The Best Lumber Drying Video Ever! Secrets and Science of Equilibrium Moisture Content

[@Ktsusna37]

Thank you so much for these videos!

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Most welcome!

[@chadrowe8452]

This channel is AM country gold. I work at a cabinet shop and cut wood on the weekend. Ty for this Info

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

I appreciate it!

[@jimmypostell2373]

I learned about EMC from testing moisture content of cement refractory panels in a factory setting 6 or 7 years ago. I didn't know until today that there's a name for it, but the chart and explanation made 100% sense to me. Very good stuff.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

That’s great, and what I love about this subject, it can be applied to many areas of work, not just woodworking!

[@jamesdiemert8016]

Truly appreciate your videos. I'm getting on late moving and starting a mill. I've been all over KZbin and Google everywhere! so THANKFUL I watched you early in my interest. So many times I start watching videos on KZbin and see cardinal suggestions of yours after millions of profits and several awards. I can see 8n other people's videos the issues you mention on yours as well as the causes and I haven't even touched the order now button . Thanks for your entertainment and informative videos!

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Thank you very much. Sometimes if you watch other KZbin Channels, you will even see them even wearing my Hobby Hardwood Company hat!

[@SeansWoodBarn]

My inexperienced take on this video Professor Milton. This is what you get when a retired NASA engineer retires and become a sawyer. They are gonna over science the heck out of it and be 10x better than the nearest competitor! That's a compliment in case someone doesn't recognize it as such. I'm not even gonna say it again, but I would pay cash to like this video multiple times! I hope everyone else that watches it realizes it's importance, and values it as much as I do!! You are the best Professor! Almost as good as Martha and Chip, but it is a close decision!

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Thanks, actually, Martha is the retired NASA engineer (had stuff on the Hubble and some on the Deep Space Testbed) and I am the retired Army Propulsion and Aerospace engineer who had a couple of my projects on the Discovery Channel. As I used to joke to her, NASA sends it stuff up and it's supposed to stay up, and the Army sends it's stuff up and it's supposed to come back down with a bang! Chip, on the other hand, can beat us both at chess, he's the smart one.

[@wrstew1272]

@@HobbyHardwoodAlabama. Your kids must be somewhere scary smart! 😊

[@thekiltedsawyer]

He hit yhe nail right on the head, this is a must watch and understand this video. Once again GREAT video sir​@HobbyHardwoodAlabama

[@miguelquiroz1550]

Great. thanks!

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

You're welcome!

[@robintaylor-mockingeemill8223]

You made that painless and not boring . Thanks .

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Thanks, doing a video on lumber drying is kind of boring, but I tried to make it watchable.

[@EricAshley-l2e]

Pearls of wisdom. Having the doors open on a rainy day is geniuse. I may be wrong but you may be a mad scientist. You are running a little experiment. You are already gonna know what your wood is gonna do in different environments long before customers buy it . Almost like an insurance policy Close the doors cut dehumidifiers on(ac/heat units) woods swells then shrinks eventually them fibers gonna get tired . Been following for few years. Alabama boy myself. . Keep sending them videos.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Yes, you are correct! Thanks!

[@paulsims6888]

I can't count the number of times I have explained this to my customers. Some listen. Back it the day everyone new this. Not now. Wood expands and shrinks in width. This plastic deck boards expands and shrinks in length. What! Who engineered that? So glad that you are educating people. It is so important to having a quality product. Good service!

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Thank you!

[@BallLumberCo]

Great video! Honestly the biggest tip for me was knowing that you are still fine to leave the doors open and run dehumidifiers when needed.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Yes, dehumidifiers can be your friend!

[@williamprophett9148]

Great video, Mr. Robert. You can try to explain this to customers at nauseum, and they have trouble comprehending it. I'll have a customer ask for a large slab, ask me if it's kiln dried, and when I ask them what they are doing with it, they'll say "it's going to be an outdoor counter top next to my grill."

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Yes, the example you mention is one of the reasons I made this video, in the future, I can just say "Hey, watch the video!"

[@kevincasey7931]

Answered a lot of questions. Ty much

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Thanks for commenting!

[@bradyjames2786]

As always, great useful information!

