Willow, OK to burn??

[ksting]

Picked up a heaping truckload of free wood today. It's from some willow trees that some people took down and posted on Craigslist. I've gotten mixed opinions on this. A few people told me it's a soft wood and will burn real fast. I researched it on the internet and read that it's actually considered a hard wood although not nearly as good to burn as oaks and maples. I only took the larger limbs and and the main trunk parts of the tree where the bark is thicker. I left the smaller parts of the tree where the bark gets smoother and has more of a pine resemblance. They have a whole other tree that's down but they didn't finish cutting it up yet because they broke the chain on their saw. I told them that I may be able to come back on Tuesday to cut up and take the rest for them. The wood wasn't sappy at all. What is the general consensus? Is this worth it. Maybe I can mix it in with my red oak which is what I primarily burn. I may be able to post some pictures tomorrow or Tuesday.

 

[sapratt]

If it was free then it was worth it. Thats how I see it I 've never burned Willow but when it is seasoned
it will work. May not last as long as oak but it will still put out heat.

 

[Corey]

It will burn. Free was probably worth it, though don't know if I'd pay for it. Pretty low btu's but nice for when you want a quick fire to take the chill off a room in the fall/spring, or have the time to tend the stove - throwing more logs in every hour or so. Save your oak for the cold winter months and overnight burns.

 

[Thrash44047]

Willow, weaping or another type. I have corkscrew willows in my yard and the wood is ok. Fast burn lots of snap crackle pop but it burns ok when I get dead stuff that falls off. Weaping willow is better left to rot, IMO. I takes forever to season unless split very small and has a odd smell when burnt. But free is a good thing.

 

[ksting]

It's not the weeping type. Maybe I should go get the rest on Tuesday!

 

[Duetech]

Harwoods are called hard because unlike pine they lose their leaves and go dormant during the winter. There are a lot of trees that shed their leaves but are low in density or would be considered "soft" but are still actually "hard" because of what they do. So don't let the term "hardwood" deceive you when it comes to buying firewood. The price you paid for your willow is ideal the trouble with willow is it takes a while to dry and then it is known basically as gopher wood. You put it in the stove and because it burns so fast you go-pher more. It makes good short term fires when dry though.

 

[Tony H]

Tell them you can come back on Tues but not for long . Take the cut wood and give them and install the new chain on their saw then go back when they get the rest of the wood cut. Free wood that's cut up is always a good deal unless it's at the bottom of a big hill with no vehicle access.
Heck a new chain is the least you can do to repay them for the free wood !!

 

[Got Wood]

I have been burning some willow I picked up last December. It seasoned very quickly. It burns fast with almost no coals. Makes for a decent shoulder season fire wood.

 

[firefighterjake]

Willow . . . good for quick, hot fires . . . good for this time of year when you're looking for a fire to take the chill out of the air, but don't really need a long lasting fire or one with a lot of BTUs. Also, useful for starting the fire.

As mentioned, willow is a deciduous tree -- which generally is the subset of trees which lose all their leaves in the Fall. Generally, these trees (i.e. oak, maple, ash, apple, elm, etc.) are considered hardwood as the wood is generally more dense. The other subset are conifers -- trees with needles (i.e. pine, spruce, hemlock, etc.) which keep most of their needles. Conifers (aka evergreens) tend to be softer in density. Now this isn't to say this is an end-all, be-all definition as some conifers lose their needles in the Fall (tamarack for example) and you can have "hard" softwoods (i.e. hemlock) and "soft" hardwoods (i.e. poplar or silver maple.)

But to answer your question . . . if it's free I'll burn it is my philosophy . . . well that and for every season there is a species to burn in the Oslo. I probably wouldn't squirrel the willow away for burning in middle of January though . . . definitely better for burning this time of year.