Cottonwood score: Split now or next spring?

[NordicSplitter]

Off to get some free cottonwood from a craiglist posting. Probably a full cord. Just cut down yesterday. This will be for 2012/13, shoulder wood. 16-20"in length and 12-20" round. Should I split it right away or just stack it and let mother nature do her job until next spring?

 

[smokinj]

Cottonwood leave it in the rounds!

 

[Battenkiller]

Split it and burn it this year before it turns to punk. Not much to it in the first place.

 

[Todd]

I don't even thing Cottonwood is worth the effort unless your behind on your supply or have nothing better to burn in your area.

 

[Thistle]

Leave it in the woods or on the curb?

 

[amateur cutter]

Leave it in the woods or on the curb?

+ 1

 

[laynes69]

I use to snub it, but after upgrading to a better furnace it works well for the shoulder seasons. The stuff I burned last year was greener than grass in march. After being split and stacked it was bone dry by September. Burns hot but leaves alot of ash. I would split it and keep it covered. If it stays wet it will rot quickly. I burnedd a cord of it last spring and would do it again.

 

[fire_man]

Off to get some free cottonwood from a craiglist posting. Probably a full cord. Just cut down yesterday. This will be for 2012/13, shoulder wood. 16-20"in length and 12-20" round. Should I split it right away or just stack it and let mother nature do her job until next spring?

Its GREAT shoulder season wood. I C/S/S two full cord last Summer and top covered it. That stuff has no punk in it to date. I burned some 6 month seasoned cottonwood and found it great for stretch fires and shoulder season. I have to admit its a lot of work for few BTU's, but when you want to get a quick burn down for stretch fires or warm things up on a cool night without overheating the house, it's terrific.

 

[Danno77]

Bunch of wood snobs around here, lol. Keep it off the ground and split when you feel like, but no later than next spring.

 

[CTYank]

Off to get some free cottonwood from a craiglist posting. Probably a full cord. Just cut down yesterday. This will be for 2012/13, shoulder wood. 16-20"in length and 12-20" round. Should I split it right away or just stack it and let mother nature do her job until next spring?

Its GREAT shoulder season wood. I C/S/S two full cord last Summer and top covered it. That stuff has no punk in it to date. I burned some 6 month seasoned cottonwood and found it great for stretch fires and shoulder season. I have to admit its a lot of work for few BTU's, but when you want to get a quick burn down for stretch fires or warm things up on a cool night without overheating the house, it's terrific.

Clue me in, please. What is a "stretch fire"?

IMHO, if it fell on my place, I'd prep it and burn it. Just wouldn't haul it in from elsewhere. Not a snobbery thing, just that there's lots better available nearby, and storage space is not infinite. Can't really see cottonwood as "terrific"; sorry.

 

[NordicSplitter]

Cottonwood lights quick, burns hot, and burns down fast to ashes. So its the absolute perfect wood for “stretch†fires. I needed a “placeholder†fire that is 4 hours long, from 4pm to 8pm every weeknight. Our last daytime fire is burned down by 4pm, the overnight fire has to be in by 8pm, but I need lots of heat in the mean time without lots of coals to burn down. Cottonwood to the rescue!!

 

[ecocavalier02]

i have a cord of this crap split for this year that i cut last fall. this stuff is so frekin smelly cant wait to get rid of it. everytime im splitting out by it, it smells like poop. cant wait till its gone. and its some ugly looking wood as well.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Cottonwood can give you some good hot fires. It is extremely wet when you cut it but it is also extremely fast to dry out. Many folks have only cottonwood to burn and they get along just fine.

For some odd reason I've noticed that if a cottonwood is cut that is in a fence row or more in the open vs. cottonwood that is inside the woods like, the tree that grows in the open seems to have a bit less moisture.

 

[btuser]

Cottonwood has the same relative btu content of white pine, and I'm a believer in pine for the shoulder seasons. I'll burn the pine on my property but wouldn't bother shagging it because it's 2x the work for the same btus as say oak or another desirable species.

 

[Rob From Wisconsin]

At least split it once. You can split it more later, if you don't have the time.
If you have a wet summer although, it will bet punky quick if not at least split some.

