seasoned vs green

[wvwoodchuck]

Ok, this is probably a really dumb question. Which is better to burn in a outdoor boiler? This is my first season with the outdoor stove. I know its better to burn seasoned in a stove indoors (which we had done for years), but does it matter with the OWB? Will it burn less with seasoned? (I think I saw that post somewhere over in the wood shed)

Thanks.

 

[oldspark]

You have to get the moisture out of the wood before it burns well, best to do it in the elements and not the stove, green wood does not give off the btu's that dry wood will.

 

[benjamin]

That's not a dumb question, but it is an extremely simple one and wood burning can get pretty complicated, especially on here.

Some people like to use unsplit rounds that aren't dry enough because they will last longer, meaning one piece of wood will still be burning more hours later than if it was loaded with dry split wood. The issue is not the amount of heat produced, the issue is keeping the fire going for the longest time with the least wood and least attention.

I can't say whether that is true or not, but it is obviously inefficient compared to burning a hot fire and letting it die out, which is why this "boiler room" is so big on storage etc.

You'll have to figure out for yourself if you want to keep the fire going all winter, or build small hot fires and constantly maintain them, or big hot fires and hope there are coals left when you want them.

The typical "control scheme" for an OWB is an aquastat that turns on the combustion blower when the water gets cold, assuming there is a constant smoldering fire in the boiler. It would be a simple improvement to alter the controls so that the blower shuts off when the fire is down to coals, and you control the heat by how big of a fire you build, not very convenient though.

 

[Singed Eyebrows]

Thats much of the reason OWB's are being outlawed. Green wood smouldering instead of burning hot & clean. Wisconsin is developing some tough standards for woodburning & the smoke dragons aren't going to make it. I don't know how close you are to your neighbors, my vote is for the dry wood in any case, Randy

 

[wvwoodchuck]

Thanks everyone. I'm about 300 yds from my neighbor. Mine too has a combustion blower that turns on when the aquastat tells it. I've had some green pieces in there, but right now I've been loading it with dry and getting pretty good burn times. Although, we've been having pretty decent weather here so far.