Ok I have been around wood stoves and wood burning in general most of my life. When we cut wood for hunting camp we have usually cut wood in Aug- Sept. area to be burnt in November and December. It had always seemed to burn fine...but I understand that this was for camp with an old wood stove. I know from home experience and from reading this site that a good 9 months of seasoning should take place in order for these new stoves to work correctly. So as I will be starting off fresh from a long run with electric heat, I have no wood except what I have begun to cut in the past month. This wood will not be seasoned for the new stove adequately according to most on this site.....So I am wondering what you all have done during your first season of wood burning before you had the chance to begin stocking up and getting a year ahead? I know some of you will say you cut wood for a full year before you began burning, but what about you other guys that got a wood stove in the spring/summer and began cutting for your first season? Most people don't look far enough ahead to cut a year ahead for a stove they are planning to get. I am in a quandry as I plan to put a stove in for this winter and do not wish to go through another year of electric heat waiting for my wood I'm cutting right now to season.... Just wondering how some of you guys worked this out when you started your first burning season! Thanks in advance....
Burning dry wood season 1?
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Fsappo
Minister of Fire
Folks here are gonna tell you 2 years split, stacked and seasoned in order to get the most efficient heat out of your wood pile. I've burned 6 months cut split and stacked wood in a great stove and it burned fine, clean chimney, long burns, etc. But I probably burned an extra face cord or two because the wood needs to spend energy drying in the fire before it starts creating heat, simply put.
If you are cutting wood now, it's going to be hard to get it even somewhat dry by heating season. Things you can do are:
-Cut it short, like a foot long and split it small. Wood looses most of the water out the ends, but will loose some out the sides. The larger surface area will help it to stay exposed to air and speed drying.
-Stack it in the sun and wind.
-Pook's comment above is pretty good advice. But you will have trouble lighting wood cut now.
-Start finding pallets. They are usually very dry and you can put them around your splits. Cut them up with a sawzall. Your chainsaw doesn't like nails and such... I had good luck finding large oak ones at a spa place my first year burning.
-After you get some wood cut, maybe you can trade with somebody who has wood set aside that is dry already.
Matt
-Cut it short, like a foot long and split it small. Wood looses most of the water out the ends, but will loose some out the sides. The larger surface area will help it to stay exposed to air and speed drying.
-Stack it in the sun and wind.
-Pook's comment above is pretty good advice. But you will have trouble lighting wood cut now.
-Start finding pallets. They are usually very dry and you can put them around your splits. Cut them up with a sawzall. Your chainsaw doesn't like nails and such... I had good luck finding large oak ones at a spa place my first year burning.
-After you get some wood cut, maybe you can trade with somebody who has wood set aside that is dry already.
Matt
See if you can find some dead wood that is not punky and cut it NOW and get it stacked, some of the dead stuff will dry in 3 months or so but you have to be careful as it varies a lot from with the different conditions and types of wood. I would invest in a cheap moisture meter and go wood hunting if you have the place to do it.
It really depends on the species of wood, how finely it is split, how well the stacks can ventilate, the temps and humidity. I've had good luck burning 1 yr seasoned alder, soft maple, fir, but not madrona or cherry.
Megalomanic, I wish you guys would quit using word I have to look up, that word still doenst make sense to me used in that way. :blank:
Swedishchef
Minister of Fire
sjtellfox;
I purchased wood my first year from a guy who sells seasoned hardwood. I paid a good bit for it (he came from 175 miles away) and I had already cut my own softwood. That same year (last fall) I cut and split some for this winter. And now I am officially ahead of the game. I have enough wood for this winter and the winter of 2011-2012. I bought my stove in October and started burning in November
Good luck and let us know how you make out
Andrew
I purchased wood my first year from a guy who sells seasoned hardwood. I paid a good bit for it (he came from 175 miles away) and I had already cut my own softwood. That same year (last fall) I cut and split some for this winter. And now I am officially ahead of the game. I have enough wood for this winter and the winter of 2011-2012. I bought my stove in October and started burning in November
Good luck and let us know how you make out
Andrew
BLIMP said:
Correct you are, but wrong wording.
Better to say: Somewhat anachronistic, pook=frequent confusion. BLIMP=a lot better.
SteveKG
Minister of Fire
OP: you did not say what type and condition of wood you're cutting now. If it's green and/or living, no way you'll want to use it this next season. Is it standing deadwood or fallen deadwood? If so, you might be in luck. I keep a couple yr. worth of wood in the sheds, but I also come across dead pine or spruce sometimes and bring it home and use it within a couple months. It is fine.
Caveat: I live in an area of low humidity and not much rainfall. Dead trees here are fairly dry when I drop them. Unless they died a few weeks ago, of course.
If you are cutting green, you might be looking to purchase some seasoned wood. What some do is buy a little seasoned wood and use it in conjunction with some of the unseasoned wood you cut. You will have to manage it so that you have both on hand. I have not done this, nor do I have a catalytic stove or anything so I don't know if doing that will cause excessive buildup in the stove and pipe. Someone else here will know. If you are willing to manage the wood that way, you can get by with purchasing only a little retail wood. The pallet idea someone mentioned is good, too. Be careful cutting it up with the chainsaw if you do. It makes odd-shaped wood sometimes, and I have some now and then and we stick it in the fireplace, which is large and odd shapes make no difference.
