Rough cut lumber sources?

[ArnaudForestier]

Hey all -

Stab in the dark.  Having a heck of a time finding suitable dry, rough lumber for shelving.  We're all big box here and any sawmills in our area deal in fine, woodworking wood and either can't or won't sell the kind of wood we cheesemakers are looking for, especially in small quantities (I need 1 x 12's, 12', 5 of these or so only). 

I'm really surprised, would have thought this would have been fairly easy but alas, so far, no deal. 

Anyone have any luck?  Any ideas on sourcing?

[H-K-J]

you might try a cabinet shop, most of them deal in rough cut lumber.

[ArnaudForestier]

Oh, OK, thanks HKJ.  Wasn't aware of that.  Cheese to you!

[John@PC]

Stab in the dark.  Having a heck of a time finding suitable dry, rough lumber for shelving.  We're all big box here and any sawmills in our area deal in fine, woodworking wood and either can't or won't sell the kind of wood we cheesemakers are looking for, especially in small quantities (I need 1 x 12's, 12', 5 of these or so only). 

  What species of wood are your looking for and is rough-cut required or is it the customary wood of choice for your Abondance?

[smolt1]

Another possibility is to use a 2 x 12 instead of a 1 x 12. 2 x 12 is a common dimension for floor joists and is easier to find and less expensive than 1 x 12. In Oregon a Fir ( #2 grade ) 12' 2 x 12 is about $ 15,  the only problem is that you would have to air dry it for a couple of months.

[terry@dairy fab]

Paul,

There is a saw mill over here in Eastern Wisconsin you could contact to see if they have what you are looking for. If you Google Kruegerlumber.com you can check them out. They are located at 21324 U.S. 151, Valders, WI 54245. phone (920) 775-4663. They would be about 2 hours east of Madison area, a little west of Manitowoc Wisconsin.

Terry@curdknives.com

[ArnaudForestier]

Wow, thanks very much guys, these are really helpful ideas.  To be honest, not all that thrilled with my design now, anyway - it's a kind of L-shaped support system with dowels bored into the upright 4 x 4's.  Not nearly enough support between the three dowels per shelf, as they jut out 2'.  Everything tilts downwards as you go towards the outer edge.

You can see my setup here:



 

Uh, here, rather:



Not the best shot, but at least you can get an idea what I mean.  I'd love 2 x 12's smolt, thanks for the idea on the joists, very clever.  And Terry, thanks too on that source.  I'll check them out. 

John, ideally, spruce but in all honesty anything that doesn't impart off-character to the ripening cheeses.  I use SPF now, no idea what it is, actually.  But the smoothness takes some management in terms of my rinds. 

-btw, I'm heading out of town likely for the Upper Peninsula this week, so to those who celebrate it, happy thanksgiving, y'all.  To everyone in this community, happy - forevermore.

Edit: glasses, Paul, glasses.  Helps look like you're writing in an actual language....

[John@PC]

Hoping you have a good vacation weather permitting.  Looks like you're using planed spruce (or S4S) and it sounds like from what you're saying the "rough cut" gives some advantage?  I'm guessing it has something to do with air permeability on the bottom of the cheese?.   

[ArnaudForestier]

Heading out as soon as weather gives us the window, John.  Always a crap shoot, as weather as we head north this time of year can be great, or a serious drag.  Wish us luck!

Yeah, it's just simple big box lumber, planed smooth as you say.  And yep, the rough cut typically has enough ridges and valleys in its make that you get good wood contact, but also get the air circulation underneath.

[ArnaudForestier]

Paul,

There is a saw mill over here in Eastern Wisconsin you could contact to see if they have what you are looking for. If you Google Kruegerlumber.com you can check them out. They are located at 21324 U.S. 151, Valders, WI 54245. phone (920) 775-4663. They would be about 2 hours east of Madison area, a little west of Manitowoc Wisconsin.

Terry@curdknives.com

Hey Terry - thanks again. Called them and they only do hardwoods apparently, and they didn't have any recommendatons (only one that came to mind for them does cedar).  Shucks.  I'll keep plugging when we get back.

[awakephd]

Arnaud, if you go with a hardwood, try beech -- my understanding is that it imparts no flavors to whatever is stored in it. (Unlike, say, oak!) Of course, you'll probably pay a LOT more for beech than for pine/spruce.

Another option ... I wonder if poplar would work, as far as not imparting flavors? It would certainly be one of the cheapest hard woods.

[ArnaudForestier]

Thanks, Awake, will check it out.  Man, wouldn't have thought this was this hard, but I guess so.  Heading up to the Upper Peninsula (on Lake Superior, right across from Canada for International Friends), and on my sister in law's 40 it's all spruce up there...to bad it's all fresh.  (can anyone say vacherin mont d'or?).

Got a quote from a local lumber place:  1 x 12 x 17', $180.  Yikes!  It's sitka, so I wonder if that's part of the problem?  When I was playing rhythm in gypsy swing, my board was in sitka and I know it's used everywhere in music.  Is this the only spruce people typically deal in, anymore?

[smolt1]

Sitka is the wood of choice for making sailboat masts. Must be good!

[ArnaudForestier]

Wow, that's cool, didn't know that.  I didn't know it was that sturdy!

Here's my baby, or former baby, anyway.  Much missed...

[Alpkäserei]

SPF stands for Spruce Pine and Fir
it's just a mixed lot of these three common softwoods that are commonly used for light construction

Spruce and Fir are good neutral woods, and what shelving is made of in the Alps

the pine, in this case white or red pine, is not so good. It will impart flavor to the cheese due to its high resin content.

2x12's are not recommended. These will be made of Southern Yellow Pine which is a mixture of various pine species from the Appalachians and the deep south lowlands. Very resinous, it will always have a certain 'dampness' and will impart flavor to any cheese it touches.

If you can, go to your big box store and by the highest quality White Pine 1x that they have, and pick through the stack to find boards with no knots in them.
Kiln dried white pine will generally be good for use as a cheese surface, as the resin is hardened and will not leech into things at cheese cellar temperatures.
And if you put a sealer of a food grade oil, like butcher block oil, then it will be even better.

Eastern White Pine is actually the closest thing we will get here in the US to an Alpine spruce or fir. our domestic spruce is different.

it also has the highest strength to weight ration of any wood, which makes it the preferred wood for building things like bridges or large clear span trusses.
This is also a useful trait for building cheese shelves.