Confused: 2 year old 15% moisture wood hissing and steaming

[bholler]

I bought a 4 pinned moisture reader a few years back for about $29 bucks on-line. I forget the brand name but it seems like you really have to press the pins in hard to get an accurate reading? For example, if my wife tries sticking the pins into a split it might read 5%...I will take the same split and push the pins in hard as I can and I get a reading of 18 or 19%?? Is this normal and should I have to use all my strength to get all the pins deep enough in to get an accurate reading?

Are you measuring on a fresh split face?

 

[jscs.moore]

Will usually split some, then bring them in and place near the insert for a day to warm up...then test with the moisture reader.

 

[Ashful]

Will usually split some, then bring them in and place near the insert for a day to warm up...then test with the moisture reader.

You are seeing this behavior because the outside has dried in that day sitting by the insert. Continue pushing them way in deep to get a reading, or better yet, split after warming.

 

[Sprinter]

You are seeing this behavior because the outside has dried in that day sitting by the insert. Continue pushing them way in deep to get a reading, or better yet, split after warming.

Right. Best bet is to go ahead and warm the whole darn thing, then split it open and measure the inside of the fresh split. If you don't, the outside millimeter or so, which is what you are really measuring, will have already dried enough to give you a reading that does not represent the whole split.

There is no reason to push so hard you risk breaking the meter pins or the bulkhead which is exactly what happened to me to my first meter my first year one time before I learned how to handle them. Not to discourage you from the four-pin type, they work fine, but for others here, four pins is not necessary, and two pins will penetrate a lot easier.

I've been seeing more of this being asked on the forum, and causing avoidable issues and confusion.

 

[Sprinter]

On the rare occasion I get a wet one (maybe only one or three splits per cord, since I normally only drag home straight logs), it usually is a monster split. It’s big and wet, cuz it was too gnarly to split small. Still, no issue. Bake it out ten minutes in bypass, then engage cat, and you’re off to the races. Never an issue.

It's probably worth mentioning that your cat is going to handle things differently than the non-cats.. As I recall, you may have both so maybe you could address that in this context. Hopefully without starting a whole new cat vs non-cat debate.

 

[Ashful]

It's probably worth mentioning that your cat is going to handle things differently than the non-cats..

Then the solution is easy. Haul that non-cat to the curb, and replace it with a cat stove! [emoji12]

As I recall, you may have both so maybe you could address that in this context. Hopefully without starting a whole new cat vs non-cat debate[emoji33].

You’re thinking of Highbeam. I’ve owned five EPA stoves in six years, two presently... and they’re all catalytic. It would be very tough to convince me to ever buy a non-cat.

 

[Sprinter]

It would be very tough to convince me to ever buy a non-cat.

Aw heck, Ashful, I wouldn't even try

 

[ratsrepus]

someone mentioned stacking some wood next to the stove. That really helps dry it out
s

 

[Ashful]

someone mentioned stacking some wood next to the stove. That really helps dry it out
s

Helps to wake up any bugs dormant within, too. I’ve had moths and stink bugs come out of wood, on occasion, when I’ve tried this. So, the only splits I ever leave indoors now is nice clean, barkless stuff.

 

[ratsrepus]

I wouldn't worry about it, they wont eat much

 

[Sprinter]

I wouldn't worry about it, they wont eat much

Especially if you have a few cats around

 

[Ashful]

I wouldn't worry about it, they wont eat much

I don't worry much about that stuff, but then again, I don't live alone. Wives can be much less cavalier, when they find their favorite cashmere full of moth holes.

 

[Jeffm1]

I'm scratching my head right now.

This wood was split at least 2 years ago and has been covered for the last year. It's mostly red oak, with some ash and hedge mixed in. Stacked on pallets, on pavement, on a slope, full exposure with no trees or obstructions within 50 feet. Stacked in 2 rows with a gap between.

So I burned the west side of the stack and it burned well but now I'm burning the east side and it's spewing water and steam and hissing like it was split yesterday. Every piece is hissing, and there is some ash burning.

