Beech for overnight

[Richie]

I c/s/s some beech in Dec of 12. Moisture is at 21% now. Never burned it. Is it good for overnight burns as I have a limited supply of BL?

 

[NortheastAl]

It's a fair burning wood. I used it last season for overnight burns, and it is about like maple.

 

[dznam]

I c/s/s some beech in Dec of 12. Moisture is at 21% now. Never burned it. Is it good for overnight burns as I have a limited supply of BL?

Excellent overnight wood - virtually the same BTU/cord content as BL (22.7mm vs 23.2mm) acc'd to Chimneysweep Online. BTW, Sugar Maple has the same BTUs/cord as BL, 23.2mm, while red oak has 22.1mm.

 

[Woody Stover]

As long as it's warm out, overnight at the beech is fine.

Excellent overnight wood - virtually the same BTU/cord content as BL (22.7mm vs 23.2mm) acc'd to Chimneysweep Online. BTW, Sugar Maple has the same BTUs/cord as BL, 23.2mm, while red oak has 22.1mm.

That list has some numbers I don't quite believe. The majority of what I see has Sugar Maple equal to Red Oak, and BL much higher. This particular list just has 'Locust.' I've seen BL listed from 26.x to 28.x. I haven't compared all the woods on these lists, but they seem to match pretty well the species that I have burned.

http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/wood-combustion-heat-d_372.html

http://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/W/AE_wood_heat_value_BTU.html

 

[BrotherBart]

Beech be fine for overnight burns.

 

[NortheastAl]

Excellent overnight wood - virtually the same BTU/cord content as BL (22.7mm vs 23.2mm) acc'd to Chimneysweep Online. BTW, Sugar Maple has the same BTUs/cord as BL, 23.2mm, while red oak has 22.1mm.

Then maybe what I had was not exactly Beech. Certainly wasn't as good as you're sayin'.

 

[JOHN BOY]

Beech is very heavy great for overnight burns

 

[Ram 1500 with an axe...]

Then maybe what I had was not exactly Beech. Certainly wasn't as good as you're sayin'.

Beech is an easy I'd, it is solid grey on the outside.... Was your beech sold grey? If yes, it was beech....

 

[NortheastAl]

Beech is an easy I'd, it is solid grey on the outside.... Was your beech sold grey? If yes, it was beech....View attachment 109529

The bark was off it and ID it by the grain. Had those little spots in the grain. I have had pieces with grey bark, but I thought that was Black Birch.

 

[JOHN BOY]

Thats beech the heart wood can turn a burnt orange looking color

 

[Ram 1500 with an axe...]

Seems with beech, there is not much bark, just a solid grey color, very thin, not like it would break off like other barks... Looking forward to burning soon...

 

[NortheastAl]

Seems with beech, there is not much bark, just a solid grey color, very thin, not like it would break off like other barks... Looking forward to burning soon...

I'm thinking I didn't have Beech then.

 

[ScotO]

Beech (aka Elephant skin) is a great overnight wood....and it seasons really fast, usually in a season or so. It puts out lots of good heat, I rate it up there with hard maple and white oak in terms of heat....I got lots of it this year too, somewhere around 2 1/2 to 3 cord or so. That will be used in 2016/17.......

 

[Locust Post]

Beech is one of my favorites and yes as already stated excellent overnight wood.

 

[NortheastAl]

Beech (aka Elephant skin) is a great overnight wood....and it seasons really fast, usually in a season or so. It puts out lots of good heat, I rate it up there with hard maple and white oak in terms of heat....I got lots of it this year too, somewhere around 2 1/2 to 3 cord or so. That will be used in 2016/17.......

That elephant skin remark now makes me understand which wood it is. I did have a few pieces from what I bought last year. It does look like elephant skin. Thanks, Scott!

 

[ScotO]

That elephant skin remark now makes me understand which wood it is. I did have a few pieces from what I bought last year. It does look like elephant skin. Thanks, Scott!

I know that beech will get punky like maple, Al. Maybe that's what happened to your beech. It could have had some punk in it (some of the stuff I processed this year had punk in it) and that will burn up faster when dried out than the good wood.....

I've always liked burning beech, I just hate handling it in big rounds because it's so dang heavy!! One thing about beech trees, they are waterhogs.....I'm amazed they season so fast.

 

[Richie]

I know that beech will get punky like maple, Al. Maybe that's what happened to your beech. It could have had some punk in it (some of the stuff I processed this year had punk in it) and that will burn up faster when dried out than the good wood.....

I've always liked burning beech, I just hate handling it in big rounds because it's so dang heavy!! One thing about beech trees, they are waterhogs.....I'm amazed they season so fast.

Yeah I took down an 27" diameter beech and the rounds were real ball busters. Had some in my tractor bucket and went down a hill and lifted the rear wheels pretty good. Made me sweat for a moment.

 

[DuckDog]

I love beech. It'll work just fine as an overnight burn. Beech and sugar maple are my top 2 favorites.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Beech is also good to burn on the beach.

 

[dafattkidd]

How hard is beech to split by hand? I had a tree guy drop a cord in rounds a few months ago. I haven't touched it yet. Been working on my oak and black walnut scrounges.

 

[paul bunion]

How hard is beech to split by hand? I had a tree guy drop a cord in rounds a few months ago. I haven't touched it yet. Been working on my oak and black walnut scrounges.

It can be hit or miss. I've had some split real easy and some near impossible, rivaling the legends of elm. When infected with the bark disease it is particularly bad.

 

[PA. Woodsman]

Then maybe what I had was not exactly Beech. Certainly wasn't as good as you're sayin'.

Just yesterday I was at Lake Wallenpaupack here in PA., and walking through the trails saw some slick-skinned grey wood that I had to take a closer look and also look at the leaves; at first I thought it was Beech but on closer inspection it in fact was Silver Maple that was suprisingly smooth. Maybe that is what happened to you?

Beech rocks!

 

[NortheastAl]

Just yesterday I was at Lake Wallenpaupack here in PA., and walking through the trails saw some slick-skinned grey wood that I had to take a closer look and also look at the leaves; at first I thought it was Beech but on closer inspection it in fact was Silver Maple that was suprisingly smooth. Maybe that is what happened to you?

Beech rocks!

That is quite possible. Now I do know what to look for. That description from Scott made it crystal clear. That look I have seen before.

 

[billb3]

solid beech burns well but I've had it rot in uncovered stacks and I've had some rather punky even in a live tree that just didn't burn too well.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Just yesterday I was at Lake Wallenpaupack here in PA., and walking through the trails saw some slick-skinned grey wood that I had to take a closer look and also look at the leaves; at first I thought it was Beech but on closer inspection it in fact was Silver Maple that was suprisingly smooth. Maybe that is what happened to you?

Beech rocks!

Wish I had a picture to show but I've had folks look at young soft maple and think it was beech simply because it has the smooth bark. As those trees grow, they will lose that smooth bark. If someone was to see a young soft maple and a beech side by side then they could see the difference in color and then could easily tell the difference.