# Wood Storage?



## Grizzlyss

Couldn't find any info about this, but how does eveyone store their wwod blanks? I have a lot of nice dry wood, but not sure if it should be stored in a air tight container to prevent moisture from getting in. Or if it should be stored in the open air of the shop so it can acclimitize to shop conditions and moiture levels so there is no cracking or splitting due to moisture differences. Please excuse the spelling, there is no spell checked here. LOL.

Sheldon


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## penhead

Actually there is a spell checker.

Instead of using the 'quick reply', go to the top right corner of the topic thread and click on the "reply to topic" button.  

Once that window comes open, very right corner of the row of buttons is the spell checker button. Move your mouse over the button and it should tell you what the button does.


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## toolcrazy

Myself, I have all my blanks in ziplock bags with the wood name on the bag. I'm not good at identifying wood yet. Gives me a quick reference of what I have. Also, I buy from a wood supplier and they recommend keeping them in ziplocks. They say you might even get some surprise spalting.


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## jcollazo

Here's a recent thread about this very subject: http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=19934


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## bob393

I collect and use those free cardboard tubs you see at home depot, usualy in the plumbing department, lable it with masking tape and store it in an old metal cabnet in my shop.


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## les-smith

I use the flate rate boxes the you get from the USPS.  I took back their plastic totes, they asked for them back.[]


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## Rifleman1776

> _Originally posted by les-smith_
> <br />I use the flate rate boxes the you get from the USPS.  I took back their plastic totes, they asked for them back.[]



I'm surprised people even admit to doing things like this. Those boxes are paid for by USPS users. They are, by law, intended only for mailing.


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## les-smith

Oh, I guess I should have mentioned:  I only use the boxes that I recieve stuff in.  I turn them inside out and tape them back up.


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## woodpens

Here is my preferred method:









Or another method:


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## les-smith

Are those Postal totes I see in there?[)]  That sure is a lot of wood.


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## Grizzlyss

Boy do I wish I had that selection of wood, WOW, and my wife thought I had a lot. 
Honey you gotta come see this, see, I really do need a lot more wood. LOL

Sheldon

PS. Thanks Penhead for pointing out the spell checked, I will use it in the future, I promise.
Please check out my tag line, I guess that I am talented after all.


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## LEAP

Just ordered a bunch of stackable trays from Northern Tool and Equipment. The good stuff will go in these. The rest will continue to continue to reside in the express mail boxes.


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## Rudy Vey

I use plastic storage boxes one can get in $-Stores for a buck a piece and cardboard shoe boxes.


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## JDPens

If you read through SHOW US YOUR WORKSHOP thread, there are a few good ideas in there. 
http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=20305&whichpage=1

We actually got our idea from <u>dfurlano</u> who had put some pics in the above thread.



<br />

It works really well, and it only cost about $15 minus some scraps that were laying around the shed. It will hold a several hundred blanks total. It's made out of 4" drainage pipe from either Lowe's of Home Depot.

Oh yeah, the above is where the majority of our blanks are stored but not all of them.


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## Grizzlyss

Thanks for the responses, but I guess what I am really looking for is which way would be considered the best way of storing the wood blanks? Sealed in plastic, somewhat sealed in boxes, or unsealed in your shop but protected from the outside weather. In another words, does the wood need to acclimatize to the humidity level in your workshop before working, and finishing it? I can see pros and cons to each method, what are your opinions?

Sheldon


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## Dario

If you look at all the posted pics and observe you will get the obvious answer []


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## LEAP

As in there are more opinions than there are members?

Sheldon,
Thanks for bringing this up you have got me thinking. All my wood is stored in an unheated shop. Are there any blanks that would be better off sealed in a ziplock to keep them from gathering moisture in the cold and wet?  Will it prolong the drying timeof green wood. I've got some cocobolo blanks that are pretty green maybe I should bring them inside so they can dry in the house. Will the freeze thaw cycles effect them? Man this is going to bug me. Oh screw it I'll just leave them in the shed and see what happens maybe I'll learn something.


