Rough sawn pine, wet vs kiln dried, etc.
I have been pricing rough sawn pine for my barn project, and figured it would be not too expensive, but maybe I am wrong? I have been quoted .75 a board foot for kiln dried and .55 for fresh cut. I am in NY, not quite upstate but not NYC either. Do these prices sound right? I am looking at about 3000 bd ft for this 40×60 barn with 12′ walls including the trim boards. Is the only advantage to the kiln dried the shrinkage would be less?
Dave
Replies
the price doesn't sound out of line, depending on specifics of quality and delivery - most custom sawyers charge 20-25 cents a foot to saw and 30 cents is not out of line for common stumpage around here (midwest, so I don't know pine specifically) - are you doing board and batten or board on board? I'd not be scared of boards that are air dried for three or more months; 'green' - lumber from freshly cut live trees will be heavy, wet, and will shrink dramatically, which might not matter much on a solid wall, but around doors and windows will cause grief - kiln dry will be stable and may actually expand a little as it comes to equalibrium - in this type of application there will be a lot of seasonal movement, so plan for it -
here's a link to a site where sawyers hang out - might want to peruse it for more information - http://www.woodweb.com/cgi-bin/forums/sawdry.pl
good luck, DOUD