Wood Curing

[kay65270]

Hi. Asking for a friend of mine.....is there a cheap way to cure wood for carving at home? He found some tree roots and branches he wants to cure for carving. Is there an inexpensive home-remedy type of wood cure?

[AlArchie]

There sure is.....it's called air drying. Set the stuff aside for as year or so and it should cure up just fine. Even with roots.I'd seal the cut ends to prevent overly rapid drying. Make sure they are placed where there is plenty of good air circulation and separate the pieces with some thin dry hardwood splints (called stickers).

Branches, the size for walking sticks usually will dry in about 6 months, if the bark is removed prior to drying. Bark on....a little longer.

There are plans available on line for solar kilns if he wants to invest a little money in the process. these will speed up the process considerably. I've never used these so don't have any direct knowledge of how well they work, but a google search of solar kilns should turn up the info for you.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/DIY/1...mber-Kiln.aspx
Here's one link

Al

[Eddy-Smiles]

What All said plus there is no indication of what part of the country you live in. If it's in the south I'd recommend drying them inside a shed or a garage so as to prevent insect infestation. Wood borers and carpenter ants will do a number on a piece of wood left outside. If you're in a northern climate I would guess that all you need to do is get them up off the ground and under a shelter of some kind to prevent wetting. I cut yellow poplar saplings in Tennessee and just set them up on cement blocks under the cabin and they dry out just fine in about a year. However, when I bring green wood to Florida I have to keep it in the shed or the bugs think that they've been invited to a smorgasborg (sp?)!

[wade clark]

They say to allow one year per inch of thickness when air drying. I use a product called Anchorseal, a paint-on wax, to seal the end grains so it doesn't dry too fast and split. I've carved wood green and wet and sealed the whole thing in Anchorseal between carving sessions. I've had pretty good success with it, but I'm convinced the "right" way to do it is use dry wood, glued up to the thickness you need if it's not already the right size.
There are people who deep-fry small wood for carving. Whatever works! I hope to get time to build a solar kiln this Summer.
Wade