On a fresh split just an hour ago, with the probe going along the grain, the highest moisture I could measure was 15% and that's finding the wettest spot and switching the "modes" of the sensor to find the highest reading. The wood feels and looks dry. Bang a split on the concrete and it goes "DING" like a bell.

We have had 1/4" of snow and no other moisture in a couple months.

What am I missing here?

Obviously you have some wet wood. You mentioned snow....wind probably blew some and drove it up into the inside of your stack, under bark etc, and when you brought it inside it melted and caused your issues. Even 1/4” will cause your issues when melted. Plus it’s oak which most of the time takes 2 or three years depending on your climate.

This is why I bit the bullet and built a woodshed. Dry the wood outside in the sun and wind. When it’s properly seasoned move it into a covered woodshed at the end of summer/beginning of autumn. You’ll never have your problem again . Guaranteed.

 

[CheapBassTurd]

I love red oak, and split it thin-ish.
Currently on some July of '16 and it's doing great on
our overnite burns. There's a hiss here and there but nothing
serious enough to overthink in this case. Mine's just a firebox
with a chimney.

 

[Easy Livin’ 3000]

I don't worry much about that stuff, but then again, I don't live alone. Wives can be much less cavalier, when they find their favorite cashmere full of moth holes.

That's why we go 100% polyester here!

All kidding aside, a moth did find my favorite wool coat last summer. I was bummed.

 

[Ashful]

I love red oak, and split it thin-ish.
Currently on some July of '16 and it's doing great on
our overnite burns. There's a hiss here and there but nothing
serious enough to overthink in this case. Mine's just a firebox
with a chimney.

Wait until you’re on 3 year oak, you’ll love it even more. I know some folks malign it for a long coaling phase, and possibly more ash than some others, but there’s no other wood around here that puts as many BTUs into each load. Heating my place, that’s all that matters.

 

[lindnova]

I put a load in the stove yesterday - mostly oak with some cherry. A 4" cherry split hissed and steamed for a while for no good reason. It was solid wood, had been mixed in the oak - split over 3 years ago, and was in the shed since September. It had one day of sitting next to the stove. In the same conditions with bur oak and the oak is burning great. Can't explain everything I guess.

 

[KC Matt]

Obviously you have some wet wood. You mentioned snow....wind probably blew some and drove it up into the inside of your stack, under bark etc, and when you brought it inside it melted and caused your issues. Even 1/4” will cause your issues when melted. Plus it’s oak which most of the time takes 2 or three years depending on your climate.

This is why I bit the bullet and built a woodshed. Dry the wood outside in the sun and wind. When it’s properly seasoned move it into a covered woodshed at the end of summer/beginning of autumn. You’ll never have your problem again . Guaranteed.

I have a space that's 8x8x8 for just that purpose but I was lazy and didn't move any wood into it this year.

 

[Paulywalnut]

Red oak takes three or four years depending on location.

 

[bholler]

Red oak takes three or four years depending on location.

Or one or two depending

 

[CheapBassTurd]

Agreed on the 1-2 yrs if properly exposed.

My only experience thus far with knowledge of the individual tree
came from a standing 1/2 dead red.
It split into a V ten feet up the trunk and one side was dead. Processed the thing
in July of 2016 to get the dead stuff dry in 6 months or less. Burned fine last year.
The live half is in the stove now one and a half years from being green. It got split
into boards, rather than the traditional wedge shape from 1-3 inches thick.
The thin-ish pieces dried well in the Midwestern summer sun, year round breezes
and arid winters where everyone either uses Chapstick or bleeds. lol

I think that good conditions and smaller cuts can speed the process rather well.
Covered loosely one month before burning. My way of doing it anyhoo.
CheapMark

 

[Ashful]

I have been burning 3-year oak (mix of red, white, chestnut, black, swamp... and yes, I know all of those are just variants of “red” and “white”) for several years, so I have a good baseline expectation. In an effort to move some wood piles out of my way for a wood shed project, without doing any extra work of moving and restocking, I’ll soon be transitioning to burn several cords of 2-year oak in about two weeks. This will give me a chance to test these claims about 2 vs. 3 year oak, at least as it dries in the mid-Atlantic region.

