How long after a good rain

[Corriewf]

Gotta another load of wood the other day that was seasoned for a few years. Nice looking wood that really wants to burn BUT I didn't get a chance to cover it. It rained about an inch and a half the day after stacking it. The wood still seems wet. How long ( sunny days or rainy days covered ) do you think it will take to dry back out?

Thanks for your help.

 

[adrpga498]

Two or 3 days if out in sun & wind. Two or 3 hours for the next splits in the stove if you keep them about 3 feet away safely on the hearth. Works for me.

 

[Corriewf]

Two or 3 days if out in sun & wind. Two or 3 hours for the next splits in the stove if you keep them about 3 feet away safely on the hearth. Works for me.

Oh ok. That is not as long as I thought. I was very worried that the wood would soak up the water like a sponge.

 

[SolarAndWood]

only if its punky.

 

[firefighterjake]

A couple of days in the sun and/or wind should be fine . . . wood generally doesn't soak up moisture in such a short time.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Two or 3 days if out in sun & wind. Two or 3 hours for the next splits in the stove if you keep them about 3 feet away safely on the hearth. Works for me.

Oh ok. That is not as long as I thought. I was very worried that the wood would soak up the water like a sponge.

No, wood is not a sponge unless it is punky. Most times after a big rain like that the weather will change to dry air and a good wind out of the NW. Most times our wood (the uncovered stacks) will be dry after about 24 hours.

 

[Corriewf]

Good to hear all of these responses. We broke a record for rainfall in central VA in Nov and it's been a wet Dec. Even covering the wood has not fully protected it. Been quite worried about not being able to use the wood.

So if the outside of the wood feels dry to the touch than I can assume the rain has evaporated?

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Yup. That's about it.

 

[smokinj]

Good to hear all of these responses. We broke a record for rainfall in central VA in Nov and it's been a wet Dec. Even covering the wood has not fully protected it. Been quite worried about not being able to use the wood.

So if the outside of the wood feels dry to the touch than I can assume the rain has evaporated?

yes, I bring it in wet,ice,snow doesnt take long to dry it.

 

[Corriewf]

Good to hear all of these responses. We broke a record for rainfall in central VA in Nov and it's been a wet Dec. Even covering the wood has not fully protected it. Been quite worried about not being able to use the wood.

So if the outside of the wood feels dry to the touch than I can assume the rain has evaporated?

yes, I bring it in wet,ice,snow doesnt take long to dry it.

Well hell, should I really even cover it? My stacks are not exactly level and I get pockets of rain water that form every rain. It getting a pain in the butt to go out there and recover when the wind blows part off or try and empty those pockets. I have a 16 foot long by 7 foot wide by 3 1/2 foot high stack. I can't reach the middle of it anymore to easily get those water pockets.

 

[smokinj]

Good to hear all of these responses. We broke a record for rainfall in central VA in Nov and it's been a wet Dec. Even covering the wood has not fully protected it. Been quite worried about not being able to use the wood.

So if the outside of the wood feels dry to the touch than I can assume the rain has evaporated?

yes, I bring it in wet,ice,snow doesnt take long to dry it.

Well hell, should I really even cover it? My stacks are not exactly level and I get pockets of rain water that form every rain. It getting a pain in the butt to go out there and recover when the wind blows part off or try and empty those pockets. I have a 16 foot long by 7 foot wide by 3 1/2 foot high stack. I can't reach the middle of it anymore to easily get those water pockets.

now you open up a can of worms but I wouldnt mess with it unless I had a wood shed

 

[quads]

Good to hear all of these responses. We broke a record for rainfall in central VA in Nov and it's been a wet Dec. Even covering the wood has not fully protected it. Been quite worried about not being able to use the wood.

So if the outside of the wood feels dry to the touch than I can assume the rain has evaporated?

yes, I bring it in wet,ice,snow doesnt take long to dry it.

Well hell, should I really even cover it? My stacks are not exactly level and I get pockets of rain water that form every rain. It getting a pain in the butt to go out there and recover when the wind blows part off or try and empty those pockets. I have a 16 foot long by 7 foot wide by 3 1/2 foot high stack. I can't reach the middle of it anymore to easily get those water pockets.