Caveat: I live in an area of low humidity and not much rainfall. Dead trees here are fairly dry when I drop them. Unless they died a few weeks ago, of course.
If you are cutting green, you might be looking to purchase some seasoned wood. What some do is buy a little seasoned wood and use it in conjunction with some of the unseasoned wood you cut. You will have to manage it so that you have both on hand. I have not done this, nor do I have a catalytic stove or anything so I don't know if doing that will cause excessive buildup in the stove and pipe. Someone else here will know. If you are willing to manage the wood that way, you can get by with purchasing only a little retail wood. The pallet idea someone mentioned is good, too. Be careful cutting it up with the chainsaw if you do. It makes odd-shaped wood sometimes, and I have some now and then and we stick it in the fireplace, which is large and odd shapes make no difference.
ColdNH
Minister of Fire
I too purchased well seasoned wood my first year. I paid good money for it but it wad still cheaper then running the electric heat
If i were you i would buy a cord of seasoned hardwood from someone. Then you can get your stove going good and hot and then mix in some of the wood that you already have. I love scrounging for wood like evryone else and i do take pride in it. But my first year in my new house i had to break down and buy some just to get me started. Now that i'm in my third year i'm way ahead of the game with my own stuff. No more buying wood from anyone. Good luck!!
The proof of the pudding is here on the forum every year starting in December. Complaints about the new stove. Every time it ends up being the wood that they cut or bought in the Summer or Fall.
It'll burn with a lot of coaxing. It just won't heat. And you will go through a bunch of it. You will anyway because the first year with a new stove you burn more wood. It just happens. And if it isn't good dry wood you will burn a hell of a lot more. When I was doing the cut/split/stack drill in the Spring and Summer for the following Winter I would go through six cords of oak. Got religion here and now I burn three.
It'll burn with a lot of coaxing. It just won't heat. And you will go through a bunch of it. You will anyway because the first year with a new stove you burn more wood. It just happens. And if it isn't good dry wood you will burn a hell of a lot more. When I was doing the cut/split/stack drill in the Spring and Summer for the following Winter I would go through six cords of oak. Got religion here and now I burn three.
Dix
Minister of Fire
BrotherBart said:
Amen.
And that's the way it is, July 16, 2010
Pallets will help. alot. I just lucked into a bed & 1/2 of pallets, plus 3 trash cans of broken pices of pallets. Sweet ;-)
Depending upon the variety, pine will season quick, it does here. Do not forget the magic of seasoned pine
Welcome to the forums !!
Last year was my first year and I burned wood that I cut last September. It was all standing dead wood and burned ok. I bought a couple of loads of red oak and it wouldn't burn at all. I split it all really small and it really helped. This year I have about 2 cords of seasoned wood and I plan on buying another cord. Hopefully I will be able to buy some seasoned wood. This fall I am going to really get after it and stock up on some wood. This site was a life saver. I am hoping I will see a big difference with the wood I have now.
"Planning" on buying seasoned wood is ok, if the planning happened in March. By now the wood should be bought, stacked and top covered.
Last year was my first year and I had my wood split/stacked before I even bought a stove because of this site. The problem was a I cut a bunch of oak in March of 09 and didn't burn any of it last year.
I was lucky enough to have almost a cord of seasoned oak from my fire place, I cut almost cord of white ash in March of 09(was great when I burned it), a cord of hickory that burned decent, a cord of standing dead white ash that I cut in September of 09 which burned decent in January. I was out of decent wood when Dennis(Backwoods Savage) saved me with some WELL seasoned wood that I finished up the season with. I still have 2/3 cord of that Dennis wood that will be burned once the cool sets in.
I have 15+ cords on hand now, the best stuff will be 18 months or so seasoned when I strike a match this year. Anything that enters my stove this year will have a year or better since being cut/split. I'm not ready for the cold but I'm really curious to see how much better my wood burns this year.
I was lucky enough to have almost a cord of seasoned oak from my fire place, I cut almost cord of white ash in March of 09(was great when I burned it), a cord of hickory that burned decent, a cord of standing dead white ash that I cut in September of 09 which burned decent in January. I was out of decent wood when Dennis(Backwoods Savage) saved me with some WELL seasoned wood that I finished up the season with. I still have 2/3 cord of that Dennis wood that will be burned once the cool sets in.
I have 15+ cords on hand now, the best stuff will be 18 months or so seasoned when I strike a match this year. Anything that enters my stove this year will have a year or better since being cut/split. I'm not ready for the cold but I'm really curious to see how much better my wood burns this year.
Slow1
Minister of Fire
I bought wood my first year and also burned some biobricks and enviblocks (mixed in with the purchased wood as well as on their own). I was lucky to get somewhat seasoned wood - but there were sizzlers in there so I know it wasn't up to hearth.com standards. I also started scrounging as fast as I could off craigslist in the spring looking for wood that was at least a year old (stuff left over from the previous season and people moving etc) so that year 2 I was burning wood that was all at least 2 years old. Made a big difference.
No matter how you look at it, I think there are very few folks who are lucky enough (or rich enough) to burn really good wood their first year burning. It just takes time to build up the supply.
No matter how you look at it, I think there are very few folks who are lucky enough (or rich enough) to burn really good wood their first year burning. It just takes time to build up the supply.
gibson
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