# Problem Drying Large Thick Beech Slabs



## Daninvan (May 18, 2014)

So I milled up this large beech back at the end of December. It's the same tree that I found the bullet in, although that doesn't really matter for this problem.

I have had a lot of trouble getting some of the larger slabs to dry without cracking. Some of them I had stacked in my regular woodpile beside my house. Others that were too large to fit in the woodpile (more than ~4' wide) I leaned against the north wall of my garage and covered them with some corrugated fibreglass sheets. All were anchorsealed. 

So those slabs which were leaning against the garage cracked terribly in less than four months, and I am trying to understand why these slabs would crack and the others from the same beech log in the wood pile have not (at least not yet anyways!).

Here is what I know about it.

First, I have had mixed results with beech in the past. I only cut up two other beech logs, much smaller than this one and one cracked and one warped but did not crack. 

My bowl buddy who also took some of the beech told me two things about his experience with it. First, that it was the wettest wood he had ever turned. And he turns almost exclusively freshly cut local wood. Second that any pieces that had anything other than perfectly straight grain cracked on him.

For me, the cracks were running lengthways down the log, mostly in the middle third, so that the outer portions of the slabs were mostly ok, while the centre was full of cracks. While some of the cracks started at the ends despite the anchorseal, others started and ended in the slab. The cracks were mainly on one face of the log, the face that was away from the garage as they were leaning. Here is a closeup of some of the cracks.






So first I sawed the big 48" wide slabs cut down into three roughly 16" wide slabs. The two outer slabs from each were mostly OK, I cut them a bit shorter if there were any cracks on the ends and reanchorsealed in that case. Then I took the middle slabs to my bandsaw and cut them up into smaller pieces, trying to salvage what I could. I noticed that there appeared to be a band of darker (drier?) wood on the outside face of each slab. It was thicker on the cracked face (to the right in the photo below).





Here is a shot of some of the cracks. You can see they go deep into the slab. The big one in this photo went almost completely through the slab! Most were not quite that bad, but there were several like this one. 





It's not very clear in the above photo, but the cracks are perpendicular to the grain lines. 

So it seems that from the thickness of the bands on the surfaces of the slabs (second photo) that one face was drying more quickly than the other face. I would have expected then that the slab would cup in that direction (but I didn't notice any cupping), and the cupping would cause cracking in from the opposite face. My slabs are cracking from the more-quickly-drying face which is the opposite of what I would expect. So I am puzzled! Any other theories?


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## Boon (May 18, 2014)

Not the same timber but I have had problems with wood that is very wet, two - three boards either side of the pith played up. 

I was told by someone who knows alot about wood to leave the log for a few years then mill it, one is still sitting in the front yard waiting. The use for the others already milled out is questionable.

May not be the solution to your slab problem but from that experience it seems timber which is very wet needs time to stabilise before being opened up and all that moisture escapes, its got to have some negative effect. There are probably different tensions within the wood where the grain is not straight and the moisture escaping exposes those different tensions by cracking...just my thoughts

All the best with it


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## IanB22 (May 18, 2014)

I have also had horror problems with beech. Might as well let it sit, then try because you really do have a lot to loose. I will say letting the log sit, it will not crack as if you milled it. I have a 36" beech with some rot, and every board I take off it cracks like crazy, but the log has zero cracks.


394xp w/ 33" & 42" Bars - Full Comp Full Chisel - 36" Granberg Alaskan Mill 
455 Rancher w/ 20" Bar - Semi Chisel
Husqvarna Forestry Helmet & Full Wrap Chaps


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## Daninvan (May 18, 2014)

Guys,

Thanks for the responses. 

Sounds like being excessively wet was the culprit from your experiences This beech was cut down in late December, I would imagine that is probably the 'driest' time for the tree, in terms of the sap running. 

How long has your 36" beech been down Ian? Boon is suggesting 'a few years' which isn't really very practical for me, but probably is the solution. Do you guys coat the ends of the logs before letting them sit for so long?

Dan


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## Boon (May 18, 2014)

The ends are painted, only because that's how they were done when felled but I suppose it is the only way to stop the ends from cracking also. I have been thinking of experimenting with wet wood by cutting it through the pith only and then let it sit unpainted & fully sheltered....preferably inside. It will probably crack and warp to a degree but maybe not all of it. Some things can only be tested. 

I have heard of a product called liquid glass for interior finishing - self leveling & fully seals, perhaps that checking would only serve as a feature.......just a thought


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## huskyhank (May 18, 2014)

I think it is drying too fast. You might try loosely covering the stack to limit airflow.