P.S. - We are all spoiled a bit when it comes to wood. Hard Maple, Hard Oak, 4G Networks, 1 Terrabyte Hard Drives......

 

[fire_man]

Cottonwood lights quick, burns hot, and burns down fast to ashes. So its the absolute perfect wood for “stretch†fires. I needed a “placeholder†fire that is 4 hours long, from 4pm to 8pm every weeknight. Our last daytime fire is burned down by 4pm, the overnight fire has to be in by 8pm, but I need lots of heat in the mean time without lots of coals to burn down. Cottonwood to the rescue!!

Yup, I could not have defined "stretch" fire any better. That is exactly the same schedule and purpose for my cottonwood. It's amazing how light the dry splits are - almost styrofoam-like.

 

[nate379]

I couldn't even GIVE away 3 cords of that crap a few years ago. Ended up hauling it 100 miles round trip to my buddy for his fireplace. (this was before I had a wood stove or place to cord wood)

I do cut what falls down in my yard, just because I don't need dead trees all over the place. And yeah it does burn but load the stove right full and it's dead 5-6hrs later, while a stove full of birch is still fine 12hrs later.

 

[Wood Duck]

Split now. I don't think usually find wood getting a lot easier to split with time, and splitting it now will make it season faster. My answer is always split now.

 

[Wood Heat Stoves]

Always split wood now instead of later. You can burn it sooner and moisture helps the decaying process, which you want to slow down.

 

[Jags]

Always split wood now instead of later. You can burn it sooner and moisture helps the decaying process, which you want to slow down.

Zactly, cottonwood is a very high moister wood when green. It will literally rot from the inside out. Split it and start the drying process. It will improve the shelf life of the wood (as with most ALL wood).

 

[smokinj]

Always split wood now instead of later. You can burn it sooner and moisture helps the decaying process, which you want to slow down.

Zactly, cottonwood is a very high moister wood when green. It will literally rot from the inside out. Split it and start the drying process. It will improve the shelf life of the wood (as with most ALL wood).

You split wet cottonwood its going to be a long smelly day! ;-)

 

[Jags]

Always split wood now instead of later. You can burn it sooner and moisture helps the decaying process, which you want to slow down.

Zactly, cottonwood is a very high moister wood when green. It will literally rot from the inside out. Split it and start the drying process. It will improve the shelf life of the wood (as with most ALL wood).

You split wet cottonwood its going to be a long smelly day! ;-)

No doubt. I have NONE on my property and have no intentions of dragging any home, either.

BUT - the high water content of the wood is what makes it punk out so fast. Only way to combat that is to get rid of the water - only way to do that is split it.

 

[smokinj]

:cheese:

Always split wood now instead of later. You can burn it sooner and moisture helps the decaying process, which you want to slow down.

Zactly, cottonwood is a very high moister wood when green. It will literally rot from the inside out. Split it and start the drying process. It will improve the shelf life of the wood (as with most ALL wood).

You split wet cottonwood its going to be a long smelly day! ;-)

No doubt. I have NONE on my property and have no intentions of dragging any home, either.

BUT - the high water content of the wood is what makes it punk out so fast. Only way to combat that is to get rid of the water - only way to do that is split it.

I would take my chances on splitting much later......Its like picking up wet crap bare handed all day, Bell to Bell! :cheese: Be a good time to phone a friend.

 

[mecreature]

I have close to 2 cord of cotton wood left to start the season off. I will burn it till its gone.
It fell last year in November. Maybe same btu as pine but pine is a much more friendly wood.
Seems like just high humidity keeps cotton wood wet. Cotton wood is a weird wood.

But I have it and I will suck all the heat I can from it ...split it and get it dry and try to keep water from it. JMO

 

[smokinj]

I have close to 2 cord of cotton wood left to start the season off. I will burn it till its gone.
It fell last year in November. Maybe same btu as pine but pine is a much more friendly wood.
Seems like just high humidity keeps cotton wood wet. Cotton wood is a weird wood.

But I have it and I will suck all the heat I can from it ...split it and get it dry and try to keep water from it. JMO

I didnt spoil you enough with the cracking of black locus and hickory? ;-) I would rather pick up wet crap bare handed...lol