Milling standing dead wood

[JimFX]

One more for the brain trust .....
How long can a dead oak stand before it is not worth milling anymore?
.... and is there a way to tell without cutting it down?

Bark falling off, fungus growing on the bark .... ?

I have several in the woods that are standing dead and a few others that have fallen.
Thanks

[Meadows Miller]

Gday

If its anything like our hardwoods here a fair while we are doing two container loads a month out of dead standing trees some of them have been dead for over 50 years all the sapwood is missing though  ;) The rule I use as long as there is sound wood in it and it has some size to it you can generally get some timber out of it Mate  ;) ;D

Some you win and some you lose but the worst case is you cut it up into firewood  ;)

Regards Chris 

[Ron Wenrich]

I've cut some that have been standing dead for several years.  We had some gypsy moth killed trees that would stand for a long time, and still be usable.  Standing without bark is preferred, as the ones with bark have punky sapwood.  You will lose the sapwood, even without the bark.  You may also have bug holes. 

The ones on the ground are still usable, but they may have more rot in the heartwood.  I've noticed the longer they are dead, the worse the color is in the heartwood.  Its not as nice as a live tree.  Still, its usable wood.

[JimFX]

Thanks for the feedback, I am liking what I hear .... I see more fodder for my mill ..... when I finally get one that is!

[drobertson]

Jim, I have cut a pile of them, as mentioned some will be better than others, one fact for sure, forget any outside lumber unless you like the soft dotty stuff. The heart will remain solid for years, and the larger the dia, the better.  Holes can be an issue, which is probably the reason most of them died.  Cut them down using caution and get the good while you can.   david,  they make excellent firewood,

[mikeb1079]

mill em!  if you're lucky they'll be riddled with bug holes....seriously!

i milled some burr oak that had been laying on the ground dead for years and at first i was disappointed by all the bug holes but after machining and finishing it looks really cool.  i made my basement stairs out of a mixed bag of this burr and red oak.  the worm holed burr looks way more interesting to my eye. 

[Jay C. White Cloud]

Hey JimFX,

For what it is worth Jim, I got to speak with a dendrologist who did his PhD thesis on standing dead wood.  Some species over 700 years and still with solid main trunks.  I believe the oldest oak I have ever done was a large chestnut oat that had been dead for at least 10 years, maybe longer, according to land owner.

Regards,

jay

[rooster 58]

    And if it has worm holes so much the better ;) Ever hear of wormy chestnut? Same thing 'cept for the species. I love it 8)

[cutterboy]

Jim, a few years ago I went out on the ice of a beaver pond and cut down a good sized cherry tree that had been standing dead in the water for a number of years. The heart wood was sound and had good color. I got some nice lumber from that tree.
   This past winter I was logging some poplar and there were two good sized standing dead ones there. Poplar rots fast so I didn't know if the wood would be any good. I cut them down and took the first two logs from each tree. The wood was sound. I sawed them up in March and got good lumber from them.
   I never sawed dead oak but I will if I come across any.

Happy sawing, Cutter

[JimFX]

This is good news from all, I guess I have more logs to mill than I thought.
excellent news .... !
Thanks for taking the time to post.
Jim

[WDH]

Yes, the ambrosia beetles will have had their way with them, but it adds to the character.

[dboyt]

White oak or red oak group?  White oaks (including burr oak) are very rot resistant, especially the heartwood.  Red oaks less so.  Best way to determine is to look up at the dead branches and decide whether you want to be under that tree in the first place, then make a bore cut to get a feel for how solid the heartwood is.  This could save you the trouble and danger of cutting a rotten or hollow tree.  Personally, I'd be more concerned about putting a dead tree on the ground than whether it will be worth milling.

[barbender]

I cut a truckload of dead standing red oak, it had been dead 4 years I think. I was just going to use it for firewood, but it was solid except for.the sapwood. So I milled a bunch of it, ended up getting flooring made out of it for our new house. Lots of bug holes, it looks neat, I think. Your way yield is way down due to the sapwood being gone, but it can definitley be worthwhile.

[mesquite buckeye]

dboyt makes a good point. The branches will at best be less flexible and strong than a live tree and at worst could come crashing down on your head as they brush against adjacent trees on the way down. Dead trees are much more dangerous than live ones. :

[francismilker]

I milled a walnut last month that had been standing dead for 50+ years the log owner told me.  It had no sapwood and lots of good character still in the heart.

[Ernie]

Just be real careful, this happened yesterday, a real tragedy another young life lost in the woods.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/taranaki-daily-news/news/8583216/Rotting-tree-snaps-killing-contractor

[Peter Drouin]

I don't make lumber out of dead trees, one time I cut a hemlock that was dead 6 months on the stump, all junk, was punky, to much work for nothing  :D I  will cut hardwood for fire wood thats dead but thats it, we have enough green ones in NH to saw in to lumber ;D
But good luck to you all with the dead ones

[JimFX]

Ernie, That is such a sad story and Dave is quite correct about felling trees, especially dead ones.
Having a healthy respect for anything that could kill you is a very good thing.

Personally I like to be in a bucket above the branch .... or standing on the ground and watching a professional tree feller do the job.

[thecfarm]

Peter,must be the type of wood we have. There is no way I would saw a dead hemlock or a white pine. Red oak I would try it. That is why I brought the OWB,to get rid of my dead wood. It's no good for saw logs. By the time I notice something is wrong,the tree is no good for lumber.

[JimFX]

OWB ?
Not familiar with what that is ....

[thecfarm]

Outdoor Wood Boiler  ;D

[beenthere]

What thecfarm said... ;D

[barbender]

The ceiling in our new house is t&g milled from dead standing white pine ;)

[Jay C. White Cloud]

All depends on a multiple of factors, and a combination of sorts, if they are wrong, rot will occur, if they fall correct, the tree drys standing, hard or soft wood, it doesn't matter.  Here in the East, hard woods fair much better, but not always.  I harvested a white pine on my property that had been standing dead for over 35 years, and was well know to local "old timers" as lightning struck back in the 40s.  It grew on a ridge over stone, grain was tight, and with the sap wood "punked off," it stood on that ridge for all that time slowly dying, till dead and dry.  It was a bear to chain saw mill but yield beams and slabs over 1200 mm (48") wide DBH, and solid as a rock.