season before splitting?

[ryjen]

I've seen a few pictures around here of folks with very nice stacks of split wood. In some cases, these stacks are accompanied by stacks of rounds, yet to be split. Is there an advantage to stacking and seasoning rounds before splitting, or is it that the pictures I'm seeing are from folks who are so far ahead they don't need to split it right away??

 

[Jags]

No advantage. The quicker you get those rounds split up - the quicker the drying process begins. "In the Round" doesn't really count as seasoning.

 

[gzecc]

Unless the rounds are < 3-5 inches this is storage, waiting to be split.

 

[bigbarf48]

Probably most of those pics are rounds waiting to be split. Wood doesnt season in the round. SOME wood splits easier after its been sitting around a while, but I always split my wood as soon as I can to get the drying process started

 

[8686]

I didn't know this when I stacked my wood. Now I have a big project on my hands! I wonder if oak is easier to split green. I stacked my rounds in sept last year and many of them have cracks in them. Gotta start choppin!

 

[ryjen]

Thanks for the replies. I'm a little bummed though. Those rounds looked very nice stacked up.

 

[Jags]

The will look even better as usable splits.

 

[gzecc]

Thanks for the replies. I'm a little bummed though. Those rounds looked very nice stacked up.

They do look nice as a wall.

 

[razerface]

I didn't know this when I stacked my wood. Now I have a big project on my hands! I wonder if oak is easier to split green. I stacked my rounds in sept last year and many of them have cracks in them. Gotta start choppin!

It is drying in the round form too. It takes longer then it would if it was split,,,but it is drying faster then if it was a log. Trees dry while they are standing in 1 piece when they are dead,,,so your rounds are slowly seasoning too.

 

[8686]

When they are split up does the pile reduce in size or grow? Assuming you stack them all facing the same way.

 

[razerface]

When they are split up does the pile reduce in size or grow? Assuming you stack them all facing the same way.

first it will grow since there will be air spaces between splits that did not exist in the rounds,,, then it will shrink due to loosing water and drying up.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I didn't know this when I stacked my wood. Now I have a big project on my hands! I wonder if oak is easier to split green. I stacked my rounds in sept last year and many of them have cracks in them. Gotta start choppin!

Pretty much all wood is easier to split green.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I didn't know this when I stacked my wood. Now I have a big project on my hands! I wonder if oak is easier to split green. I stacked my rounds in sept last year and many of them have cracks in them. Gotta start choppin!

When you see the cracks in the ends of the rounds this tells you only one thing; the ends are drying. It says nothing about the interior and usually that will still be high moisture. It is only natural that the exposed ends would dry first.

 

[BobUrban]

when you get 3-5yrs ahead you can leave big piles of rounds laying around for a year or two - or just until you get around to splitting them but if you are hoping to burn them next fall ya better get chopping.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

We usually cut in the winter and just loosely stack the rounds. After snow melt we then split. After that, we stack. But, as we are splitting we find that most of the round will be cracked on the ends. It is just natural drying. However, the drying is only on the ends and that is why we split, so that the interior of the logs dry out too.

 

[STIHLY DAN]

Wood I get in the summer will sit in the round until winter. Everything splits easier frozen, something to do during the winter blah's, and burn of some of those holiday lb's. Plus no bugs or sun burns. Didn't work out the greatest this year as we had a good rain after the 1st snowfall, then the winter freeze hit. It was more work getting the round out of the ice than splitting it. But its all split waiting for the thaw to stack. If I stack now on the frozen ground, the stacks will surely fall at some point in the summer as the ground settles.

 

[Rickb]

I will say this... On oak and maple I have split it splits a lot easier if I buck it and let it sit for a week. If I try to split as soon as I buck it, it seems much more difficult.


Just my experience.

 

[CenterTree]

Those rounds looked very nice stacked up.

The will look even better as usable splits.

And they will look their BEST fully dried and inside the stove.