so what can't you burn ?

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jbreland55

New Member
Jan 28, 2011
14
Southeast
ok,

First I've heard all my life you can't burn pine. Now this site has convinced me that it is ok as long as its dry.

Then I've been told NEVER NEVER burn sweet gum. Now people on here say its ok to burn also.

I've got lots of sweet gum on my property, but have never even thought about burning it, because people always said no.


So my question is

Is there any wood that is absolutely a no no for burning?
 
plain and simple.. unseasoned wood
 
Any wood can be burned as long as it is seasoned. I think the only problem with Sweet gum is processsing it- it can be stringy and can be a pain to split. I'd still cut it and split it if that is what I had. For me the problem with stringy woods like Elm and Sweet Gum is that I have split some really easy splitting wood and so I know how good it can be. If I never split anything but Sweet Gum I'd think it was fine. I wouldn't like splitting as much as I do, but I'd still do it.
 
It is not that you can't burn it, but I would stay away from cotton wood. There is not a lot of heat energy there. I think you will spend more time splitting and drying than you get out of burning it. The point I am making is make sure the heat energy you get out is worth the time/energy/money to make it burnable.
 
jbreland,
I'd suggest that you filter all the stuff you hear, removing the baseless crap. This stuff is not gospel, test it out for yourself.

Calculate whatever you will, but test honestly. You'll likely conclude simply that you can't burn WET wood well. Dryer = better.

Then work out how best you can determine moisture content (MC).
 
jbreland said:
ok,


So my question is

Is there any wood that is absolutely a no no for burning?


This may or may not be obvious but I'll say it anyway-
treated wood, partical board, plywood, RR ties, telephone/power poles. Any wood that's been processed for construction use and treated with chemicals or glued.

Saltwater driftwood might not be a good idea either.
 
I would also suggest not burning some of the following types of wood:
1) Your neighbor's deck, especially while he is barbequing on it.
2) Your neighbor's front porch, especially while he is painting it.
3) The wood stick you use to prop up the window, especially while you are looking out the window.

You can thank me later for such good advice.
 
ChuckV309 said:
It is not that you can't burn it, but I would stay away from cotton wood. There is not a lot of heat energy there. I think you will spend more time splitting and drying than you get out of burning it. The point I am making is make sure the heat energy you get out is worth the time/energy/money to make it burnable.

Looks like the subject has been covered quite well. However, I do take exception to the above quote. Many, many folks do heat with only cottonwood and they get along just fine. Cottonwood is heavy with moisture when you first cut it but it dries fast. Then when you burn it, it burns hot and rather quickly. We know of a few on this forum who has heated with cottonwood but where one finds the most users of it is in the western states. Wyoming is the first to come to mind because for many out there, that is the only wood they have to burn. It works but, of course, it can't compare to oak.

Also some of the woods that folks say they won't burn, like gum and elm, it is not because of the burning aspects so much as the splitting. It can be rather difficult to split. However, there is a trick to elm to get it to split easier.
 
Bottom line is that if it is wood it will burn. Now there are some things to avoid...treated, painted etc.. And there are some species that I won't go out of my way to get...willow, cottonwood. But if it shows up in my wood pile it gets burned.
 
Never heard anyone say NOT to burn gum before. Lots and lots of info on how hard it is to split though. What had you heard about burning gum specifically or was it just a general 'don't burn sweet gum'?
 
Anyone ever burn any poplar? I have a poplar that I have access to and was thinking about cutting it. I guess once the door to the stove was closed it could "pop" to it's heart's delight and it wouldn't make any difference, would it?
 
sam_j said:
Anyone ever burn any poplar? I have a poplar that I have access to and was thinking about cutting it. I guess once the door to the stove was closed it could "pop" to it's heart's delight and it wouldn't make any difference, would it?
Popular, quick, hot fires, don't last very long though. I'll burn anything as long as it is dry. I usually use the junk wood during the day, and better stuff for overnight.
 
Winter never really got here so Ive been buring pine since I started in October.
Yep, just make sure it's dry.
No railroad ties and no tires!
 
Dry seasoned wood.

Edit. unseasoned wood. My bad.
 
Backwoods Savage said:
We know of a few on this forum who has heated with cottonwood but where one finds the most users of it is in the western states. Wyoming is the first to come to mind because for many out there, that is the only wood they have to burn. It works but, of course, it can't compare to oak.

+1.
If cottonwood is all you've got, you will soon become an expert in burning cottonwood ;-)
 
Drift wood from saltwater. That's one the one thing I was told not to burn by the shop that sold me my insert. Salt does bad things to chimneys.
 
Pressure treated wood. Supposedly a teaspoon of ashes from PT has enough poison to kill you.
 
