First Scrounged Wood (PICS) - Still No Stove, but Preparing!!! Now what!!

[KennyK]

Hi Everyone,

Yesterday, I scored my first scrounged wood for free off craigslist! This wood was about 10 miles from my house, already cut, but not split. Most logs around 1.5 to 2 feet, but some as big as three feet plus. Made two trips, filling up the back of my minivan twice. Not sure what kind of wood this is (the person who had it didn't know, said she thought it was oak). Man am I sore today - I'm no wimp, but loading some of those big logs alone gave my shoulders a real workout! Feels good

I'm a total newbie, so any help you can offer would be great! How can I figure out what kind of wood? My plan is now to get an axe and to start splitting. I'm about to pick up an never used Ludell axe for $25 on craigslist. I hear the Fiskars are better, so I might get one down the line, but have to order on line and want to start splitting asap. I also see I can hire a local guy with a splitter for $26 an hour. Thoughts? How to best stack and store? Etc.

I still don't have a stove, but am determined to get a setup by next season, and from everything I've read on this site the last few months everyone says to start stocking up on wood, so I'm trying!

Thanks!

Kenny

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Kenny, I can't tell by the pictures for sure what this wood is. However, I want to congratulate you for getting the wood before getting the stove. That is true wisdom!

As for splitting, there are many options. A simple splitting maul might work for you and are a lot cheaper. Many like the Fiskars but I'm still not impressed. I split so many cord of wood by hand I have no idea how many but over 20 years ago graduated to the hydraulics and love them. Of course my body is not as good as it once was so the extra help is great. Renting a splitter is another option but a bit more expensive. That fellow who says he'll split for $26 an hour might be okay but you have no idea how good or how fast he is. For example, he might want to split everything super small and thereby get in more time. He might not even be that handy with the splitter as I've watched several folks use their splitters and can only shake my head as they do more work or as much work as if they were doing it all by hand. Others let the wedge go the entire cycle which is unnecessary and time consuming, etc.

My advice would be for you to get a splitting maul of some type rather than an axe and do it by hand for a while. You will learn while doing and get some great exercise.

How to care for the wood? We lay down poles or anything like landscape timbers to stack wood on. Some like pallets: I don't. The big thing is to get the wood off the ground a couple inches. Also if possible stack the wood where wind can hit the sides of the stacks because wind is your friend when it comes to drying wood. Sun is good too but wind is even more important. I'd recommend stacking no higher than 4' or 4 1/2' high and because you will need the wood so soon, stack it rather loosely which will allow the wind to go through and dry it faster. We do not cover the wood in the first summer but in your area you might consider it because of the amount of rain you get. But be sure to cover only the top of your stacks. Never cover the sides or ends.

Good luck.

 

[Waulie]

+1 for splitting maul

You would probably be happier with a maul over an axe. I know many love the Fiskars and they might be great, but I've never tried one. I'm still using a cheap splitting maul from Lowes that I bought probably 8 years ago. It works just fine!

 

[mywaynow]

I started much the same way. A nice white oak went down in a storm just across the street. That started the whole process of getting set up for burning. I "ran into" a great stove from a client, gratis. The hardest part was the stove pipe. I looked all over for a deal on that stuff. Finally found some used on CL and made the hour drive to get it. Saved a grand on that alone. Keep your eyes open for both a stove and pipe. You may find them in the same spot. Lots of folks don't want to be bothered with burning, and may buy a house with a set up they want gone. May be in your best interest to leave your name with a local real estate agency. Good luck!

 

[KennyK]

Thanks everyone - great advice all around!

Since I last posted I ran out and bought the Ludell Logsplitter for $25 from a guy down the street on craigslist. I split a couple logs just to see what that feeling was (never done it before). Well, it feels pretty darn good! I definitely will need to develop my form, and I can tell it's some serious work! I do have an old maul in the basement from the previous owners of the house, so I will give that a try too and see what I think.

I have more wind (plenty) than direct sunlight for the wood, so good to know that's a big factor in drying wood.

One of the logs I tried to split seemed very green, so I left that one alone for now - how long should they sit as logs before splitting? Or do I just need to use more muscle?

Kenny

 

[Wood Duck]

Logs do not need to sit for any amount of time before splitting. In general I think it is easiest to split as soon as possible, but some pieces are simply harder to split than others.

In addition to splitting the wood you need to cut it all down to the right length. Before I bought my stove I collected a lot of wood and cut it to no more than 16 inches in length because almost all stoves will accept a 16 inch split. With scrounged wood you will end up with lots of irregular length pieces, but it is a lot better to have wood too short rather than too long. i use a sawbuck i made from some 2x lumber I had laying around and a chainsaw.

