log horse and first 1000 feet of cedar

[rimshot]

Well. the stuck pile of 1 X Cedar sheeting represents a nice pile of the first thousand board feet my new lt10 put out.  I'm wondering if the lumber will be dry enough come march to plane one side for sizing deck boards? I will take about 400 feet   off the pile and resheet my deck.  It is currently sheeted with twisted and sun checked cheap old plantation bred jack pine which probably came from a big box store who was glad to get rid of the stuff.  The rest of the boards will actually go to my sons house for a fence.

I guess we can call it a log horse for lack of a better term. ( See picture)  It's a heavy duty place to sit some secured timbers so I can load 4-5 cedar logs aboard and roll them across to my trailer deck clearning the fender and onto the lt 10 bed.  I know, You have to be very careful with something like that but I have to get more than one log staged at a time so I can saw.   

  

 

[SPD748]

Nice looking stack whack of cedar! I don't think it will dry much by March. Someone with more experience may correct me though.

-lee

[Magicman]

Congrats on your first M, and if the log horse works, ride it.   

[Delawhere Jack]

Hardwoods in northern areas in the winter take 120 - 150 days +/- to air dry, cedar probably about 90 days(?).

[beenthere]

rimshot
You will do yourself a big favor if you re-do that pile with at least twice as many stickers. I'd suggest minimum 18", but at least every 20-24". It will go through your planer much easier and with thicker planed material in the end.  If that might be your goal. ;)

[rimshot]

rimshot
You will do yourself a big favor if you re-do that pile with at least twice as many stickers. I'd suggest minimum 18", but at least every 20-24". It will go through your planer much easier and with thicker planed material in the end.  If that might be your goal. ;)

(beenthere)




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Yikes!  At least every 2'. hey?  Guess I got some work ahead because I don't want anything degrading those nice boards.  As you can see I mixed some 9 & 10 stuff in with the 8' boards letting the ends run wild.  I'm set up back in the woods so there is darn few level spots to work with plus a foot of snow.  I wonder if I could get some pallots from the feed store start my stuck piles.  I'm running short on sticks to stuck the pile with.  Time to requisition some inventory and go to ripping.


I will hopefully not need the cedar boards till perhaps May so I'm hoping the dry but cold Winter air will still favorably dry the stuff.  Most of the stuff coming from the cedar logs seems quite light and dry except boards from round the outside of the log closest the bark.

I could probably stack the stuff in my pole barn if I can find room enough but the wind outside might make it dry quicker for the first 90 days or so.  But the snow and rain doesn't help either.  What do you guys think is best I have the top covered with a tarp.  Next year perhaps i will have a few posts in the ground and covered area to dry beneath.

rim

0

[beenthere]

Suggestion, is to even out one end of all the boards so they are flush in your pile, with a sticker at that end. Then space the stickers 2' if you wish, and if you can sort the boards (going to restack anyway ;) ) longest on the bottom, shortest at the top, you can sticker the 9's and the 10's at the end so they also have support for drying.

For cover, I'd make a solid stiff panel larger than your pile in width and length for a good overhang and that has a space for air movement over the top layer. Fold up the blue tarp so it doesn't hang over the sides and restrict air.  Weight it with some pallets if they are available and let 'er dry.

A solid level base is important with bolster support under each column of stickers, and with stickers very straight one over the other for good, uniform hold of the lumber .

You don't want to tear a pile apart next May to find scrap wood, I'm sure.

[rimshot]

Suggestion, is to even out one end of all the boards so they are flush in your pile, with a sticker at that end. Then space the stickers 2' if you wish, and if you can sort the boards (going to restack anyway ;) ) longest on the bottom, shortest at the top, you can sticker the 9's and the 10's at the end so they also have support for drying.

For cover, I'd make a solid stiff panel larger than your pile in width and length for a good overhang and that has a space for air movement over the top layer. Fold up the blue tarp so it doesn't hang over the sides and restrict air.  Weight it with some pallets if they are available and let 'er dry.

A solid level base is important with bolster support under each column of stickers, and with stickers very straight one over the other for good, uniform hold of the lumber .

You don't want to tear a pile apart next May to find scrap wood, I'm sure.

=========

Thanks to beenthere and to all who have commented on this thread. I will reboot that existing pile in the next week or so.

rim

 

[Cedarman]

For ERC we use just 4 stickers in an 8' stack.  Keep one end straight with a sticker about 3" from the end.  ERC is much more forgiving than hardwoods because cedar is a brittle wood.  Is northern white about the same as far as drying and stiff boards?

[Tree Feller]

For outside deck boards I'm pretty sure the Cedar will be plenty dry enough by March, especially if it is anything like ERC. It's almost certain that it will be drier than PT lumber right out of the lumber yard.

I would butt the deck boards together and if they shrink a bit, it will just leave a small gap between boards which you probably want, anyway.

