End Racking?

[Woodwalker]

I don't know if this is something that was only used around this part of the country, and I haven't seen it used anywhere since I was a kid. I remember some of the smaller mills air drying SYP by standing the green lumber on end, leaning onto a cross brace. Lumber was leaned from both sides, forming a Tipi, looking from the end of the stack. I searched the archives, found very little info. The only link to a Forestry Service publication was broken.
Has anyone tried or had any luck with this method on SYP?

[DanG]

I don't know of any advantages to stacking it that way...seems a bit labor intensive to me.  I understand that you need to turn it over frequently to dry it straight.  I think that method went out of style when wages went above a dollar a day.  I've seen pictures of lumber stacked that way, and I think I remember actually seeing some.  If nobody is doing it any more, there must be a good reason.

Now all that being said, it might be a good way to store lumber that is already dry.  It would make it real easy to select a board without tearing up a whole stack in the process.

[Radar67]

WoodWalker,
     That broken link was in one of my threads, here is a good link, check out page 39.

http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fplgtr/fplgtr117.pdf

This is a good informational manual for air drying lumber on a large scale, which is easily adaptable to small scale.

Stew

[Woodwalker]

Radar67, I down loaded the Forest Service Report. There is a lot of very good information there. Thanks for the link.

DanG, What you talking about, when did wages get to a dollar a day?  At least seems that a way. It's like money goes out faster than it comes in.
I didn't know how well the lumber would dry, or what problems end racking could pose, so thought I would ask. I crib pile stickers. They seem to dry ok that way.  Thanks for the response.

[Radar67]

Woodwalker,
     I can't take credit for that link, I believe it was Scottr that posted the origional link on one of my threads. I only went out and relocated it since the origional link was broken.

Stew

[Woodwalker]

Well then, Thanks to both of you.

[FeltzE]

First time I saw it was with an old timer who stacked all the lumber we cut (SYP) on end wind row style down the fence line. He said that it's the way they used to do it when they were kids ... about 70 yrs ago I suppose.

I had a customer pre dry some syp that way prior to him getting it indoors with excelllent results for initiall knocking the mc down.

Eric

[ellmoe]

The biggest disadvantage with stacking wood that way is the space that it takes. It is actually pretty quick to stack and I've had good luck drying boards that way. When I first tried this I expected to get alot of warp, but I got no more than normal. What I really like about it is that you can mix different widths, lengths and thicknesses in one stack. We seem to always have a few odd boards that don't fit in a stack, this method gives a definite home for those boards. Every time I make an "orphan" bundle with these odd boards, I find that I, or a customer, needs the board on the bottom. Stacking wood in the TP style solves this problem. Additionally, rain and sun don't seem to bother boards stacked this way, and the lumber seems to dry about twice as fast as in a conventional stack.

Mark

[Fla._Deadheader]

 Most of the lumber in Costa Rica is stacked that way. Dries MUCH faster, down to 18-20 percent. Then, it's used at that MC to build with, unless you want better quality furniture.

[Woodwalker]

Reckon why it drys faster? More surface area exposed, gravity?

[ronwood]

I set my hard maple on the end and let dry for a couple of weeks. Seems to help quite a bit with the sticker stain.

Ron

[highpockets]

My friend and I were discussing this very thing several weeks ago. Dale has owned several mills and is a forester.  He says it is a deal of space.  I remember back in the late 50's we had several mills around. They stood all of their pine up.  The did not even have a shed.  Maybe it was sawed and was headed for the kiln I'm not sure.

[Tom]

I had an old lumberman tell me that they had yardmen, in the old days, whose job it was to turn those boards.  Many of the racks were long straight lines and the boards were stacked on edge.  The yardman would start on one end and turn the boards over to the other edge and then, when he finished, would go back to the beginning and start over.  Boards were turned every two or three days, this way, some, everyday.  That's the labor part of it that isn't done today and most folks don't realize that it was done.

Sticker stacking was still done, but the equipment wasn't available to move big stacks of wood.  Boards were generally handled one at a time.