Hello, I am building a great room. I have fresh cut timbers, hemlock, cut in March 2014 and milled in June 2014. They are not kiln dried. They are sitting on saw horses 3 feet off the ground and covered with a tarp. They will be constructed in Sept and we want to treat them before they go up. How do I treat them? We like the natural look and don’t want them to yellow. I don’t want a color stain. We aren’t what to use to stop them from cracking and yellowing.
First the tarp needs to go away to allow them to dry. There is nothing out there that will keep the natural color. They WILL turn gray without some sort of stain and they will check (crack). They should be allowed to dry for 6 to 12 months before using. You should treat them with Shell Guard per the label before they are installed.