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## 1080Wayne

Sheldon  Wood is probably best stored open to the environment in which it will be used . If your shop is heated the same as your house , you won`t have any problems . Dry wood can take several weeks to adjust to a major change in humudity . I`m very reluctant to work any Eastern wood until it spent several weeks in my dry Alberta house . I don`t see much point in plastic bag storage unless you have major seasonal humidity changes and you want to ship  a pen to me or someone in a desert.    Wayne


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## Grizzlyss

That is what I am starting to think too, as I rember back (way, way back)to a Chess board I made in high school. I made it in the dry wood working shop, where it stayed until it was all finished and graded. Well I took it home and it was almost a year later, when I was away, it woke my parents up in the middle of the night when it split. The said it sounded like a shotgun had been fired, and it wasn't until the next morning when they noticed it had split. So I think I may store my wood in the basement of my house even though I turn it in the garage, just because the garage is normally unheated, and in Alberta it can get quite cool at times.LOL. But this too makes me think about when you make a pen for some else who may live say in Victoria, where is it warm and very humid. We shall see, I guess.


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## Rifleman1776

> _Originally posted by les-smith_
> <br />Oh, I guess I should have mentioned:  I only use the boxes that I recieve stuff in.  I turn them inside out and tape them back up.



Mighty fine. Legal and recycling.


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## Rifleman1776

> _Originally posted by Grizzlyss_
> <br />That is what I am starting to think too, as I rember back (way, way back)to a Chess board I made in high school. I made it in the dry wood working shop, where it stayed until it was all finished and graded. Well I took it home and it was almost a year later, when I was away, it woke my parents up in the middle of the night when it split. The said it sounded like a shotgun had been fired, and it wasn't until the next morning when they noticed it had split. So I think I may store my wood in the basement of my house even though I turn it in the garage, just because the garage is normally unheated, and in Alberta it can get quite cool at times.LOL. But this too makes me think about when you make a pen for some else who may live say in Victoria, where is it warm and very humid. We shall see, I guess.



Chess board squares popping is a characteristic of the way the grain is aligned when the squares, and underlayment, are set originally. I have a Roy Underhill video where he explains the proper method. There might be an article in one of his books about this. But we (I) digress. [:I]


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## jssmith3

I store mine in a mess shoe holder with the mutiple pockets.  I have it hung on the wall and each pocket has a different type of wood, I used the old fashion wooden cloths pins to write the name of each wood type and stuck it on the outside of each pocket so I know which is which.  The other thing I have set up is using a tall metal CD ladder and each section is a different wood and used the pinch type cloths pin and wrote the name of this then clipped it to the side of each different type.  the whole set up takes up almost no room at all and I only spent maybe $10. Got the CD rack at a thrift store and the shoe holder at a $dollar store. Both of these systems allow air to circulate and since I live in a high altitude location all my blanks need to aclimate to very low humidity. I let them "rest" for at least 6 months usually before I will turn them.
Hope this helps.

Janet


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## Firefyter-emt

What the heck.. Just so it's over here, this is my storage cubie's/ Wal-Mart specials, $1.00 each.


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## TellicoTurning

I'm no expert on the matter, but seems to me that if you have a lot of humidity and changes in temperature, plastic bags might or could act like the solar evaporators that campers use to condense water out of the air... you could get moisture inside the bags with the wood.
I store mine on shelf in my shop.. unheated (except when I'm out there and it's cold)  NO where as neat as some of you guys... but I do mark each piece so I know what it is... haven't learned all the I.D.'s on my woods yet.


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## Rifleman1776

I store mine in 8 1/2"X11" document boxes. They are sturdy and inexpensive. (and I don't have to steal them [] )
The yellow cabinet with drawers below is where I keep kits and parts. Each drawer is labeled with type of kit.



<br />


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## LEAP

Has anyone tried using the dessicant like is used when storeing or winterizing boats or campers. It does a good job keeping the cabin of my boat from geting moldy over the winter. Maybe putting a tub in an old cooler with some green blanks would help speed up the drying time or at least keep them from absorbing moisture in a humid environment.


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## Daniel

Common practice in woodworking, generally is to have the wood exposed to the shop air. this is usually taken as far as to stack the wood so there are gaps that the air can to all sides of the wood. a lot of fine woodworking info I have seen is in the area of 1 year per inch of thickness of the wood is needed to allow it to be ready to use. as far as pen blanks I don't liek to use anything that has not been in my shop for a couple of months at least, unless it is stabalized. I don't really like using unstabalized wood at all but still do fairly often.
the problem with taking so much care to let your wood adjust to the climate of your shop is that eventually it will be leaving your shop anyway. and in the case of my pens they are mailed all over the U.S. and sometimes around the world. regardless if the wood is in the form of a blank or a finished pen. the wood will once again adjust to the new climate it is in. as far as the wood seller that says to keep the blanks in a baggie until ready to use. I have bought blanks for someone that said that as well. I allowed the blanks to dry as I do all my blanks. and nearly all of them warped severly. had I waited until I was ready to make a pen with them they would have caused grand failure in the finished turing. I'm not bad mouthing the seller cause he makes it very clear that his blanks present problems. they are not at all unusable. and actually make very interesting pens. bottom line, any moisture in a pen blanks will cause problems. even very small amounts of it. the wood on a finished pen is so thin that very small expension or contraction makes noticable cracks or gaps.


