Cabinets, Furniture, Woodworks/sealling a tree trunk

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Expert: - 4/16/2009


Question
Hi there, I have receantly moved to a rented house and found the most amazing artistic shaped tree trunk in the garden and would like to bring it into the house and use it as a display piece but am worried about wood lice etc.

How do I find someone locally as I live in London England and could not find anything on the web.

Hope you are able to point me in the right direction.

Regards

Michelle

Answer
Hi Michelle, what you want to do does have risks, involving both undesirable creatures living inside this trunk, but also, cracking, twisting, etc., from rapid and uneven drying occurring inside your house. Ideally, it should be dried slowly to a low moisture content, (which could take a year), then probably further dried in a kiln where the temperature is brought up for several hours, (or days), to kill any, bugs, worms, larvae, eggs, etc. deep inside the wood. After all of that you'd be lucky to end up with the trunk looking the same, and surviving intact. As I'm in the States, I have no idea who to talk to, but I'd suggest looking for Woodworkers, Sculptors, WoodTurners, or Artists's that work in wood, or even a Lumber company that owns a wood drying Kiln. Hope that helps a little, but I am glad you asked the question first before bringing it inside. I have heard some real horror stories before about bringing things like this into the house......regards- Greg

Cabinets, Furniture, Woodworks

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Greg Scholl

Expertise

Questions on Woodworking, wood finishing and refinishing of all kinds, repairing furniture and wooden objects, Architectural details, Woodturning, carving, tool usage, product usage, some chemistry as it applies to woodworking and related interests,cabinet making and furniture construction/design, etc. I have experience with all manners of colorants, finishes, paints, stains, dyes, glazes, and coatings, wood species recognition and usage,tool recommendations, blade types and recommendation,techniques and methods for many Woodworking related issues, etc.

Experience

Fine furniture restorer and cabinet maker for over 30 years,serving high end Antique dealers, Interior designers, Collectors in the CT area. Consulting for area Painting/Decorating and Building contractors on non painting issues..(staining, wood prep.,clear finishing, floor restoration and architectural detail restoration and repair, etc.) Sold, built, serviced, setup Home, Industrial, and Commercial stationary woodworking tools for a major tool retailer in CT. for three years, sold hand and power tools , provided knowledge, parts replacement, service, and on site service, Trade show Demo, and training as well.

Publications
Published in Fine Woodworking Magazine (12/97), included on Fine Woodworkings first "Best of Fine Woodworking" CD-ROM (2002) ...("27 year compilation of expert know-how")

Education/Credentials
Art School at Silvermine Guild in Norwalk, CT., 9 year apprenticeship in a European run Cabinet and Restoration shop in CT., various classes on subjects having to do with the field. Seminars from major Tool manufacturers, Skil/Bosch, Delta, Powermatic, Ritter, Porter cable, Milwaukee, Dewalt/B&Decker, Performax.

Past/Present Clients
Many varied clients including work on Martha Stewarts' Westport, CT. show house, many fine Antique dealers and private collectors in and around Fairfield County and in Woodbury, CT. (the Antiques capital of CT.), Golden Age of Trucking Museum, Wilton Historical Society.

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