Spruce OK to burn?

[mayhem]

Got a potential local score for a 3 year felled spruce and 2 month felled white pine. Worth it or move on?

 

[hookspacken]

Free wood is always worth it. It may not be oak or locust, but it is free and it burns!

 

[jqgs214]

here here!

 

[jpl1nh]

YES, WORTH IT! Not long burn in the middle of the winter wood, but burns, fast, hot and good for quick warm ups or as igniter for harder woods in a load.

 

[eba1225]

Yes worth it, just make sure that you allow it to season.

 

[DiscoInferno]

Got a potential local score for a 3 year felled spruce and 2 month felled white pine. Worth it or move on?

Meaning it's been on the ground for 3 years? Might not be in very good shape. The white pine should be OK, anyway.

 

[wg_bent]

Free, yes. get it.

 

[Jimbob]

We've burnt LOTS of Spruce & Pine, there's nothing wrong with it, except for a shorter burn time.
Definitely go for it.

 

[JohnnyBravo]

thats all we use out at my buddies cabin. its free. you are allowed to cut standing dead on crown land up here. all you need is a 5 dollar permit from the gas station.
driven by tons of wardens with truck loads of the stuff never been stoped. we get some pretty good heat from it. waste a lot on a wood fired sauna.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

It's coaling in the stove now... Actually, I'm not sure what kind of pine is in there. It was free except for gas for my truck.

MAtt

 

[mayhem]

Just got another line on a potential score. Box elder and maple from my wife's aunt's sister. Apparently they have a couple acres that overgrows with hardwood and hasn't been thinned out in about 5 years.

Reportedly a large pile of box elder already cut, split, seasoned and I'd be doing them a favor by taking it for free.

Woo hoo!

 

[fayman]

It cracks me up that all of these snobs I hear about won't touch a piece of pine. Yeah, it'll burn shorter and hotter, won't leave a nice bed of coals, etc...

But the last time I checked, pine still burned better than nothing at all......and it's free, no less!

Burn it, be warm, laugh all your way to a nice warm house.......and clean your pipe a little more often (it's not ALL positive).

 

[pistonslap]

Mayhem,
Let me know how that boxelder burns. I have about a cord that I cut last August and tried to burn in Feb. when I ran low on wood. It was hard to keep lit and didn't throw much heat. I am going to save it until the end of this season to see how it burns with 1 1/2 years under it's belt.

 

[northcountry]

I haven't burned much pine - I've always used it as kindling, but never as a primary wood.
Don't you see more chimney soot from it, or does a high efficiency stove mitigate that?

 

[Todd]

I don't like pine because of the sap. But if you have to burn what's available. I burned some Boxelder this year and it burned fine for me, similar to soft Maple or poplar.

 

[Gooserider]

As long as it's properly seasoned, and that is a MAJOR requirement, a modern stove will not show any significant difference in creosote, smoke, or other such buildups between burning pine and hardwoods. The pine will burn hotter and faster all else being equal, but just as clean or cleaner.

If it's free, it's good, and it burns... Granted I'd jump on free oak faster than free pine, but any wood is good, just some is arguably better.

Gooserider

 

[kjsnooks]

pine is what we have most of in idaho. a little doug fir (no fun to split) and some cotton wood, and aspen. pine burns fine my family has burned it for years over night and all

 

[Lignums]

No problem with it at all, just no coals like with hard woods.

 

[WILDSOURDOUGH]

Free wood is free- take it, burn it, love it.
I don't turn down any free wood- if I dont use it in my LOPI- it goes into my boiler or as a last stop into the chimania
I take one exception- I don't want any tree that's been laying on the ground over a year and has alot of rot and bugs-
not scared of them, just don't want to bring woodbugs into the house. ( an occasional daddylongleggs is ok)