Deconstructing Denniswood

Try it, Pen. It gets you high as a kite, and it's cheaper than a fridge full of beer.

As long as it isn't Denniswood you'd probably be fine.

Yes, very interesting. That density stuff relates directly to BTU content. Lots of species there as well, more than I've seen in any one place before. Lotta oven-drying went into getting that info.

Yes. RE BTU content, that's exactly what I was thinking. I know I've said some things about my Black Walnut seeming to be better than what I tend to read in BTU charts, its density is something that I may look into. I just want some hard data, s that I know I'm not just imagining it.

BW is my favorite firewood. Seems to season quick, splits like a dream, and smells good, if I could determine that the BTUs are there, then that would be the icing on the cake.

If you are willing to carefully do the oven drying, I can help walk you through through a few different ways to determine the density. You would need several blocks from various parts of a few different trees to get a good estimate. And a good kitchen scale. A beam balance would be even better, but why would you have one of those? :roll: Might be fun, and you could get the real MC while you are at it.

I have a kitchen scale, a bathroom scale, and I also have this digital scale that goes up to 300grams
http://www.pangeareptile.com/store/compact-digital-scale.html

That digital scale should be good enough. Do you have a band saw or table saw, or easy access to them? A dial caliper is also a very nice thing to have for this. With these items and some careful work you can get a direct measurement of the volume of a cube of oven-dried wood.

Alternatively, you can rig up a small displacement tank and get the volume that way. By pushing the block under water you will displace the volume of the block. You need to collect and weight the displacement water in grams. That will be your volume in milliliters. From that and the oven-dry weight you can figure your density.

Absolutely fascinating and enlightening thread.

Totally fascinating thread. I will sheepishly admit at times I felt like I was back in school and the answers coming out of the calculus teachers mouth sounded like blah blah blah. I'm glad there's no test, but I follow what you're explaining. Nice details. Nicely presented.

I'm holding out for the movie version . . . they always dumb things down in the movie so people like me can understand the message.

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Coming to a Theater near you . . .

Deconstructing Denniswood . . . one man's wood's journey from Milan to Minsk and then to Michigan to New York . . .

Featuring Backwoods Savage as himself . . . a man with a mission . . . to cut a whole lot of ash and split wood the wrong way.

Batten Killer . . . a man looking for a home to call his own . . . a man who lives on the edge and isn't afraid to burn some pressure treated wood . . . a man who is dedicated to science.

Might worth a $10 barrel 'o popcorn! %-P

That, sir, is epic. Especially when you read it to yourself using the "Movie Guy Voice" (TM).

Ha, ha! I love it!

Hold a minute... that's Spielberg on my cell right now.......

OK..... Looks like we got Robert Duvall for the part of Sav, and Matt Damon as the much, much, much younger savant named Battenkiller.

We're calling it , "Good Wood Hunting".

I'm just wondering who the stunt doubles will be? Oops . . . derailed. . . .

I think I can convince Spielberg to go along with that.

I'll say, "Steve"..... I call him Steve.... "You shouldn't fear a martial arts defence system. As a matter of fact, why don't you cooperate with us on a martial arts defense system?"

Pull it, Rick. I'll work on an article when I have time.