Standing dead White Oak

Checking at the ends of splits doesn't necessarily mean they're fully cured.

But to answer your question, yes. They could be burned this winter. But they'd probably burn much hotter if you leave 'em stacked 'til next winter.

If it were me and I had another option I'd let it sit another year. I had one i cut down that had been dead standing almost 2 years and it still read 34% on the MM

Can you burn a sample? If they hiss and drip, you know the won't be ready in the two months or so we have left 'till burning season is really cranking up.

That probably won't burn too well. I would try to find small, dead trees, standing or down, with the bark falling off or completely gone. You might need to cut quite a few to make a decent stack, but it will be pretty dry...

I cut down some dead oaks with no bark left 2 winters ago, bucked and stacked on pallets, split it up last winter, stacked in sun single rows on pallets and still have around 28% moisture on most splits. I could swear it is dry, but the MM tells me otherwise. I never would have thought it would take that long to dry being dead standing. I put some in the shed and will see how it does. Luckily I have a lot of dry cherry and box elder to mix in and it may loose some moisture if I bring it in the house a week early. The other 5 cords can sit another year.

Funny thing is my brother was burning brush last spring and caught my stacks on fire. We got it out in time, but the pieces that are charred on the outside are 28% on the inside. I am thinking they should light up ok since they are under 20% for the first inch.

Z33 said:

If it were me and I had another option I'd let it sit another year. I had one i cut down that had been dead standing almost 2 years and it still read 34% on the MM

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My experience exactly.

above are right, it will burn but you'd be wasting it.

wait till '15/'16

Cracked/checked ends mean that at one point the ends were much drier than the wood beneath. The exposed wood shrank but the insides didn't so checks form. It really is no indicator of how dry your wood is.

I myself wouldn't be thinking of burning that for another year or two.

Most standing dead oak Ive ever gotten has still been pretty wet inside. Unless my meter told me otherwise, I wouldnt treat any standing dead oak much different than green oak in terms of drying time

Other species are different, oak just seems to hold moisture even when its dead

I would wait until 2016/2017. White oak burns beautifully seasoned 3 years. Rare cases standing dead will subtract a year. MM is best bet on a fresh split.

That's the gotcha with oak. Even left to set in rounds, it'll rot before it seasons enough to burn well.

I haven't taken down standing dead oak but mize well have last year. Dropped a couple willow oaks along with a few maples in December. Got it all bucked, and the rains came before I could get anything loaded out. Last winter was a mess in the woods... if it wasn't rain or snow or mud it was ice. Those rounds lay out there until spring.

Splitting the oak, it was still wet like fresh off the stump. If it was a sponge you could wring water out of it.

The term "standing dead" means different things. An oak tree killed by lighting 6 months ago is not the same as an oak tree that died three or four years ago. They both will be filled with water when you split, but the old dead tree will dry out much faster than newer dead tree. This comes from my actual experience, but the scientific explanation that sounds reasonable is the cells break down over time and the broken down cells release the water faster.-----I'm only talking about red oak, don't know about much else.

Thanks for the follow up.

Keep those limb pieces separated out, theyll be alright if you need them this winter.

freebe said:

Well, I got the moisture meter today, ended up with mixed results. I seperated the oak when I stacked it, limbs and trunk.

Going thru the limb splits randomly the MM is reading between 20 and 22%...the trunk splits are 26 - 28%.

That said I think it's going to sit till next season unless something crazy happens and I need in the stack!

Thanks for the advise gang,
freebe

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Not sure what kind of MM you have but there may be a correction between actual moisture content depending on species. I have a Delmhorst MM and its calibrated for Douglas Fir. For white oak, one would subtract percentage points from the metered reading per below chart.