Thread: Pallet table bowing corner to corner

Well as the French say "big problems need big solutions", but I have a feeling your hot shower won't end up curing the problem long term, though it might, one can never be certain. If I understand your description, the top is twisting, and this could come from at least two possible sources. Bowing, cupping etc. are inevitable consequences when wood that has built-in stressors changes in moisture content. Sapwood & reaction wood shrink more (& more erratically) than normal heartwood when they lose moisture. My first suspicion would be one or more of the boards you used for the top is bowing end to end, probably because it includes a lot of sapwood or reaction wood on one surface compared with the opposite surface. These shrink to a greater extent (also more unpredictably, as a rule), as their moisture content equilibrates in the current environment. Pallet wood is usually far from grade A material & usually of much higher moisture content than well-seasoned or kiln-dried cabinet grade wood, so it has a fair bit of 'drying' to do after you get it home. It often contains plenty of sapwood, which may be obvious, but not always, in some woods the distinction is subtle or not apparent at all to the naked eye.

An alternative explanation would be that one or more of the cleats you've nailed the boards to has bowed, for the same reason(s).

If you wet your table, it may straighten out under weights, but as it re-equilibrates, it's likely to return to the position it naturally wants to adopt at that moisture content. The best ways to deal with it are to figure out which components are causing the problem and replace them with straight members, if you can. An alternative could be to carefully analyse the contribution of each component, and then strategically reverse some so that they tend to counteract each other - this is sort-of what we do by alternating growth-ring orientation when glueng up boards for a panel or table top.

Wood is a slightly plastic material, so if you are patient, you could just put the table where it has to go & wait a while - there's a chance it will eventually settle onto its feet under its own weight after a month or three....

Cheers,

Thank you so much for the very detailed info.good-karma-to-you.jpg

Is the table out in the weather? If so it will keep moving as the moisture levels keep changing. Even good select timber has a hard time exposed to the elements. Wetting it down would just be another weather cycle. Keeping it under cover would be best and let it settle down for a few months before doing anything to it. Then have a few small wedges to slip under the feet when you use it. Part of it's rustic charm.
Regards
John