[dsec123]

hi! i quickly built an outdoor table out of scrap wood. i don't have a picture of it, but it's essentially a 2x4 frame with a second 'interior' 2x4 frame that's sunk about 3/4", and then a bunch of scrap 3/4" boards running across the table, resting on the 'interior' frame.

anyway i pushed the boards together and didn't leave a gap, and then it rained, and now it's swollen and the boards are buckling a little bit. it doesn't look too bad because it's all scrap wood anyway, but i'd like to fix it if possible.

what's the easiest way to make it better? run a skilsaw in between the boards so there's a 1/16" gap or whatever the width of the blade is?

thanks!

 

[joecaption]

Not sure how anyone's going to do anything but make guesses with no pictures, no idea what type scrap wood you made it out of, how it was built.

 

[dsec123]

hi!

here's some more info. i still don't have a picture, but i just sketched it up:

from my original post:

"it's essentially a 2x4 frame (PINK) with a second 'interior' 2x4 frame that's sunk about 3/4" (YELLOW), and then a bunch of scrap 3/4" boards running across the table, resting on the 'interior' frame." (GREEN)

anyway i pushed the boards together and didn't leave a gap, and then it rained, and now it's swollen and the boards are buckling a little bit. (BLUE)."

i hope the sketch helps explain the problem a bit better!

i'm afraid i don't know what kind of scrap wood is used. the frames are regular SPF 2x4s, probably PT at some point but they were like 20+ years old, the green boards are random hardwood from some old pallets i had lying around.

i'll update with a picture asap! and i'll try to find out what kind of scrap wood it is!

 

[dsec123]

turns out i have a picture on my phone after all!

so all those boards on the top were stuffed into the frame and then it rained and now a couple of them are buckling. my guess is i need to put some thin gaps in between the boards so they can relax a bit!

as to how it was built, i shoved a bunch of deck screws into everything until i could jump on it without it wobbling. i've never built anything before so i'm pretty sure it wasn't done properly, but it's solid.

i'll see if i can find out exactly what wood i used if that will help.

 

[dsec123]

hey just an update, i ran a circular saw in between the swollen planks and it totally worked. i learned a few things, though:

1 - cutting expansion gaps in tightly swollen wood is actually a little messed up, because as i was cutting the wood was pushing on the sides of the circular saw blade and it was pulling the tool forward in a way that felt super unsafe. and the wood was creaking and groaning the entire time and it felt like there was an enormous amount of pressure building up on the tool somewhere.

2 - don't ever pull a circular saw backwards to get it out of a cut.

3 - because of the curve of the blade i was unable to cut all the way through. i had to use one of those little oscillating blades to cut the ends.

 

[ChuckF.]

Let it dry for a couple of days, then seal the wood with some kind out outdoor stain or wood preservative. If you can moderate the cycle of 'expand because of rain' then 'contract because of dry weather' you might eliminate the buckling.

This is happening because the length of your table is constrained by the boards used lengthwise, but the inside of the table is filled with wood stacked widthwise. Wood expands and contracts ten times more % widthwise than lengthwise, with humidity changes.