When it comes to the critical task of moisture content (MC) control, Chicago's Bull Valley Hardwood relies on Delmhorst's J-2000 model for its extensive woodworking and furnishings production needs. This full-service woodworking company operates both a complete supply superstore as well as a fully developed design and custom woodworking shop. Both retail and commercial customers rely on Bull Valley's experts to provide top-notch advice, products, and services.
The Need: Reliable Moisture Control for Multiple Species in Multiple Settings
For almost a decade, tradespeople, furniture manufacturers, and woodworking enthusiasts have depended on Bull Valley's mill-direct, precision-cut stock of dozens of different wood species to ensure their finished products retain the natural material's full beauty, strength, and durability. Bull Valley’s fastidious dedication to controlling the moisture content percentages within all their wood stock is just one way it ensures its customer satisfaction every time.
Accordingly, for more than 8 years, the company has counted on its Delmhorst J-2000 moisture meter to ensure the MC% of every wood species it manages throughout the procurement, production, and sales cycles. Owner Dan Deserto cites the device's reliability and functionality as the primary reasons why the enterprise so highly values it. The company has deployed its single J-2000 insulated pin meter throughout hundreds of woodworking processes over the years:
- When sourcing new wood supply: Lumber arriving from their mill and other mills is often both air- and kiln-dried. The J-2000 establishes the precise MC as the stock enters the shop.
- Kiln-drying: Product stability depends on a stable MC from the surface through to the center of the board. Bull Valley employs Nyle DH kilns to achieve appropriate MC levels throughout. The J-2000, with the insulated pins of the 26-ES electrode, confirms MC levels are achieved and maintained, ensuring a high-quality product.
- During production: The meter is again at work throughout the build-out process, assuring that the wood retains its optimal MC for its species and end-product location.
Deserto notes he has not needed any assistance with the J-2000 device itself over the entire course of its life at the shop. Instead, he's turned to Delmhorst's professionals for new needs as they arise.
Resolving a New Need: Species-Specific Expertise
As a case in point, Deserto's operations recently worked with a load of sycamore lumber, a notoriously tricky species to dry. Existing industry materials weren't helpful, so he turned to forestry and wood-based educators and professionals, including Delmhorst, for guidance. Using information from Delmhorst and the others, Deserto developed a formula specifically for drying sycamore, which he continues to use every time that species enters the shop. Using the formula in conjunction with the accuracy of the J-2000 assures him that his sycamore stock will be adequately primed with the precisely right MC% every time he – or his customer – reaches for it.
Delmhorst’s Impact: Precision Across a Broad Spectrum of Products
Deserto is confident that his Delmhorst meter will perform well regardless of the species at hand, which is comforting for the wood seller since his company currently offers more than 70 different wood species to its consumers and is adding new species to that list. It's recently been receiving stock from further afield, including wood types from the Pacific Northwest and even Hawaii, which has 28 different wood species, none of which are typical in Illinois. These new species have different electrical properties and need careful attention within the drying process to ensure their final iteration is compatible with the northern climate of Illinois. Deserto confirms he will contact Delmhorst for more drying and species information as more of those types arrive on-site.
He's also highly complementary of how Delmhorst's device reliability and thorough understanding of wood and all its properties help Bull Valley maintain its high reputation in the industry. Deserto knows his product must be either more economical than his competitors or better, and he's always opted for better. That dedication to quality in all aspects of production is unwavering, and Delmhorst's moisture meters ensure he can meet it in every project every time.
Deserto notes his interest in Delmhorst's newly introduced moisture meter capacities, too, including the EDGE™ App technology, which will help expand MC% data in the company's species list. In his opinion, introducing new technology is the only way to improve the Delmhorst meter. “Delmhorst’s foundational function has proved reliable and consistent over time,” says Deserto. “It's hard to improve on that.”
How can your projects benefit from the reliability and consistency of a premier moisture meter? Contact Demhorst today to speak to a moisture meter expert about your moisture control needs.
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