My btu chart shows Bitternut Hickory as fairly high in btu content. Somebody has several hickory trees he wants down. Are all hickory species good firewood?
Hickory as firewood
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Thistle
Minister of Fire
Yes they are. All pretty much the same,considered among the best there is.
Shagbark,Shellbark,Mockernut,Pignut,Bitternut...it dont matter what you're burning.
Shagbark,Shellbark,Mockernut,Pignut,Bitternut...it dont matter what you're burning.
Jack768
Member
Burned half a cord of shagbark hickory a couple of years ago. Fantastic wood -- burns hot though.
Thistle
Minister of Fire
cptoneleg said:
You got it. I'm hoping to get a few hickory nuts this year too,havent seen many so far,I think its a bit early for them compared to years past.Tough to get the kernels from that hard white shell,but they sure are tasty.
onetracker
Minister of Fire
muncybob said:
yes those messy nuts. unbelievable. free food falling from the sky and we (not us) can't deal with that. some years ago i saw a huge mulberry tree being taken down cuz some tennants were complaining about the fruit falling on their cars. town removing cherry trees cuz they stained the flippin sidewalks. free, organic, plentiful FOOD falling from the sky, and we (not us) want to cut them down cuz they're inconvenient. what planet am i living on?
onetracker
Minister of Fire
LOVe hickory. i'd burn it exclusively if i had the chance.
warped the baffle in my stove it did. someone left the draft open.
warped the baffle in my stove it did. someone left the draft open.
smokinj
Minister of Fire
I've got 1-1/2 cords of shagbark seasoned 2 yrs. which will be going the the stove this winter. I'm sitting here with great expectations as I've never burned this type of wood before.
That shagbark can really pinch you when you are splitting it. The bark gets me every time.
Shari
That shagbark can really pinch you when you are splitting it. The bark gets me every time.
Shari
krex1010
Minister of Fire
I have about 2.5 cords of hickory in my stacks for this year. It's actually the first time I have had a good bit of it, looking forward to burning it this year
I have had my hickory, (not sure what kind but its not shagbark) split and stacked for about 7 months total. The bark is falling right off it at this point. Do you guys feel its seasoned enough to start burning in November or December? I just threw a tarp over the top of it this past weekend. It over hangs about a foot down. If I didnt use it until December, that would be 9 months total with a whole summer part of the 9 months of seasoning. I have about 6 cords of it and Im praying it is O.K. What kind of experience have you guys had with hickory? I know it burns hot.
krex1010
Minister of Fire
tumm21 said:
It may be fine or it may be pretty damp still. Buy a moisture meter and pop open a split and check it out. I'm not real experienced with hickory so I'm not the best one to comment on how fast it dries.
tumm21 said:
What more can we tell ya? Half the answers are from people that have burned it and they say it is great. For what it is worth I stack it right in with the oak in my stacks and it burns the same.
Go get it.
Jack Straw
Minister of Fire
I am fortunate to have quite a few Shagbark Hickory trees in my woods. They are kind of tricky to cut though. They tend to splinter when you cut them down and can be a little dangerous.
Loco Gringo
Feeling the Heat
Too much talk of nuts maybe. From personal exp, hickory is as good as it gets. Just season it, like any thing else.
jimbom
Combustion Analyzer
We use hickory and oak. Both good. Hickory seasons about twice as fast as our oak. I have about sixty gallons of hickory bark that we will try in the stove this year. I am not sure what to expect, but hope it will be good kindling.
I cut up a downed hickory last year , and I will agree, it did seem to season really fast. I was surprised how quickly it dried out. Hurricane Irene uprooted two big hickory trees along my riding trail in my woods. Worked one down to the trunk wood, was a good mature 35- 40 foot tree. Wow lots of nuts this year. The brush I stacked was loaded with nuts, like a bumper crop. I know where the deer will be.JimboM said:
jimbom
Combustion Analyzer
Hickory is dense. If you need the wood this year, check the moisture. You might be surprised. I was surprised at ours.
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