Wood Drying Shed
Just outside the Robertshaw building on IUP’s South Campus sits a twenty-by-forty-foot woodshed built by students in 2009 as part of a three-week architectural woodworking class.
Its purpose is to protect and dry wood for use by students of the Center for Turning and Furniture Design. Gaps between slats of the shed’s wood siding allow fresh air to circulate, and inside, hundreds of boards are stickered with pieces of scrap wood for ideal drying. Outside the shed is also a portable bandsaw mill.
Inside and out, the shed is a model of green design. The wood used for siding was found in a refuse pile, covered with water, outside the Robertshaw building. After power-washing the wood and drying it for six weeks, it was finally usable. Amid the stacks of salvaged wood inside the shed, and used in various roles, are old audio-visual carts that were picked up at IUP surplus sales. The carts are useful for transporting wood or—when topped with an old door—acting as a stand for a miter saw.
