Storing 60-80 cords of wood

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Jon_E

Jon_E

Burning Hunk
Feb 24, 2014
135
SW VT
Been racking my brain trying to figure out how to store and season 60-80 cords of firewood. As part of a land sale I reserved timber rights, the land is slated for some mining activity (sand/gravel) and it will be clear-cut and stumped. At the end of 2014 I'll have to find a place to store and season between 60-80 cords of firewood. Almost all of it will be white pine and poplar, but I have an outdoor wood boiler and as long as it's well seasoned, it burns fine and clean.

My first choice would be storing it in a barn or a very large pole building, but seeing as that won't happen, I was curious as to what others have done for long-term wood storage. Any suggestions? My current wood storage is in two woodsheds that hold a total of 18 cords, but that still leaves most of the wood exposed. I don't mind a little rot but I don't want it all to rot on me.
 
Are you able to store it in log form? That might be a good option for longer term wood. Just split and stack the year or two before using it.
 
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Sinngetreu said:
Are you able to store it in log form? That might be a good option for longer term wood. Just split and stack the year or two before using it.
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Agreed.
Stack on sacrificial runners and with the log lengths parallel to the prevailing winds. I've stored thousands of cords like this. Burning some beech right now that was stored like this for 6+ years. Beech tops in the woods on the ground in the shade after a harvest are lucky to make it 3 years
 
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Most definitely follow JustWood's advice. Stacking in log form you won't even have to cover it if you don't want to and it will keep for years.
 
I make a a firewood fence around my property. Been thinking of getting a goat again and making a pen out of firewood stacks.
 
Goats milk cheese and fudge , yummmmmmmmm
 
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Yep as the posters above say, stack most in round/log form and itll be fine for a long time
 
You definitely have your answer, do not split it until you need it, you just need to keep the wood off the ground....sacrifice a few poles and stack the rest on top...it will keep fine
 
BEConklin said:
I've heard they're clever - but I still don't understand how anybody can milk cheese and fudge...especially without fingers..
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well, i don't know about their farming skills,,but i do know building a pen from wood stacks, is just like adding stairs for them to get out.

I have a friend who stores pine logs out in the open. Just piled them,,it works well for him.
 
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How about milling some?
 
White pine will get infested with borers until split or the bark is off. Figure bout 1/2 to 1" of loss a year and the wood left from the borers tends to start rotting. Two or three year tops for log length.
 
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This past summer I cut/split about 10 - 15 cords that had been piled 4 years. The locust was as hard as steel pipe, but much of the cherry and red oak was gone punky. Your white pine - poplar won't last that long, not in New England.
 
I have stored hardwoods 5-6 years in lengths, in the sun and wind, up off the ground, no problem. I imagine Pine would be ok for a while, just not sure how long.

I guess it depends on how much you burn. With an OWB in Southern VT I assume you go through 10-12 cords a year. Seems like you would store half your wood 3 years in lengths and process the rest. That doesn't seem like a long time at all. You should be good to go.
 
Jon_E said:
Been racking my brain trying to figure out how to store and season 60-80 cords of firewood. As part of a land sale I reserved timber rights, the land is slated for some mining activity (sand/gravel) and it will be clear-cut and stumped. At the end of 2014 I'll have to find a place to store and season between 60-80 cords of firewood. Almost all of it will be white pine and poplar, but I have an outdoor wood boiler and as long as it's well seasoned, it burns fine and clean.

My first choice would be storing it in a barn or a very large pole building, but seeing as that won't happen, I was curious as to what others have done for long-term wood storage. Any suggestions? My current wood storage is in two woodsheds that hold a total of 18 cords, but that still leaves most of the wood exposed. I don't mind a little rot but I don't want it all to rot on me.
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Right now, poplar is about the most valuable wood in the forest short of veneer logs. There's a high demand by the mills here in the Northeast for use in producing coated free sheet. Sell it log length or even on the stump and put the cash in the bank.
 
dznam said:
Right now, poplar is about the most valuable wood in the forest short of veneer logs. There's a high demand by the mills here in the Northeast for use in producing coated free sheet. Sell it log length or even on the stump and put the cash in the bank.
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That's some good info.
 
STIHLY DAN said:
That's some good info.
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It's total bunk too!
If poplar logs were bringing even 25% of hardwood veneer prices there wood be a logger gold rush for it.
Pallet mills don't even want it.
 
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peakbagger said:
White pine will get infested with borers until split or the bark is off. Figure bout 1/2 to 1" of loss a year and the wood left from the borers tends to start rotting. Two or three year tops for log length.
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I had some pine logs I was going to cut and split over the summer and those buggers made sawdust out of them, huge piles of sawdust I had to use a shovel to get rid of. I ended up chucking the logs into the woods.
 
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Pine just won't last long enough outdoors to get any value out of it as firewood for one person. I'd look at seasoning it for a year, maybe under a layer of metal roofing to keep the rain off, and selling the majority of it. Maybe there's already a firewood processor near you who could take it off your hands and save you some trouble.
 
JustWood said:
It's total bunk too!
If poplar logs were bringing even 25% of hardwood veneer prices there wood be a logger gold rush for it.
Pallet mills don't even want it.
Click to expand...

For sure there would be a lot of rich land owners!
 
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