Help needed with covering wood stacks - Plastic.

[Hills Hoard]

You may have seen another thread that I have begun piling up my 2014 stack of wood....I have decided to cover the top row of this wood pile with plastic because I live in an area where we get a lot of rain...

I would would love some tips on how people tie off their plastic and weigh it down. the hill where my wood pile is will get quite windy so i need some tips on how to secure it neatly....I have weighed it down in a pretty dodgy manner for now until i learn a better technique....thanks guys!

 

[Defiant]

I tie it at each end and am able to feed through the pallets and wrap some rope around sections. My neighbor lost his hoop storage house and was going to throw away the heavy tarp, being the scrounge I am, I took it and will use to cover my piles. It is heavy duty (green cover in photo0.

 

[jkranes]

I am new to this whole wood thing so am also interested in hearing various options. I just stapled my plastic to the ends of the top row of splits. Obviously this does not work well for stacks that are being accessed during the burning season. For the stack I'm currently using, I plan to remove the plastic and cover with plywood, with some kind of bungee tiedown to keep it from flying away in the wind. All my stacks are the same length so I only need one plywood cover that I can rotate from stack to stack.

 

[red oak]

I don't cover but if I did I would NOT rely on just staple or bungees - I've seen the wind rip plastic too many times - in fact that's the main reason I don't cover. If you want to cover with tarps or plastic, I would weigh it down with a lot of pieces of wood so that it can't possibly go anywhere. Yes the wood on top will get wet but just save that for next year.

 

[Ashful]

I use wood, as red oak suggests. That said, I don't cover until fall, now. I tried covering as soon as split before, but found it kept moisture in.

Taking it a step further, I would argue that if the MC of your wood is above the equilibrium MC for your location and month, and you don't need to burn it in the next two weeks, you're probably best leaving it uncovered. I have posted the gub'ment table on equilibrium MC many times on this forum.

 

[ScotO]

I used to use tarps......but they sucked. Now I use reclaimed rubber roofing. And to hold it down, I fold it down over the top layer of splits and use drywall screws with a small washer to fasten it to the splits, and you only have to fasten it every three feet or so. Works great! When I need to access the wood I use a cordless drill to install/remove the screws. When you need extra weight (like when Hurricane Sandy rumbled over our house), I use some smooth sided stones on top. My wood has never been this dry.......and the past several years its been MEGA wet during the fall around here.....

Backwoods Savage uses reclaimed metal roofing in a similar fashion. And that, too, could be secured with drywall acres and some stones.....

 

[Hickorynut]

I use plastic like the original poster is using. I buy the 6 mil. black plastic that is a 100 ft x 10 ft.roll. I measure and cut the length I want and then cut the 10ft in half length wise. This gets you 5 ft. which I hang down on one side about 1 1/2 ft. and use a bostich hammer tack stapler using 3/8 bostich staples. Staple one side then roll the plastic over the top and staple the bottom on the other side, stapling every 4 or 6 inches. This holds up very well for 4 or 5 years or until I use it. As I pull wood from a stack, I just restaple the top. Works very well. Also might mention, I leave my stacks open for up to two years before I put this plastic on the top.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Like Scotty mentioned, this is how we cover most of our wood now. We've used tarps and even some of the rubber roofing like Scotty uses. The rubber is very much superior to tarps for sure. With the galvanized roofing, we just usually throw some uglies on the top of the roofing and it stays just fine with very few exceptions.



Another way you can do it with plastic is to use boards or pallets or whatever every so often. Then you can fill gallon milk jugs with sand. Tie two jugs with a rope and throw one on one side and the other on the opposite side. This will hold things down and although I've not used this method, I've seen it work for others.

 

[Defiant]

Nice stacks BS

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Thanks Defiant. The stack on the left is history now. One on the right is still there. Cut in 2008-2009 winter and split in March/April of 2009. That might be history after next winter. Geeze, I'm getting low on old stacks.

 

[Hills Hoard]

Thanks guys....Some great ideas in there. Defiant, I liked your idea of running rope through the pallet and over the wood pile...i like simple solutions....I have a pile at home with metal roofing and it works well, but for some reason i don't like working with the sheets... sharp edges...potential to blow away, even thought ive never had any fly away...i think plastic done well looks neat as well..

Backwoods, I was trying to think of a way to use sand as well.

I plan on covering this for winter then removing the plastic for next summer.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I would not bother uncovering it once you get it covered. We generally split and stack in spring (March/April) then cover in November or December. Once covered, it stays that way until needed.

