Trying not to waste good firewood

[Ozark Woodburner]

Ok, my land is under contract to thin 10 acres every spring/summer to improve the forest stand for the next 3 years. I do not want to waste much wood if I can. So to get a feel for it this summer I started a small section. Basically I am cutting all bent, ice storm damaged, and over crowded trees. Most are hickory or oaks of several different varieties.

I cut a bunch out of one acre and still wound up leaving some on the ground to rot. There is no way I will be able to cut it all up and haul out as I drop the trees and still finish in time.

I need recommendations for maybe stacking logs or lengths of them 5-8 foot long or so where I could cut them later without them rotting in the mean time. There wil be a bunch of them mind you.

Thanks.

 

[Got Wood]

Sacrifice a bottom row, lay a couple down east/west to be the base and then stack north/south on top. similar to stacking a split pile. Keeping them off the ground should slow down rotting dramatically

 

[Wood Duck]

Yeah, I think Got Wood has got it. Lay two cross logs on the ground, then maybe another layer of two at right angles, then perhaps even a third with only two logs, depending on how large your sacrificial logs are. I'd try to get a foot of air space under the wood you're trying to save. On top of that, stack your logs leaving plenty of air space between them. Logs that are up off the ground may not season like splits, but they won't rot like wood on the ground. I think logs could last many years if kept off the ground. I'd try to use any hickory or birch first, because those two species rot pretty fast. if you have Black Locust or Osage Orange, those will last the longest.

 

[firefighterjake]

+1 to what Wood Duck and Got Wood said . . . lay down some sacrificial logs and stack the rest of the wood on it in log form or if need be in smaller lengths (i.e. 4 foot, 8 foot, etc.)

 

[Backwoods Savage]

That should do the trick. Sounds like lots of work but worth it.

 

[iskiatomic]

I wish I could have the same problem.



KC

 

[Ozark Woodburner]

I was thinking along those lines myself. I figure there is an honest 60-80 face cord at a minimum on the entire property to be cut.

Oh yeah, plus 30 acres of ice storm damage limbs and trees.


Should be set for a while though.

 

[Tony H]

Keep in mind what kind of wood it is , use less desirable wood to sacrifice but not birch it will rot fast and collapse. With a large amout of wood it might be worth finding some help moving and stacking and / or selling the wood you are unable to use.
How much wood do you have to sell to get a skid loader ??

 

[Ozark Woodburner]

well, its just that the timber market is flooded with folks selling timber. Not much demand except for large clearcut and not the kind of trees I'm taking out.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Oak and hickory might be worth having the trunks milled and then stickered and air dried. Many sawyers will work for a cut of the wood. Then you only have the tops to cut, spit and stack. Once dry and under cover they will last a long time.

Matt