Broadleaf maple.

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
Status
Not open for further replies.

snowmizer

Member
Sep 11, 2010
11
western wa.
I have 28 acres of land that has a bunch of broadleaf maple on it, I am cutting and splitting my wood for next year. Is the maple a good firewood to load up on? Would it be ok to burn only maple and no fir? I have access to all the wood i could ever burn but it is almost all maple.
 
Ain't nothin wrong with that maple.. Even in my part of the woods where Oak, Locust, Ash and Cherry are the norm I won't hesitate to take maple of any kind. I'm thinking your Canadian broad leaf is similar to Silver or Red maple in my region being a light to medium hard wood. Maybe one of the wood experts here can confirm that. I have a ton of silver maple growing on my property and it grows like a weed fast and big. It cuts and splits easy and seasons quick. Burns just fine, just doesn't last as long as the more dense woods like Oak but that's OK.
 
Nothing wrong with Maple. Good heat, and depending on the size of your splits and stacking it will season in 8-12 months. Go get it.


KC
 
I like it. I prefer Doug, but Broadleaf is a good all-around firewood. It's in the middle of the BTU charts usually. It's a little light for a hardwood, and leaves a fair amount of ash, but beats the pants off Cottonwood. Doesn't coal as well as some hardwoods. Needs plenty of seasoning, minimum 9 months after splitting.
 
If it's like the Maples here in the east it has the advantage of splitting really easy when freshly cut.

I hand split a bucked 50 ft.18" diameter in about an hour recently, I think a hickoy or oak would take me many more and harder maul blows.
 
snowmizer said:
Sound like i got plenty of wood then. I fell, bucked,split,stacked a nice one yesterday. It sure does split nice.

Here in Northern New York if I have Sugar Maple down I'll take that plus Beech, for the overnight burns I like those two woods the most.

zap
 
I recently scored 4 truck loads of big leaf maple on C/L, was a huge tree with alot of branch's, I have been splitting it off and on during the weekends, it is kicking my butt, my little electric splitter don't like it at all as it has a bunch of knots in it and the rounds are huge, I have been quartering the rounds with wedges and noodling with may saw , than putting it in the splitter, I figure about 3+ cords when I am done. From everything I have heard it burns just fine, just season it for 9 months to a year

Also the big leaf maple is highly sought after by guitar and violin makers, Evidently if the tree meets there specs they will pay big $$ for it, has to have a certain coloration in it. Google it, you could probably sell some of your trees if you needed
 

Attachments

  • maple.jpg
    maple.jpg
    16.4 KB · Views: 247
  • maple1.jpg
    maple1.jpg
    18.3 KB · Views: 272
  • maple2.jpg
    maple2.jpg
    18.4 KB · Views: 244
I hope there was not any fiddleback in her!! I just sold 1 tree of my land and got 5480 for it!!!! it had a fair amount fiddleback in it. The maple i have been splitting has split very easy.
 
great photo.i split some small silver maple today. 6 or so rounds about 20'' in diameter. the rounds were in the sun for a few months. great wood and theyres always lots of it around. pete
 
Status
Not open for further replies.