 

[Hills Hoard]

I would not bother uncovering it once you get it covered. We generally split and stack in spring (March/April) then cover in November or December. Once covered, it stays that way until needed.

Thats a fair point...

 

[Defiant]

Just when I thought I was finished with 9.2 cord, ran into a buddy who runs his own excavation business and hauled 4 tri-axle loads back to his house for friends. They do not burn wood and the friends that wanted the wood have not showed. His wife wants the pile gone. Stay tuned for pic's, free wood a couple of miles don the road. I'm there, what's another 5 cords? These pics are of my stacks now. Sorry can't fit all 5 in.

 

[ScotO]

Just when I thought I was finished with 9.2 cord, ran into a buddy who runs his own excavation business and hauled 4 tri-axle loads back to his house for friends. They do not burn wood and the friends that wanted the wood have not showed. His wife wants the pile gone. Stay tuned for pic's, free wood a couple of miles don the road. I'm there, what's another 5 cords? These pics are of my stacks now. Sorry can't fit all 5 in.
View attachment 103195View attachment 103196

Where's the firepit/beer drinking station at?? If Mad Dog and I come up there to go fishing, we're cooking and drinking out back, come hell or high water!!

 

[Defiant]

My backyard, pit is off to the left not in photo

 

[save$]

Just when I thought I was finished with 9.2 cord, ran into a buddy who runs his own excavation business and hauled 4 tri-axle loads back to his house for friends. They do not burn wood and the friends that wanted the wood have not showed. His wife wants the pile gone. Stay tuned for pic's, free wood a couple of miles don the road. I'm there, what's another 5 cords? These pics are of my stacks now. Sorry can't fit all 5 in.
View attachment 103195View attachment 103196

Nice home, ESP. The double decker porches! Lot of land there. Nice stash of wood. Lots of work shown there.

 

[DexterDay]

I use plastic and staples. Lasts the entire winter. But I use staples up and down the ends, along with the top and on several pieces of wood down the stack. I used tarps and they ripped to shreds last year (bungee cords).

So I decided to use plastic this year. Next year, I will use wider plastic so it comes down about 1 ft further on each side. Slap staple and slap staple some more.

Nice pics Defiant

 

[velvetfoot]

I've had some stacks with that plastic on them, and it's true, it doesn't last forever. I've had some deteriorate. I've been putting splits on top to hold it down, and that moves. I wonder if stapling down the sides a little, like the 5' wide plastic on a 4' wide stack, would stablilize the stack. Maybe delaying stack failure . This is me I'm talking about.

 

[TimJ]

Where's the firepit/beer drinking station at?? If Mad Dog and I come up there to go fishing, we're cooking and drinking out back, come hell or high water!!

Scotty, Defiant's place is so neat that if you threw a beer can on the ground out by the pits you might be in trouble

 

[DexterDay]

This stack I wrapped in plastic too. Lasted the entire Winter. I removed the plastic and within a week, the T-posts started to lean out because of the saturated ground The 6 T-posts are now around a 45° on each end.

So your theory is correct. It does help to hold it up. I will try and get some pics of the ends tonight. Looks much different now.

I've had some stacks with that plastic on them, and it's true, it doesn't last forever. I've had some deteriorate. I've been putting splits on top to hold it down, and that moves. I wonder if stapling down the sides a little, like the 5' wide plastic on a 4' wide stack, would stablilize the stack. Maybe delaying stack failure . This is me I'm talking about.

 

[Ram 1500 with an axe...]

For those who are starting out and do not have such great huge supplies like all of you guys have. I was told by the guy I got my wood from, when you have a batch of newly split and stacked wood, use clear plastic as opposed to the blue or brown etc. I'm just saying for new guys with a smaller stash. It makes sense to me to keep the sun on the top....just a different point of view...thanks guys

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Only problem with that theory is that the plastic can hold the moisture in. This is why we don't cover until just before the snow flies. Yet I understand why you fellows out east want to cover your stacks sooner.

I also note there are lots of folks who seem to love pallets. I'm wondering about placing those pallets on top of the wood stacks and then the plastic over top of the pallets. This would leave an air space if you do all the stapling to the pallets rather than bringing the plastic down over the sides of the wood pile.

 

[Defiant]

Scotty, Defiant's place is no neat that if you threw a beer can on the ground out by the pits you might be in trouble

I don't think so.

 

[Paulywalnut]

It would be expensive but 3/4" exterior plywood cut in 2' strips.
about 8 bucks per strip. Drive a couple of nails into the top few
pieces of firewood. Hopefully not oak. Maybe an idea. I don't
cover until December with clear plastic.