Drying Timber Logs: Surprising Ease & Benefits

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geordief
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I am a bit surprised (pleasantly surprised) at how easy it is to dry out logs of timber in the fairly damp ,outdoor and uncovered conditions I leave them out in.
And I am wondering if there is something to the drying that I am not aware of.
Now I am talking of logs that have the bark on and I assume that this is very helpful.
But is there some kind of a ratchet system involved that makes it easier for the logs to lose moisture than to regain it?
Is it a bit like blowing up a balloon where it is hard to blow up but easy to let the air out?
Does the fact that the wood shrinks as it dries mean that , when it gets wet with rain it is much harder for the wood to absorb the new source of moisture?
 
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you could do an experiment, get some bark and wet is some how, and see if it is harder to get water through it from one side or the other.
 
I've always relied upon Thermite, but I'm just lazy.
 
Danger, anyone who uses C4 to down the tree is bound to take the termite route in drying it..LAZY! you must have been in the Combat Engineers in a previous life!
 
Ranger Mike said:
you must have been in the Combat Engineers in a previous life!

Not personally, but all of my 20 or so uncles were in WWII (even a couple at Normandy), so I guess that part of that is in my blood. I am as proud of belonging to my Legion as I am of belonging to PF.
 
Ranger Mike said:
:bugeye:
me too!

Then we have something in common beyond our shared love of automobiles. :approve: