Showerthought: Letting wood sit in my shop before use fixed my warp issues

I used to take hardwood from the store and work on it immediately. My cabinets would often twist or cup after I put them together, which drove me nuts. An old timer at the lumberyard said to let the wood get used to my shop's air. So I changed my routine and now leave it stacked with spacers for about a week. The improvement is huge. My recent cherry cabinet doors stayed perfectly flat once installed. I don't have to fix gaps or sand out bends anymore. This small shift means I think ahead, but my work is way more reliable now.

3 comments

3 Comments

erict781mo ago

Find that letting things adjust first avoids problems later, like with wood or even concrete curing.

henryh101mo ago

So you wait for concrete to cure before you walk on it, but do you also let your spouse's mood cure before you ask about chores? Tried that once, waited a whole week for the right moment to talk about the dishes. Now I just get nagged forever instead of getting a crack.

morgan_torres61mo ago

Nah, waiting for mood cures is a bad move. If you let chores stack up, it just makes things worse. Like, if dishes sit for a week, that's gross and now you have a bigger fight. @erict78 talks about adjusting, but sometimes you gotta just deal with it. Concrete cures on its own, but people need communication. Better to get nagged for a minute than live in a messy house forever.