I use 5 stickers for an 8' stack of 4/4 boards, any species.

[francismilker]

I don't have any expertise drying ERC in your cold temps, but as far as being useable, I've actually nailed it in place directly off the mill and have only noticed minimal shrinkage.  I built a barn about ten years back with cedar right off the mill and butted the boards up tight vertically.  After about a month there was approximately an 1/8" gap between boards.  Looked good to me. 

I know there's a first time for everything, but I've never had ERC go through any extremes to distort or twist like hardwoods do.  I have seen 1x4's cut out of post oak twist enough to pop the heads off of 1/4" carriage bolts on a covered wagon renovation but have actually used the same type 1/4" carriage bolts to force the warp out of ERC boards with success. 

[GDinMaine]

Oh, and I though the log horse referred to the method of log retreaval.  Your log horse would take a lot of coaxing with oats and carrots. ;) 

[rimshot]

For outside deck boards I'm pretty sure the Cedar will be plenty dry enough by March, especially if it is anything like ERC. It's almost certain that it will be drier than PT lumber right out of the lumber yard.

I would butt the deck boards together and if they shrink a bit, it will just leave a small gap between boards which you probably want, anyway.

I use 5 stickers for an 8' stack of 4/4 boards, any species.

======================

I'll undoubtedly will be fighting snow and below freezing temps easily into April.  I will most likely wait for a soaking in type of sealer.   If I plane the Cedar it will not only spruce up the smoothness and keep all deck boards on plane.  I even thought of rolling a sealer on all six sides of the wood before nailing down.  I hope the sealer can bring out the knots and grain color of the cedar.  I'm not a fan of dull dark gray weathered Cedar,  I don't suppose any clear will preserve the clean new look of cedar.  It will probably have to be a covering with pigment.  Oh well.  I shall cross that bridge when I come to it.   For now I;m back to sticker stucking 101


Also, I'm going to use primarily nothihng wider than 6" boards butted.

rim

[rimshot]

Oh, and I though the log horse referred to the method of log retreaval.  Your log horse would take a lot of coaxing with oats and carrots. ;)

===================
The only way that hoss is going anywhere ( at least I hope so) is if the tractor sticks a fork in it.  (griin)

 

rim

[barbender]

Northern white cedar is a very low moisture wood in the first place, I wouldn't be surprised if the M.C. is lower than store bought P.T. pine right off the mill. It should be fine in march.

[rimshot]

Remember how I caught the dickens for not putting enough stickers in that pile of 1 by
Cedar/  ;-)  Well I did something about it.  I fixed up a a couple level pallets as a base and proceeded to make two piles from my single version.  Then I went ahead and restacked this time seperating the 9 & 10 foot stock from the 8 foot.  This time I used five stickers for the 8' pile and six for the 10' stock.

That should makie for a nice 1000 ft of cedar 5/4 boards.  Here is  look.

 

[beenthere]

Looks very well done. Hope you enjoyed it.   
;D

[Jemclimber]

One more tip, if you stack your lumber on thin pallets instead of a foot or so off the ground with open air flow, you may want to put down some plastic first (or other vapor barrier).  Nice looking stack of cedar. I wish I had some up this way.

[Cedarman]

Looks good.  Actually, we were just kidding about needing to resticker that whole pile. :D :D ;) ;)

[beenthere]

 :D :D :D ;D

[rimshot]

Looks good.  Actually, we were just kidding about needing to resticker that whole pile. :D :D ;) ;)

(CEDARMAN)
=========
oH NO youi don't!  Actually I was kidding because I just cloned my original pile in "Photo Shop to double the piles.   Then threw in some extra sticks and the jokes on you.  Actually It would have taken more time do photo shop then to just bite the bullet and re stack    Nawwwww!  I really restacked.  (big grin). 

I scaled up and got just over 1000 feet (board).  I got sticks coming out of my ears.


my aching back.

rim

[Solomon]

I learned from this forum and took it to the next level so I am the over kill with the stickers guy now.
A friend of mine gave me a 14 ft aluminum box off an old Ryder/U haul truck.
I keep ERC in it.   In the summer time it dries in about Two Months with a mild fan moving the air.  The whol summer for the thicker stuff
and well into the fall for the 10/4
if I get it stowed in April or earlier.   ERC Seem to behave it self very well as it dries no mater how I saw it so I just square it up into a kant and  start cutting it into boards .   I have about a thousand bf in there right now.
And another 6 or 7 hundred bf cut 3/4 on the mill that I am making tounge & v-groove paneling  from for closet lining.  I have a  Williams & Hussey Moulding machine  I am making the Crown moulding and Door casing with and the base board I make on the Router Table with a round over or a Roman Ogee bit.   Just been doing my own closets but now everybody and his brother's wife wants a ceder closet.  I can't do it all with everything I have on my plate and working in the Port full time.
It sure is hard being just one man.
I need to clone myself!!!!!