I have a bunch of wood that was cut down in April/May, and split in June. It is ash and siilver maple. Both of which i thought dried rather quickly. The moisture content is somwhere around 20-25% on a fresh split. I had a fire last night with this wood, and was running only 2 or 3 sm/med splits at a time with the stove temperature near the door 475-510 with this wood. I never really got a strong secondary, and had the air prob about 3/4 closed. My question is, if the temps are still getting high, is this wood really that bad to burn? Will it still produce more creosote than dryer wood even though the temp is rather high? Also, would this cause glaze type creosote compared to more flaky ash (not really sure how the glaze forms). Am I asking for trouble burning this wood this year, even though it doesn't seem to burn all that bad?
Semi Seasoned wood... burning hot
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Did you split it in the spring or are you just now splitting it?..if you split it in the spring, I think you would be OK burning that wood, but you won't get the heat out of it that you would if it were closer to 12 to 15 percent moisture.....ash always seems to hold the moisture for a long time, and it was a wet summer and early fall here in central PA, heck most of my wood is probably around 18 to 20% and it has been seasoned, split AND covered for years.....just keep an eye on your flue and open the draft up a little more if you feel the need to....you will have to adjust your burning habits with wood that has a higher moisture content.....
Hass said:
it always seems to take longer for it to reach a low water content for me......it burns easier at 25 percent than oak, but seems to take longer to dry out.....maybe because it is at the back of the stack, down near the creek bank.....lol....
colebrookman
Minister of Fire
Chris around here Ash is the go to wood when you run out or need wood to burn fast. From your temps it sure looks okay. Should not be any problem. That said it's always prudent to burn hot at first then reduce to keep the chimney clean. Also never hurts to periodically check the chimney to see how well you're burning. Be safe.
Ed
Ed
I will definitely be watching the chimney. Creosote build up scares me (only my second season) so I will probably clean it around christmas. I cleaned it last weekend with the soot eater and got about 3 cups of black powder out. I burnt about 3/4 cord last year since we got the stove in late Dec and did not have a large wood supply. As long as the 2 cord I scrounged in the spring burns ok plus the 3/4 cord from the father in law, i think we will not be limited this year!
I am burning a bunch of birch and cottonwood that I cut and split this summer. It's dry enough that I can light the stove with no kindling.
Backwoods Savage
Minister of Fire
chris2879 said:
I suggest you burn the silver maple until January and then switch to the ash because the ash will give you longer fires. Silver maple in late fall to early winter works well and even during the cold months you can burn the maple during the daylight hours.
MarkinNC
Minister of Fire
It sounds like it is working well for you. One of the more in depth posters posted a government study (IIRC) about wood burning. One of the conclusions was that creosote formation occurs when burning at low temperatures. At the time I thought those old stack thermometers were probably right. Don't run smoldering fires and you will be fine. One night when I had nothing better to do I went to a number of stove makers websites and read the owners manuals about wood. there was a little variability but most said if ti is cut and stacked for 6-9 months you will be fine. Some did recommend a full year.
I am not sure how far you are into this. Last year was my first year. What I can tell so far this year is that wood seasoned a full year (but less than 2 years) ignites more easily, and burns longer with more secondary combustion. It also requires less air than it did last year.
I am not sure how far you are into this. Last year was my first year. What I can tell so far this year is that wood seasoned a full year (but less than 2 years) ignites more easily, and burns longer with more secondary combustion. It also requires less air than it did last year.
So many varibles its hard to put numbers on the drying wood time line, where you live, how you stack it, type of wood, what time of year it is so on and so on, that is why for many of the new people and some with limited storage space can use the MM (yes they are not perfect) to give them an idea where they are at with their wood.
Backwoods Savage
Minister of Fire
Markin, one has to remember that stove manufacturers are like many other businesses. They don't put much research into their manuals and old things just get passed on and on and most folks tend to believe them. However, in our 50+ years of burning wood we have found that things indeed do change with stove improvements. Also on the 6-9 months of drying the wood, that indeed can work if you are in the right climate and cut the right wood. However, cut some red or white oak and let it dry for 6 months out in the PNW or the east where they get lots and lots of rain and you can have some big time problems. Even where we are, it is not considered a wet climate, we always hesitate to burn oak before it has dried for 3 years. Sure, we can burn it sooner but that extra year makes a tremendous difference. In addition to that, I always hesitate to burn any wood that has not been split and stacked a minimum of a year.
