Q: We are trying to save money by getting a small dry kiln and drying the lumber ourselves. We are looking at a DH (dehumidifier) electric kiln. The electric company offers us a fantastic rate if we use "off-peak" electricity, which means that we need to shut of the kiln in the afternoon on many days. Is this okay?

Q: I have made some cutting boards that after several uses are starting to develop cracks in the ends at the glue joints. What advice can you give me to stop this?

Q: I have just found a source of rough-sawn lumber from overseas. Are any great differences between domestic and foreign lumber with the same name? I have bought some maple and beech and it seems to have different coloring.

Q: I just started two months ago in the pre-finished hardwood flooring industry. I just saw your column and am interested in some advice. Specifically, I am finding it difficult to measure the moisture content of wood consistently. We have three moisture meters and they do not agree - an in-line meter, a pinless meter and a pin-type meter. Our lumber includes red oak, white oak, hard maple and hickory. Using said moisture meters, we get readings from 4 to 17 percent, but none of them agree with each other. What is the best equipment/consultant on the market for our needs?

Q: We receive mouldings from Europe in a variety of species. We use the mouldings to make picture and mirror frames and find that because the wood is 6 to 12 percent MC (and even 14 percent MC at times), the corner miters are opening up. So, what can we do about this problem?

Q: We are getting some veneer that has some unusual color. It seems to be mostly brown. We also notice some gray at the edges, which would be the ends of the logs. Can you help?

Q: Our dehumidification dry kiln has been working well for many years, but now we are faced with replacement of the compressor. The cost of freon is out of sight. It is apparently a gas that destroys the ozone layer, so the U.S. government has put a nice tax on it to discourage its use. What are our options for a less expensive kiln? We have two 30 MBF chambers now drying mostly 4/4 red oak green from the saw.

All stress tests require a uniform moisture content throughout the piece. Pieces with a gradient will give confusing results.

Q: We rip a long, narrow stile (about 72 x 3 in.) and then send it to the moulder for profiling. We test for proper MC and casehardening stress. However, more than 50 percent of the pieces have 3/16 in. lengthwise bow, just after molding or a day or two later. What are we are doing wrong?