I'd plan to split by hand rather than hire anyone with a splitter. I would worry, as Backwoods Savage said, that you're hiring a guy who is inefficient, slow, etc. I would prefer to do it myself.

 

[Waulie]

If there is a knot or twist to the grain, even the best-splitting species can be a real bear by hand. I get some that I simply cannot split by hand. You'll get to the point that after you've look at it and whacked it a few times, you'll know it's just not worth the effort to split that particular round by hand. I stack those occasional rounds and once I have a decent amount, I borrow a hydraulic splitter. If you are able to scrounge enough splittable wood, you could get by renting a splitter once a year (or even once every two years) to take care of those.

I find the species I cut (ash, sugar maple, ironwood, beech) split easier when green.

EDIT: Was the one you couldn't split in the picture on the left, front row left? That round has a large branch-knot and also looks to have a twist to the grain. Sometimes those will surprise you and bust open, but usually not without substantial effort.

 

[timusp40]

Kenny,
I'm in the same boat as you. I posted here a while back about building my stacks and not having a stove or even sure as to when I would have the money to make the purchase. You will get a ton of support from the forum members! They make one feel right at home and if you do get critisism, it's most likely going to be in the form or advise that will only help you make good decisions and help you learn from their past experiences.
Tim

 

[Gark]

Good thing to get your fuel ready first. Nice score - looks like a proper start to what may become a passion. That soreness you get from grunting and splitting wood - I find few things more rewarding than making ready BTU's to heat the home. I suggest an 8-pound splitting maul with fiberglass handle. In no time, you'll learn to 'read' the grain and know how to split the rounds. Knowing where the maul needs to enter the grain is as important as power IMHO.

 

[wishlist]

Kenny, your doing great. I believe most people wait and then realize they have a nice new stove but no seasoned fuel. Keep your eye open especially in spring and summer when most of the tree companys are busy trimming.

I'm not sure on the wood id either but if you can post some pics of split pieces that may help. Also, take a smell of a freshly split piece, many species are easy to identify that way.

 

[toonces]

Hi Everyone,

Yesterday, I scored my first scrounged wood for free off craigslist! This wood was about 10 miles from my house, already cut, but not split. Most logs around 1.5 to 2 feet, but some as big as three feet plus. Made two trips, filling up the back of my minivan twice. Not sure what kind of wood this is (the person who had it didn't know, said she thought it was oak). Man am I sore today - I'm no wimp, but loading some of those big logs alone gave my shoulders a real workout! Feels good

I'm a total newbie, so any help you can offer would be great! How can I figure out what kind of wood? My plan is now to get an axe and to start splitting. I'm about to pick up an never used Ludell axe for $25 on craigslist. I hear the Fiskars are better, so I might get one down the line, but have to order on line and want to start splitting asap. I also see I can hire a local guy with a splitter for $26 an hour. Thoughts? How to best stack and store? Etc.

I still don't have a stove, but am determined to get a setup by next season, and from everything I've read on this site the last few months everyone says to start stocking up on wood, so I'm trying!

Thanks!

Kenny

man, you sound exactly like me! took me almost a week to shake the soreness from my first score and my hand is just recovering from poor splitting technique, but heck if it ain't a great workout. now i'm off to two different scrounges tomorrow. one potentially large one in a lady's backyard so i'm looking to purchase a trailer. and no, i don't have a stove yet either. i had to ask my wife if i was crazy since i purchased a chainsaw, a bunch of log processing tools, and now want a trailer and we don't even have a stove. she said, no, it's all for a good cause. that made me feel better heh heh. good haul!

and yeah, this is an awesome site.

 

[bogydave]

Keep scrounging, Cut/Split/Stacked wood now is next years heat & $$ saved on the heat bill.
Lots of good advice above.

Will you have enough wood?
Answer: never have too much wood
Your addiction is in the beginning stages, quit now or risk calling cutting wood as "a need & fun" You'll never look at a down tree the same again.

Great score

 

[KennyK]

Thanks Everyone - great input. The person who I got the wood from just sent me an email to thank me for taking it and told me where she had more Imagine that I guess I'm off to a good start.

So, a few more questions for now.

1) What do I do about bark? Leave it on? Can I just burn that too?

2) How small do I cut the splits (not length, but width? How much do I split the wood down and how will my split size effect burning?

3) Is it okay to leave the wood uncovered until I get some sort of a shed up? If so, for how long can I get away with this? If not, any tips for a quick shed substitute until I have time to make something better?

4) I have space for about a two cords right near my house without cutting into my driveway. Beyond that, I have a fairly large back yard, but it's a hill and I'd have to go down and further back for more space. I'm not sure what to do about stacking wood further and downhill from my house - seems like it's going to be a pain in the rear to move as this stuff is heavy! Any thoughts? I could always take up more of my driveway as we don't need all the driveway space for now.