My wood is stacked in the open, double rows on pallets, uncovered for 2.5 years (3 summers). It is covered at the end of our July/August drought period, before the late August/September rain starts back up, in the year it will be burned.

Picking up the splits, I can feel a difference between the 2-year and 3-year CSS’d stuff, so I have to believe there will be a difference in burning it, but we will see. I’ll be able to weigh in on this, with some first-hand experience, in a few weeks.

In all of the posts I’ve read on this, it seems the folks claiming it’s great at 2-years (or occasionally even 1 year), haven’t burned enough 3-year oak to really have a valid opinion on the differences. Likewise, those who’ve burned a lot of 3-year oak seem to never go back and try fresher stuff.

 

[maple1]

I have been burning 3-year oak (mix of red, white, chestnut, black, swamp... and yes, I know all of those are just variants of “red” and “white”) for several years, so I have a good baseline expectation. In an effort to move some wood piles out of my way for a wood shed project, without doing any extra work of moving and restocking, I’ll soon be transitioning to burn several cords of 2-year oak in about two weeks. This will give me a chance to test these claims about 2 vs. 3 year oak, at least as it dries in the mid-Atlantic region.

My wood is stacked in the open, double rows on pallets, uncovered for 2.5 years (3 summers). It is covered at the end of our July/August drought period, before the late August/September rain starts back up, in the year it will be burned.

Picking up the splits, I can feel a difference between the 2-year and 3-year CSS’d stuff, so I have to believe there will be a difference in burning it, but we will see. I’ll be able to weigh in on this, with some first-hand experience, in a few weeks.

In all of the posts I’ve read on this, it seems the folks claiming it’s great at 2-years (or occasionally even 1 year), haven’t burned enough 3-year oak to really have a valid opinion on the differences. Likewise, those who’ve burned a lot of 3-year oak seem to never go back and try fresher stuff.

I have no doubt you will see a difference. I can see the difference in 2 & 3 year hard maple. This is the first winter that I have gotten myself to the point of burning 3 year stuff, no question on the difference. Two year stuff might burn 'OK' or even 'good', but the extra year really takes it to 'great'.

 

[lindnova]

I have some "5 year" oak that was tarp covered for most of that time. I split large (8-10") so I can use in the outdoor furnace. I split some up for the woodstove and burned it the same day. To my surprise it burned better than the stuff that was split smaller. Most of the "better" is due to the clean, fresh split loot and feel to the wood.

This is my plan after I use up any small split pieces in the next year. Cut and split big and then split small as needed for wood stove or fire pit. No more separating and mixing needed.

 

[bholler]

I have been burning 3-year oak (mix of red, white, chestnut, black, swamp... and yes, I know all of those are just variants of “red” and “white”) for several years, so I have a good baseline expectation. In an effort to move some wood piles out of my way for a wood shed project, without doing any extra work of moving and restocking, I’ll soon be transitioning to burn several cords of 2-year oak in about two weeks. This will give me a chance to test these claims about 2 vs. 3 year oak, at least as it dries in the mid-Atlantic region.

My wood is stacked in the open, double rows on pallets, uncovered for 2.5 years (3 summers). It is covered at the end of our July/August drought period, before the late August/September rain starts back up, in the year it will be burned.

Picking up the splits, I can feel a difference between the 2-year and 3-year CSS’d stuff, so I have to believe there will be a difference in burning it, but we will see. I’ll be able to weigh in on this, with some first-hand experience, in a few weeks.

In all of the posts I’ve read on this, it seems the folks claiming it’s great at 2-years (or occasionally even 1 year), haven’t burned enough 3-year oak to really have a valid opinion on the differences. Likewise, those who’ve burned a lot of 3-year oak seem to never go back and try fresher stuff.

Cover it right away and stack single deep and it will dry allot faster.