I never ever cover mine, but that's up to you. I am 3+ years ahead with my oak firewood, I keep one month's worth on the porch during heating season, and one day's worth by the stove.

 

[gyrfalcon]

Well hell, should I really even cover it? My stacks are not exactly level and I get pockets of rain water that form every rain. It getting a pain in the butt to go out there and recover when the wind blows part off or try and empty those pockets. I have a 16 foot long by 7 foot wide by 3 1/2 foot high stack. I can't reach the middle of it anymore to easily get those water pockets.

In a word, no. Forget about it. Total waste of time. If you have a sort of staging area under cover or in your house you can store a couple days' supply, you absolutely don't need to cover your stacks. The rain only penetrates a fraction of an inch, and it dries out indoors within hours, especially if it's near your stove.

 

[Corriewf]

What I have been doing thus far is put about half a face cord on the front porch. It doesn't get rain very much unless it's blowing sideways. I know there is a great debate about all of this regarding cover or no cover. I know wood will float for quite some time, so I am thinking maybe the no cover fellows might be on to something. However a middle ground might be that it's better to cover green wood for a while at least?

Also how do you guys handle snow? Cover for snow? We might be getting hit with a huge snow storm Sat which early predictions are looking at maybe a foot of snow. That's alot for central Va!

 

[quads]

Also how do you guys handle snow? Cover for snow? We might be getting hit with a huge snow storm Sat which early predictions are looking at maybe a foot of snow. That's alot for central Va!

I never ever cover my wood, except for the month's worth on the porch during heating season. Rolling around in the snow for a couple hours once a month doesn't bother me at all. The pile of snow in the background of this picture has one of my main woodstacks under it, uncovered:

Works great for me to leave mine uncovered, but that's up to you if you want to cover your firewood.

 

[Corriewf]

Also how do you guys handle snow? Cover for snow? We might be getting hit with a huge snow storm Sat which early predictions are looking at maybe a foot of snow. That's alot for central Va!

I never ever cover my wood, except for the month's worth on the porch during heating season. Rolling around in the snow for a couple hours once a month doesn't bother me at all. The pile of snow in the background of this picture has one of my main woodstacks under it, uncovered:

Works great for me to leave mine uncovered, but that's up to you if you want to cover your firewood.

Quads, I always enjoy your pictures. I liked the recent journey for wood. Man did you get slammed with some snow. I am sure you have a kind of respect for wood heat I could only dream about bud.

Now do you dig a tunnel through the snow to get to your wood or what? I find it amazing that there is even wood under that pile of snow. On a serious note, if you get a few warm days, all that snow melts down on that firewood wouldn't soak the hell out of it? I mean a slow melt and refreeze etc.

 

[SolarAndWood]

I don't cover the wood while it is drying. For that matter, I don't stack it either. However, before the snow comes, all the wood that is in the queue to be burned for the season gets stacked under a roof for the same reason a spot in the garage is cleaned out for my wife's car. It makes life easier and less of a mess ends up in the house.

 

[Corriewf]

I don't cover the wood while it is drying. For that matter, I don't stack it either. However, before the snow comes, all the wood that is in the queue to be burned for the season gets stacked under a roof for the same reason a spot in the garage is cleaned out for my wife's car. It makes life easier and less of a mess ends up in the house.

I definitely plan on building a wood shed. I fully agree with you on making life easier... Plus it is always nice to have everything organized well.

Is your green wood just laying in a pile on the ground? I have a couple green cords right now that are in a pile. Have not felt like stacking them yet. That green oak can be heavy too! I need to resplit it all as well.

 

[firefighterjake]

If this was wood I was using this year I would cover them . . . or better yet . . . as mentioned have a woodshed built . . . of course this is more of a long term solution. My reasoning in covering the wood you're using this year is that I found it much easier not having to deal with snow and ice-covered wood vs. wood that had a thick build up of snow and ice. While the wood will not suck up that snow, ice and rain, it certainly is a lot easier to simply bring in a dry (no rain, snow or ice-covered split) and toss it right into the fire vs. having to wait for the snow or ice to melt off.

