Elm
- Thread starter Gearhead660
- Start date
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I think the old saying is, "A cord of elm will last a lifetime ...because that is about how long it will take you to split it!"
Some tips which may or may not help:
Hand splitting:
Let the logs freeze good and solid
Cleave small blocks from the outside edge, don't go for the monster 'split down the center' method
Sharp wedge never hurts
Hydro or mechanical splitter:
Definitely keep the wedge very sharp
Can attempt to split anytime (wet or dry, frozen or thawed)
I had some decent luck hydro splitting some dead/down/dry elm. This stuff had been down for many years - bark was falling off, so even the unsplit logs were essentially dry. My sharp maul would literally bounce off. The hydro splitter would start into the round, but kick into the second pump stage (high pressure / low flow) until a huge amount of pressure would build, then "BOOM!!" it would drive forward a fraction of an inch, build more pressure, "BOOM!"...forward, then another loud CRACK! Finally it would start making decent progress and the log was split. The stuff didn't turn out too stringy, but man, those first couple of pops when the log would let go were amazing in the release of energy!
Some tips which may or may not help:
Hand splitting:
Let the logs freeze good and solid
Cleave small blocks from the outside edge, don't go for the monster 'split down the center' method
Sharp wedge never hurts
Hydro or mechanical splitter:
Definitely keep the wedge very sharp
Can attempt to split anytime (wet or dry, frozen or thawed)
I had some decent luck hydro splitting some dead/down/dry elm. This stuff had been down for many years - bark was falling off, so even the unsplit logs were essentially dry. My sharp maul would literally bounce off. The hydro splitter would start into the round, but kick into the second pump stage (high pressure / low flow) until a huge amount of pressure would build, then "BOOM!!" it would drive forward a fraction of an inch, build more pressure, "BOOM!"...forward, then another loud CRACK! Finally it would start making decent progress and the log was split. The stuff didn't turn out too stringy, but man, those first couple of pops when the log would let go were amazing in the release of energy!
I am wondering what kind I have. Some of the small diameter pieces are stringy, but the main trunk I split by hand. The little bit of bark that was left looked like elm...
I found that fresh-cut, live elm tends to be wicked stringy.
Dead-dead elm . . . dead for a year or more with the bark pretty much all gone and just a denuded trunk of a tree split much, much easier with little stringiness.
We have more Slippery (Red) Elm here, than American. Red is easier to split but still a bit stringy, as you say.
Dutch Elm disease seems to get the majority of them before they get real big, but I got one a couple years ago that was 19". Most I get are dead, but I recently cut a blow-over that was still alive from some roots in the ground. Under the bark, it was "slimy"-feeling.
Have you got any bark or split pics? I love it as firewood, even though it's nothing special in the BTU dept. I see 21.6 mBTU/ cord...between Cherry and White Ash.
This is the big boy, then bark in the second two pics:
The blow-over wood..fresh, wet.
Was this a woods grab, craigslist score or what? I guess that an American Elm growing in the woods might have less branching and be a little easier to split. As with any wood, you're likely to get several different opinions on how hard it is to split. My experience is mainly with Red, and it is splittable by hand but I generally feed it to the power splitter. The fresh one I posted pics above, popped apart easier than the dead ones generally do.
I just started harvesting on some new land. Woods with lots of dead wood down, ripe for harvesting. Split it up and its 20-26 % MC. Should be able to burn next winter.
Hmmm, I don't think dry, dead Red Elm would split that easily..
Can you get any bark or split pics? That would help us nail it down..
Here is a pic of a split and what little bark was left.
Attachments
CincyBurner
Minister of Fire
Wow, really straight-grained. Not surprising it split easily. Definitely not Red Elm..split would look more pink, and the bark isn't right.
Sawset
Minister of Fire
What size is your wood splitter? I'm newer to cutting / splitting, but I bought a 37 ton splitter from Northern Tool. So far, I have split probably about 15 cords of Elm, and probably another 20 cords of other various hard woods in Southern Minnesota. So far, I haven't found anything that even seems to come close to making the splitter strain or slow down.
It's not that it strains or slows down, it just doesn't split cleanly, it leaves strings of wood that bypass the cutting edge, keeping the two halves connected. When I need to split Elm I keep a sharp hatchet nearby.
jetsam
Minister of Fire
If you buck it and let it sit outside until a -20° day, it actually is not that bad to split. The colder the easier. You still need to work around the edges and use sledge'n'wedge on some rounds.
Siberian elm is not bad to split. I have a bunch of these on my property. They have smaller leaves then the rest of the elms I don't really seek them out for firewood , but it burns fine.It is probably has btu similar to soft maple I guess.
