The Forestry Forum

General Forestry => Drying and Processing => Topic started by: bestillcody on August 19, 2020, 07:53:10 PM

Title: Pitch Won't Set
Post by: bestillcody on August 19, 2020, 07:53:10 PM
I have been setting pitch in our local Los Angeles softwoods for a couple of years now with good results. Suddenly I have been having trouble. I have an Italian Stone Pine slab that I cannot get to stop running. Ran it at 160 for a week, pulled it out, still runny, put it in again for another week. Still having trouble with the pitch.

Anyone have any suggestions? I am at a loss. 

Title: Re: Pitch Won't Set
Post by: Southside on August 19, 2020, 08:50:49 PM
What's the MC?
Title: Re: Pitch Won't Set
Post by: Sawmill Man on August 20, 2020, 08:06:11 AM
Did you give it a chance to cool off?
Title: Re: Pitch Won't Set
Post by: GeneWengert-WoodDoc on August 20, 2020, 11:00:41 AM
You need to go to 180 F.  As mentioned, the pitch is only set for room temperatures, where any remaining pitch will be hard.
Title: Re: Pitch Won't Set
Post by: chandler on August 31, 2020, 08:15:52 AM
How do you get to that high of a temp (180) to set the pitch? I'm new to this, but have a lot of eastern white pine that I plan to saw into 1x and dry for interior work. Have started shopping for a kiln and see that the smaller dehumidification kilns top out at 120 degrees. Is that enough to "set" the pitch in pine?
Title: Re: Pitch Won't Set
Post by: K-Guy on August 31, 2020, 09:56:50 AM
The DH kilns have a max temp of 120°F for drying. On the Nyle kilns you can raise the temp as high as 160°F if the compressor is turned off.
Title: Re: Pitch Won't Set
Post by: GeneWengert-WoodDoc on August 31, 2020, 11:55:00 PM
Many small operations have a separate heating chamber for this.
Title: Re: Pitch Won't Set
Post by: Stephen1 on September 11, 2020, 06:23:45 PM
Quote from: GeneWengert-WoodDoc on August 31, 2020, 11:55:00 PM
Many small operations have a separate heating chamber for this.
How long do I have to hold  4/4 EWP @ 180F?
Title: Re: Pitch Won't Set
Post by: GeneWengert-WoodDoc on September 21, 2020, 10:02:54 PM
I would say that 12 hours at 180 would be sufficient.