Lumber and prices in the Sierra.

In a previous post I mentioned that there wasn't much lumber to speak of in Ecuador. So now I would like to speak of it.  I have to insert a disclaimer here because I am frequently wrong about a multitude of things on a daily basis. This information is based on the information I got when searching out lumber for making cabinets, windows and doors for my projects in Ecuador. As a former sawmill owner/operator there may be more information here than some folks are interested in but it is important to me and the nature of the projects I get involved in here.

There are no commercial lumber companies here but there are a lot of families and individuals that cut trees and different size cants with chain saws. In the Amazon it's all done illegally, mohogany, teak and cedar, cut into cants and floated down the river then exported. Ecuador does make hardwood plywood which gets exported too, and it is the worlds largest exporter of Balsa wood. Now how this all happens when they say there are no commercial lumber companies is beyond me - maybe it has something to do with unprocessed trees or cants that can't really be called lumber. At any rate, here in the Sierra there is none of that, there is just Eucalyptus. Oh yea and bamboo poles. Eucalyptus was imported here when the pine forests were all cut and has become one of the most common trees. Basically used for pulp wood, there are a lot of mom & pops that cut it into lumber. The closest thing to a saw mill in Ecuador is a chain saw with a long guide bar. They use a lot of  debarked poles for roof members along with bamboo poles and basically cut logs into only 8" widths and various thicknesses.

For smaller thickness lumber here is how you buy it - a 3 X 8 cant cut into three. They pack the cut end with clay to maintain the 1/4" kerf over the length of the cut for uniform drying.

These guys take a string soaked in used motor oil and snap it along the length of the cant and cut the line with a chain saw. The long guide bar allows them to stand upright while they cut. There are some dimensional 1bys and 2 bys but that is pretty much it. A local cabinet shop will take this stuff, dry and mill it for use in what they make - these cabinet shops have it all, saws, planners, shapers, sanders and really produce some nice pieces of furniture.

For what I am up to I just separate the 3 boards and stack them to air dry for a little while. These particular boards are 5/8X8X9 feet long, rough cut and about 25% moisture. Price - $2.20 each. I'll be stripping them to 5" for a door frame on that little brick building.