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## kevin_f

> _Originally posted by Firefyter-emt_
> <br />What the heck.. Just so it's over here, this is my storage cubie's/ Wal-Mart specials, $1.00 each.



Firefyter-emt, I have the same plastic boxes as you, but not stacked on a shelf yet.  As I was looking at your picture, I had an idea.  There is alot of wasted space in the boxes (and mine), but if you were to put 2-3 wooden dowels or pvc pipe through the holes in the sides of the boxes horizontaly, that would make a shelf in the box and thus more storage space to organize the blanks.  I am out of town right now, but can't wait to try this when I get home.

Just an idea.

Kevin


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## Firefyter-emt

That would work, but to be honest, I plan to make a new one with the partitions made from peg board. Like you said, it needs smaller cubbie holes and more of them. It's on the "to do" list. (that's a pretty big list and this one's on the bottom of the pile!)  []


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## whatwoodido

I like that apporach but I have more blanks than that just for my pen turning classes and that is only the tip of the iceberg.  I think Jim Lambert has a few more blanks than me but not a whole lot more.  And I have at least a 1,500 to 2,500 blanks worth of wood in lumber form, that I have decided are easier to manage uncut, and could still be used for something other than pens potentially.





> _Originally posted by JDPens_
> <br />If you read through SHOW US YOUR WORKSHOP thread, there are a few good ideas in there.
> http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=20305&whichpage=1
> 
> We actually got our idea from <u>dfurlano</u> who had put some pics in the above thread.
> 
> 
> 
> <br />
> 
> It works really well, and it only cost about $15 minus some scraps that were laying around the shed. It will hold a several hundred blanks total. It's made out of 4" drainage pipe from either Lowe's of Home Depot.
> 
> Oh yeah, the above is where the majority of our blanks are stored but not all of them.


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## whatwoodido

There is no really best method.  You probably don't really want to seal them up in plastic as they will want to move if the humidity level had changed since they were put into the bags.  Green wood will spalt if sealed in a bag and that can be both a good and a bad thing.  If the blanks are not monitored they could pass splated and enter punky.  

Though you probably should ask for advice from someone in your area, as the humidity levels vary substantially as you change geography.  Though generally speaking if the blanks were dry when you received them there is no reason to seal them up.  Though Ziploc bags are great ways to keep things organized.  

Drew



> _Originally posted by Grizzlyss_
> <br />Thanks for the responses, but I guess what I am really looking for is which way would be considered the best way of storing the wood blanks? Sealed in plastic, somewhat sealed in boxes, or unsealed in your shop but protected from the outside weather. In another words, does the wood need to acclimatize to the humidity level in your workshop before working, and finishing it? I can see pros and cons to each method, what are your opinions?
> 
> Sheldon


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## alamocdc

I picked up this rolling cart for $99 at Sam's recently to hold my big stuff. The same carts are almost $300 online. I'm currently working on a more efficient method of storing my pen blanks, but won't have that until I finish the shop reorg.



<br />


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## Dario

Billy,

I've been eyeing those shelving units for a while now.

Sure looks like a shop re-org is badly needed.  Is it done yet? I hope this pic is pre-reorg [}][]


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## alamocdc

> _Originally posted by Dario_
> <br />Sure looks like a shop re-org is badly needed.  Is it done yet? I hope this pic is pre-reorg [}][]



Oh that's funny!!!! It's mid-org, actually. You should see my turning shop. Half of my shop is one side of the two-car garage. It houses two table saws, band saw, and floor model DP and about half of my wood (among other things). The other half is an add-on on the back of the garage (~14"x17"). The add-on is where my three (soon to be two) lathes, benchtop DP, benchtop disk/belt sander, PC equipment, workbench, router table, and sand blasting cabinet are. Not to mention my pen kits and blanks. The problem with the add-on is that now that I have the new lathe in there, I don't have room to move around or turn anything b/c of my miniature diecast collection... and LOML's unfinished bookcase (that I have to make room to finish).[:0] Making a dent in removing the diecast, but it's slow going. I'm really ready to be done so I can get back to work, I mean fun!


