Kiln Drying Lumber
A dry kiln will reduce the moisture content of air dried wood to 6% - 8% under
controlled conditions. Kiln drying will harden the pitch in the wood,
it kills insects and fungi. Stiffness and strength of the boards are increased.
Kiln drying does this at an accelerated rate.
In some areas kiln drying in conventional steam type dry kilns is available.
The cost will vary from $100 - $300/1000 bd.ft. A minimum quantity of 3000 to
5000 board feet is usually required. Kiln operators usually insist that the
wood be air dried before it is kiln dried and that the entire batch is dried the
same amount. This does not permit mixing 1" and 2" lumber in the same batch.
If you are having a significant amount of lumber milled it may be to your advantage
to build a kiln.
We are in the process of building our own small kiln. We also have access to other
kilns within our geographical area. Please note that using a kiln is the best
and fastest method of drying your lumber.
For more information on drying your product click on your drying preference below
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