First time Ash burner

[rphurley]

I finally had the opportunity to load the stove with Ash that I harvested last fall from my friend's property. As a new burner, I hadn't had chance to burn Ash before, as I mostly have Oak and Hickory. I loaded the Ash about 11:00pm and found it burned well through the night, leaving me a nice bed of coals when I awoke at 7:30 this morning. The outside temp was about 35 and my house was a warm and toasty 73 or so. I plan on burning the cord of Ash through the fall before moving on to my stack of Oak and Hickory that have been seasoning in the sun for several years. So far, I have found my experience cutting, splitting, stacking and burning Ash to be quite enjoyable, and just wanted to post a review of what you experienced burners may know already.

 

[smokinj]

HUH AND THE PROBEM IS

 

[LLigetfa]

HUH AND THE PROBEM IS

...all these Oak snobs.

 

[savageactor7]

Yup... ash is a real easy take for wood burners. Grows straight, easy splitting, easy limbing etc. For us long time wood burners it's the closest to getting to heaven without dying that you can get.

Just a little surprised to hear you like it in comparison to oak is all. While I've never burned oak I've heard many great things about it.

 

[Pagey]

I really want to try some ash. We primarily burn oak, and while it is indeed a wonderful hardwood it's a pain in the rear to get it truly seasoned. Well maybe not so much a pain in the rear as much as requiring a lot of patience and working it up 2 years ahead of time. But those things could be equated with being a pain in the rear. %-P

 

[firefighterjake]

I love a good piece of ash . . . as others have said it often grows pretty straight, practically splits itself if you give it a menacing look, seasons well, stacks nicely and burns half decent . . . definitely my favorite wood to burn.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Beech wood fires are bright and clear,
If the logs are kept a year.
Chestnut’s only good they say,
If for long it’s laid away.
Birch and fir logs burn too fast,
Blaze up bright and do not last.
Elm wood burns like a churchyard mould,
Even the very flames are cold.
Poplar gives a bitter smoke,
Fills your eyes and makes you choke.
Apple wood will scent your room,
With incense like perfume.
Oak and maple if dry and old,
Keep away the winter cold.
But ash wood wet and ash wood dry,
A king shall warm his slippers by.


Like Jake says, it is hard to beat a good piece of ash.

Around here we'll be burning ash for a good many years because they are all dying from the emerald ash borer. That's okay. It makes excellent firewood.

 

[Skier76]

We have a lot of ash in our yard in CT. A lot of it looks like it's starting to die; branches don't fully bloom with leaves, random clusters of leaves growing out of the trunks. It would be a shame to see them go.

 

[rphurley]

HUH AND THE PROBEM IS

...all these Oak snobs.

I WAS an Oak snob!

 

[Jags]

I'll take the oak and hickory over ash any day. Mind you, this is not a bash on ash. I just find the oak and hickory a superior firewood. I am currently working at burning up a bunch of ash that is in my stack. It burns good, coals good, yada, yada, but I have had to wait longer for startup fires to really kick in.

And yes, this stuff was split/stacked/seasoned right along with the oak, so it is a good comparison (at about 2.5 years of seasoning)

I will and will continue to burn ash, but if I had to pick one or the other oak/hickory is gonna get picked. Just my opinion.

 

[LLigetfa]

I buy Ash whenever I can get it. That said, I had some nice straight grained stuff delivered one year. I saw a guy in my driveway one day parked near my woodpile. As I walked up to the pickup, the guy said “I’m just admiring your Ash”, to which I replied, “I sure hope for your sake you don’t have a speech impediment!”.

 

[polaris]

The best thing about ash is that it's a great"lazy man's wood". If due to laziness or just poor planning you find your self with out a wood pile in Aug. or even Sept. you can drop a dead or even live white ash, split it and still keep your house warm that winter.
Savage,I love that old poem but had not heard it since I was a kid, thanks for jotting it down. Oral traditions were and still can be very useful.
Joe.

