Shipping container for lumber storage?

[alan gage]

I need some storage ASAP. Mostly for air dried lumber but also for some woodworking equipment until my shop is done in a few months. I'm about ready to pull the trigger on a 40' high cube shipping container and wondered if anyone else here is using them for a similar purpose or if there's a reason I shouldn't go that route.

Ideally I'd add a door to the other end and one in the middle so that 12' lumber, on bunks, could be accessed from either end with the center door giving access to the 16' dead space in the middle.

How much is inside condensation going to be a concern?

Alan

[doc henderson]

alan I have a 20 foot container that opens on one end and the whole side opens so I can load wood with forks.  I have a home dehumidifier in there and a remote temp and humidity monitor.  the wood does not go in until air dried.  this mimics the interior of a house at about 35 to 40%.  I have a few fans in there as well.  one concern would be if humidity from the wood condensed on metal objects and the acids corroded your tools.  so keep it dry and only fairly dry wood say < 12%, and run a dehumidifier.

[Southside]

Unless it is a junked one most all the containers I see for sale are advertised as being "wind and water tight", so that gives you control over the interior environment.  Like Doc said, put in dry lumber and control the conditions and I think you will be fine.  

[Ianab]

As long as the wood is "dry" you shouldn't get excess condensation inside the container. If the wood is 12% MC, then the humidity will stay around 60% RH. The wood can re-absorb any excess from the air if a temp drop causes the air RH to go up, but it might only go 12 -> 12.1 for ALL the water that's in the air. The wood will actually act to stabilise the RH in the box.

If the wood was still green, then you get a problem as the equilibrium might be 100% humidity.  

Running a small DH in there can't do any harm, but chances are it wont have to do much. 

[florida]

Done here in south Florida the humidity in them is horrible even without wood being stored. I left one closed once for about 2 years and when I opened it, it looked like a scene from a horror movie. I never opened it again!

[doc henderson]

mine is full of pine, oak and walnut.  it smells great and I have gone months with the humidifier off and it holds its own, unless you spend time with the doors open.  another parent/er doc paranoia.  make sure little kids cannot get in, and pets as well.  during loading it is open only for a few minutes, I do a visual check to make sure a cat or something did not wonder in.  I got the 70 pint 270$  Walmart/GE home dehumidifier.  this would not last long if gallons of acid ridden fluid was being condensed.  since the wood is dry, it is min. amounts.  first few days maybe 5 gallons a day, then nothing.  I have a hose to a bucket outside the container so I get a visual of water volume removed. the unit is set at 35 or 40 % so comes on and off depending on humidity.  two 16$ Walmart box fans.  a 14 dollar accurite temp/humidity remote monitor.  the monitor sits in my shop.

[Walnut Beast]

53' reefer semi trailer on the ground full of one year old air dried sticker stacked walnut. Open and close doors or keep closed. Thoughts and any negatives. Thanks

[doc henderson]

air dried should be at 12%.  If you want to drop it more, throw in the fans and a dehumidifier.  would need electricity.  you could leave the door open or closed if you just want to store it.  remember, when it is hot and the RH is low, the air still contains a lot of water, and it may condense at night when it is cooler inside the container.  If it is just to keep out of the sun and rain, but cont. to air dry then it does not matter so much.  It is the water content in the air, and RH of that air changes with temperature.  

[rusticretreater]

Shop equipment will rust in that environment but slowly.  Putting wax on the surfaces will deter that from happening. Spraying WD40 on linkages and transoms, etc. will also help.  I went and got the canvas type painters drop cloths at the box store to wrap things up in.  

[SwingOak]

I knew a guy with a sawmill back east that used a couple of shipping containers to dry wood. A few space heaters, some box fans, and a dehumidifier would dry out wood pretty fast even in the winter. 

I would think that if you put a dehumidifier in there and run it on auto 24/7, you should be fine. Shipping containers can get pretty hot inside when in direct sun though. 

Which is a good reason to avoid buying European brewed beer in summer or early fall, BTW...

[Redmt]

I am thinking about using a container for drying cut lumber also. My idea was to paint it flat black then use a solar powered attic fan high on one end , then fresh air vents low on the other end. It seems like an inexpensive way to dry green or semi green wood.  I have 30 or so black walnut root ball/ stumps to mill.

[scsmith42]

My 45' high cube containers have vents built into them, and in the humid summer there is a lot of condensation that develops on the inside.  I'd suggest blocking off the vents and using a dehumidifier inside for the best results.

[doc henderson]

I leave my vents open.  Mine is still tan or yellow or whatever the color is.  I have dried in it and ran the DH most of the time.  after all is dry, I can run the DH once a month or so even less, to maintain the RH around 35%.  mine is a 20 foot with end and all down the side doors.  I did not cover the vents.  when I run it, it is at night when the temp drops and the RH goes up.  just over night.  I look in a bucket outside to see how much water I got out.  If I open it and rearrange, it still is dry cause of all the dry lumber and limited water in the air.  all in equilibrium