I'll call you on that. That would mean that you have to stack the wood (not just throw it in) so that it is exactly 4' high. That's more than double the height of the normal sides. If you just tossed it in, the middle would be over 8' high to allow for the pile being even with the sides without falling out. OK, if you can do it, post a photo and I'll give you the trophy.
How much wood is this?
- Thread starter Dmitry
- Start date
-
Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.
We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.
We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
- Status
Thrown vs stacked makes a huge difference... Tightly stacked rounds makes a huge difference as well.
Call me on what? Getting .9 cords of rounds into my short bed or being possible to get a full cord of splits into a standard bed?
If it's the former would you like to see a picture? I just checked and have 2 different pictures of different loads (1 Silver maple, 1 oak) saved in my phone, 4 rows, 22" cut length, rounds stacked up well over a foot above cab-line using a little strategic stacking.
If it's the latter, what truck bed dimensions are you using and how are you doing the math? The only way I'm getting 4 feet high stacked square is if you're using a small truck bed (Dodge Dakota etc). Most full-size truck beds fall around 65" inside width (including mine) and 8 feet long. Doing the math gives a bit less than 3 foot height required (2.95 feet to be exact); factor in lost volume at the wheel wells and we'll call it 3 feet high flat-topped stack inside the confines of the bed. Most beds are 19-20 inches deep, and it wouldn't be unreasonable for wood to stick up a few inches higher than the side of the bed, so we'll say wood could be stacked 2 feet deep at the edges... that's 2/3 of a cord stacked flat just a few inches above the side of the bed. Very simple math tells us that stacking the rest in a standard triangular solid stack would mean the peak of the overall stack would be 4 feet high, tapering down to the 2 foot high sides.
How is that impossible?
FWIW, NONE of these figures even take into account that the tailgate can be dropped to gain an additional 18" of bed length... That's how I stack my short bed truck full of .9 cords of rounds. Tailgate dropped my 4th row of wood is half in the bed, half on the tailgate; I don't usually stack the 4th row quite as high as the rest because of that but the picture of my load of Oak the tallest row is the back one.
And before you ask, I've never lost a round when stacked like this and I've driven as far as 30 miles with wood stacked like that...
2broke2ride
Burning Hunk
How much wood is this?......... I say overloaded [emoji106][emoji2][emoji108] lol
Yes it is a bunch of wood. Pretty common requirement for older OWB. My unit is set up exceptionally well with minimal heat losses too. The Woodmaster 5500 will do 10,000 SQ FT and has multiple building hook ups so I can do a lot with it but that takes a lot of wood too which I have acreage and 80% of it is heavily wooded. I have the wood pretty much just maintaining standing dead and downed trees etc; around here. It is the time to spend processing wood that I lack.
What I heat with my P68 is the 2,350 SQ FT two level main core of my place. All said and done the house is just over 4,000 SQ FT. TOO DAMN BIG! I am a design build contractor so it was easy and not costly for me to get little carried away. Once all the kids fly the coup or I boot them out we will be down sizing but that won't happen for some time. Oldest is in 7th grade.
The house has high vaulted ceilings, tons of windows and glass doors which doesn't help a bit except for some slight solar gain otherwise useless on cold overcast days. I have a timber frame type place. Pretty open plan except bedroom areas. The windows and doors are all new (2005) and the envelope is tight and well insulated. R-19 exterior walls at minimum.
With the OWB I do radiant floors = (great stuff and very efficient but expensive to do) along with it tied into my central HVAC forced air system. I heat my garages, domestic water heater, wood shop, and my pole barn. So all in all I heat a boat load with the OWB on that cord wood. In the grand scheme I am doing the equivalent of a few homes all said and done so the 8 - 10 cords is not out of line really. Just a bunch of wood to process non-stop.
Even if I went all wood stoves throughout I doubt my cord wood needs would dwindle much. I did sort of compartmentalize this place when I built it and / or added on so I can do without heat in some areas. This is where I am at and why i also picked up a PC45 for another area which I am still not firing it up much at all overall as i just haven't had the need. Last season (my 1st w/ the P68) which was a nasty long and cold winter I used 7 tons of pellets doing the 2,350 two level main core. That also semi heated a somewhat closed off adjacent 400 SQ FT. So, not too bad but not great either.
