How do I check a wood shop’s lumber stock for moisture and age?

Lumber is the raw material of the shop, and its condition decides what it can be turned into. Start with storage. Wood kept off the floor, stacked with spacers, under cover and out of swings in humidity usually stays usable. Wood piled in a damp corner or beside a leaking door does not. Smell the room and look at the ceiling.

Test with a meter across a variety of boards and species, and read from the inside of stacks as well as the outside. Ask what moisture level the shop works to and how it dries or acclimatizes stock. Look for cupping, cracking at the ends and mould. Ask the age of each pile, since long-held stock may be fine for some work and poor for others.

Ask how the stock is recorded. Are there tags, receipts or a tally by species and grade? Is any of it reserved for a customer’s job or owned by someone else? Your accountant can explain how the stock is carried in the statements, and a wood professional can help you judge the quality of the better pieces.

Key takeaways

• Test boards inside the stacks, not just the exposed ones, with a moisture meter.
• Look at how the lumber is stored, not only what it looks like today.
• Ask the age of each pile and whether any stock is reserved for customer work.
• Check whether tags or records match what is actually in the shop.