Workshops teach wood science and techniques for drying lumber
Julie Stricker
907-474-5406
Feb. 24, 2025
Matt Labrenz, right, explains lumber properties during an Alaska Lumber Grading Program workshop in Sitka in 2024. Two-day workshops offering wood science and information on drying lumber are scheduled in May in three communities.
Learn tools and techniques for drying lumber in Alaska to maximize yield and quality, while managing loss from warping, splitting and decay in a two-day wood science and lumber-drying workshop.
Hosted by the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service, the classes
will be taught by Frederik Laleicke, assistant professor and wood products extension
specialist from North Carolina State University.
The class is open to anyone and is especially valuable for established and aspiring
wood products businesses, sawmill owners, woodworkers and wood enthusiasts. The information
in this workshop supplements the Alaska Lumber Grading Certificate training.
Learn how to use moisture meters and which one you should buy. Explore your options
for wood-drying kilns, from off-the-shelf to do-it-yourself models. Examples and information
will be tailored to wood species and climate conditions in each region of Alaska where
the workshop is held.
On May 7-8, the workshop will be held in Fairbanks at the Fairbanks Pipeline Training Center, 3605 Cartwright Court, Building C.
On May 10-11, the workshop will be held in Palmer at the Matanuska Experiment Farm and Extension Center, 1509 S. Georgeson Drive.
On May 14-15, the workshop will be held in Ketchikan at the Southeast Alaska Discovery Center, 50 Main St.
The workshops will be held from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. each day and include lunch. The cost is $100.
Visit the Alaska Lumber Grading website for registration links.
For more information, contact Matt Labrenz at mtlabrenz@alaska.edu, 907-474-7192.
Accommodation requests related to a disability should be made five business days in advance to Labrenz. Language access services, such as interpretation or translation of vital information, will be provided free of charge to individuals with limited English proficiency upon request to amnorris2@alaska.edu.
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