I am always looking for ways to improve and just roll with the hits. I am wanting to start using another area so I am thinking about a new wood stove with maybe a few cords per season to heat for that and then shuffling the PC 45 to another location. At certain times and temps it is just best to fire up the Pig 5500. I have some things figured out but still clueless on others at this point.
CountryBoy19,
I'd love to see a picture of a full size short bed with a cord of wood in it so fire out those pictures. Anything is possible if you try hard enough.
As for me, I prefer to be more of a non-truck bed stacking slacker and just throw in an 8 foot bed full which if I get it heaped up some it stacks out to face cord or 1/3 of a true cord. Just me, but I would find it highly difficult to get a full cord of wood into a full size 8 foot long bed stacked no matter how tight and fancy it is.
I'd love to see a picture of a full size short bed with a cord of wood in it so fire out those pictures. Anything is possible if you try hard enough.
As for me, I prefer to be more of a non-truck bed stacking slacker and just throw in an 8 foot bed full which if I get it heaped up some it stacks out to face cord or 1/3 of a true cord. Just me, but I would find it highly difficult to get a full cord of wood into a full size 8 foot long bed stacked no matter how tight and fancy it is.
A fullsized truck bed is 4x8...but only between the wheel wells. I've heard the "youd have to stack 4 feet high for a full cord" before and it just isn't true. I've never done it in my truck (without sidesc that is), but that's only because its easier to build sides than to neatly stack that much wood just too transport it.
I'll see if I can figure out how to get a picture on here but I might have to email it to somebody instead, any takers?
That being said, based upon your response, I believe you're expecting a picture of a short-bed truck loaded with a full cord of splits but if you read my responses I never claimed such a thing. I can happily show you a shortbed (with tailgate down) holding .9 cords of unsplit rounds (obviously stacked very neatly). Not only did I never claim you could get a full cord of splits in a short-bed but I will agree that it can't be done without sides.
That's exactly the point I'm making... you don't see people putting a full cord in a truck bed without sides because it's impractical to neatly stack it all to get it to fit; it's just easier to build sides and toss it in. But that doesn't mean it isn't possible. Only point I'm making is that it's possible... and I'm not stacking a truckbed full of split wood just to prove it for 2 reasons, #1 It's a waste of my time to "win" an internet pissing match, and #2 I don't have a long-bed truck to use.
~.9 Cords of unsplit Oak (might be a bit of hickory there at the back but I can't recall for sure what that was) rounds...
~.9 cords Silver maple... I quit cutting on this tree once the wood got over 3 feet diameter... the 5 foot diameter main trunk is still there in that guy's yard almost 2 years later...
6500 lb load (2 pallets of solid concrete landscape blocks, several sheets of OSB, and quite a bit of other supplies and lumber tucked beside the pallets)
~.9 cords Silver maple... I quit cutting on this tree once the wood got over 3 feet diameter... the 5 foot diameter main trunk is still there in that guy's yard almost 2 years later...
6500 lb load (2 pallets of solid concrete landscape blocks, several sheets of OSB, and quite a bit of other supplies and lumber tucked beside the pallets)
Attachments
Last edited:
My 1/2 ton Dodge had a box that was eight feet long and just a tad over four feet wide. Sides about 18" high. That would leave two and a half feet of unsupported wood above the sides. First cop would have me off the road with a ticket for unsafe load....
Rounds, when split, expand the same amount of wood to fill a larger volume. About 10%, according to university tests.
50's or 60's trucks aren't really applicable... and those older trucks are the only beds I know of that have beds that narrow...
Even Dodge Dakota beds are wider than that (most are 57")
I stack the wood, not throw it. When the wood is stacked it all "locks" together. I've never lost a piece and I've only ever had it shift 1 time to where a piece was touching the window (but not putting a lot of pressure on it).How do you keep your rear cab window in your truck?
I'll be resuming cutting wood after the first of the year, I'll try to remember to take a picture of the gap between the wood and the window.
- Status
