I stopped by a lumber mill in Plumsteadville PA today. They had great prices on air dried lumber. The name of the lumber mill was Heacock Lumber. I didn't check the lumber out, since I was on my way to pickup a tool repair.
The prices were too good. Anyone have any experience with them?
No experience with them, since I am in Louisiana, but air dried lumber is bendable/formable by steaming (a plus for some woodworkers). Most mills, I am aware of, will kiln dry lumber, also, so check prices in that department, also.
Sonny
F E W E R
-- Happiness is not a station you arrive at, but a manner of traveling. -- Margaret Lee Runbeck
If longevitity is any indication of quality then buy from them, Heacock Lumber mill has been in Plumsteadville for as long as I can remember, At least 55 years for sure, Possibly longer. They used to have a big saw blade as their sign. I remember them from my childhood. (I am now 65 years old) There used to be a covered bridge not far from there and on the other side of the stone bridge is where we used to go swimming....... I miss Pennsylvania when the seasons change.
Jack Cassidy Living in Florida, God's waiting room.
------------------- Which is why I chose CA.
Lew
Worse.
Ah, the Devil's waiting room ;-)
It's OK, though. He's -real- near Palm Springs, the California God's Waiting Room.
-- "Human nature itself is evermore an advocate for liberty. There is also in human nature a resentment of injury, and indignation against wrong. A love of truth and a veneration of virtue. These amiable passions, are the latent spark. If the people are capable of understanding, seeing and feeling the differences between true and false, right and wrong, virtue and vice, to what better principle can the friends of mankind apply than to the sense of this difference?" --John Adams
----------------------------- Typical Jaques bull shit.
Not a desert rat and P/S is a shade over 100 miles from me.
Lew
My mistake. I thought you hailed from the HelL.A. area, Lew. But 100 miles is a daily commute to many Californicators.
-- "Human nature itself is evermore an advocate for liberty. There is also in human nature a resentment of injury, and indignation against wrong. A love of truth and a veneration of virtue. These amiable passions, are the latent spark. If the people are capable of understanding, seeing and feeling the differences between true and false, right and wrong, virtue and vice, to what better principle can the friends of mankind apply than to the sense of this difference?" --John Adams
fewer stresses
less stress
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Heacock Lumber is quite reputable, and will sell you what ever grade of local hardwood you want from FAS on down.
In a later post, you mentioned about bringing a plane and moisture meter with you. I've had no problems with using either tool there. In fact, half of the time I'm free to walk around the yard and look throught the inventory.
Air dried is what it is. Great for some uses, not so great for others.
The last mill in the area that I knew of that had a kiln was Hunsberger's, north of Sellersville on the old Rt. 309. Alas, they closed up shop in the fall of '04. It seems as if the 4th generation Hunsberger clan had no interest in keep the mill going.
Joe
aka 10x
Thanks for the info.
What is wrong with Air dried lumber? I usually leave it for a year or so to finish drying. I have some wood drying for 10 years... YEA it's dry. Just haven't gotten around to using it.
At the prices some of this wood is at, I can also consider it cheap enough for utility wood, for the shop.
Wood is a dynamic material. It has a tendancy to absorb or desorb moister that is present in it's environment. This is why certain doors and drawers stick or bind in the summertime, yet work as expected in the winter when relative humidity is at lower levels.
There is nothing "wrong" with air dried lumber. That said, one needs to consider it's intended use. If used in a fine piece of furniture for indoor use, it will be more prone to movement because air dried lumber cannot be brought down to a moisture content comparable wood that has been kiln dried. 7-8% moisture content is a number generally bandied about for furniture grade lumber here in Pennsylvania. If you can get your air dried lumber down to 10-12% you've done a good job. There is some interesting reading at wikipedia. It get somewhat technical, but some of it is understandable by mere mortals like us :-)
Joe
aka 10x
As you said air will absorb the moisture, even kiln dried wood. So that being said, I have air dried lumber that is in the 6% area right now. Left long enough Air dried lumber will be dry. Left long enough kiln dried lumber will hyrdoscopicaly pick up the moisture in the air and be at a higher moisture content than it was after kiln drying. NO?
Kiln drying brings it down quicker. It doesn't mean you can't get there slower.
The below is quoted from:
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE ? FOREST SERVICE FOREST PRODUCTS LABORATORY ? MADISON, WIS. In Cooperation with the University of Wisconsin U.S.D.A. FOREST SERVICE RESEARCH NOTE FPL-0226 1973 MOISTURE CONTENT OF WOOD IN USE
The entire 6 page report is available as a .pdf from the following url:
In most parts of the country, the minimum moisture content that can be generally obtained in air drying is about 12 to 15 percent. Most air-dried material is usually closer to 20 percent moisture content when used. Air-dried lumber is suitable for items that are not ordinarily subjected to the artificial heat and dehumidification of buildings or where appreciable shrinkage can be tolerated. All types of out- buildings, such as sheds and barns, can usually be safely constructed of air-dried lumber. Air- dried lumber is also satisfactory for products used outdoors, such as boxes and crates, parts of agricultural implements, and truck and trailer bodies."
If you got 6%, good for you. I tend to go along with the FPL figures publisehed in the report.
Joe aka 10x
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