Another ash question...

[mrfjsf]

Never burned the stuff before but the concensus here is that it seasons fast. I cut one down 2 years ago in the woods and left her lay because I realized I had no way to get it out. Well I got gutsy and decided to burrow my way to it with the ole ranger and drag her out. Bucked it up last weekend and split it today. largest round was around 12" diameter. Almost every round was starting to crack (sunburst) on the ends and the bark was falling off.

Think it will be ready to burn in the next, say 2 months?

 

[gzecc]

Not ready for at least 6 mos depending on size and stacking. If you want 20%.

 

[mrfjsf]

even though it has been down for a at least 2 years? It was really dry feeling and when two pieces tapped together, it had that hollowish sound. Figured it would be dry enough...I need a damn moisture meter.

 

[oldspark]

I have some ash that blew down in a storm in July, they were piled up in 6 ft logs and I cut some today and was surprised to find they were at 22% to 26% so you never know, MM's are not perfect but a useful tool just the same. Depending on the weather and how you stack them it might be good but not as good as it should be.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I say it is likely that the wood will be ready to burn. One of the nice things about ash too is although it may lay on the ground it is slow to rot. I too cut some ash last winter that had been down a couple of years and it looked pretty darned good. If we had needed it I would not have hesitated to throw it into the stove right then.

 

[Gark]

I'd say not ready in two months, but ready next spring IF ya got it split, stacked and covered now.

 

[CodyWayne718]

I have some ash that blew down in a storm in July, they were piled up in 6 ft logs and I cut some today and was surprised to find they were at 22% to 26% so you never know, MM's are not perfect but a useful tool just the same. Depending on the weather and how you stack them it might be good but not as good as it should be.

What do you mean when you say "how you stack"? I've googled stacking methods an cant seem to find much.

 

[golfandwoodnut]

I say it is likely that the wood will be ready to burn. One of the nice things about ash too is although it may lay on the ground it is slow to rot. I too cut some ash last winter that had been down a couple of years and it looked pretty darned good. If we had needed it I would not have hesitated to throw it into the stove right then.

Wow, not too often do you hear Dennis saying you can cut and burn. So my bet is you will be good. You could always just try to burn some, you will be able to tell pretty quickly how well it burns. I even got lucky with some Oak on my property, some of it has been dead for 20 years, but the wood was not punky. I cut it and split it and it measured 17 on the moisture meter and burns like a charm. You can tell by the weight it feels like a feather next to a fresh cut piece. You can pick up a HF MM for about $11 if you want to check it out.

 

[oldspark]

I have some ash that blew down in a storm in July, they were piled up in 6 ft logs and I cut some today and was surprised to find they were at 22% to 26% so you never know, MM's are not perfect but a useful tool just the same. Depending on the weather and how you stack them it might be good but not as good as it should be.

What do you mean when you say "how you stack"? I've googled stacking methods an cant seem to find much.

Single rows in the wind and sun helps the wood dry as fast as possible, cross stacking the wood is better but the real big thing is sun and wind.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I have some ash that blew down in a storm in July, they were piled up in 6 ft logs and I cut some today and was surprised to find they were at 22% to 26% so you never know, MM's are not perfect but a useful tool just the same. Depending on the weather and how you stack them it might be good but not as good as it should be.

What do you mean when you say "how you stack"? I've googled stacking methods an cant seem to find much.

Simple answer is, if you want the wood to season the fastest, of course you start by splitting it a bit smaller. The stacking should be done very loosely. This is no time to stack tight to get a nice looking wood stack. Stack loosely and stack so the wind will hit the sides of the stack. Also stack in single rows with lots of air space between the rows. If you can't walk comfortably between the rows, they are too close together.

While there are those who like the cross stacking, and it works, I still prefer to stack in a regular row but stack loosely. I will, however, cross stack on the ends but most folks have a problem with this so use t-posts or pallets or make a rack so they can just throw the wood in and not have to bother with the ends.

Also remember, sun and wind are nice but if you must choose, choose the wind as that will dry the wood the fastest.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I say it is likely that the wood will be ready to burn. One of the nice things about ash too is although it may lay on the ground it is slow to rot. I too cut some ash last winter that had been down a couple of years and it looked pretty darned good. If we had needed it I would not have hesitated to throw it into the stove right then.

Wow, not too often do you hear Dennis saying you can cut and burn. So my bet is you will be good. You could always just try to burn some, you will be able to tell pretty quickly how well it burns. I even got lucky with some Oak on my property, some of it has been dead for 20 years, but the wood was not punky. I cut it and split it and it measured 17 on the moisture meter and burns like a charm. You can tell by the weight it feels like a feather next to a fresh cut piece. You can pick up a HF MM for about $11 if you want to check it out.

Thanks for the confidence Golfer. You are right that I rarely say this short of a time for drying, but this is white ash. This type wood is a bit different from most. If you have the time to keep it in the stack for a year or two, so much the better but I feel the OP needs the wood ASAP. This ash should do the trick for him.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I have some ash that blew down in a storm in July, they were piled up in 6 ft logs and I cut some today and was surprised to find they were at 22% to 26% so you never know, MM's are not perfect but a useful tool just the same. Depending on the weather and how you stack them it might be good but not as good as it should be.

What do you mean when you say "how you stack"? I've googled stacking methods an cant seem to find much.

Single rows in the wind and sun helps the wood dry as fast as possible, cross stacking the wood is better but the real big thing is sun and wind.

Sorry old spark. I started posting before I saw your post. You give good advice.

 

[homebrewz]

If you had at least bucked it into rounds and stacked it up in the woods between some trees it would have helped a lot versus leaving it in log length. Split it small and stack like everyone has suggested here and it will probably be OK. Some woods season faster than others, and I think ash is one of those woods.

 

[firefighterjake]

Hard to say . . . wood doesn't season very well when left in tree length . . . but on the flip side this being ash and the wood being there for two years . . . without a moisture meter I would say the next best thing is to try burning some and see how it does . . . cutting, splitting on the small side and stacking loosely and giving it a few months would most definitely help dry it out more . . .

 

[mrfjsf]

Hey guys, so right now, I have it all stacked in a crosshatch pattern on a pallet. I would love to stack in windrows, but I have an unlimited supply of pallets and would like to utilize them where I can. Heck I may just make a wood shed out of them. Do you think it will dry out quickyl enough stacked this way? Or should I re stack in windrows? What I was thinking ( in order to utilize the pallets) was to lay two pallets long ways on the ground, attach them via a brace and then stand a pallet up on each end and attachc via brace in order to hold the wood in. Then stack two windrows on each "Rack" leaving as much gap in between as possible. FWIW, I cut all my logs between 16"-18". At 18", that would leave around a 6" gap between the rows on each rack.

 

[CountryBoy19]

Not ready for at least 6 mos depending on size and stacking. If you want 20%.

It all depends on the weather really. I have some ash that was CSS in mid-late august and it's reading right at 19% moisture on a fresh split of medium size.

But this year we were in an "extreme drought" and finally got our first real rain since July 4th weekend this week. So given that information, considering that it will be winter in PA, 6 months is likely a good prediction