Burning pine in insert?

[pitbull8151]

I see where some say they are burning pine in their inserts. Is this a good idea?
I am curious because my neighbor has a saw mill and has TONS of slabs. I could have more than I could possibly burn next year if I stack it now.
Any thoughts?

 

[Adios Pantalones]

Pine is fine. Huh- it rhymes.

Slab pine will be thin and dry and... I would worry that it would burn so damn fast that you could overfire. First rate kindling, potentially dangerous as a full load.

 

[Wood Duck]

I'd get a lot of that pine, but like Adios says don't stuff the stove full of thin slabs or you may overfire. Every morning I find myself trying to burn down piles of coals, and slabs of pine are perfect for that. With a pile of coals and a slab or two of pine I can keep the stove hot without burning much wood.

 

[pitbull8151]

Sounds good.
I will have to stock up on some.

 

[firefighterjake]

Burn baby burn . . . pine is fine . . . slab pine or other softwood is great for kindling or for use with shoulder season fires when you just need a good, fast fire to take the chill out of the air. Slabs still need to be seasoned . . . although thinner slabs season pretty quickly . . . and as AP and others mentioned you don't want to stuff your firebox full of thin slabs and touch them off or risk damaging your insert.

Incidentally you may meet "veteran" wood burners who will tell you that burning pine will fill your chimney full of creosote . . . don't believe the hype . . . many of us use pine . . . and many folks out west use a lot of pine and haven't mananged to burn down their homes . . . the key is to make sure the pine is seasoned.

 

[Wingman]

I use pine in my insert during the day and good stuff at night. Other than shorter burn times it has been good with me. Shorter n/s pieces have given me longer time though.

 

[BrotherBart]

Just make sure pine is as dry as any other wood. It will burn early, but hot and fast. As to slab wood, that much free means a lot of cheap heat if you or somebody else is around to feed the stove.

 

[RNLA]

Pine,Fir,Maple,Apple,Plum,Sweet gum,Hemlock,Cedar,Dog wood,Cypress, Can I stop now or should I keep going? :gulp: