Im a newbee to this sight and I have to say it is awesome reading all this stuff on here. Heres my question. I just picked up a load of scrap oak cabinet pieces that are about 2 inches wide by 1.5 inches thick. Is it ok to use this as a source of heat for lets say the month of October? Its all obviously kiln dried so the moisture content is like 0%. Will I over fire my wood stove insert? I have access to alot of it if I want. I figured it would be good to give my firewood pile another month of seasoning. If not I have alot of kindling.
scrap cabinet strips for heat
- Thread starter tumm21
- 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
smokinj
Minister of Fire
Its going to burn hot and fast. This is the kinda stuff I like to spike the fire with in those very cold days. If you can control the temps and small fires should not be any reason why it will not work. Other than to hot in the house.
laynes69
Minister of Fire
If your running an EPA stove, use it sparingly. I wouldn't load a firebox full of the stuff for it will burn too hot. Like J says, mixing it will work much better and will help control the fire better. We have burned stuff like that but was limbwood. We would build a hot fire that would burn quick and clean then go out. Works well for the shoulder season.
maxed_out
New Member
tumm21 said:
That stuff will do fine for the purpose stated. That is not really kindling size at all IMHO, it is small split size. I know a lot of folks who split all their wood pretty close to that small, maybe 2x3" or so. Me, I'm a fan of huge splits, but I get the stove real hot first using wood just like you describe. As far as overfiring the stove, you really can't do that if you don't put much in there. As always with wood heating, start on the conservative side and slowly experiment with larger amounts.
BTW that stuff is not even close to 0% MC, even straight out of the kiln. 8% MC is about the lowest you will normally see in kiln-dried furniture-grade hardwood, but unless you store it inside a heated area, it will very quickly equilibrate to a MC that is dependent upon the average relative humidity of the outside air space where it is stored. This is known as the "equilibrium moisture content" (EMC). Outside and under cover in your area, the EMC will be about 12-14% MC depending upon the season - same as firewood seasoned outside for three years or so.
Backwoods Savage
Minister of Fire
Excellent kindling for sure so long as there has been no finish on the wood. Kindling like that can also be used on reloads to help get the new fire off to a quick start.
I guess Im going to try to use it in the mild months just to get the chill out of the house, like the days you make a single fire all day long.
laynes69
Minister of Fire
If the scraps are thrown on a decent coal bed, they may out gas quickly causing a condition that will overfire or push alot of smoke.
Basically a firebox that's running rich on fuel. I wouldn't build a large fire with them, but a small fire that's controllable would be okay.
Basically a firebox that's running rich on fuel. I wouldn't build a large fire with them, but a small fire that's controllable would be okay.
dafattkidd
Minister of Fire
I burn a lot of construction debris. I use it to start fires. I also mix it in with loads of cordwood that are less than seasoned. Having a ton of that stuff on hand will be very helpful to you. Especially if your questioning the moisture in the maple and hickory you'll be burning this year.
- Status
Similar threads