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Glad it was helpful!

[@mikecrockett3669]

More great info!

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Glad it was helpful!

[@randysmith9796]

Great information my friend thanks

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Very welcome

[@TheProfiledCorner]

Great video. Yesterday I watched a generally good tips video by a person who has titles at the start of his videos mentioning that he has 50 years of woodworking experience and that he is a former engineer and engineering manager. During the video he pulled out a $20 pin-type moisture meter and measured a cut off of 2x southern yellow pine at 3.2% moisture content, and then stated, "that's actually really great". He then measured the other side of the same board at 0.8%, measured another southern yellow pine board at 0.0% on its face and 5% on its ends, and then measured the face of a southern yellow pine 2x12 at 2.4% to 2.5%. There was no pause in the video, second guessing those measurements. The $42 Klein Tools ET140 pinless moisture meter that I bought last year also provided impossible measurements that were about 7% to 8% lower than a high-end Wagner Meters Orion 950 meter. I left a comment attached to that video suggesting that viewers of that video watch some of your videos - and then this video appeared within a half hour of that comment being posted.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

You are correct and I commend you for speaking up and trying to correct bad information. I make these videos for people to understand, as you say, that what many people say about moisture in wood is incorrect, and so people will have the knowledge to make their own decisions. Also, as a general rule, once wood has been dried to 6% or below, the "machinability" has been degraded and the wood will have been, in many cases, ruined. Overdrying is a classic cause of "tearout" in lumber, when run through the planer. I know of no reputable kiln operator that would let their wood even get close to 5% for high grade hardwood, because that's a ruined load...On the other hand, if they were making fire wood, well, they are on the right track! Thanks for your knowledge and comment!

[@randybowe3986]

Here again thank you. I quickly need to ring that bell !

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

You're the best!

[@Mccalebsanding]

Another great video Robert!😊

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Thanks again!

[@garykersteiner4936]

I learned early that the best place to build furniture is in the room where it will be placed. The moisture content of the wood will be equal to the emc in the room so there will be no problem with movement. The trouble with that is mother won't want the table saw in the living room.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Maybe use it for a coffee table when you are not using it?

[@jackbrush9880]

Great content as always. Thank you very much.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

My pleasure!

[@337sawmill]

Always informational.... Thank you for letting me know everything that you know about sawmills and sawing logs and wilting was the last thing that I watched....lol

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Yep, no probelm! Watch out for the wilt...

[@Jva0023]

Love your videos. I'm a future sawmill-owner, hopefully next year and already stocking up on a good stash of logs - white oaks and such........QUESTION - Do you have personal experience, and/or knowledge about milling-up trees taken down by storms and if there are any concerns in doing so versus trees that are cut down the traditional ways? And I'm not talking about the OBVIOUSLY damaged pieces that were caused by getting blown/ripped out of the ground. But on a lot of these trees, there are huge sections of wood that LOOK and APPEAR to be fine. I live up in Michigan, along the Lake Michigan Shoreline, and we get a lot of really nice trees taken down in storms and such.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Yes, wind shake, or growth ring delamination is always a possibility and one reason I do not pay for any kind of storm damaged trees. The delamination doesn't appear obvious, but makes the tree unusable. Not all storm damaged trees get wind shake, but some do. I think this would be a good topic for a video.

[@Markrodriguez-y6m]

Thanks for covering this important topic. i mill my own lumber ( mainly hardwoods, red oak, white oak, maple, black walnut, beech, hickory) in Ohio and air dry it. I've just been wood working for a couple years and so far I've built some simple projects for indoor and outdoor use. My shop is outside and unheated and I have a Delmhorst moisture meter which I check the lumber for MC. I've experimented with some Red Oak boards I milled that I air dried to around 12 %(close to our EMC) and then brought them into my house basement for a couple weeks checking the MC every day - I found that a 4/4 piece would get down to around 8% MC after a week or two. So I then bring the lumber back outside into my shop to process. I understand that the wood will gain more moisture outside but I understand that there is something called hystersis ( which means once the wood is brought down to a lower MC that when its brought back into a more humid environment that it will not gain as much moisture. I"ve also read that if you shrink wrap the wood after getting the moisture content down to 8% that it can be brought back outside until its ready to be used. So far the indoor hardwood projects Ive built have had no noticeable detrimental wood movement. So i guess my question is do you think Iam ok to operate like this and build more detailed projects for indoor use - I know it depends on type of the wood being used and the environment the piece is going into. If not I was considering building a solar kiln to use after air drying to get down to 8% or so. Thank You! 1 Reply

