drying wood with envirogel

[Les Symonds]

If the elm, to begin with, was truly "green", it may well have had >40% moisture content, so let's use 40% as a starting point. In which case your 2.3kg (2,300gm) piece of timber would have been 1380gm of elm and 920 gm of water.
After your drying process, you report that the timber reduced to 1800 gm, given that the only weight lost will be that of the moisture transferred to the desiccant, your "dried" piece would have been 1380gm of elm (as before) and 420gm of water, thus its new moisture content would have been 23%.
Using these figures, when your wood eventually reduces to about 1560gm, it will be 1380gm of elm and 180gm of water, which equates to about 12%mc. This suggests that you keep drying until your piece weighs about 1560gm.
Admittedly, these figure are based on a few assumptions, but should be a fairly good guide, and it serves to stress the point that even if you haven't got a decent moisture-meter, when working with green timber you can calculate useful data based on weight loss.
Les

[Bryan Milham]

Les,

Now I understand your Tag Line - Education is important, but wood turning is importanter..

Great use of basic math.

[Les Symonds]

Les,

Now I understand your Tag Line - Education is important, but wood turning is importanter..

Great use of basic math.

...almost, Bryan, but where I come from, we still call it maths! 
Les

[davidbrac]

Les.

You assume too much, The elm did not have a reading of 40% if it did my moisture meter would have been off its scale and it wasn't.

The tree was large and had fallen over in the wind, at the time of falling the sap had not started to rise and the leaves were not forming. The tree was damaged some years before, l think by a digger clearing the burn where it stands, over the years the inside of the tree had declined and was rotten. However l am able to salvage some of the wood as it was a very large elm.

[Les Symonds]

Les.

You assume too much.....

David....I was simply indicating one means of assessing mc if you know you have green timber. In all fairness, you did start the thread by saying that your elm was wet and you later accepted that your moisture meter was giving questionable readings.
Also, I was careful to use terms such as.....IF....MAY WELL HAVE BEEN...BASED ON A FEW ASSUMPTIONS....A FAIRLY GOOD GUIDE. I was simply trying to be helpful!
Les