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## chads (May 18, 2014)

Definitely drying too fast. not sure how to slow it down, maybe bury in a pile of sawdust or wrap in paper or cardboard for a while.
OR put it on the bottom of a stack and stack all around it to limit air flow.
Or coat the whole thing with anchor seal.
I put up some walnut last summer, 16/4, I stacked it where there was the least airflow.

Chad


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## Daninvan (May 18, 2014)

Boon said:


> I have been thinking of experimenting with wet wood by cutting it through the pith only and then let it sit unpainted & fully sheltered....preferably inside.



I've read that in Japan they will cut a slot down to the pith the length of the log, then tap some wedges in and re-tap them every couple of weeks. As the log dries the slot will widen, but the rest of the log will be in compression so cracking will be minimized. You might give that a try rather than cutting them completely in half. 

Anyways I took whatever pieces that I was able to salvage after this debacle and have sealed the ends and put them into heavy paper bags normally used for leaf collection. Hopefully that will slow down the drying rate.


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## jagchaser (May 18, 2014)

I cut down a few walnuts in December and those logs seeped sap for 2 months, so much paint wouldnt stick. I just painted the ends in March, they shrunk enough I could tell, but there were no cracks yet. All of my other stuff has set out for a couple years before I will touch it.


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## Boon (May 19, 2014)

Daninvan said:


> I've read that in Japan they will cut a slot down to the pith the length of the log, then tap some wedges in and re-tap them every couple of weeks. As the log dries the slot will widen, but the rest of the log will be in compression so cracking will be minimized. You might give that a try rather than cutting them completely in half.



Thanks will keep that one in mind


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## IanB22 (May 19, 2014)

The beech I have has been down for at least a year, and yet still cracks like crazy. Thinking about the pile of sawdust approach?


394xp w/ 33" & 42" Bars - Full Comp Full Chisel - 36" Granberg Alaskan Mill 
455 Rancher w/ 20" Bar - Semi Chisel
Husqvarna Forestry Helmet & Full Wrap Chaps


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## mforti (May 21, 2014)

There's a good article on the logosol website that discusses the sauno kiln which claims to lower the incidence of cracking. It talks about why cracking occurs and how the sauno kiln (seems cheap and easy to build one) uses steam in the initial phase to open up the cells in the wood and release tension in the wood, before drying it. I don't know of anyone doing it this way but I have to say I am curious and plan to test it out sometime in the next year. I'll post any results I get. Curious if anyone has heard of steaming the wood before drying ?


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## mforti (May 21, 2014)

And if you wanted to actually do your own kiln there are some good DIY sites for it such as
http://www.classichandtools.com/acatalog/Sauno-Kiln-Dryer.pdf


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## Marklambert61 (Jun 10, 2014)

Beach is just nasty wood for milling but make good firewood...

Mark


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## Daninvan (Jun 15, 2014)

mforti said:


> There's a good article on the logosol website that discusses the sauno kiln which claims to lower the incidence of cracking. It talks about why cracking occurs and how the sauno kiln (seems cheap and easy to build one) uses steam in the initial phase to open up the cells in the wood and release tension in the wood, before drying it. I don't know of anyone doing it this way but I have to say I am curious and plan to test it out sometime in the next year. I'll post any results I get. Curious if anyone has heard of steaming the wood before drying ?



I don't typically have this kind of problem with the other woods I mill, it really seems that only beech is so prone to cracking for me. So I would be reluctant to build something like this for a species that only accounts for ~1.5% of what I mill. However, if you find that cracking is a more common problem for what you mill, or you mill a lot of beech(!), then this might be helpful to increase your yields.


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## jrhannum (Jun 18, 2014)

Eucalyptus does that, too.

Just a year ago I scored a big bole of what we call "red gum" that had grown at a well-watered site; I end-painted well but saw checking right away -- our weather was hot and dry; went ahead and slabbed it only to see it all go checking full length to be worth only firewood. Live and learn.


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## Big beech2 (Jul 6, 2014)

this is known as board checking, and occurs at this time of year. where you are i am guessing its very warm weather? thats why all milling ideally should be done in the cooler months. if not soak rags, bed linnen or such and drape over the wood, keeping it damp. store out of wind and direct light as best as possible. also make sure your stickers between your boards are as small as possible otherwise air draw will be to high and also quicken drying time, and give you more surface checks.


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