Everyone seems to agree that today's high efficiency stoves require well seasoned wood. How long does it need to sit before it is ready to burn?
How long until wood is considered seasoned???
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ChillyGator
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tjones said:
Less in Texas than in Wisconsin but probably more than in Arizona but less than Georgia.....depending on type of wood.....pine cannot be seasoned enough to remove the creasote.............but seriously:
split and stacked in the sun and wind......9 months to 2 years......more or less......you mileage will vary
grommal
Feeling the Heat
Agree with the 9mo - 2yr range, at least for properly stored wood in my climate. Depends on density of the wood, how small the splits are, and how tightly it's stacked, too. Covering the top of a wood stack is a good idea, but be sure to leave the sides uncovered for good air circulation. Single row stacks in full sun and wind season faster. Pine, spruce, cedar, other lightweight woods season quickly. White oak, hickory, other dense woods season more slowly. Creosote in the chimney system is a function of moisture content, burning practices, stove emission capability, and chimney wall temperature. Pine is fine, other than not having a high btu/cord content.
However long it takes to get a moisture content twenty percent or less. How long that is depends on where you store it, how you store it and a lot less on what kind of wood it is than a lot of people think.
There ain't no such thing as seasoned wood. There is just wet wood and dry wood.
There ain't no such thing as seasoned wood. There is just wet wood and dry wood.
grommal
Feeling the Heat
BrotherBart said:
Indeed, BB. The only thing you're doing when you stack wood for a while before burning it is taking out some of the water. I was using the word "seasoned" in that regard, though I suppose it does make it sound like some other magical transformation in the wood is taking place as well.
Having "dried" a bunch of white oak and a bunch of silver maple and a lesser bunch of white pine over the years, I can tell you for sure that the less dense maple and pine dry much faster than the oak, even when stored in equivalent conditions, at least where I live. I used to split and stack them together so I'd get a mix of wood to pick from as I raided the stack, but I often had to leave the oak in place for an extra few months at least, and just pick out the ready-to-go maple and pine from around the still-too-wet oak splits. These days I tend to segregate the stacks into two general groups of species so that I can more easily let the slower wood dry longer.
I used to think the pine etc. didn't need as much time just because it would burn sooner. Then one year I had a half cord of pine left over at the end of the year and left it top covered until the next season. If was like daylight and dark how much better and longer that stuff burned. Now I dry it all a minimum of two years top covered.
Another thing to consider is if the wood came from a dead tree, some of the moisture is gone making the wood very dry over one long summer of drying.
It depends, there are a lot of variables. It depends on the type of wood, if it is split, the size of the splits and how it is stored. As noted above, ideal wood can be split, dried in a good location with great ventilation and be ready to burn in 9 months. But other wood takes at least 2 years to dry out well under the best of conditions.
That pine I spoke of had come from a dead standing tree. That is what amazed me. I think something solidifies over time in softwood when it is drying on the stacks and affects the way it burns. The stuff burned nice and even instead of like two by fours. Of course the problem with dead standing pines is that they deteriorate rapidly. They will burn soon but for all intents and purposes half the thing is punk. And I think the creosote legend for pine comes from people burning it too soon just because it will burn.
I have my first half cord from a live standing pine on the stacks right now. I dropped it last summer and it is scheduled for the stove next winter. At least I will try it. After the trial I may let it sit another year. Gonna be interesting to see how it burns as opposed to old dead pines. Of course I split it like I split all my wood. Extra large. I need to take down three or four more live ones and in a couple of years I just may heat all season with pine.
I have my first half cord from a live standing pine on the stacks right now. I dropped it last summer and it is scheduled for the stove next winter. At least I will try it. After the trial I may let it sit another year. Gonna be interesting to see how it burns as opposed to old dead pines. Of course I split it like I split all my wood. Extra large. I need to take down three or four more live ones and in a couple of years I just may heat all season with pine.