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## whatwoodido

The same rack is $80 at Costco, or it was when I bought mine.


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## ilikewood

Hey Billy, did you get instructions with that bandsaw, or did you have to figure it out by yourself?  I have the same one, but no instructions were included.  Lucky I am pretty good at puzzles.[]


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## alamocdc

> _Originally posted by ilikewood_
> <br />Hey Billy, did you get instructions with that bandsaw, or did you have to figure it out by yourself?  I have the same one, but no instructions were included.  Lucky I am pretty good at puzzles.[]


Bill, mine did come with instructions. At least I think it did. I've had it about 4 years now so I really don't remember exactly. The riser kit (no longer available) did come w/instructions, but they weren't that much help. I recently picked up the Carter roller guides for it, but haven't had time to install them yet. That should make a huge difference in the cuts I get. The guys at Woodline told me that this saw is made in the same factory as the Jet. Don't know if it's true, but I like mine!


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## ilikewood

I put roller guides in mine and they work great!  I like mine too!!  

Sorry about hijacking this thread![]


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## wudnhed

> _Originally posted by alamocdc_
> <br />
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _Originally posted by Dario_
> <br />Sure looks like a shop re-org is badly needed.  Is it done yet? I hope this pic is pre-reorg [}][]
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Oh that's funny!!!! It's mid-org, actually. You should see my turning shop. Half of my shop is one side of the two-car garage. It houses two table saws, band saw, and floor model DP and about half of my wood (among other things). The other half is an add-on on the back of the garage (~14"x17"). The add-on is where my three (soon to be two) lathes, benchtop DP, benchtop disk/belt sander, PC equipment, workbench, router table, and sand blasting cabinet are. Not to mention my pen kits and blanks. The problem with the add-on is that now that I have the new lathe in there, I don't have room to move around or turn anything b/c of my miniature diecast collection... and LOML's unfinished bookcase (that I have to make room to finish).[:0] Making a dent in removing the diecast, but it's slow going. I'm really ready to be done so I can get back to work, I mean fun!
Click to expand...


Wow, I think it looks very organized.  I will not be showing a picture of our work space and it's outside!!!!!!


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## arioux

Hi,

I just finished making my shelving for my wood.





<br />

Alfred


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## Firefyter-emt

Nice job there Alfred, that is something along the lines of what I am thinking about putting togather. Any input as to why you used diffrent sized holes? Is it just because you keep more types of one wood at a time??

With my design, I plan to make a series of 1/4" dado's in the top & bottom shelves and use a series of hardboard divders so I can custom set the width as I see fit. The main "box" will probably be 5" x 5" with a dado every 2.5" so I can make it 5" x 2.5" or kick it up to 5" x 7.5" and up.


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## arioux

Hi,

The vertical divider are just "sqweezed in" so i can move them from left to right easyly to change the size of the hole according to the number of blank i have for each wood type.  Two little pieces of felt glued to top and bottom of the divider do the job and make it "sqeeze fit" in place.  No need to make dado cuts in the board (i'm leasy[8D]).  I'll take few closer and detailed  shots and post them here for you this afternoon.

Alfred


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## arioux

Wow,

Did'nt know that this simple set up would create interest.  
Thanks for the emails i got for more info.

Made of 1/2" and 1/4" inches mdf

I uses a pegboard as a gauge for the hole in the side.

Here are some closer shots

Simple hole and peg to hold the horizontal shelves




<br />


Vertical parts are just sqeezed in so no dado slots needed.  A little piece of felt glued to top and bottom of divider helps keep it stiff fit.



<br />

This way, i can make the slots the size i need according to my current stock and keep my blanks organized.  The bundles with taped and rubber bands reflect my old way of keeping them.  Boy that was a mess[xx(]




<br />

Now i know that most of you "voyeur" have more eyes for the blanks than the shelving but that's ok.  Glad i could give something 
back to this site after all the idea that i stoled form it[]

Alfred


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## eastbay

I live in TN where the humidity changes so much. The wood I turn is acclimated and at that point in the year if the wood is 18% mc from the humidity it has never been a problen for me. By the time the pen is at its final and its time to sand the small amounts of friction will completly dry the blank and it will take the finish. I just store all the non stabilized on the shelf. no bags, boxes nothing to be in the way. Cheers East bay


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## byounghusband

I use several plastic boxes, Priority Mail boxes, tubs, and the open air.....





And there's moer now since that is an old picture....[:I]


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