Thread: cost for preparing timber

Hi all, any ideas on what i should be paying for timber to be prepared,fesh cut trees(teak)? any ideas welcome and how long once cut for them to dry enough to start building?thanks

^
hey.
where have you been?

I presume you have found some land since you are talking about building.

Originally Posted by robd

Hi all, any ideas on what i should be paying for timber to be prepared,fesh cut trees(teak)? any ideas welcome and how long once cut for them to dry enough to start building?thanks

teak will be the about the most expensive timber to buy. there are many very hardy timbers available in thailand which, when treated properly can look just as good.
i never saw anybody drying timber properly in thailand. normally, depending on the type of timber, you are looking at not less than three months for the timber to dry after it has been cut into planks and pin-stacked. about three weeks in a proper kiln. the high humidity in thailand would also affect the air-drying time of timber. if you must have teak, it would probably work out better if you bought an old teak house or two and reclaimed the (dry) timber.
good luck

Usually timber can be sawn into boards as soon as it hits the ground, but then the planks need to be stacked on level stickers to prevent warpage and then left to dry, but I have no idea how long it will take.
Kiln drying is when it is stacked as for yard drying but is ran into a dry kiln, steam is forced into the lumber for awhile to force out and replace the natural resins and then moved into the yard where it dries very quickly as the water is not near as hard to evaporate as the resins would have been, but of coarse you end up with junk for lumber too.

Then it goes to the planer and is finished to size.

(c) Solar Drying
Drying of teak by solar means has been carried out by one local Researcher, who used a semi-green house type. It takes 26 days to reduce 1-Inch thick board of 39%.1 % initial moisture content to 12.2% moisture content. No drying defects were observed. It is thus observed that parquet blocks that are solar dried are quite satisfactory.

Teak Outdoor Furniture, Benches, Teak Outdoor Table, and Steamer Lounge Chairs - Teak Outdoor Furniture, Benches, Teak Outdoor Table, and Steamer Lounge Chairs

Very good info,, yard dried is far superior to kiln dried.
Yard dried fir is fine for boat lumber, but kiln dried will rot before you can even get it in the water.

Hi cm yes i have nearly 9 rai over phrae way,yes long way but great location and price!
land is covered in teak trees at usable size and are being/have been cut.
Just wnated to know how quickly t odry and use,everyone in village tells me can use straight away for main joists etc but floor and wall borads must be ver ydry beforing fitting to stop shrinkage gaps. how do you know when dry enough?
yes the ywork on size of wood etc for cost,guess will just have to ask around more
any building cost info for phrae,cm area will be great cheers rob

well, the people in the village are telling you the truth

just get a couple of quotes for any work, to see more or less the going rate

Originally Posted by robd

Hi cm yes i have nearly 9 rai over phrae way,yes long way but great location and price!
land is covered in teak trees at usable size and are being/have been cut.
Just wnated to know how quickly t odry and use,everyone in village tells me can use straight away for main joists etc but floor and wall borads must be ver ydry beforing fitting to stop shrinkage gaps. how do you know when dry enough?
yes the ywork on size of wood etc for cost,guess will just have to ask around more
any building cost info for phrae,cm area will be great cheers rob

timber is mostly sawn wet, logs often being kept in water to prevent cracking. planks are sawn 10% thicker and wider than required to compensate for shrinking after drying. make sure the stuff is properly dried, or it will shrink and warp all over the place., you could check on the internet, and possibly make your own simple tester using an ampere meter or such to test the conductivity (water content) of the wood between two nails banged into the plank. it is almost impossible to tell by just looking at the stuff if it is dry or not, unless you are an expert.
good luck

I know this is a very old thread but I've got a question.

We've just bought 3 fairly big trees (bout 10m tall and 50cm in diameter) for 2000B in total. According to 2 village carpenters this wood is usually used for flooring. Tomorrow we'll cut them down and a carpenter will saw the planks out of it.
My question is: should we not wait with sawing the planks? I think we should dry the log before sawing but according to the carpenter we should saw the planks and let them dry like that. I don't want to get warped wood so I'm looking for some advice here!

Thanks in advance.

yes, this thread has dried out nicely

as for your wood, I often see rough sawed planks stacked for drying. I think the trunks would not dry very quickly as they are too thick...maybe you have a few years

the important thing for drying wood is that it must be done slowly, so stacking and leaving in the shade with lots of air circulation is best

Just after felling is the best time; trouble is, it is a very inexact process and some wood is bound to be lost to warp/splitting

Originally Posted by DrAndy

yes, this thread has dried out nicely

as for your wood, I often see rough sawed planks stacked for drying. I think the trunks would not dry very quickly as they are too thick...maybe you have a few years

the important thing for drying wood is that it must be done slowly, so stacking and leaving in the shade with lots of air circulation is best

Just after felling is the best time; trouble is, it is a very inexact process and some wood is bound to be lost to warp/splitting

I guess you're right, trunks will take a very long time to dry. I've found this website about drying: How to Succeed at Air-Drying Lumber

So according to this website I'll have to get myself some "stickers" and stack the planks like this:


I will probably build a shed for the wood to dry because right now it's just piled up on the dirt.

If it is your land and your trees you cut and leave them on the ground the leaves will continue to draw the moisture out until they die.

Now this is a mod at work. A newb stumbled in and was asking about wood prices on a steak thread concerning a former poster known as Timba. Freaking killer steaks he could cook.

Now the thread is wood alone. Well done. I am serious. It was one weird thread.

Drying logs that size will take many years. Boards will dry really quick. Properly dry the boards as that link or others describe. Would like to emphasize something no one has mentioned. Wood dries quickest at the end grain. This causes the end to shrink more rapidly and results in end cracks, even teak. It is critical to seal the ends with a proven sealing agent immediately after felling before any drying begins.

Wood shrinks and expands between the wet and dry seasons. If you don't want gaps to form between your boards, overlap them with tongue and groove.

true, even old wood still changes shape

I put some boards down and they were really tight; now there are small gaps between them, about 2mm in places

if you season the wood in the place it will be used, that helps, but seasonal change also changes the wood

Originally Posted by canopy

Drying logs that size will take many years. Boards will dry really quick. Properly dry the boards as that link or others describe. Would like to emphasize something no one has mentioned. Wood dries quickest at the end grain. This causes the end to shrink more rapidly and results in end cracks, even teak. It is critical to seal the ends with a proven sealing agent immediately after felling before any drying begins.

Wood shrinks and expands between the wet and dry seasons. If you don't want gaps to form between your boards, overlap them with tongue and groove.

Thanks a lot for the info! The company in the link I posted also seal the ends, it seems like the way to go indeed. Now I better buy this sealing agent before my wife chops down more trees.

I think I will use tongue and groove for all of my floorboards, it will be what we call in Dutch "a monk's job", meaning that it will take a really long time haha.