13-12-2019, 08:38 AM
Jamie, you have your priorities right.
Fresh from treatment, tanalised timber has a huge water content. We normally air-dry it for at least a month before use in warm weather and much longer at this time of year. Wood doesn't respond well to attempts to dry it rapidly.
Going back to my earlier comments about dehumidifiers: Our garages and workshops are all timber sectional buildings built either by ourselves, or my predecessor in the business, dating back a far as 1973. The buildings are still in good condition. Cars, tools, machinery and materials are kept in them and I've stored bare steel for years with no corrosion issues. I've never used a dehumidifier, or a heater other than during working hours in cold weather.
I have, however, sometimes had calls from customers who have had problems with damp. Maintaining good air circulation around the outside of the building is essential and if the building doesn't have a roof overhang at the sides, gutters are highly advisable.
Dehumidifiers have often been present and my problem with them is that as they dry the air inside the building, they also dry the timber cladding from the inside. Wood is not a particularly stable material; it behaves like a sponge and if one side of a board is dry and the other side damp, water will simply be drawn from the wet side to the dry side. You'll never win. I've seen buildings with permanently sodden, rotting boards that miraculously dry out within a few weeks once the dehumidifier is switched off. The timber will find its own balance.
Fresh from treatment, tanalised timber has a huge water content. We normally air-dry it for at least a month before use in warm weather and much longer at this time of year. Wood doesn't respond well to attempts to dry it rapidly.
Going back to my earlier comments about dehumidifiers: Our garages and workshops are all timber sectional buildings built either by ourselves, or my predecessor in the business, dating back a far as 1973. The buildings are still in good condition. Cars, tools, machinery and materials are kept in them and I've stored bare steel for years with no corrosion issues. I've never used a dehumidifier, or a heater other than during working hours in cold weather.
I have, however, sometimes had calls from customers who have had problems with damp. Maintaining good air circulation around the outside of the building is essential and if the building doesn't have a roof overhang at the sides, gutters are highly advisable.
Dehumidifiers have often been present and my problem with them is that as they dry the air inside the building, they also dry the timber cladding from the inside. Wood is not a particularly stable material; it behaves like a sponge and if one side of a board is dry and the other side damp, water will simply be drawn from the wet side to the dry side. You'll never win. I've seen buildings with permanently sodden, rotting boards that miraculously dry out within a few weeks once the dehumidifier is switched off. The timber will find its own balance.