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Drying in a small oven

John Torchick

John Torchick

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Jan 24, 2010
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I have a small toaster oven that I got for drying wood. What temp settings and time do I need? I have a digital scale that could keep track of the weight of the wood. Thanks in advance for your help.
 
What species, what thickness, is it fresh from the tree or air dried? Fresh from the tree and you don't want anything over 90 degrees and then not on continuously. Drying wood is a lot more than just baking it.
 
The oven has a thermostat and I thought a low setting might get the MC down to an acceptable level for turning. Most of the wood I have has been sitting in the shop for ages. I'm looking at future wood that is cut green.
 
Most people I know who use some sort of heat to dry wood just use a light bulb in a space the size of a dish washer or refrigerator. I think drying wood with the kind of heat that a real oven puts out would not work, but hey you could try it with a small piece and see. On the other Hand Jim Rinde has been burning wood at high temperatures without oxygen to produce wood that has completely different characteristics and color.
I much prefer a microwave to dry wood.
 
A long time ago I experimented with a series of hollow forms.
Turned them green a bit on the thick side.
heated the oven to 400 , turned it off, put the wet hollow forms in.

The goal was to get cracks and it succeeded.

The forms were ok and looked old but not special enough to pursue.

drying without cracks is to dry slowly humidity is neede to keep the surface levels from drying faster than thicker portions.
 
I have heard of microwaving wood and other items can ruin a marriage through obnoxious odors given off during the process. John, I'll look for a MW at the curb. Most of the time all they need is a fuse inside the oven. People think that when they quit working that they are gone.
 
After overheating a bowl in my in house microwave I bought a used one to put in the shop and never use the one in the kitchen again. It took literally a month of trying all sorts of odor removers to get the smell out of the kitchen microwave. I bough one for $10 at a yard sale that I use in the shop. It's really great for heating glues to make them spread easier. I don't use it for bowls much any more but do use it to dry box blanks quite often.
 
John, I lived in Queens, NY for a three years. The hog dog needs sauerkraut and mustard along with a potato knish and mustard.
I'll look for a MW as there are a ton of yard sales around here.
 
Another approach that might work for you, if you find a really good yard sale, is using a pressure cooker. I have one turner friend, seasoned professional, who likes that method. Turns a green bowl to usual thickness (10% of diameter), pressure cooks it for 15-30 mins, depending on size. As soon as it's cool enough to handle, he does the final turning. This appeals to me, as microwaving seems like a lot of babysitting is involved.😛 I haven't tried it yet, no pressure cooker. Looked at used ones on eBay, seems better to buy a new one, wanting a biggie.
 
I suppose that would be similar to the boiling method many people are using. It all just seems like too much work for me. I just turn them and them and put them up and go on to other turning. They dry quite nicely by themselves without the expense or time of boiling or microwaving.
 
John Torchick said:
John, I lived in Queens, NY for a three years. The hog dog needs sauerkraut and mustard along with a potato knish and mustard.
I'll look for a MW as there are a ton of yard sales around here.
Click to expand...

Can't get a good knish down here, that's for sure. Now Chicago, that was another story...🙂
 
john lucas said:
I suppose that would be similar to the boiling method many people are using. It all just seems like too much work for me. I just turn them and them and put them up and go on to other turning. They dry quite nicely by themselves without the expense or time of boiling or microwaving.
Click to expand...
Yep, I've slid into that approach too. However, if the fruitwoods I seem to have a soft spot for start cracking on me, I may invest in a pressure cooker!
 
I have used the pressure cooker method with success, it relieves the internal stress of the wood grain and relaxes the wood so it does not split and crack.
You still need to make sure it does not dry out too quickly or you can still have issues.

I have also used a microwave on a number of wood species, depending on the size of the billet you can lower the moisture content quickly but if you get
in a hurry you can create cracks on the end grain of your billet. Take your time and warm the wood piece up and then let it cool, and repeat the process.

Several other methods to try are soaking the piece in alcohol or soaking the piece in a mix of water and dish soap, the enzymes in the soap helps to break down the
cellulose membranes in the wood which helps to release moisture from the billet. Soaking the wood in alcohol allows the alcohol to pull moisture out of the wood
while the alcohol is evaporating.
 
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