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Actually the process you are doing is correct, but the information you are getting off the internet is only partially correct. I am going to make a video to explain exactly what you are seeing, but in a nutshell, air drying can only dry until the "unbound" water in the logs has been removed and it hits the "Fiber Saturation Point" generally around 13% to 15%, and it is only in a kiln, house, or other extremely dry environment that the remaining "Bound Water" in the cell walls can be removed and the wood pulled down to under 10%.. Once the bound water is removed and the cellular structure has been collapsed, they can never regain moisture again. So you can then bring the wood back outside, you can even throw it in a pond (don't) and it can never regain the bound fraction of water again but it can regain the unbound. That is what a kiln dried or otherwise bound water dried board will never again behave the same as far as regaining moisture. I hope this helps some, but if not, do some web searching on the key terms in my explanation, and lots of information will come up to further explain it.

[@Markrodriguez-y6m]

@@HobbyHardwoodAlabama Thanks much! I appreciate your knowledge an experience.My research on the subject includes the following references which are actually not on the internet but from research and books I've read on the subject - these include: Drying Hardwood Lumber, The United States Department of Agriculture-Forest Service, Understanding Wood by R. Bruce Hoadley, Cut & Dried:A Woodworkers Guide to Timber Technology by Richard Jones, Chainsaw Lumbermaking by Will Malloff

[@thekiltedsawyer]

Another super good video sir. I live in a high desert location and don't battle humidity here. I've noticed in some other KZbin videos that dehumidifiers need to be in wood shops to control rust on equipment? Great pointers on flooring. How much does altitude play into EMC? Guessing that has been taken into consideration

[@thekiltedsawyer]

I am in one of the driest places in the states, can I text you the chart I use in the morning? Appreciate your experience and time sir!

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Sure, text me.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Atmospheric pressure does apply a part in the equation and that's why vacuum kilns work, but generally, the pressure isn't a huge factor. I used to track it as well, but it's kind of noise level.

[@donnymorrison5480]

That was a bad joke, but it did put a smile on my face! :- )

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Thanks, but pretty much all my jokes are bad, at least that's what my kids tell me when they roll their eyes.

[@bryansmith9327]

Thanks for another great video. Are your charts the same as the ones on the USDA website? I would also guess that having end sealer on the lumber helps slow the moisture change is that right?

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

They are the same, except I used the original psychometric equations to calculate it to conditions required in my kilns. Yes, endsealer will slow the movement of moisture, but will not stop it.

[@wadewalker6480]

Great video! I am a hobbyist at saw milling will never get a kiln but I do have some oak to mill. Since I can’t control the drying process, should I wait tell the rainy season to mill it and sticker it? I’m guessing that would slow the drying process?? Thanks Robert for the great content!

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Good question, and actually, you have a great deal of control over even air drying, and I was going to do a video on it at some point. For example, to slow air drying down, put the stacks next to each other to limit airflow, perpendicular to the seasonal wind direction. If you want to speed up air drying, stack the packs vertically, and facing the average wind direction. Also, look up a product called Shadecloth, it's basically a mesh window screen that can be put up to limit airflow. Oak is not real prone to sticker stain, but like my poplar, yes, I did wait untill cooler weather. With oak, a good time to mill it is in the winter, the cooler temps slow the drying process and limit sticker stain.

[@MrEdunkerley]

@@HobbyHardwoodAlabamaWhy does it seem like controlling the moisture removal rate consists of a lot of trial and error? I guess if you had a moisture meter that gave consistently repeatable measurements then you could chart the change in moisture content to make sure you’re not exceeding the maximum removal rate. Is your meter consistent? Is there a chart that predicts the drying potential of your environment? Seems like it might take into consideration the relative humidity, wind speed and the wood’s surface temperature. Know of anything like that? And even if it were consistent,

[@ronnielloyd4514]

What part of Alabama is your sawmill in. Not sure if you like someone into your property. My wife and I are going to take one of our RV trip before Christmas. I would love to see someone that knows how to run a sawmill like yours.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

We are in North Alabama, just Google search for Hobby Hardwood Alabama and you will easily find us. We are open for walk in visits and retail sales Fridays and Saturdays, 9-4.

