Oak - another newbie moisture question...

Hi folks,

I've found a regular supply of dimensional oak that is 3"x4"x8' lengths. It's not a huge supply of wood, but about a half a truck load per month....still I'm happy with the find

Now, I've noticed that the oak is quite smelly. There is no natural growing oak in my area, but I assume the smell is simply the smell of wet (green) oak. There is no sign of any coating on the wood. FYI - the wood was used as racking to transport 2500# rolls of Polyproplene film.

Today I deiced to buy a MM and split some of the peices to take a reading. 2 of 3 peices measured 21% and one measured 22%. The fresh split faces appear dry and only very slightly damp. When I put my nose to the fresh split, I get more of that fresh wood smell...I think. When I knock the peices together they do make a bright clanking sound, not quite like a bowling alley, but far from a dead sounding thud.

2 questions:
Is the smell normal for under seasoned oak?
Is 22% oak burnable?

I live in a big city with very little access to wood and a small amount of storage space, so I'm very motivated to burn this wood if it's not too bad.
Considering moving the wood indoors for a week or two before burning...being that it doesn't have any bark, I assume it will be less problematic in the house...

Thanks!

Sounds like dunnage used when hauling heavy machinery,various building material like rebar,structural steel,plywood & construction lumber etc.on flatbed trucks/semi trailers.

Havent done it lately but I used to bring home 3-4 truckloads worth every year from local job sites I worked at.Nice mix really,bit of everything all rough sawn & varying degrees of dryness - some bone dry some green as can be.Some locally sawed,others shipped in with the load.Red/White Oak,Cottonwood,Soft/Hard Maple,Hickory,White Ash,Doug Fir & a couple Pines including Southern Yellow.

Even the occasional stick of lower grade Black Cherry & Black Walnut.Back in summer 2007 one load contained about 50 lineal feet of super-dry Black Cherry.Few knots & defects,but still ended up with a bunch of blocks for the wood lathe,most of them I still have.

22% is burnable
From the center of s fresh split?

Smells like wood, that's ok too.

Correct. Reading from the center of a fresh split with the probes parallel to the grain.

I threw a couple pieces (3" x 4" x 20") onto the fire today. Seems OK. It was definitely slower starting than my 15% spruce and fir, but it stayed lit and didn't smolder. I couldn't see the ends clearly so not sure if any water was boiling off.

22% in the middle should be OK.

That sounds pretty good to me. Drier would be ideal, but that stuff should burn without any problems.

Oak can be pretty aromatic even when dry. I don't think smell is an indication it isn't burnable.

It would be ideal to wait another year as you would certainly notice a nice difference. However, if you need the wood, mix it with some of that spruce and you should be okay. That is a great find and if you can get more, get it!