Second scrounge, first for next year. At the end of the driveway!

After our first winter in the new house burning wood that was probably a bit too green, I've started scrounging for next year.

The local power company was clearing out a section of woods at the end of our 1/4 mile gravel driveway. A few decent size logs were cut and stacked by the road. After 24 hours, they were mine!



Loaded the Jeep down to the bump stops and took it to the woods. Let the insanity begin!

--Andy

Got a little locust there Andy. Something else, bradford pear maybe?

Rule of thumb around here is to assume it's poplar until proven otherwise. I have about a half cord of the damned wet, stringy, tough stuff drying out so it can be split this fall. It's free, but damn it's a pain.

Thanks for the tips though. No clue what it could be.

--Andy

I'm with LG. I definately see black locust there, and that has to be some kind of ornamental pear. Either way, a nice scrounge, considering you didn't have to go anywhere to get it!

I wonder what that one with the crack is, on top of the pile? Was that lying on the ground? The bark and sapwood looks like it's about gone. It would be nice if that was some Red Oak...

That Black Locust will burn about twice as long as Poplar. :coolsmirk:

Good scrounging
Some good BTUs there

Nice score! The closer to home the better.

Be careful handling the one on the right - poison ivy

Hey Andy, aim to be 2-3 years ahead on the wood. That is, cut, split and stacked. You will never be sorry and will be amazed at the difference. Another benefit is that you will actually use less wood and get more heat.

Now about this drying out so it can be split this fall.... Why? Wood will split easiest when it is green. In addition to that, if you wait until fall to split you might as well have waited also for the cutting as wood won't dry much until it is split. Some folks get confused when they see some cracking on the ends of the wood but all that shows is that the wood has dried on the ends....but not in the center. Get that grain exposed to the air so it will dry! Good luck.

24 hours?? What took ya so long?? ;-P

Hey Andy, aim to be 2-3 years ahead on the wood. That is, cut, split and stacked. You will never be sorry and will be amazed at the difference. Another benefit is that you will actually use less wood and get more heat.
Now about this drying out so it can be split this fall…. Why? Wood will split easiest when it is green. In addition to that, if you wait until fall to split you might as well have waited also for the cutting as wood won’t dry much until it is split. Some folks get confused when they see some cracking on the ends of the wood but all that shows is that the wood has dried on the ends….but not in the center. Get that grain exposed to the air so it will dry! Good luck.

#1 on what Dennis says about splitting it now. Listen to anything Dennis says about drying and burning wood. Get it split and stacked outside. Sun is good, wind is even better. Nice score. If you plan on burning it next year, that is short drying time for that wood, the smaller you split it the faster it will dry. A little more work, but you can drink a beer while you do it. Hydraulics are nice. I borrow the neighbors wood splitter once a year, or you can rent one cheap enough. I try to get a bunch of wood together and split it all in one or two days.