 

[Skier76]

People who burn nothing but pine must just shake their heads over the "which hardwood is better" debate. :lol:

 

[Jags]

People who burn nothing but pine must just shake their heads over the "which hardwood is better" debate. :lol:

Yeah, its a little like arguing Porter House steaks or Ribeyes when their diet is muskrat. :lol:

 

[Skier76]

People who burn nothing but pine must just shake their heads over the "which hardwood is better" debate. :lol:

Yeah, its a little like arguing Porter House steaks or Ribeyes when their diet is muskrat. :lol:

I've been burning some leftover punky pine that the previous owners had stacked in the backyard. I see these threads and think: "Geez! I'd kill for a some seasoned "crappy" hardwood". :lol:

 

[Tony H]

People who burn nothing but pine must just shake their heads over the "which hardwood is better" debate. :lol:

Yeah, its a little like arguing Porter House steaks or Ribeyes when their diet is muskrat. :lol:

I've been burning some leftover punky pine that the previous owners had stacked in the backyard. I see these threads and think: "Geez! I'd kill for a some seasoned "crappy" hardwood". :lol:

Just this summer I had to throw some old punky pine in the way back of the woods to rot , wasn't even good enough for the bonfire pile. The stuff was just like a big sponge and when I did get some dry and tried to split it just came apart in chips and chunks what a mess.

 

[Skier76]

People who burn nothing but pine must just shake their heads over the "which hardwood is better" debate. :lol:

Yeah, its a little like arguing Porter House steaks or Ribeyes when their diet is muskrat. :lol:

I've been burning some leftover punky pine that the previous owners had stacked in the backyard. I see these threads and think: "Geez! I'd kill for a some seasoned "crappy" hardwood". :lol:

Just this summer I had to throw some old punky pine in the way back of the woods to rot , wasn't even good enough for the bonfire pile. The stuff was just like a big sponge and when I did get some dry and tried to split it just came apart in chips and chunks what a mess.

I had to do the same with some chunks. I hate wasting wood though. The stuff I'm burning is really really light. But it's dry, and I'd rather see wood throw out some BTUs vs. rotting away in the woods. Plus, no need to turn on the heat when the stove is on.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I'll take the oak and hickory over ash any day. Mind you, this is not a bash on ash. I just find the oak and hickory a superior firewood. I am currently working at burning up a bunch of ash that is in my stack. It burns good, coals good, yada, yada, but I have had to wait longer for startup fires to really kick in.

And yes, this stuff was split/stacked/seasoned right along with the oak, so it is a good comparison (at about 2.5 years of seasoning)

I will and will continue to burn ash, but if I had to pick one or the other oak/hickory is gonna get picked. Just my opinion.

Jags, try mixing it a bit. Ash is not a fast and hot burner like pine or something else like that. Ash burns slower and that is why we usually mix it with soft maple or cherry or elm. But we only put in one or two maples or such at a time and the rest ash.

 

[Jamess67]

I cut up a big ash tree last summer and its burning now. Big Ash tree is kind of a family joke.

 

[rphurley]

Hauled up a few loads of the Ash from the stack and have been burning it since last night. Decent coaling has allowed me to keep the fire from yesteday going without much attention. Definately looking forward to scoring some more from my friend's property this fall.

 

[Jags]

I'll take the oak and hickory over ash any day. Mind you, this is not a bash on ash. I just find the oak and hickory a superior firewood. I am currently working at burning up a bunch of ash that is in my stack. It burns good, coals good, yada, yada, but I have had to wait longer for startup fires to really kick in.

And yes, this stuff was split/stacked/seasoned right along with the oak, so it is a good comparison (at about 2.5 years of seasoning)

I will and will continue to burn ash, but if I had to pick one or the other oak/hickory is gonna get picked. Just my opinion.

Jags, try mixing it a bit. Ash is not a fast and hot burner like pine or something else like that. Ash burns slower and that is why we usually mix it with soft maple or cherry or elm. But we only put in one or two maples or such at a time and the rest ash.

Yeah Dennis, I do try to mix it in, but ***deep sigh*** I have NO soft woods to mix with it. So it gets mixed with oak, hard maple, hickory, maybe a little elm and osage. I think I will survive it though. :cheese:

I just want to clarify - Ash is good firewood. The stuff I am burning, burns well, just not AS well as the other stuff I am spoiled with. But if offered a dump truck of Ash OR White Oak. The Oak is coming home to daddy.

 

[LLigetfa]

I just want to clarify - Ash is good firewood. The stuff I am burning, burns well, just not AS well as the other stuff...

I find that well seasoned Birch burns burns a little better than equally well seasoned Ash. OTOH, marginally seasoned Ash burns far better than marginal Birch. It's not so much that my wood is marginally seasoned, but that there are other dislikes for Birch that sway me to choose Ash. Now if I had access to Black Birch...

 

[Flatbedford]

I had some ash last year. the load in my avatar. It was very well seasoned, burned like hell! I mean like gasoline! I think it nearly caused meltdown in my old smoke dragon. It was split small and seasoned 3 or more years. If I ever get a bunch of Ash again, I'll mix it with other stuff.