[@billstortz5046]

Great video but .... a little more about the rate(s) of moisture change would be helpful to many.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

I understand, I actually had some of that information in this video and edited it out! I guess I cut it too soon, but it's kind of hard to make wood drying videos fun to watch and not put people to sleep, and I had a lot more info in this one, but it started getting real loooooonnggg, so I sliced it out. Oops....

[@jerime1]

What are your thoughts on a solar kiln? We are getting ready to build one. I live in NC. I know they are slow, but the time doesn’t bother me. Do they get hot enough to kill off any insects, or do you need a separate unit for a kill cycle? Will they dry lumber down to the same level as a powered kiln? Any tips would be greatly appreciated.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

I know quite a bit about them, I had one and also knew the inventor, Dr. Gene Wengert pretty well for several years. I really like solar kilns, if built to specs, they are the Easy Bake Ovens of the kiln world, almost never damage lumber, and will dry to 8% or so. However, they don't really kill bugs with certainty, simply because they don't stay hot enough, long enough. That being said, I did used to see lots of dead bugs in my solar kiln, so it does OK, but adding some auxiliary heat would certainly be a good idea. If you have a sawmill, almost everything can be produced for their construction in house, by you, except the paneling, fans and insulation. It's a great project and will teach the fundamental of kiln drying painlessly. Get er done!

[@lesterg46sawwood]

Robert where can i get that moisture chart ?

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

It's on my webpage, at the end of the Info and Tips page. Here is a link:www.hobbyhardwoodalabama.com/info--tips.html

[@lesterg46sawwood]

Is there a meter that will tell me what the emc is in my shop and house ?

[@TheProfiledCorner]

The $600 Wagner Meters Orion 950 mentions in their product description that it measures EMC, GPP/GPK, dewpoint, temperature, and humidity. I bought one of those meters last year, but I have only used it for checking moisture content in a few species of wood. Some of the less expensive Wagner Meters units might also measure EMC.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

To tell the EMC in your shop, the easiest thing is to look at your thermostat on the wall, as many provide both temperature and relative humidity so you can go to the chart like I did in the video and determine EMC. Or get a relatively inexpensive generic weather station at Wal Mart or such, and it will also give you a reading of temp and humidity. Also, as mentioned, some of the better meters also provide the data.

[@DonnySmith-t1u]

I enjoy watching your videos. I don’t own a sawmill yet, but I’m interested in getting one. I have a question. I cut a lot of firewood. I haven’t had much success storing whole logs,even off the ground, without them rotting before I get a chance to work them up. The ground well drained but is shady. If I get a sawmill, I’m afraid I would have the same problem. Any tips on storing logs so they won’t rot?

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Sun is best, do you have a pond? I’ve got some that are going on three years in my pond.

[@DonnySmith-t1u]

I don’t have a pond. If I did I would probably fish instead of fooling with wood! I will try to find a sunny spot to keep my logs. It’s frustrating taking the time to stack logs and have them ruin. I’m surprised how fast they got spongy on me. Less than a year’s time. Thanks for responding!

[@johnemberson8292]

I have read or been told in the past that kiln drying wood removed more of the intracellular moisture than air drying does and that the intracellular moisture level would remained low with kiln dried wood, as opposed to the extracellular moisture which tends to fluctuate with with the humidity in the surroundings. Therefore the kiln dried wood would remain at a lower moisture level than air dried wood in the same conditions . If this is not true, why do we have more wood movement and cracking with air dried wood than kiln dried when we bring the it into the house?

