Tips on gathering wood

[offroadaudio]

My wife and I just purchased 64 acres in PA - all wooded. The house has a Charmaster furnace and 2 open masonry fireplaces where we will be putting EPA inserts.
I'd like to start to collect wood, but would like some tips on what to go for.
1. there are many fallen Black Locust - this stuff has been down for years, but does not rot. Seems to be easy pickins' - can I burn that right away?
2. There are lots of standing dead Locust - go for this instead?
3. We also have all sorts of oak, maple, black walnut. One Black Walnut is hovering over the barn and will be taken down soon - that I plan to split and stack for next year.
4. what about other species that are fallen - if they are not rotten, are they game?

Thanks for the help.

'Frank

 

[begreen]

The standing dead locust, might be burnable now. You'll have to test it. Wood that has been lying on the ground usually needs to get off the ground and be cut and split in order to dry out.

 

[offroadaudio]

Ok, but fallen stuff can be good after seasoning? I'm not too experienced with a chain saw, so anything that is already down is very appealing to me.

 

[CK-1]

Ok, but fallen stuff can be good after seasoning? I'm not too experienced with a chain saw, so anything that is already down is very appealing to me.

64 acres.. all wooded.. and not too experienced with a chain saw?.. If I'm ever near your area.. can I take a oak tree or two for myself?..

 

[Rich M]

Ok, but fallen stuff can be good after seasoning? .

Yes, as long as it's not punky or rotten.

 

[offroadaudio]

Ok, but fallen stuff can be good after seasoning? I'm not too experienced with a chain saw, so anything that is already down is very appealing to me.

64 acres.. all wooded.. and not too experienced with a chain saw?.. If I'm ever near your area.. can I take a oak tree or two for myself?..

New Park, Pa my friend - impart some wisdom on how not to kill ones self with a chainsaw and an oak is yours.
obviously I'll be reading a lot on the subject and becoming a master of the saw out of necessity soon.

 

[Jags]

From what it sounds like, you are living in a wood burners paradise. Black locust is a GREAT firewood, but as BG stated, if its on the ground, it will need to be cut, split, seasoned before use. Black locust does not carry as much moisture as many trees even when alive. The standing dead possibly, maybe, could be burnable. I would suggest dropping one (or 2 or 10), cut the tops where they are only the size of a baseball bat and check moisture. You may be able to harvest some select dry stuff to burn this year. You will probably want to get a moisture meter (pretty cheap at Harbor F) so that when in the woods you can tell quickly if this is a tree for this year or not.

Sounds like you are gonna get PLENTY of practice with a chainsaw in the future.

Oh, and we like lots of pics. Wood lots are pretty.

On the chainsaw side of things, safety first. Wear PPG (personal protective gear). It could save your butt (or legs or head). If you are in the market for saws, leave the cheapo versions to the casual user. Get the properly sized saw for you, and make it a good one (or 2 if you like to have a big one and a little one)

 

[offroadaudio]

Thanks for the tips - you want pictures? - here you go:
These were taken when we first went to look at the property in the late summer. We fell in love with it that day.
I ride dirt bikes so trails are planned anyway - seems as though they will help serve my heating needs as well.
The masonry chimney that you can see attached to the old part of the house is not where the insert will go. There is another chimney on the other side that is out of view. It has 3 flues. 1 for the fireplace, 1 for the furnace/hot water heater (oil) and one for a side fireplace on the same floor.
The chimney on the old section will probably get a free standing stove and a hearth that I'll build from river rock collected from the property.
Thanks for your interest, any suggestions or thoughts with this setup are welcomed.

 

[offroadaudio]

A few more pix.

 

[JimWalshin845]

WOW...BLACK LOCUST %-P

That stuff burns long and hard... tough to get going and you might even have to watch out for it over toasting your stove. It also makes fantastic fence posts.

The stuff is tough to chain saw (eats chains for breakfast) and to split so if you are going to harvest a lot of it get quality equipment.

Envious and welcome aboard,
Jim

 

[Mike Wilson]

I am sorry to inform you that Black Locust is completely incombustible. No matter how hard you try, it will not burn, period. :down:

I live in an area where we have tons of locust, a/k/a the "Shipmast Tree," and I can tell you this from experience.
I am, however, a really nice guy, and will do you a favor. You can send me all the black locust you have, and I will dispose of it for you, for free!

___


Seriously though, I burn a ton of it, and it burns great, but it MUST be seasoned properly. If it still has a yellow interior, it's not seasoned well. It will burn while yellow, but not particularly well... but then it will make great coals.

-- Mike

 

[Wolves-Lower]

Wow you have really got a problem...that pesky black locust...dang.
Once you have been plagued by locust it all over.
I want your problem.

