sap wood is in the middle so all dries at the same rate. There are all sorts of ways of drying it out quickly such as soaking in meths, (DNA as the colonial cousins call it) microwave (beware of doing it too long or it'll catch fire) or simply being patient and waiting. If you blank it up and possibly rough turn it you are cutting down the time it'll take to dry but you will never remove the possibility iof splits. I have some bowls that I have kept from when I first started turning 2 years ago and one has a ruddy great split in it, the other one hasn't though both are made from the same beech tree.

Pete

 

[Lightweeder]

hello- it sound like you would enjoy micheal o-donnels green woodturning book or dvd.
you can do allot of things with green wood but it is another learning slope compared to working with dry wood. I used to do lots of rustic natural edge goblets with wet branch wood, laburnum and yew look stunning worked this way. sharp tools very thin wall thickness and a angle poise lamp all help... but most of all lots of pratice
heres a pic of a laburnum piece i did years ago using wet wood

Cornucopia - I love this. I really love it. The finish is perfect and the shape also. I'd be more than happy with something approaching this. Thanks.

What I think I need to do is store my wood as you've all suggested, maybe roughing out first, and get something already seasoned to keep me going in the meantime, then I won't be champing at the bit.

Thanks again for all suggestions.