What wood to use when it is below zero?

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Roundgunner

Roundgunner

Feeling the Heat
Nov 26, 2013
360
Rural CT
During the day someone is always home and can add as needed. At night I would like to sleep longer (I’m a bit sick and always tired) It would be nice to be able to go from 10pm to 8 am with a super fill up. Manufacturer states big rounds between 19+25% work best but that is generic and I have a hard time believing what sales people say.

I have a bunch of white and red oak that is only a year old. Not ready? 22-25%

Maple and other mixed split small so it would dry quick. Burns good but fast.

Big maple 6 months old at 12-15%, can that be right? Only took from top. Probably should dig down to check some lower on the rack.

Medium / big ash 3 months old 17-21%

Medium dark twisted cherry 2 years old.

Medium willow 10 months old. I started using this during the day today, burns well but not sure how long it will last.

All my wood is on racks in the wind as shown. I do have a big load on this big gasification boiler. This is only my second winter and last year I would burn anything I could get to keep it burning, this winter I have some choices but could use advice from some of you with some time on the fire.

Thanks

Warren

 
If I were in your posistion I would try this,

Bottom layer of med Ash or the old cherry - this will be a hotter burn.
Then layer on top with the Oak - large pcs - if the moisture is a little high it will compensate for the hotter layer below while burning slower.

PS - do not burn children they are 90% water and will take forever to dry.
PPS - 8.00am ?????????????????? I suggest that to the wife lol.
 
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I totally agree with Bob...same recipe!
Cherry and Oak are good bedfellows for the funeral pyre. But Ash would be a great substitute(when you run out of cherry). Pick thru your oak for medium sized splits.(drier)
Dont know about small children, Ive never tried them.
I would save willow for outdoor fireplace or 4th of July bonfires. It gives off zero heat...
Or below zero heat.
 
Applesister said:
I totally agree with Bob...same recipe!
Cherry and Oak are good bedfellows for the funeral pyre. But Ash would be a great substitute(when you run out of cherry). Pick thru your oak for medium sized splits.(drier)
Dont know about small children, Ive never tried them.
I would save willow for outdoor fireplace or 4th of July bonfires. It gives off zero heat...
Or below zero heat.
Click to expand...

It was -6 deg. WChill = even colder just outside Troy last night. How was it were you are ?
 
All the official reports said -6
But my thermometer was at -8 have no idea what the windchill was. It was a bad one.
I think even the National Weather service is out of Albany Airport.
 
Frigid over here as well. I have been using 4yr old Iron wood along with Hickory, Black Locust and some Ash. Actully over fired the stove a little last night. Spiked up to 725F.....Turned the blower on full blast and she calmed down to 600F in about an hour,:)
 
It's all about timing. Plan your midday stove load so you have a medium base of coals around 9:30 or so. Load those oak rounds up, give it full air until you have it back up to temps. Then back that air down according to your particular stove (mine requires 2 or 3 steps about 10 minutes apart) until you have it dampered down. This should have you at 10 PM and you go to sleep. IMHO the moisture you state in your oak is just ride to help it make it through the night.
 
Use your firewood with the tightest grain for slow all night burns. As long as it's seasoned, but big rounds tend to sizzle a bit if not split for seasoning no matter how long they sit.
 
Going down to -25 c tonight. Biting white ash. Working out well. Got two Eco fans on top of the stove that move the heat across the living room and up the stairs well. Stove is in the basement
 
You can also try cherry on top. Cherry give off a lot of ash, and that ash on top of the lower splits will semi insulate them, slowing them from burning. You may find slightly lower temps, but prolonged burn time.
Split 1 or 2 pcs of the "big" maples and see what the moisture content inside it. If it is close enough to burn, put those large muthas on the bottom, and dry stuff on top.
Anything small will burn fast, hot, but fast. So I would save that for in between burning spanning between full loads.
Save your biggest dry splits for overnight loads, and use the small and other stuff during the day.

Just notices you burning a gasifier. I would put the larger stuff opposite where the gasifier burns from. I stand by the cherry ash insulating and slowing the burn of the wood it is ashing over.
 
According to your picture, if most of that is still left after this season, you should be great to go next year.....
 
We got down to 1 night before last. I loaded up with a mix of red oak and bois d'arc. On the last load before bed I like to move all the coals to the front and put my biggest and best splits up against the back of the stove. This gives me a warm stove with plenty of live coals 10 hours later.
 
Cool, room reached 71 on red oak and locust, fan on hi, trying to raise the temp some more
 
Well the boiler went thru the night from 10:30 to 8 and still had a bit of coals left. Just what the doctor ordered. I put 2 inch maple rounds on the bottom, 4x6x24 ash blocks on the next level, then a layer of twisted red oak appx. 4x4 size and then filled every space I could fit with smaller maple / mixed stuff. Both houses stayed at 74 so the ladies did not complain and all is well.
 
Ram 1500 with an axe... said:
According to your picture, if most of that is still left after this season, you should be great to go next year.....
Click to expand...
Yes that is stuff that wont be used this year(maple)

Next year I will have 1.5 YO maple, ash & oak. I'm going to try not to use much of the oak until it gets more time on it but it did seem to do well last night.
Thanks
 
Been using couple year old red oak mixed with ash. Need to burn the coals down once a day. Been struggling keeping up but overall pleased.
 
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