Wood stays good how long ?

I have wood that has been stacked for 4 years. If it is not good (I'm pretty sure it is) then I'm screwed.

I have experienced wood turning punky on me sitting in the woodpile when I was an occasional fireplace burner. It all comes down to species, moisture and ground exposure. The species that tend to go the fastest are the lower btu woods and ones with the paper like barks especially if exposed to moisture. Some species can last almost indefinitely like osage orange.

Most of my wood the last couple years has been dead-standing black locust. I'm not even sure, these trees may have been dead for 15 years. There are locust fenceposts around here that are probably pushing 75-100 years old. The part that contacts the ground may last "only" 20 years or so, but the part hanging above ground lasts practically forever. On the other hand, I have cherry that I cut last year that was in contact with the ground, and it's punky already. Keeping it dry and off the ground is the key. Pine, poplar, and others may only last a couple years before turning soft, but some hardwoods may last 10 years.

If it truly stays dry, it will last indefinitely. Think construction framing. I've burned some pretty old wood in the past, certainly 5 years+. It was fine. I've also seen uncovered wood go punky in half that time.

I've got piles I want to keep for 10+ years; a couple I covered down to the pallets with plastic sheeting to keep the ends from getting wet every year from snow. Someone else pointed out that I may have inadvertently made a solar (water) still, which would defeat the purpose. We'll see what happens; something to think about, anyway.

DiscoInferno said:

If it truly stays dry, it will last indefinitely. Think construction framing. I've burned some pretty old wood in the past, certainly 5 years+.

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I am in agreeance with this statement.

in my experince I feel up to 3 years is the best for me. after that I feel it starts to go bad but still burnable. I keep it covered but maybe not as tight as some others here. I have had some pieces turn while others stayed hard. I try and burn everything within 3 years.

As long as it is really kept dry - you won't have any problems (yeah I know I'm repeating). I've seen a lot of people have wood split and stacked away for years in a good location, and it's absolutely fine to burn.... others that have some split wood "squirreled away in the back 40" that was left in the shade and had a lot of moisture around, and the wood is completely useless after only a few years. So - it will last for a long time if it's in a good dry location, but only a short time if the poor wood is left to the elements to try to fend for itself ;-)

Until it becomes a teenager and starts hanging with the wrong crowd ;-P

Seriously, if properly stored I think it can last for quite a few years. Keeping it dry is the main ingredient. Some woods tend to "keep" better than others also. My dad just burns in his open fireplace recreationally and he has had oak sit for years with no problem.

I on the other hand have had box elder and willow go bad in no time, just because I left them in a pile in the shade too long before getting around to stacking them.

The hardwood in my woodshed won't ever go bad or turn punky but after many years it does get so dry that it burns quite a bit faster. I try to rotate it out so I don't have anything over 3 years old but I have some maple I'm mixing in now that's over 5. It goes up like a match.

I suspect that's pretty climate dependent; it's so humid in the summers in DC that I suspect the steady-state moisture content of firewood isn't all that low. It's hard to imagine wood ever getting too dry here. In dry areas, though, it might eventually get to kiln-dried type moisture levels.

My uncle has a barn here in Vermont that has firewood cut by my Grandfather who died about 20 years ago, talk about getting ahead!
The wood is wood, dryer than dry, but I would burn it! (and it would burn hot!)

I was thinking about this, and remembered my "secret stash" of apple wood for smoking kielbasa. My grandfather got the wood from pruning his apple trees long before I was born, my father had some in the old chicken coop (oddly, that's where grandpa kept it too). I "inherited" it when my parents sold the farm, and I have it in the attic of my garage. It has to be at least 50 years old, and it is still plenty good. I cut slices off the logs with my bowsaw (no bar oil), then soak the rounds in water before putting them in the smoker. Not sure if it's any better than any other apple wood, but it's tradition, which is almost if not more important.

As others have said, my house is 170 years old, the wood in the walls is still plenty good. We have hemlock-sided barns around that are well over 100 years old, the 1" boards haven't rotted completely through yet.