 

[jpl1nh]

I am sorry to inform you that Black Locust is completely incombustible. No matter how hard you try, it will not burn, period. :down:

I live in an area where we have tons of locust, a/k/a the "Shipmast Tree," and I can tell you this from experience.
I am, however, a really nice guy, and will do you a favor. You can send me all the black locust you have, and I will dispose of it for you, for free!

___


Seriously though, I burn a ton of it, and it burns great, but it MUST be seasoned properly. If it still has a yellow interior, it's not seasoned well. It will burn while yellow, but not particularly well... but then it will make great coals.

-- Mike

In your experience, what color indicates that it is seasoned? The black locust I burn varies from yellow to red. Dead and downed for 2-3 years, cut and split undercover for an entire summer season. Burns hot, burns well, lasts for ever. Si glad I have lots of it! When I cut live, it tends to have a greenish tinge to it that dissapears as it dries. Frank, I agree with Jags, the smaller standing dead stuff is your best bet for right now. Ideally, cut it after a few days of nice dry weather. I burn 80% standing and lying dead. Oak and Black Locust are relatively impervious to rot if the bark is off, they still hold up ok with the bark on but not as well. It can be tough to tell the difference between good lying dead and rotting dead in the winter if the wood is frozen because they both weigh about the same. I burn some punky stuff too at either end of the season. Most lying dead and a lot of standing dead is already fairly well seasoned, but still needs to dy out. A few weeks to a month may do it for a lot of the standing dead, covered and well ventilated, the lying dead may be better for next years burning. Sounds like you're all set for heat on into forever. Congratulations, beautiful place!!

 

[Pine Knot]

As jags said you are going to get a lot of practice with your chain saw, and you are going lots of practice with a file sharpening your chain saw chain. Black Locust when dead is very hard and will dull your saw rapidly, so time spent learning how to maintain your saw chain will be worth while. Cut up what locust you have on the ground and put it in the dry for two or three weeks and it will burn like coal.

 

[JBinKC]

This is how I would manage the woodlot.

1) I would go after the deadfall first off of the ground should be burnable if it hasn't rotted. If it has been on the ground let it season for a year off ot the ground in a sunny location.

2) I would then cut and use the standing dead trees

3) I would contact a county forester and get an inventory of what you have on the property and perhaps consider a selected harvest and get bids from a reputable timber companies where they pay you and then would use the tops left behind as firewood.

4) Then I would cut any wolf trees, crooked or undesirable species left behind.

 

[SlyFerret]

I was driving to work yesterday and noticed some logs out on somebody's tree lawn. They had apparently had a tree removed, and what was left would make some pretty good firewood. I didn't have time to stop and inquire about it yesterday. If it's still there today, I might stop and ask if I can have it.

It makes me wish I had one of these things:
http://www.spitzlift.net/

My dad bought a welder last year and would probably enjoy trying to build our own version. I like the idea. It mounts on the hitch receiver and the boom allows you to pick up heavy stuff and swing it into the truck bed.

Great for gathering firewood!

-SF

 

[reaperman]

One tip for cutting already downed firewood this time of year is that some downed wood may be partially rotted. Which can fool you while cutting. Due to the fact that is frozen, and will only thaw out and turn mushy inside your wood stove. If you aren't sure, give the wood time to thaw out inside the basement, before putting it in the stove.

 

[woodconvert]

"My wife and I just purchased 64 acres in PA - all wooded. The house has a Charmaster furnace and 2 open masonry fireplaces where we will be putting EPA inserts.
I’d like to start to collect wood, but would like some tips on what to go for.
1. there are many fallen Black Locust - this stuff has been down for years, but does not rot. Seems to be easy pickins’ - can I burn that right away?
2. There are lots of standing dead Locust - go for this instead?
3. We also have all sorts of oak, maple, black walnut. One Black Walnut is hovering over the barn and will be taken down soon - that I plan to split and stack for next year.
4. what about other species that are fallen - if they are not rotten, are they game?"

64 acres is all you could get??? Pretty place you've got.

TAKE ALL BLACK LOCUST. The standing stuff will "probably" need to be split and stacked. The stuff on the ground will for sure...but get it ALL. Segregate the two when cutting and splitting so you know which is which. The standing stuff will be dryer quicker. The oak needs to be cut and split pronto to be dry for next year. Maple burns pretty good and dries somewhat quickly. Black walnut...save it til last. It's ok fall and spring wood but you get a lot of ash from it.

If you've got standing dead elm with the bark that has fallen off...i'd say up to 14"ish caliber that stuff is good to burn right away. Ash is also something that is getting killed off in abundance here in Michigan...good burning and fairly quick drying.

If you are NOT handy with a saw...be damn careful when choosing a tree to fell. If it's going to get hung up on another tree...pass on it. Hung up trees can be a real byatch and dangerous. They don't call em' widow makers for nuthin'.