1st year - burn seasoned stuff first or mix it up?

[lfunk11]

I have been burning off and on the last two weeks depending on how cold it has gotten, but now I have a question. I have roughly 3-4 cords of wood for this season (starting to cut for next year) and it all came from logs left on our property when they built the house. Its not the nicest wood, especially the logs that were on the bottom of the stack. Anyways, I have been cutting and stacking since the end of the last winter and the stuff I did first is bone dry. I can get a fire going without even using kindling the stuff is so dry so its really nice to use, but the last 1-2 cords has been split within the last few months. I can tell its not seasoned, but its not fresh either since it has sat a few years.

So do I continue to burn the really nice seasoned wood and let the other stuff dry out a bit before I get to it or should I be mixing in the not so dry stuff once I have hot fires going? I don't want it to be mid February and have trouble getting fires started or burning hot enough, but since the good stuff I have now did not take all that long to dry out it may be worth it to wait?

The wood is all hardwood, but thats about all I know. 90% of it doesn't have bark anymore and the leaves have been gone for years. This is what I got so I don't have much of a choice - it will be burned this year, but just wondering the best way to approach it. I will be purchasing a moisture meter this weekend so that should help a bit in deciding how seasoned it is.

 

[NH_Wood]

I would use the dry wood to establish a strong fire and good coal bed, then mix the dry and not so dry wood during reloads. You are correct - managing your fire with just the unseasoned wood later in the season will be not so much fun! Cheers!

 

[EatenByLimestone]

In addition to the above, I'd find a source of free pallets. They are almost always dry and they will stretch out your wood.

Matt

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Unlike Matt, I don't like the pallet stuff but it does help some folks get through. It can be awful to handle and makes the place look a bit messy plus you have those nails or staples to contend with.

I'd burn the dry stuff. You should only have small fires for quite some time yet so trying to burn something a bit wet won't work too well. Make sure that wetter stuff is stacked high off the ground where the wind will hit it. That way it will dry the fastest. If the bark is all off, that is a good sign that the rest won't take too long to dry out. Hopefully by January all your wood will be dry. If not, you will then be mixing and will probably start mixing even in December. Good luck.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Pallets are nasty things, but they got me through my first year. Since that time I've left them for the next year's new woodburners who need a little help getting by.

Matt

 

[lfunk11]

I might avoid the pallets if I can, but I have thought about it and likely would not turn it down if someone dropped them in my driveway. I have stacked the wood as face cords with at least 3 feet of space between the stacks so it should be in a good position to dry. The stacks do not get a ton of sun and it can get windy here, but not so much at ground level since we are surrounded by trees. The initial wood dried nicely, but I have just stacked my first stack of green wood so we will see how long that takes to dry.

 

[begreen]

The drying time will depend on the species of wood and whether the wood was standing dead or lying on the ground. If it was green oak, it won't be ready to burn this season. Try to avoid burning the fresh split wood until late winter if possible. In the meantime keep those stacks covered on top, open on the sides. If you are in a windy area, that will help speed up drying. If you do end up burning a mix, be sure to check the flue for build up on a regular basis. Creosote can build up quickly when burning unseasoned wood. I'd check it at least monthly.

 

[ckarotka]

See if you can find a residential construction site nearby. They will have piles of scrap 2x?'s and the builder shouldn't mind you taking them cuz it's less he has to PAY to get rid of. Do it now because in another month those construction guys will be burning it to keep themselves warm during 10:00am coffee time. I know because I used to be the one starting the fire for break time.

You can them mix that in with the wet stuff, plus it's easier to manage than pallets, cut, split if necessary.

Oh ya NO NO NO OSB, plywood, treated or other laminated beams, due to the glue and other chemicals.

Charlie

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I might avoid the pallets if I can, but I have thought about it and likely would not turn it down if someone dropped them in my driveway. I have stacked the wood as face cords with at least 3 feet of space between the stacks so it should be in a good position to dry. The stacks do not get a ton of sun and it can get windy here, but not so much at ground level since we are surrounded by trees. The initial wood dried nicely, but I have just stacked my first stack of green wood so we will see how long that takes to dry.

Keep in mind that wind is more important for drying than sun. Of course, if you get both, that is super.

 

[CarbonNeutral]

If you can find a stone mason nearby, they typically have massive oak pallets - much more heat for the work. 50% of wood in my first season was pallets. Glad to not have to deal with them now.

 

[rdust]

Last year was my first year and had similar problems. If I had it to do over again I would've probably put off burning a month or so. This way I wouldn't have ran out of good seasoned wood. Thankfully Dennis came to the rescue and hooked me up with enough wood to get me through the season. I even have a some left for this season since we had a really nice spring which saved some wood.

 

[lfunk11]

just to be clear all the wood I would plan on burning this year was from logs stacked from building our house or at worse trees down in the woods. nothing was cut within the last few years so I think the worst of it is at least partially seasoned. I need to get a moisture meter to see just where I stand with the other stuff. I did try one of the recent splits and it did burn, but not nearly as quick as the "dry" stuff. I did not notice any moisture coming out of the end - not sure if that is always indicative of wood that is more dry than green stuff though.

thanks for the responses - I did not grow up burning wood nor do I really know anyone who did so this is my best source for information

 

[begreen]

It doesn't really start drying until it's been split. That's when to count from. If you have alternative heat, you might want to use that in conjunction with the wood stove to stretch out the supply of good, dry wood.

If you don't have a moisture meter you can take a couple splits and bang them together like claves. If you get a nice tone out of them, it is getting dry. If it is more of a thud, then it is probably damp. Also, compare the weight of your known dry splits to the known wetter ones. Another way I check is by resplitting a split and then pressing the freshly split surface against my face. If it's not seasoned you will feel it. It'll be cool and damp.