Bark?

[TJ1]

Yesterday we split about 1 cord of mostly white oak. The rounds were cut from a tree that blew over 10 months ago. Most of the bark came off in huge single pieces. I could just burn it up where it sits.
Is it worth gathering up and drying under cover to use as tinder?

 

[TedyOH]

I would save it....i do that with red oak bark...great for kindling or re lights.

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[billb3]

Bark supposedly has the same BTU as the wood it is associated with. Seems to me a lot of ash and smoky though and quite often not terribly dry.
I like it for mulch and/or soil amendment.

 

[TJ1]

Thanks. We only been burning wood for 2.5 years and learning as we go.

 

[TedyOH]

Save it, dry it, come next winter you will be glad you did. Especially if it's in the big sheets.

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[FLINT]

I don't think there is any way bark has as many BTUs as wood. However, it can be burned or used to start fires. Like someone else, I use it for mulch.

 

[caseywheels]

Woof !

 

[firefighterjake]

While I will not take the time to remove bark, I also don't save it . . . if it comes off I generally leave it on the ground as mulch or burn it in my burn pit.

 

[Prof]

I use bark for kindling. I burn a bunch of hemlock, and after it is split and seasoned, the bark tends to pop off. I haven't had to purposefully make kindling for a bunch of years now.

 

[ZZ Tom]

Any bark that comes off during cutting and splitting I leave on the ground in my wood processing area. Keeps the weeds down and saves on mud being tracked all over.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

If you're not too tired after processing all the wood, pick it up. It certainly won't hurt to burn it. You're not going to notice a difference in a woodstove heat by stuffing a couple pieces of bark into the gaps between the splits, but it certainly won't lower the amount of fuel stuffed into the stove... But if you're too tired to pick it up, life will go on.

 

[peakbagger]

The only bark I make an effort to save is white birch. I store it in boxes and use it to light fires. My boiler is a bottom grate design so I fire it from under the grate and nothing beats white birch bark for a fast fire.

I slice the birch trees lengthwise when I drop them unless I am splitting it that day. That tends to release the bark when it dries and it comes off in sheets after a few days or usually when I am restacking it.

 

[sportbikerider78]

I toss bark. How would you ever store it an keep it dry? Plus, thats the part with all the spider nests and bugs. No thanks. If the bark comes off, I whip it into the woods and don't look back.

 

[Ashful]

I scoop it up with the front end loader, and dump it in the fire pit with the other splitter scraps. I love when the bark falls off during splitting, saves the headache of having it fall off three ears later, when I’m using it.

Bark is like punky wood, IMO. Soaks up moisture, takes up valuable space in the stove, and has almost zero btu value.

 

[Eureka]

I hate bark other than white birch. I dump it in the woods