At what point is a limb too small to bother splitting? Generally I'll split anything less than 3", but it seems like a 3"branch dries a lot slower than a 3"proper split. Or am I imagining that?
nola mike said:At what point is a limb too small to bother splitting? Generally I'll split anything less than 3", but it seems like a 3"branch dries a lot slower than a 3"proper split. Or am I imagining that?
cygnus said:Wood doesn't season through bark. If it can stand, I split it. If not, it doesn't go in the pile.
Kenster said:nola mike said:At what point is a limb too small to bother splitting? Generally I'll split anything less than 3", but it seems like a 3"branch dries a lot slower than a 3"proper split. Or am I imagining that?
A three inch round will dry slower than a similar size split because it has a lot less inside surface exposed. A round of any size is going to dry much, much more slowly than the same size split. A split will have at least two inside surfaces exposed, maybe more, so it is going to dry much more quickly.
The question is... is it worth the time to split rounds (branches) that are three inches or less in diameter? I'm not so sure.
I stack them in a separate pile and give them more time to season. With an extra year in the sun they should be great.
lukem said:cygnus said:Wood doesn't season through bark. If it can stand, I split it. If not, it doesn't go in the pile.
A round WILL dry, just no as fast as a split. My rule is that if I can't palm the end, it gets split....so about 5":
cygnus said:Wood doesn't season through bark. If it can stand, I split it. If not, it doesn't go in the pile.
Interesting. Why not?cygnus said:Wood doesn't season through bark. If it can stand, I split it. If not, it doesn't go in the pile.
cygnus said:lukem said:cygnus said:Wood doesn't season through bark. If it can stand, I split it. If not, it doesn't go in the pile.
A round WILL dry, just no as fast as a split. My rule is that if I can't palm the end, it gets split....so about 5":
Yes, it will...but not through the bark to any degree worth considered 'seasoning'.
Kenster said:cygnus said:Wood doesn't season through bark. If it can stand, I split it. If not, it doesn't go in the pile.
Just have to disagree with this. A two or three inch branch will dry out eventually. Possibly as quickly as a six inch split: a couple of years, maybe? Whether is loses any moisture at all through the bark or just through the cut ends, it WILL season and I certainly wouldn't toss it away. But I don't think I'd spend time splitting a two or three inch stick, either.
lukem said:cygnus said:lukem said:cygnus said:Wood doesn't season through bark. If it can stand, I split it. If not, it doesn't go in the pile.
A round WILL dry, just no as fast as a split. My rule is that if I can't palm the end, it gets split....so about 5":
Yes, it will...but not through the bark to any degree worth considered 'seasoning'.
This has not been my experience. Why won't it season thru the bark?
mayhem said:Consider bark more or less waterproof and you've got it.
The more exposed interior wood, the faster the piece will season. If you leave it as a round it won't season through the bark, but it will season thruogh the ends...takes longer.
Think os taking a wet sponge and you wrap it in saran wrap nice and tight except you leave the ends exposed to the air. The ends will dry pretty quickly, but the middle will remain wet for a long time. Some of the moisture in the middle will keep seeping into the dry ends and eventually the whole sponge will be dry.
If you split in half, you just increased the surface aera of heartwood exposed to the air where the water trapped can evaporate.
Take the same sponge, still wrapped in saran wrap. Cut it in quarters the long way and see how long all that water lasts.
Back to the original question. If I can palm the wood, I don't bother splitting it. Usually this works out to about 3-4" diameter. yes the unsplit stuff isn't as seasoned as the split stuff, but frankly I don't care. I alerady don't have enough time to get my firewood ready so any piece that i can NOT split if saving me time for the real firewood that actually does need it.
lukem said:cygnus said:Wood doesn't season through bark. If it can stand, I split it. If not, it doesn't go in the pile.
A round WILL dry, just no as fast as a split. My rule is that if I can't palm the end, it gets split....so about 5":
cygnus said:lukem said:cygnus said:Wood doesn't season through bark. If it can stand, I split it. If not, it doesn't go in the pile.
A round WILL dry, just no as fast as a split. My rule is that if I can't palm the end, it gets split....so about 5":
Yes, it will...but not through the bark to any degree worth considered 'seasoning'. And, the smaller the round, the smaller the % of surface area exposed for water to escape. For example, a 2" round has about 8% of it's surface area exposed for seasoning at the two ends. A 6" round has 20%.
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