Also notice that, "there was a little variability but most said if ti is cut and stacked for 6-9 months you will be fine." Notice they did not mention splitting the wood! Stack that wood in the rounds and I can just about guarantee the wood will not be ready to burn. This is just one more example that you can not always believe what the printed word says.
Also notice that, "there was a little variability but most said if ti is cut and stacked for 6-9 months you will be fine." Notice they did not mention splitting the wood! Stack that wood in the rounds and I can just about guarantee the wood will not be ready to burn. This is just one more example that you can not always believe what the printed word says.
Backwoods Savage
Minister of Fire
colebrookman
Minister of Fire
No big deal. If your stove glass is all messed up after one or two burns either buy drier wood or stop letting it smolder. Check your chimney when in doubt, if the inside looks shiny, black and crusty you have creosote and a problem. Be safe.
Ed
Ed
logger
Minister of Fire
Those woods season fast.. you're good to go. If they werent seasoned, theyd burn like crap, give little heat, and smoke a bunch. I agree w Backwoods... burn the maple 1st.
MarkinNC
Minister of Fire
Backwoods Savage said:
I don't know about the manuals. I'll have to ask the BK VP about that as well as his position on MC. I suspect they do a fair amount of research. I accidentally omitted the split from my statement. My basic point is that the wood should work and indeed seems to be working. If stoves did not work with wood that has been seasoned less than a full year, there would probably be less wood burners out there. I have one year seasoned red and white oak that seems to be burning VERY well (It's actually a little over a year CSS).
However, I agree with you that longer is better and I very much look forward to using wood that has been seasoned two full years and then three. One has to start somewhere. I think we all learn to get well ahead on our wood on this forum. Certain posters are known for emphasizing this
My biggest problem with less than seasoned wood is that is turns to coals way before it gives up all of it's heat. That's not bad this time of year. Right now, my Summit is cruising along at 250 degrees on a pile of coals and the living room is 73. However, in January, I want flames or ashes.
Backwoods Savage said:
Agreed 100% Dennis......I try and tell people that all the time, that you gotta split it (preferably as soon as you cut it), and it will dry much faster......if you leave big wood in rounds, it won't dry for years and years....I always split mine when I cut it down..we do a lot of tree removal on the side and let me tell you it is much easier to split that big stuff on the jobsite anyway.....when you get it home all you have to do is stack it and cover it.....
MarkinNC said:I don't know about the manuals. I'll have to ask the BK VP about that as well as his position on MC. I suspect they do a fair amount of research. I accidentally omitted the split from my statement. My basic point is that the wood should work and indeed seems to be working. If stoves did not work with wood that has been seasoned less than a full year, there would probably be less wood burners out there. I have one year seasoned red and white oak that seems to be burning VERY well (It's actually a little over a year CSS).
However, I agree with you that longer is better and I very much look forward to using wood that has been seasoned two full years and then three. One has to start somewhere. I think we all learn to get well ahead on our wood on this forum. Certain posters are known for emphasizing this
you are right, you gotta start somewhere, and sometimes the best way to do it is try what works for you.......like some others have said on here, if the wood burns crappy, smokes alot, and is sizzling in the fire, it's too wet.....when I started out years ago we had a learning curve too.....now we have three years of wood split and stacked, but with all the rain we've had for the last several months some of it can't be used for a while.....so weather, climate, etc...has a big effect on your drying times....you'll be fine, just keep an eye on your flue pipe.....just for my own piece of mind I cleaned mine out every month or so the first year we heated exclusively with wood.....now I check it around every two to three months.....plus the extra cleanings keep 'mum' happy and off my back....lol
firefighterjake
Minister of Fire
chris2879 said:
My opinion . . . you're not doing bad . . . wait until temps get even cooler as this will affect the draft . . . temps sound pretty decent . . . I would probably still check your chimney as you mentioned just to keep an eye on things.
Truthfully . . . we all start somewhere and you're probably ahead of many newbies when it comes to burning the wood you have . . . I know in my first year I was in a similar situation to you . . . kept the place warm, eventually had some decent secondary action . . . although the first part is the most important part . . . well that and the burn was relatively clean . . . kept a close eye on the chimney . . . thought I did great . . . until Year 2 when I burned some truly seasoned wood and then saw just what my stove was truly capable of doing . . . very intense secondaries and heat . . . in the following year you may see a whole "new" stove and realize that you did fine the first year, but excellent in the second.
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