How long to dry?

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larryc

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Oct 2, 2009
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Mableton, GA (Near Atlanta)
I cut a 6" diameter cherry log that a friend gave to me into 8 X 1-1/4 X 1-1/4 blanks and coated the ends with latex paint.
The wood was quite wet.
How long should I wait before the wood is dry enough to turn?
 
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rherrell

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Aug 22, 2006
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Rule of thumb is one year per inch of thickness so check it in about a year. Or you could nuke it, Google "microwave dry wood" and you'll find several articles.
 

KenBrasier

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Nov 28, 2009
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Salem, MO
I have been using a old food dehydrater we got from a yard sale. Typicall in 2-5 days it is down to 8%, some white oak has taken a little longer. However I cut the blanks to 3/4" x 3/4" x 5-1/2".
 

larryc

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Oct 2, 2009
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Mableton, GA (Near Atlanta)
I took Rick's and Steve's advice and found this site with a very good explanation of microwave wood drying by John Williams.

http://www3.sympatico.ca/3jdw8/microwavedrying.htm

However the screen on the door of the microwave was so dense I couldn't tell when the ZipLoc bag had ballooned up so I stopped the oven at one minute and that seemed about the right amount of time.

After this initial test to determine the length of time to zap the blanks I no longer used the bag.

I cut off the ends of the blanks so that the coating of latex paint I had previously applied did not mess up the process.

I then divided the 12 blanks into three groups of four and proceeded with the following procedure. The groups of four blanks provided the 5 minute cooling off period that John recommends in his article.

1. Weigh the blank and record the weight.
2. Zap the blank for 1 minute and weigh and record.
3. Repeat steps 1 & 2 for each of the other three blanks.

Repeat the 3 steps until no further decrease in weight.

PS: Use a glove - the blanks get hot!

About 12 hours later I took a 4 item sample of the nuked blanks and ran them thru the process again and there was no further decrease in weight.

Bottom line: John's system works!

PS: Use a glove - the blanks get hot!
 
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sbwertz

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May 11, 2010
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Phoenix, AZ
I cut some REALLY green palo verde a month or so ago. I dried several blanks in the dehydrator, and threw the rest in a box to dry. We are having monsoon.....I now have fuzzy black paloverde on the way to becoming spalted, I suspect! I'm just keeping an eye on it. I still have about 2 feet of the log left uncut.

Sharon
 

Rick_G

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Nov 30, 2007
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Bothwell, Ontario, Canada.
I microwave dry my blanks all the time. I cut them just over an inch square and 6" long. I cut them large because they have been known to warp when drying them.

I put 4 of the blanks in the microwave and set it at defrost for 3 minutes. Take them out and let them cool to room temperature. I do this 3 times then check them with my moisture meter. (I bought a cheap pin type for $25 works fine for this) If moisture is less than 8% I'm done, if not I put them back in for another cycle or more until dry.

Once dry and cool I take them to the tablesaw and recut them to 3/4" square.


A few safety considerations:

The blanks will be hot when you take them out of the microwave, the steam coming out of the blanks can be hotter than the boiling point of water.

Stay in the room and keep an eye on what is going on. One heat cycle to many and the blanks can catch fire. It's a good idea to have a container of water to drop the blank in if needed. The blank will be hotter in the middle than on the outside so if there is smoke toss it in the water.

Do not use your kitchen microwave for this DAMHIKT After the first blank started to burn it was strongly suggested I get my own microwave.
 
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