A place near me has wood that came from the infamous Sandy superstorm of 2012. It is just being split now. Would it be ok to burn in a woodstove this winter ?
3 year old wood ,just split
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turn_n_burn
Burning Hunk
What kind of wood is it? The denser the variety, the longer it needs to be dead. Generally,softer woods like pine, poplar, cedars, and some light maples can be good to go as long as the rounds aren't too big. If it's oak, locust, ash, or hard maple type stuff you may need to split and season for at least 6 months to a year.
Seanm
Minister of Fire
Really hard to say based on the info provided. Like turn n burn says it will depend on the species but also on how it was stored in log form. Were they all together packed tight or were they up off the ground alone and in the sun? You say its just being split now, does that mean it was in round form for awhile or was it in log form until recently? Best thing to do would be to use your moisture meter and check the mc on a fresh cut split. I would think that its unlikely it is near the desired 20% or below. Based on my area even a log of lodgepole pine laying on the ground split now will be 25-30% moisture content if not higher even if it fell over two years ago. I would be hard pressed to get it ready for this burning season. Separate your species and view a btu chart like the one chimney sweep has on his site. The rule of thumb is that green trees will not dry out enough for our purposes without being bucked, split and then stacked for a period of time. The exception is trees that are standing dead for a long period of time. The limbs will be ready first and the trunk last especially as you get closer to the ground. If it was me and I was in your situation I would purchase the wood and process it and use it for future use. If I could pick the species I would avoid oak and denser hardwoods and go for pines and soft maple if you hope to burn it this season. Welcome to Hearth!
kennyp2339
Minister of Fire
I've seen it go both ways, it all depends on where the rounds or lengths were kept these past couple of years. I've seen logs that were 30" rounds that sat out unsplit that were dry as a bone when finally opened up, these were kept off the ground in a field with optimal sun light and wind, I have seen other wood that was just as old on the verge of rotting and literally leaking water out the grains as the wood splitter went through it, these were kept on the ground in a shady damp area.
Wood has been cut into 16 to 18 inch rounds and kept off the ground Its a mix of Oak ,cherry ,maple , mostly Oak Its been split over the last 4 or 5 months. The owner says hes burning it himself this winter.
The guy said if he split the wood when he got it in 2012 it would be rotten by now. He seperates it into split dates
Z33
Burning Hunk
There is no way that wood is ready to burn this year. I would bet a weeks pay its still above 30% MC
3 years drying time is just average for oak that has been split and stacked.
This tells me all I need to know about the guy. If this were true how do we have 100 old homes still standing? Wood will not rot in 3 years if its kept stacked and dry. Personally I wouldn't buy from him, if you choose to please get a moisture meter and report back with your findings.
3 years drying time is just average for oak that has been split and stacked.
This tells me all I need to know about the guy. If this were true how do we have 100 old homes still standing? Wood will not rot in 3 years if its kept stacked and dry. Personally I wouldn't buy from him, if you choose to please get a moisture meter and report back with your findings.
That's nonsense. If anything it will rather rot when kept in logs than split. Keep the splits dry and they will last essentially forever.
The most important variable is the bark which acts as a moisture barrier. The more bark-less surface is exposed to sun and wind the faster the wood will dry. Cut into rounds the wood will dry somewhat from the ends. If some of the logs have been from standing dead trees without bark they may be pretty dry by now. Long logs with bark still on will be almost as wet as the day the trees were cut.
That's totally BS. When people spout off BS like that it makes me question everything else they say.
The best bet is to buy a moisture meter for $20 on sale and measure a split that has just been made before you buy. If it's under 25%, you can stack it and it will be OK to burn this winter. Probably better if you resplit it smaller which gives more area to dry faster. 25% now should give you low 20's this winter if stacked and stored properly. IF it's above 25% now, it will not be ready this year. Low 20's is OK IMHO, under 20% is ideal. Most wood dealers I know store their wood in huge piles sitting in the open. That means the top few layers are drier than the bottom of the pile which did not get air circulation.
A lot depends upon your stove, draft, etc. Some people can burn 25% wood and are happy (not many), some have big problems and get mad at everyone because they aren't getting the heat they are supposed to. Some of us combine 25% wood with drier wood and it's workable but that's because we run short of the dry stuff in late winter and we have no other choice.
Probably
That's nuts. Sounds like a drunk inventing excuses for being lazy. Buy the wood if you want but don't buy the BS. With a line like the above I'd be disinclined to believe it is Sandy wood.
But if it has grey ends and looks old it's not like you're buying antiques with a provenance.
I cut maple frequently and pile it up in the woods and leave it that way until I get around to splitting it. I find leaving it in rounds actually cuts down on long term deterioration compared.to splitting it as the wood is inherently spaced with larger air gaps. So I wouldn't totally discount the dealers statement. What I do agree is that if it was stored as log lengths and just recently sawn to length and split then its not dry. Storing it log length is easier and its easier to move around so many dealers leave it long. Most of the labor is bucking it and splitting it plus it less likely to be stolen as logs.
Thats a tough question. You really have to go see the wood with your own eyes, split a few pieces and see where the moisture content is. After Sandy, some trees sat in salt water for weeks, even months before being removed. Good luck.
The dealer refered me to a house nearby where I could check out five cords he had recently delivered. Nice small diameter splits at about 16"to 18" The homeowner was home and he said he has been burning for 15 years in his Pacific Energy stove and he could tell the wood would be good to burn this year just by handling it and they are honest cords. So I figured I would get a cord to start and check it with a meter.It rained hard here yesterday ,how long do I have to wait to test it.? Its getting delivered sunday.
Surface moisture is not of interest to you; that will dry off quickly. Instead, split a few pieces in half and press the pins of the MM into the center of the fresh surface. That reading should be below 20% for truly dry wood.
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