Washing Logs to Extend Blade Life
Some sawmillers pressure-wash or hose down logs before sawing. September 15, 2006
Question
Do you think it would make blades last longer if I soaked the bark down with a water hose before I did any cutting? I noticed that cutting dry logs seems to take a toll on band life moreso than cutting the green ones. Maybe if the bark was wet the blade would drag a little water into the cut and make it cut easier. What about the idea of using one of those garden hose attachments that have a container for bug spray, etc. - put liquid soap or PineSol in it, then maybe we could spray the bark clean of dirt and leave a thin layer of soap at same time? Maybe it would stop pitch buildup.
Forum Responses
(Sawing and Drying Forum)
From contributor A:
I have been running a small Hudson mill and I clean logs before cutting. Judging by the amount of otherwise latent dirt within the bark, I believe it does stretch the blades.
From contributor B:
I have started pressure-washing my logs before sawing and believe it adds considerably to band life, even though my WM has a debarker. It's a messy job and kind of a pain, but worth it. I currently wash them while they are held on forks in front of my tractor. I'm thinking of devising something to rest the log on and turn it during washing.
From contributor C:
I pressure wash all of my logs with a Landa 4000 psi unit. I place all of the longs on two 8" x 16" x 1/2" webbing x 16' I beams welded to three 22 log truck rims. I roll the logs with my Logrite Peavy. I place a 2 x 12 on the top of both beams for walking on, while washing.
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