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Thread: Submerged log from dam
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1st November 2013, 11:37 AM #1Senior Member
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Submerged log from dam
Hello all, I have a small log that looks like it was once a fence post that has a very interesting look to it. My brother fished it out of our dam when it dried up this summer for the first time in over 25 years. It would have been underwater for at least that long. I truly cant tell what sort of timber it is from the outside. judging from other hand cut posts from the area it's most likely blue gum, stringy bark or pink gum. It looks like a blond/brown timber so probably the blue or stringy? It has deep rot or shrinkage lines that have firmed up over the years under water, I think they'll look great with some resin in them. My bandsaw motor decided to give up so I'm considering chopping it with the chainsaw but not sure if I should risk it?
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1st November 2013, 01:00 PM #2Senior Member
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I got a bit excited and had a go! I just used my tiny little stihl ms192 to cut it down the middle then put it over the jointer. It worked very well. The grain is nothing like I expected though. It looks a bit like pine but does not cut or smell like pine at all. It's not very heavy but spending 25 years under water might have something to do with that? I would have thought pine would have rotted away in that time too?
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1st November 2013, 01:50 PM #3
It does look like a pine, dunnit?
IMHO not radiata, though; it might be one of the... "better" varieties. There are plenty out there, after all.
Usually submersing isn't enough to stop decay; it also requires something to stop aerobic bacterial action. Like... at the depth the log is resting the water is very cold... or maybe there's something leeched into the water that makes it unsuitable for the bacteria. Neither of which one would expect for a farm dam!
Anyways, it looks like you're lucky enough to salvage a nice piece to play with that can tell it's own story.
Any plans for it now that you've seen the grain pattern?
- Andy Mc
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1st November 2013, 02:18 PM #4Senior Member
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I think your right, it does look very pine like. We do have some native pines on our property. I had presumed it was a fence post because of its size. It might have been a tree cut down from the dam wall? Its about 4 meters deep but rarely full and gets quite warm in summer, we used to swim in it as kids. As for what to do with it??? no idea! I've got a whole heap of Aussie oak I jointer and thicknessed the other day for a new kitchen bench top but we decided on a stainless top instead so Looks like I've got a whole heap of timber to play with now
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1st November 2013, 06:18 PM #5SENIOR MEMBER
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Cypress?
Possibly one of the native Cypresses (Callitris species). Very durable timber because of the resin content. That would explain why it did not rot in the 25 years immersion.
Brian
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1st November 2013, 07:26 PM #6
Was it a cypress smell when you cut it?
I was also going to suggest a cypress of sorts when you posted the pics earlier, but some of the grain characteristics differ from the cypress I'm accustomed to.
Craig
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2nd November 2013, 07:10 PM #7Senior Member
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No, no pine smell at all. Its quite a musty smell. The knots look pine like but I'm still not sure???
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5th November 2013, 11:12 AM #8GOLD MEMBER
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I'd totally ignore those knots for identification purposes.
They're pith wood... the remains of branches that grew then came off as the tree was growing. There don't seem to be any sign of them further out in the wood... so it's sort of indicative of a hardwood species. Pines mostly won't shed those low branches unless knocked off or physically pruned... pines would mostly show the knot effect continuing on to the sapwood and beyond.
Does Leopardwood grow down that way?
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5th November 2013, 09:32 PM #9GOLD MEMBER
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In the US they recover timber from rivers and lakes as another way of supplying timber instead of cutting more trees....Pulling logs out of the river - YouTube
CHRIS
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8th November 2013, 01:28 PM #10
Here, Huon pine is also recovered from rivers, lakes and the forest floor - its been illegal to fell a Huon pine tree for quite a few years, now. The oldest recovered Huon log that I have heard about fell over about 4,000 years ago - It was dated by growth ring analysis.
Fair Winds
Graeme
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8th November 2013, 09:32 PM #11Senior Member
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