Dune said:
Pressure treated wood. Supposedly a teaspoon of ashes from PT has enough poison to kill you.

Don't eat the ashes. ;-P
 
Stevebass4 said:
plain and simple.. unseasoned wood


I gotta admit I'm sick of seeing that statement

I read alot on here but don't post too much as I'm still a newbie to burning wood.

The reason that comment P!$$es me off is that due to poor planning on my part (I didn't think I'd actually get the stove IN this year) I did not spend any time this summer stocking up on wood.

WELL, long story short: My furnace has been run for a total of less than 45 minutes since Oct. 1, and ALL I've been burning is unseasoned ash and maple!!!! I let the stove go out completely and check/clean chimney about every 2 weeks. So far I've only brushed out probably 3 large coffee cans worth of creosote.

Yes, I know I'm burning more wood and have to work harder to get the stove up to temp, but my house has NEVER been as warm and comfortable! Last weekend it was 5* F in the a.m. and it was 75* F upstairs and 82* F in the basement were the stove is. I figure that so far (thru January), my savings on not buying propane have already recouped ~ 1/3 of my total install cost.


Do I think seasoned wood is better: ABSOLUTELY! But, I'll NEVER tell someone that green/unseasoned wood can't be burned.
 
Garand06 said:
Stevebass4 said:
plain and simple.. unseasoned wood


I gotta admit I'm sick of seeing that statement

I read alot on here but don't post too much as I'm still a newbie to burning wood.

The reason that comment P!$$es me off is that due to poor planning on my part (I didn't think I'd actually get the stove IN this year) I did not spend any time this summer stocking up on wood.

WELL, long story short: My furnace has been run for a total of less than 45 minutes since Oct. 1, and ALL I've been burning is unseasoned ash and maple!!!! I let the stove go out completely and check/clean chimney about every 2 weeks. So far I've only brushed out probably 3 large coffee cans worth of creosote.

Yes, I know I'm burning more wood and have to work harder to get the stove up to temp, but my house has NEVER been as warm and comfortable! Last weekend it was 5* F in the a.m. and it was 75* F upstairs and 82* F in the basement were the stove is. I figure that so far (thru January), my savings on not buying propane have already recouped ~ 1/3 of my total install cost.


Do I think seasoned wood is better: ABSOLUTELY! But, I'll NEVER tell someone that green/unseasoned wood can't be burned.
Sounds like a call to the local arbor might be in order ;-)

I've heard that the smoke from teak can be poisonous. True? So how would I get enough teak to burn? Got a friend that works at a local mill that specializes in exotic woods :cheese: I'm hoping to burn $100 fires on a regular basis
 
I think I agree with you, so I will change my previous reply. What would can't you burn? I'd say treated wood and poison ivy are the two woods you should never burn. Burning Poison Ivy occasionally kills somebody, and not always the person who was burning.
 
Garand06 said:
Stevebass4 said:
plain and simple.. unseasoned wood


I gotta admit I'm sick of seeing that statement

I read alot on here but don't post too much as I'm still a newbie to burning wood.

The reason that comment P!$$es me off is that due to poor planning on my part (I didn't think I'd actually get the stove IN this year) I did not spend any time this summer stocking up on wood.

WELL, long story short: My furnace has been run for a total of less than 45 minutes since Oct. 1, and ALL I've been burning is unseasoned ash and maple!!!! I let the stove go out completely and check/clean chimney about every 2 weeks. So far I've only brushed out probably 3 large coffee cans worth of creosote.

Yes, I know I'm burning more wood and have to work harder to get the stove up to temp, but my house has NEVER been as warm and comfortable! Last weekend it was 5* F in the a.m. and it was 75* F upstairs and 82* F in the basement were the stove is. I figure that so far (thru January), my savings on not buying propane have already recouped ~ 1/3 of my total install cost.


Do I think seasoned wood is better: ABSOLUTELY! But, I'll NEVER tell someone that green/unseasoned wood can't be burned.


Easy there. Have you considered switching to decaf?
 
Backwoods Savage said:
elm, it is not because of the burning aspects so much as the splitting. It can be rather difficult to split. However, there is a trick to elm to get it to split easier.

Which is??

I like elm a lot for shoulder season-- seasons fast, burns well, and like beech, each split comes with its own kindling attached. :snake: But in a land full of easy to split rock maple, red oak and ash, it hasn't seemed even close to being worth the trouble. The stuff I've had that won't fit my small stove I've ended up just giving to a neighbor rather than fight with-- and lose.

So what's the secret?
 
I heard all my life the same thing as you. You can not burn pine. I guess we are learning new things all the time.
 
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