Battenkiller said:
Yep. But from back in the eighties the rule in this house has been "If it will burn in the presence of sufficient heat and oxygen, it is going in that stove.". And with the results I have seen with the 30-NC I think it will be a non-event.
Of course I don't burn beer cartons, old clothes and other such crap in the new stove like I did with the old one.
Most of my wood is mesquite with a little oak mixed in with it. Just cut it last month and hoping to burn it this fall. Wanted to get the Lopi Liberty but the consensus on the forums is it is too big for my house of 1500 sq ft. I was hoping that by getting the larger stove I could turn it down and get longer burn times than with the medium size Endeavor.
iceman
Minister of Fire
jpl1nh
Minister of Fire
BrotherBart said:
If you put pepper, or oregano, thyme or basil on it it's seasoned, regardless of whether its dry or not.
Mesquite is gonna burn hot, fast and explode with popping. Go for all of that scrub oak that is around in Texas.
Mesquite is wonderful for BBQ but crap for firewood.
BB - Who is Texas born and bred for 40 years. And is the cook for the deer camp down there every year. Everything cooked with wood. Including breakfast. Biscuits are a groan on a wood fire but nobody complains about'em if the gravy ain't lumpy and the yolks ain't broken on the eggs.
Mesquite is wonderful for BBQ but crap for firewood.
BB - Who is Texas born and bred for 40 years. And is the cook for the deer camp down there every year. Everything cooked with wood. Including breakfast. Biscuits are a groan on a wood fire but nobody complains about'em if the gravy ain't lumpy and the yolks ain't broken on the eggs.
Mesquite
Member
tjones said:
You will probably have to wait till next year on your mesquite. It, like live oak, takes a lot longer to cure. Not to say some smaller pieces won't work though.
Mesquite
Member
BrotherBart said:
I disagree with you. I have been burning mesquite for heat for a lot more years than most folks have been burning period. It does burn hot that is for sure. In my stoves (current as well as past), I have never had seasoned mesquite burn "fast" nor pop to any degree. I have burned a lot of other woods in the past which I found to burn faster as well as pop like an SOB. Green mesquite will pop but that's not seasoned firewood!! Mesquite is not crap for firewood. When it's readly available, you make do. It heats my home at the ranch quite well and has for almost 50 years. It is good for BBQ and smokin' meats.
Yeah, I was born here in Texas too and have never left. Been here my whole life which is probably longer than you have been around!! Raised on a ranch and cooked for deer camps too. Biscuits are easy on wood fires. Once you do enough of 'em you learn how to manage it.
Just my 2 cents.
Good for you, BB. It may take awhile to smack-down the myth about burning Pine. I cringe when I read posts about Pine going to a landfill. It's fine to burn, just not in Colorado.Above 8000'ft., something happens when you burn it, and if exposed, you may develop warts, lesions, acne, or an embarrising "drip".(don't go there). Dementia from burning Pine is looked on as a bonus. %-P
gibson
New Member
weatherguy
Minister of Fire
I had all my wood in the same place and none of the oak was dry enough to burn this year, I just put it aside and stacked it in a good sunny spot for next year.
A factor often overlooked is the average humidity level of the particular place in which you're drying your wood. A humid, foggy coastal climate like mine in Maine means wood dries much more slowly than in locations even a few miles inland. If you experience high levels of humidity no matter where you live, it's going to be very difficult to get down to 20% moisture content in less than two years and even that may not be enough. In many ways, kiln dried wood is a very good idea in humid areas. Maine Forest Service recently issued a report which calculated cost vs. increased efficiency for kd wood. According to the report, if you pay around 1.5 times as much for kd wood vs. (so called) seasoned wood you're still ahead of the game. To me, the greater ease and convenience of fire starting in EPA stoves with kd is worth quite a bit, too.
Sen. John Blutarsky said:
I quit when we went to the new stove and liner because of all of the fly ash that burning that stuff put in the chimney. It wasn't much of an issue with the clay tile before because of the large size. With the liner I don't want it getting restricted. YMMV.
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