Why Would you wet down logs

[WV_hillbilly]

   I have a question about something is saw the other day. I was driving past a sawmill at a handle making factory and noticed that in their log yard they had water sprayers about 12 feet off the ground that kept the logs wet while they where in the yard waiting to be cut. Is this to keep the logs from endchecking or something different ?  I just thought it was strange when Ancorseal is so affordable, so there must be something I' m missing.

[Ron Wenrich]

There are 2 reasons to wet down logs.  For handle stock, most logs are ash.  Wetting down logs keeps down the powder post beetles.  Their the ones that leave little trails of sawdust laying around.  No amount of anchorseal will protect you from those.

The other factor is that logs that have been wetted down saw easier.  That's not why they wet the logs down at the handle factory, but it is an added benefit.

Ever notice that logs seem to saw better during a rainy spell?  Blades will last longer and sawing seems to go so much better.

[dail_h]

   I have cut veneer from poplar logs that had been kept wet for several years,and you couldn't yell they hadn't come in that day hardly

[ARKANSAWYER]

   Logs like hickory and ash get the bugs fast.  Also it is cheaper to spray water then it is to try to end seal 5 tractor trailor loads of logs a day.    They used to keep them in a mill pond or float them down the river which did the same thing.  I have kept logs in my pond tied to a nylon rope so I could get them back.
ARKANSAWYER

[Tom]

Keeping the Humidity high discourages some fungi that stain.  That's one reason why submerging is popular too.

[D._Frederick]

Wet log don't catch on fire as easy and it keeps them from drying out.

[WV_hillbilly]

  See  I learned something new  today .
                                                                                          Arky           do you tie a rope on them so if they sink you won' t have to get Deadheader on a roadtrip to get them out ?  :D :D  

 As far as Anchorseal goes couldn' t you spray it on for a faster application. That is if you weren 't going to soak them .

[Ron Wenrich]

I've never used anchorseal.  I usually don't let the logs lay in the yard that long.  :D

We cleaned up some old logs in the yard recently.  Some were sassafras and they had no end check.  Some have been there for over a year.  Also, some 2 yr old English walnut.

I've seen hickory do a 4 way split.  Would anchorseal help that?

[ohsoloco]

Ron, how long did it take the hickory to split like that?  I have three hickory logs that I coated with Anchorseal several hours after felling...they've been out back for a month or so...gotta get them milled up.  No evidence of checking yet (except a minor check when the logs were dropped).  Last year I milled some 2x hickory, and a lot of that has checked...a good bit of the checking is behaving like ring shake even though there was no sign of if in the logs  :(

[Ron Wenrich]

There seems to be quite a bit of tension in some hickory logs.  Usually, if they are going to check, they'll do it within a few weeks.  Sometimes they'll split as you saw them.  That's fun.   :D

Quite often they don't have any bark on them, so that tells me they were felled during the spring when the bark sluffs off.  I don't know if that has anything to do with it.

[OneWithWood]

In our last harvest we sold a large black cherry.  It was 38" dbh and at least 100' tall.  Unfortunately for the buyer it was double hearted and split three ways as soon as it was cut.  They put some wavy units accross the splits to try and slow it down but the stress was greater than the strength of the wavy units ( can't recall what the proper name is just now).  I've got a major crotch out of that tree that I anchor sealed to keep until I am ready to saw it up.  At the rate it is splitting I might not have a lot of sawin' to do! :D

[AtLast]

Well...all I can say is...ALL THE ABOVE...ever notice in Tenn. and Kentucky you go by the log fields and see sprinklers on the logs keeping them wet...for all the reasons stated...easier to saw, reduces mildew and rot etc...wow...we should compile all these questions and answers and make a publication for future sawyers...how bout it Jeff ...up for it?  ;D

[Jeff]

What! Give all our secrets out? ;)

[AtLast]

ring shake?????
tension in log????
I get the impression Im more of a rookie than I thought....any books or sumthin I should be reading? ??? ??? ??? :P :P

[beenthere]

AtLast
The book by "Hoadley" titled "Understanding Wood" is a good one to read to learn about wood.

"Ring shake" is, as the name implies, a split in the wood generally along an annual ring. Sometimes bacteria in the wood while the tree is growing causes a weakness along a ring.

Tension often refers to the outer portion (near the bark) of the tree that takes on tension stress when the tree grows. This puts the center of the tree in compression stress. The effect when sawing a log from the tree is to releive the stresses causing the boards or timbers to warp (the outer portion getting shorter and the inner portion getting longer). "Boxing" the heart helps keep the stresses in balance.  (In addition, there is also "tension wood" which is a term to describe an abnormal wood characteristic in hardwoods that has gelatinous fibres that occur on the upper side of a leaning tree or limb.  In softwoods, the abnormal wood on the underside of a leaning tree or limb is called "compression wood". These abnormal woods shrink more along the grain, thus causing headaches (warp) when the wood dries.)

Hoadley's book will help you to 'understand' it better than I can explain it.

[Tom]

There are also some excellant threads and posts on the Forestry Forum, that's here :D, on these subjects.  Sometimes it's fun to use the search function and see if somebody has talked about stuff. :P

[AtLast]

Thanks fellers...appreciate it..all the termanology ...Ive been in forestry for years...but useally Im the guy climbing and cutting....gettin to ld for that so I thought this would be better...and ya know what....IT IS!!!....LOVE this stuff  8)...but Ill keep  :P and askin to impose on the " knowledge base" here on the FF...thanks again

[BW_Williams]

I second Hoadley's book, also get his wood identifcation book while your at it.  Excellent references both.  BWW