blackthorn, burns well but how long to season it?

[par0thead151]

i am in the situation all of you have been in. first yar burning wood, and i did not satart cutting wood a year or two ago. so naturally i am cutting down dead trees that are standing but lost all their bark. i have also cut down some blackthorn trees, which are supposed to burn very well(when seasoned)
i am wondering how long these take to season if they are 2-4" rounds.

also, would seasoning it on my stove top be a bad idea?
i have a blower on my insert(enviro 1700 venice)
so the stove top only gets to be 100-150 Fahrenheit.
i have noticed any wood i keep by the stove dries out very fast.
thanks

 

[Wood Duck]

I think seasoning wood on the stove top seems like a bad idea. Stove tops can get very hot and could ignite the wood, plus you're not going to season a significant amount of wood on a stove top, nor have it there very long. If the choice is burn wet wood or season it on the stove top, I'd burn it wet.

if you are cutting standing dead trees with the bark off, a think a lot of the wood should be at least partially seasoned, especially the smaller branches.

 

[Hurricane]

I have my blower going full speed right now and just started the stove 2 hrs ago. The stove top temp right now is 575 and the aux air is closed completely. If you have stove top temps of 100-150 you have another problem. Could be wet wood, not enough draft or air but the stove should be hotter than that. Where on the stove is the thermometer at, I think the middle of the stove is where the most heat is.
Drying wood on top of a burning stove is a really bad idea. I agree that burning it wet is a better idea.

Is it a new stove / install if not check the chimney or have it checked. If it is ask the dealer what the temp should be,and where to place the thermometer. Also if you post the stove type in the hearth forum here others can tell you what their normal stove temp is.

As for the wood I have burned standing dead for a long time. The top part will be drier. Split the wood smaller than normal and cross stack it and it should dry quicker and if you need to burn it the smaller pieces will burn better also.
I do not know what a blackthorn tree is so I cannot give any feedback on that.

 

[par0thead151]

I have my blower going full speed right now and just started the stove 2 hrs ago. The stove top temp right now is 575 and the aux air is closed completely. If you have stove top temps of 100-150 you have another problem. Could be wet wood, not enough draft or air but the stove should be hotter than that. Where on the stove is the thermometer at, I think the middle of the stove is where the most heat is.
Drying wood on top of a burning stove is a really bad idea. I agree that burning it wet is a better idea.

Is it a new stove / install if not check the chimney or have it checked. If it is ask the dealer what the temp should be,and where to place the thermometer. Also if you post the stove type in the hearth forum here others can tell you what their normal stove temp is.

As for the wood I have burned standing dead for a long time. The top part will be drier. Split the wood smaller than normal and cross stack it and it should dry quicker and if you need to burn it the smaller pieces will burn better also.
I do not know what a blackthorn tree is so I cannot give any feedback on that.

do you have a insert for a zero clearance fireplace? mine is. this is where the differences in stove top temps comes into play.
the inside of my stove gets plenty hot. hot enough to reach 700-800F if i let it. the afterburners can turn a dull red if it gets that warm when i use my IR thermometer(laser type where you point and click and it spits out a temp) the coals are at 600-700 idealy as that is the point where i start restricting the air.

i can touch my stove top with my bare hand and holdit there if the stove is not stuffed with wood and rip roaring. if it is rip roaring, i can touch it but it is not comfortable...
water will not boil on my stove top(i tried it already)

that being said, i agree, it is a dangerous practive to get in the habbit of.
how about storing the next load of wood for the stove in front of it? all of this would only take place while someone is home.

 

[Duetech]

"that being said, i agree, it is a dangerous practive to get in the habbit of.
how about storing the next load of wood for the stove in front of it? all of this would only take place while someone is home."

There is usually a manufacturers recommendation for clearances and with wood stoves 36" can be found a lot. If you have a blower going and it blows out in front of the stove 36" would easily be enough but what most people do not factor in the equation is infrared radiation. Infrared is something that can emanate from any heat producing source even the side of a wood stove. Infrared noes not need a glass to pass through. So to be on the safe side, even with a blower, I would go for 48" minimum and that way it's less likely to matter if an emergency comes up that would cause you to forget or not allow you to move the wood before you handled the emergency. A couple of miles from here a lady was drying clothes over her wood stove. Had done it for some months. One day something came up and she forgot the clothes and that the damper on the stove had been opened to get the fire going. The home was new, just over a year. The fire burned it to the ground. At least no one was upstairs sleeping.

 

[Hurricane]

do you have a insert for a zero clearance fireplace? mine is. this is where the differences in stove top temps comes into play.
the inside of my stove gets plenty hot. hot enough to reach 700-800F if i let it. the afterburners can turn a dull red if it gets that warm when i use my IR thermometer(laser type where you point and click and it spits out a temp) the coals are at 600-700 idealy as that is the point where i start restricting the air.

i can touch my stove top with my bare hand and holdit there if the stove is not stuffed with wood and rip roaring. if it is rip roaring, i can touch it but it is not comfortable...
water will not boil on my stove top(i tried it already)

that being said, i agree, it is a dangerous practive to get in the habbit of.
how about storing the next load of wood for the stove in front of it? all of this would only take place while someone is home.

I do not have my insert in a zero clearance. My insert is a monster in a masonry fireplace.

 

[par0thead151]

do you have a insert for a zero clearance fireplace? mine is. this is where the differences in stove top temps comes into play.
the inside of my stove gets plenty hot. hot enough to reach 700-800F if i let it. the afterburners can turn a dull red if it gets that warm when i use my IR thermometer(laser type where you point and click and it spits out a temp) the coals are at 600-700 idealy as that is the point where i start restricting the air.

i can touch my stove top with my bare hand and holdit there if the stove is not stuffed with wood and rip roaring. if it is rip roaring, i can touch it but it is not comfortable...
water will not boil on my stove top(i tried it already)

that being said, i agree, it is a dangerous practive to get in the habbit of.
how about storing the next load of wood for the stove in front of it? all of this would only take place while someone is home.

I do not have my insert in a zero clearance. My insert is a monster in a masonry fireplace.

makes sense then.
my firebox is 2.5 cubic feet.
a larger box can hold a lot more wood, and embers. IE more heat contained within the box.