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Mostly correct, the intracellular moisture is called bound moisture, the extracellular water is called unbound moisture, and the crossover point where the unbound water has been removed but the bound water still remains is called the fiber saturation point, or FSP. When the bound water is removed, generally with a kiln, the cell walls collapse to a point, and cannot be rewetted and re expanded. However it is very easy for the unbound water that has been removed to be reintroduced, and is the majority of the moisture content in lumber. Wood always, either kiln dried or not, always has the ability to pick up environmental moisture as unbound water and any lumber will always come up to the local EMC level, if given enough time. The reason there is always more cracking with air dried vs kiln dried, is because the air dried is down to maybe 12% and must pull down to EMC of the house, and the very dry wood of the house greatly exceeds the maximum moisture removal rate of the wood, including removing the bound moisture below FSP. So it will crack. Kiln dried wood, even if it comes back up to outside EMC, can loose it's unbound water at a faster rate and generally won't have the combined volumetric decrease of a board losing both its bound and unbound water at the same time. I really need to make a video of this because it is an important difference between kiln dried and air dried lumber.

[@johnemberson8292]

@@HobbyHardwoodAlabama Thanks for a thorough explanation. Had to read it twice but it makes sense. A video would be great.

[@NathanAnderson-l8r]

What hand held moisture meter would you recommend?

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Delhmorst J2000, it is the gold standard for commercial sawmill moisture meters.

[@NathanAnderson-l8r]

I ordered the JS 2000 . They emailed me and said it had been discontinued. JX/20 is what they recommend. So I ordered it instead. Hope it's as good as the other one.

[@deniscarter6613]

Robert the climate here where i'm living in Carlow Southeastern Ireland would be a way different than where you live it was a dull cooler day it was 98% humidity and way cooler than your weather

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Hello, Denis from Ireland, it's good to hear from you and thank you for commenting. I spent a little time and checked some of Carlow's numbers as far as I could tell, (it's what engineers do) and an observation of the climatological data reveals that temperature averages fluctuates from approximately 1.6°C (34.9°F) to 17.8°C (64°F) over the year. Accompanying this are annual patterns of relative humidity that largely remain between 86% and 92%, signifying a rather humid atmosphere throughout the year. So the EMC of 35F and 92% RH is about 22% EMC and 65F and 92% RH puts you right about 21% EMC, so yes, that is pretty wet! It's always nice to hear from folks across the world, and thanks for watching.

[@deniscarter6613]

@HobbyHardwoodAlabama Even in summer it Rains atleast the rain is warm but luckily it hasn't Rained in summer for a while

[@arnoldpraesent174]

Isn't it so, that you also need a certain temperature to dry wood to get the cellular water out of the fiber as well? Once this is out, it will not get in as easy anymore which makes the wood more stabile to moisture deviations. With air-drying wood - you will not reach this high temperatures and therefore the water stays more or less in the cells/fibers. Saying it in other words: If you put air dried wood it into water - the tree starts growing again ;-) but kiln dried wood is dead - something like this...

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Kind of. There are two kinds of water in wood, the stuff inside the cell walls is called bound water, the stuff in the general spaces of the wood is called unbound water. Bound water is very difficult to remove, The point at which the unbound water is removed and then the bound water begins to get removed is called the fiber saturation point. Typically air drying only removes the unbound water, which can also be easily reintroduced. However, once the bound water inside the cell walls is removed, generally by a kiln or the air conditioner of a house, the cells collapse much like the air inside the bubbles of bubble wrap being removed. Once it's gone, it's done and the cell walls can't be reinflate again. I will be doing a video on it soon, good comment.

[@falfas55bgas]

"almost everything", I was in the pool!!!

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

That will do it!

[@tomlastname9163]

in much of my professional career working in greenhouse horticulture, relative humidity is major factor that if not properly controlled leads to devastating losses. Equipment to measure precise measurement of relative humidity is not as reliable as one might think. House hold hygrometers sold at your local hardware have a +/- of 5% RH reading. In the spirit of craziness, I have had over ten of them on a wall at a time and you will be lucky if 3 or 4 have the same humidity reading. Overall you will have at least a 10% difference between the highest and lowest readings. The temp. readings will be relatively accurate with a +/- of 1 degree. In summize using these are a crap shoot. Commercial ones are more accurate and expensive. They need to be kept clean and dust free. They should also be calibrated regularly and replaced when they drift over +/-3. In my environments, they lasted no more than 2 years. There are middle of the road hygrometers, but they are shakey at best and you would want multiples to reference misreads. Not sure if accuracy of RH measurement is of severe consequence for drying wood, +/-5% only equates to 1-2% EMC.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Yes, most hygrometers are complete junk, and have ruined lots of wood. Moisture meters, also, even the high dollar ones, are amazingly inaacurate. I use equipment that is calibrated and NIST traceable.

