If memory serves, it was Scott, formerly of Alchemy Architects, who first told me about thermally modified wood as an option for the weeDecks at Loveless.
Thermal modification is a chemical-free process where wood gets steam-baked in a kiln at 480 degrees Fahrenheit, which makes it resistant to rot and kills the sugars that attract bugs.
Scandinavians have been using the process for decades, but apparently it’s new to the United States. My father and youngest brother, career lumbermen of the Southern Pine variety, had never heard of it.
By the wonders of Google, I stumbled on John Biegnek and his upstart business, ThermoWood of Minnesota, out of Palisade, Minn. JohnB bakes Minnesota-harvested trees – mostly pine, ash and basswood – in a kiln imported from Finland and uses a mill just north of Garrison to cut them into lumber. The boards can be used for decks, floors and exterior panels.
The erosion problem that kept me in knots all summer delayed my deck-building plans at Loveless Lake, but JohnB and I spent several months talking about my options, the costs and the trajectory of his small business.
A grant from the Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI), and funding from the Blandin and Knight foundations, gave him a leg up on getting his business launched. The NRRI is housed at the University of Minnesota-Duluth (Chris’ alma mater), and its mission fits right in with ours: “Fostering economic development of Minnesota’s natural resources in an environmentally sound manner to promote private sector employment.”
Scandinavians have been using the process for decades, but apparently it’s new to the United States. My father and youngest brother, career lumbermen of the Southern Pine variety, had never heard of it.
By the wonders of Google, I stumbled on John Biegnek and his upstart business, ThermoWood of Minnesota, out of Palisade, Minn. JohnB bakes Minnesota-harvested trees – mostly pine, ash and basswood – in a kiln imported from Finland and uses a mill just north of Garrison to cut them into lumber. The boards can be used for decks, floors and exterior panels.
The erosion problem that kept me in knots all summer delayed my deck-building plans at Loveless Lake, but JohnB and I spent several months talking about my options, the costs and the trajectory of his small business.
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| John Biegnek (Photo: NRRI) |
A grant from the Natural Resources Research Institute (NRRI), and funding from the Blandin and Knight foundations, gave him a leg up on getting his business launched. The NRRI is housed at the University of Minnesota-Duluth (Chris’ alma mater), and its mission fits right in with ours: “Fostering economic development of Minnesota’s natural resources in an environmentally sound manner to promote private sector employment.”
(Recall, if you will, the great lengths we went to so we could recycle those shingles from the former cabin to support a nascent effort in the Twin Cities.)
Turns out JohnB got a separate little loan – about $19,000 – from the Shade Fund, a South Carolina conservation outfit that helps small businesses make the right decisions by the environment. JohnB used the money to harvest Minnesota basswoods, bake them in his Finnish kiln and ship them to Asia to be manufactured into guitar fingerboards.
Is that a great backstory, or what?
So as the Minnesota forest industry faces big troubles, JohnB is trying to get a new business going selling high-quality Minnesota wood using an environmentally friendly method.
I’ll write a separate entry on our adventures in deck building. We started in September but it's still only 90 percent done because were short by about 10 deckboards.
But here’s Chris and Chipper shortly after finishing the back deck. Their pose made me think that they were Bringin’ some American Goth 2 Loveless.
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