Thanks!

Kenny

 

[Jags]

Your doing it all wrong. Your supposed to get your stove installed and then ask "why won't this thing burn" with the wood that you cut and split last week. :lol:

Good job on getting ahead of the learning curve. ;-)

 

[Gunks]

Congrats on your first scrounged wood. From Craig's List nonetheless ). I would suggest that you first try splitting the wood yourself. If it's not your thing then hire somebody or rent a wood splitter. Now that you have your first scrounge you officially are addicted to the "never have enough wood" sickness. But you are in good company.

 

[Waulie]

So, a few more questions for now.

1) What do I do about bark? Leave it on? Can I just burn that too?

2) How small do I cut the splits (not length, but width? How much do I split the wood down and how will my split size effect burning?

3) Is it okay to leave the wood uncovered until I get some sort of a shed up? If so, for how long can I get away with this? If not, any tips for a quick shed substitute until I have time to make something better?

4) I have space for about a two cords right near my house without cutting into my driveway. Beyond that, I have a fairly large back yard, but it’s a hill and I’d have to go down and further back for more space. I’m not sure what to do about stacking wood further and downhill from my house - seems like it’s going to be a pain in the rear to move as this stuff is heavy! Any thoughts? I could always take up more of my driveway as we don’t need all the driveway space for now.

1. Yup, just leave it on and burn it. You'll start to get a mess of chips and bark while splitting. Some folks use bark that comes off as kindling and it does work (if dry) but leads to a lot of ash buildup.

2. Length of splits depends on your stove. Since you don't know what stove you're getting, you might want to cut them to 16" length, which will fit in all but the tiniest of stoves. Having a variaty of split widths is desirable. The maximum width really depends on your firebox size. For now, I would split some smallish (maybe 4 to 5" width) and leave some bigger (maybe 6 to 8"). You can always split them again if you need more small splits, but you will get longer burn times by using as large of splits that will fit nicely in your stove.

3. You can leave your wood uncovered for now. Really, you could leave it uncovered indefinately but that's not what I would recommend. Don't worry about covering it right now, but after a nice long, hot, dry spell in the summer I would cover the top only with something solid (old plywood, old metal roofing, etc.). Keep your eyes open on craigslist for used building materials and you should be able to find something that will work. Tarps can be used if they cover the top only, but frankly they are a real pain to deal with, don't last that long, restrict airflow even if only placed on the top, pool water and snow, etc.

4. You'll definately need to store more than 2 cords. I would fill up the space next to your driveway first since that wood will be driest when your ready to start burning. You can place the rest in the back. If you burn 3 to 4 cords a year, you can just replace the stacks next to the driveway when they are gone. It should just take one or two days of work though it will get your heart pumping hauling wood up the hill in the snow. I have pulled plenty of firewood around on a sled in the winter. It works. What you'll end up with is a rotation where you keep replacing the driveway wood with the driest you have out back.

 

[corey21]

Congrats its a good idea to get ahead.

I a am working to get ahead at least for the next 2 years a lot of work but i have a feeling it is going to pay off.

 

[KennyK]

Hello Everyone,

So, I've been really busy and haven't had a ton of time to split my wood, however, I have managed to hit a few logs with the maul - much better than the axe.

A couple questions:
1) While my maul is much better than my axe, it's not very sharp - how much of a difference does this make? What's the best way to sharpen this?

2) I don't know anything about my maul (came with the house) - it's heavy and has a wooden handle - could it be that purchasing another maul I could get something much better?

3) Some of the wood I scrounged is EXTREMELY difficult to chop. I thought it was me and my lack of experience, but I tried cutting some Norwegian Maple from a tree that fell during Hurricane Irene and the difference was night and day. My maul went right through the Norwegian Maple on the first or second whack. So, what should I do about this very difficult to cut wood? I still am not sure what kind it is. I can tell you that when it splits it is a light white color with some hints of yellow and to me it smells a bit like elmer's glue.

Thanks!

K

 

[ScotO]

WELCOME TO THE ADDICTION! :cheese: From what I can tell by the pics it looks to be silver maple, but can't be sure. It's most likely either that or red maple. get started now, learning the different wood, splitting and stacking techniques, watching for a good deal on a stove and even sometimes class A pipe on both Craigslist and your local classifieds, that is where I bought my Napoleon 1900p for HALF PRICE and it was only one year old! Got my class A pipe for that same stove on ebay for HALF PRICE!! The best thing you could do as an up-and-coming-woodburner is to have joined HEARTH.COM. Great community of people on here, always willing to help you out (and bust yer balls once in a while) ;-P