[@MakerBoyOldBoy]

I love visiting. Às a southern Arizona desert rat woodworker trying to work with mostly crap box store firewood and a naturally dehydrating environment messing with woods, my joy is watching enviously all the seeming fantasy doins at your place. Taking s stick of lumber from the store in my open bed old Chevy pickup becomes an exercise in strategy in the 100+ degree summer. Stick moulding curls like a candy cane.

[@branchandfoundry560]

Yep. I lived my first 27yrs in Vegas, then moved to NC 22yrs ago. Whole different world here--with pros & cons. But I sure do love the fact that I can get whatever kind of hardwood log I want any day of the week simply by stopping & asking a tree company if I can have the trunk of the tree they're removing. Most of the time they're all too happy to load it on my trailer & not have to haul it to the mulch grinder. I have not bought lumber in a store in 10+ years.

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Arizona had one of the lowest EMC's on the chart that I saw. Dry as can be.

[@MakerBoyOldBoy]

@@HobbyHardwoodAlabama Thank you greatly. You've just confirmed that it's not all my fault after all! ! I remember watching my grandfather's old hand made wheel barrow simply gradually disappear leaving only the hardware.

[@MakerBoyOldBoy]

An interesting possibility for the waste sawdust is compressing into bricks for fireplaces. Possible relative or family member side business?

[@joekonopka9753]

So many words, so little data

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Are you kidding??? Do you have any idea that Max Moisture Removal Rate and EMC unlocks the fundamentals and secrets of lumber drying and I have physically presented the charts directly on the screen??? If you want someone to spoon feed you so you don’t have to think, you are watching the wrong channel!!

[@GrouseHiker]

Fine Wookworking has a pdf of the EMC table on their website.... Google it!

[@steveeaustin]

You do think a lot of yourself

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

I'm glad you picked up on that. We make millions of dollars sawing, drying and selling some of the highest grade lumber in the country, and selling to the most demanding customers in the country. We started with nothing but a chainsaw and a dream. For example, if you listen to the radio at all, then you have heard our wood in the professional recording studio instruments. Have you ever heard of the Grand Ol Opry? Do you know where the luthiers who make 60 of the best guitars in the world, and give to the Opry stars, get their wood? Have you heard of Brad Paisley, or Alanis Morissette? Do you know where their guitar wood comes from?Do you know we have people fly in from across the county, just to buy our wood? They can afford to buy any wood in the world, but they get ours. It's not bragging, it's a cold, hard, fact. So I give my qualifications to viewers for them to KNOW what we show is REAL and not BS. So yes, I am proud of my company and proud to pass these techniques and secrets on to people that want to learn at no cost to them.

[@gerryger1731]

Hi good show and info! So if I kiln dried something and then put it in the garage it would eventually get back to the EMC. So if it re-absorbs water while in storage basically you need to kiln dry it again? How long does it take the wood to go from 8% to like 14%....days or weeks? Best possible is kiln dry and put it in your house? Thank you

[@HobbyHardwoodAlabama]

Yes, correct. however, your house is basically a kiln, and dries wood to 7% (EMC chart) so it will pull the wood back down. The time is variable, based on species other factors, but since the moisture is going back in the wood as unbound moisture it will come out pretty fast.

[@gerryger1731]

@HobbyHardwoodAlabama Okay thanks. So I kiln dry my 20 black walnut trees and have it stored in a pole building it gets back to EMC rather quickly unless i buy a bunch of dehumidifiers to try and control it. Then when I am ready to work(build something) or sell a few hundred or thousand board feet I could put in my kitchen for maybe a few weeks and it would be at the moisture content the day it came out of the kiln(hopefully)? Hahaha complicated man! Thanks for teaching us!