Module 5

Seasoning of Wood

Photos by https://images.wisegeek.com/stacks-of-lumber.jpg

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Seasoning of Wood
Seasoning
Seasoning is the controlled process of reducing the moisture content of the timber so that
it is suitable for the environment and intended use.

There are two main methods of seasoning timber

1. Natural Seasoning
2. Artificial Seasoning

Natural Seasoning
Natural Seasoning or Air Drying is one of the best methods of seasoning lumber although
the period involved is relatively longer than the artificial seasoning method. The process
of natural seasoning of wood are:
1. Lumber is piled vertically outdoor inclined at about 10% on its width.

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 2. Lumber is pied in a well-ventilated shed. Each piece is properly and evenly spaced
from each other for free circulation of the air using wood or bamboo spacer to
prevent ants, worms and various insects from living in between the woods.

http://images.meredith.com/wood/images/p_airdry3.jpg

Artificial Seasoning
Artificial Seasoning is the process adopted for quick drying of wood. Under this method,
lumbers are stacked inside a drying kiln and then subjected to steam and hot air under
pressure. Wood that undergone this process are considered inferior in quality compared
with those that were dried by natural air seasoning.

The Artificial Seasoning Methods employed are:

1. Forced Air Drying
Fans are used to booster the circulation of air preparatory process to kiln drying

https://static.europeanwood.cn/upload/media/media/11/Drying_process_[81].jpg

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 2. Kiln Drying
Under this process, the lumber is dried in a specially built room or chamber wherein
temperature and humidity as well as the circulation of air is under control. It relies
on a controlled environment that uses forced air circulation through large fans or
blowers, heating of some form provided by piped steam together with a humidity
control system to dry the timber. The amount and duration of air, heat and humidity
depend on species, size, quantity, etc.

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 3. Solar Kiln Drying
Solar energy enters the kiln through the fiberglass roof. The sun’s radiant energy
hits the dark interior and heats the kiln. A timer is set to run the fun from about an
hour after sunrise to one hour after sunset. As the kiln heats up during the day, the
fan circulates warm air through the lumber stack. A plastic sheet forms a baffle that
forces air only through the stack. The moving air picks up moisture from the wet
wood and is vented out the back.

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 4. Radio Frequency Dielectric Drying
This is a very fast method of drying lumber using a radio frequency dielectric heat.
Drying through this process may only last for 24 hours as compared to that of the
natural air seasoning and other methods.

Self-Assessment Questionnaire No.5 (SAQ5):

1. Define seasoning.
2. What are the classifications of seasoning?
3. What are the classifications of artificial seasoning?

References:

1. Porteous, Jack, Kermani, Abdy Structural Timber Design to Eurocode 5, 2007

Publish by Blackwell Publishing.
2. Kermani, Abdy, Structural Timber Design, 1998, Published by Wiley Blackwell
3. Judith J. Stalnaker, Ernest C. Harris, Structural Design in Wood 1997, Published
by Springer US

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