question about wood drying

[sappy]

I will be running a new woodstock soapstone fireview this fall. My question is that where this is first year burning I am setting aside wood for the next winter. I however have to buy some for this year. A relative of mine is selling me around 4 cords of maple and some beech which is still in log lenghts since early last fall. He says it has dried out some. I have a very windy and sunny location. Will this be dried enough to use in october in vermont?
I had planned on buying 1 year old dry but is very hard to come by here. Most sell it green, at least this has been cut for 6 months or better albeit logs.

 

[begreen]

You should be able to buy "seasoned" wood in VT. That doesn't mean it will be really well seasoned, but at least it will be on its way. Get it stacked and oriented correctly to allow maximum drying and it should be ok to burn in Oct. unless you end up having a wet summer (or have a well ventilated shed). If you want to go for your relative's wood, the same rules apply, but you need to get it cut, split and stacked right now.

 

[sappy]

Most of the seasoned wood around here is a matter of definition. This wood I am told is still in log lenghth but getting pretty dry. In my day dry was dry, which meant a year cut split and stacked. The price is good from my wifes couisin who sells wood also as part of his landscape business. He is going to split it within the next week and get it to me and I will have it piled in the open with just tin on top rite fast. Just wondering if I should hold out for something differnt. There is not anyone I know of who has dry just kiln dry and it is 325 a cord.just saying

 

[fossil]

If it's still in log lengths, it's basically mostly still green. Get it bucked, split & stacked and measure the moisture content. Probably gonna need some time...like a year, maybe. With some luck, some of the stuff near the ends of the logs might season before next fall. Split it on the small side to give it the best chance. Rick

 

[fire_man]

Sappy:

I could tell you for sure burning maple and birch still in Log lengths from last fall would not work for me. My wood needs to be split and stacked for at least 2 full years for the Fireview to burn well. The first year that I burned two year old c/s/s wood it was like I had a bigger, better stove. Every split lit quick, zero coaling problems, much longer high temp burns. I almost returned this stove after the first year, but it simply needed two full years of seasoned wood to behave.

I live on a shady, wooded lot so drying is not ideal. Perhaps your location is better, but I would definitely split small to speed the drying at least for the first year. Don't ever under estimate the wonders of properly seasoned wood!

 

[Jeb1heat]

Agreed. Definitely cut and split as soon as you can. Sooner the better. Try to keep it in the sunniest/windiest location you can. I've had maple that has been sun bleached and dried out very quickly. Stack with some air-flow between the splits for best results. I'm not sure about the beech, but maple does not take nearly as long as some oak species, so you may be A-OK with 6-8 months for this first go around.

Good luck.

 

[sappy]

Thanks all I will have to find some dried and like quick I guess. Have looked in all papers around here and internet and most consider seasoned to have been harvested 6 months to a year ago and still in log lentgh. I may have to buy some ultra-expensive kiln-dried.

 

[oldspark]

Buy a cheap MM and check the wood for moisture, saying the wood needs XXX long to burn depends on many varibles, not everyone stacks their wood the same or has the same weather conditions. You should not have to buy some ultra-expensive kiln-dried wood, just take your time to learn what you need to do and you will be fine.

 

[FWWARDEN]

If you're within a couple towns of me, PM me for a guy here that sells cords CSS for a very reasonable price. I cut my own, but my friends use this guy with no probs.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Sappy, don't you have some of that wood left over from making syrup?

If you have to burn that stuff that has been in log lengths, try to split it small, stack it loose and make sure the wind hits the sides of the stack. If it is in the sun along with the wind, so much the better. I would not cover the tops unless you have lots of rain this summer. I still believe leaving the tops uncovered allows for faster evaporation of the moisture and we do not cover until just before snowfall. Good luck.

 

[sappy]

Yea Dennis, I prob do have some stuff I could cup in half at the sugarhouse, but most is sot wood. How does this stove that I am getting do if the wood is not as dry as should be? This was not my intention as I am putting away wood as we speak for 2012 2013 now. It is just most folks seem to sell mostly green wood. This is my only year that I will be going through this as I will be doing logs after this.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Sappy, get the wood as dry as you can but when you load the stove, don't pay too much attention to the 10-15 minute rule; go longer before engaging the cat. Doing this, also make sure you get another thermometer from Woodstock and put it on your flue. Don't let that one go over 500 degrees while you are evaporating that moisture.

But don't forget too that the stove temperature will go up faster if you don't have that draft open full (I'm talking a cold stove here). So with a cold stove you may have to run the draft at 2 for some time to warm the stove.

I'll be curious how the steel cats handle your wood and I'm told it should be much better than the ceramic cats. We may get a steel cat before fall.

 

[MarkinNC]

At least you did not wait until fall like I did last year. Fortunately a friend had a pretty dead beech tree that seasoned real fast. Personally, based on the maple I cut last fall and the beech I cut this spring, I think you will be OK in the fall. Put any oak, even standing dead, aside for the following year. I took down a number of dead oaks last year and only the tops were usable. Like everybody said, get everything C/S/S as soon as possible.