VCBurner said:
Correct
What I have stacked in each bay is 8 x 8 x 6 = 384 cubic feet...384 / 3 = 128. So, at the moment I do have 3 cords in each bay with room enough for more if I find out I burn more than 3 cords per year.
Will This Wood Dry In Time
- Thread starter fdegree
- Start date
-
Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.
We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.
We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
- Status
Correct
What I have stacked in each bay is 8 x 8 x 6 = 384 cubic feet...384 / 3 = 128. So, at the moment I do have 3 cords in each bay with room enough for more if I find out I burn more than 3 cords per year.
Wood Duck
Minister of Fire
Oak may need another year to season, but there are plenty of woods that don't. Why not buy some ash, soft maple, pine, or whatever is cheap near you and fill a bay with wood that will be ready for next year. You already have the best woodshed I've ever seen, might as well have a nice stove to go with it.
That's a beautiful shed. We've got shed-envy.
I'd burn the wood this fall. With your wind, excellent breath-ability walls and such an open field, I think you'll be ready to go in 9 more months.
Yes, having some softer wood that would dry faster would be great to mix in. Having a variety of wood is always handy, anyway.
Invest in the moisture meter - you'll appreciate the numbers. But the simple test is the hissing / boiling of wet wood in the stove. It's a disgusting sound.
I'd be interested to see if your wood touching the gravel will be dry enough, though. I use pallets, keeping it 5" off the ground, and letting more air flow through the ranks of wood. Did you leave some space between the ranks for air flow? Or did I miss that comment in the earlier discussions?
Happy burning!
I'd burn the wood this fall. With your wind, excellent breath-ability walls and such an open field, I think you'll be ready to go in 9 more months.
Yes, having some softer wood that would dry faster would be great to mix in. Having a variety of wood is always handy, anyway.
Invest in the moisture meter - you'll appreciate the numbers. But the simple test is the hissing / boiling of wet wood in the stove. It's a disgusting sound.
I'd be interested to see if your wood touching the gravel will be dry enough, though. I use pallets, keeping it 5" off the ground, and letting more air flow through the ranks of wood. Did you leave some space between the ranks for air flow? Or did I miss that comment in the earlier discussions?
Happy burning!
Buy the stove and burn the shed.
Are the bays numbered for an Excel spreadsheet ?
I give oak 2 years from the day it is split.
If that was cut green , it probably will not burn efficiently at year 1.
Dead standing sometimes isn't ready in 12 months.
The problem really will be 'will it burn good enough' ?
If you told me no, I'd try to prove you wrong.
You may find the splits around the perimeters season a bit faster than in the center.
Are the bays numbered for an Excel spreadsheet ?
I give oak 2 years from the day it is split.
If that was cut green , it probably will not burn efficiently at year 1.
Dead standing sometimes isn't ready in 12 months.
The problem really will be 'will it burn good enough' ?
If you told me no, I'd try to prove you wrong.
You may find the splits around the perimeters season a bit faster than in the center.
firefighterjake
Minister of Fire
VCBurner
Minister of Fire
fdegree said:
"Gotcha! Great planning skills man. I wish I was that organized. Anyway, around here you can find all the pine you want for free. Get yourself some free pine and throw it in a stove with that oak and you'll get those outer splits burning in no time. Depending on the stove. Just make sure you check your connectors and chimney frequently for build up and clean it as needed!! Good luck and burn on!"
billb3 said:
Actually, the bays are numbers. Although, I hadn't thought about the idea of a spread sheet. I don't know if I need to go that deep...do I?
ansehnlich1
Retired Hearth.com Member
fdegree said:
I just tonight threw some oak in my Oslo, the stuff was split and stacked in March 2 years ago. It'll burn ok, but I'm waiting til next year to burn it, that'll make 3 Pennsylvania summers drying time....just right IMHO.
Great shed. I agree with previous posters about oak(especially red). It takes a min. of 2 years stacked and split for red oak to burn the way I'd like it to. I have burned after one but it was a bit of a struggle.
Joe
Joe
As others have mentioned, that is a very nice wood shed.
It is well known that wood will season faster at higher temperatures, and since your shed opens toward the south here is an idea you could try:
Place some 4x8 sheets of foil faced insulation board flat on the ground in front of your stacks, and on the undersides of the rafters inside the shed. On those bright, hot sunny days of spring and summer, the foil will reflect more sunlight into your stacks and season them quicker.
It is well known that wood will season faster at higher temperatures, and since your shed opens toward the south here is an idea you could try:
Place some 4x8 sheets of foil faced insulation board flat on the ground in front of your stacks, and on the undersides of the rafters inside the shed. On those bright, hot sunny days of spring and summer, the foil will reflect more sunlight into your stacks and season them quicker.
Adios Pantalones
Minister of Fire
Holy crap what a shed. A pile that deep won't have much air around most of the splits. Break it up int single rows along the sides of each bay and you may have some reasonable wood- but oak does take extra long. In one year- make sure you burn it a bit hotter (more air), and watch your chimney for buildup- but I operated like that for years.
My shed is built like yours and no Oak will not dry in there in 2 yrs, when I built mine I just had to put some wood in it so I stacked the whole back wall all the way to the top, and after 2 yrs is still not dry enough to burn. So now I let Oak sit out in single rows for 2 yrs then bring it into the shed.
My shed is 8' x 16' and I had thought with all the air it would dry faster.
My shed is 8' x 16' and I had thought with all the air it would dry faster.
Attachments
ohlongarm
Minister of Fire
Part of the problem is the wood is packed in the shed so you have both the shed and the way it is stacked working against ya. I plan on building a shed but I guess the only wood going in to the shed will be dry.
mecreature
Minister of Fire
cptoneleg said:
The wood that was stacked in the far right section is white oak that was cut - split - stacked in that section 2 years ago. I am burning from this section this winter, and I have gotten about half way through the stacks. So, this has allowed me to pull 3 splits from about the center of the original stack, today. I just came in from splitting these 3 splits and measured the moisture content on the freshly split side...all 3 measured exactly 15%.
Everyone's situation is different...I am fortunate that my shed is open to the south, allowing for some sun exposure...plus, there is an open field behind the shed where I get a significant amount of wind throughout the entire year.
cptoneleg said:
You are correct. Some of the confusion might be coming from the fact that this thread was started in January of 2010. It became revived due to a link from another thread that I started yesterday.
Sorry if that created some confusion...
The pictures showed 2 years of wood inside that shed...1 year in the left most section and the other year in the right most section. Last winter I burned the wood that was in the left most section. It was cut - split - stacked in January of 2010...only about 10 months worth of drying. This winter I am burning the wood that is in the right most section. It was also cut - split - stacked in January of 2010...as of today, this years wood is just a bit over 2 years worth of drying.
- Status