 

[quads]

Quads, I always enjoy your pictures. I liked the recent journey for wood. Man did you get slammed with some snow. I am sure you have a kind of respect for wood heat I could only dream about bud.

Now do you dig a tunnel through the snow to get to your wood or what? I find it amazing that there is even wood under that pile of snow. On a serious note, if you get a few warm days, all that snow melts down on that firewood wouldn't soak the hell out of it? I mean a slow melt and refreeze etc.

Thanks!

As for digging the wood out of the snow, it's really no big deal. I just start at the next place in the stack that I happen to be using and grab a couple splits at a time then throw them in the trailer and haul to porch. The snow falls right off the splits most of the time as I grab them from the pile, never anything that more than a couple knocks together doesn't get rid of. The very top layer of splits, and only the top sides of those, are the ones that have the most snow and ice on them anyway. And in all the years, it's never been a a big problem. (Feeding livestock, doing the chores, and milking the cows twice a day in the winter is a far bigger deal than pulling firewood from the snow for a couple hours once a month.)

It works for me and it's also the only way I have ever done it, or my father, grandfather................ I have tried to think about how I would dig wood out from under a tarp that was covered with the same amount of snow (I have never done it personally, just thought about it) and I just can't quite picture how it would be easier. Seems like it would be harder to fight with a tarp that had a pile of snow and ice on top of it than how I do it now; which is to reach in the snow and pull a couple splits out. No tarp weighted down on the top of the stack to wrestle with.

Anyway, I have way too many stacks of firewood scattered around the countryside to worry about covering them. And really, I never would cover them because the way I do it now works excellent, for me. Obviously it's not a good method for everybody, which is ok too. Covering firewood is a great idea, for other people.

Here is that same stack of firewood in warmer weather:

 

[firefighterjake]

On another note I can tell Quads is a serious woodcutter . . . you can tell by the presence of the white plastic chair in the picture.

 

[gyrfalcon]

If this was wood I was using this year I would cover them . . . or better yet . . . as mentioned have a woodshed built . . . of course this is more of a long term solution. My reasoning in covering the wood you're using this year is that I found it much easier not having to deal with snow and ice-covered wood vs. wood that had a thick build up of snow and ice. While the wood will not suck up that snow, ice and rain, it certainly is a lot easier to simply bring in a dry (no rain, snow or ice-covered split) and toss it right into the fire vs. having to wait for the snow or ice to melt off.

Bingo. It comes down to whether it's more of a hassle to deal with snowy wood than, as Quads says, a tarp loaded with snow. If I lived in a less windy place, I might try the metal roof panels instead, but where I am, anything with a rigid lip like that would be flipped right off pretty quickly.

 

[SolarAndWood]

I don't cover the wood while it is drying. For that matter, I don't stack it either. However, before the snow comes, all the wood that is in the queue to be burned for the season gets stacked under a roof for the same reason a spot in the garage is cleaned out for my wife's car. It makes life easier and less of a mess ends up in the house.

I definitely plan on building a wood shed. I fully agree with you on making life easier... Plus it is always nice to have everything organized well.

Is your green wood just laying in a pile on the ground? I have a couple green cords right now that are in a pile. Have not felt like stacking them yet. That green oak can be heavy too! I need to resplit it all as well.

It all goes in one heap which at its biggest is about 20x20x12. I graded the ground underneath the heap and put down runner crush to keep it well drained. It works for me as I have a windy site to aid in drying and don't have the room to stack single rows.

 

[quads]

On another note I can tell Quads is a serious woodcutter . . . you can tell by the presence of the white plastic chair in the picture.

Ha ha! It occurred to me when I was posting that. I thought of your porch pictures thread and the plastic chair conversation that followed!

 

[Corriewf]

I don't cover the wood while it is drying. For that matter, I don't stack it either. However, before the snow comes, all the wood that is in the queue to be burned for the season gets stacked under a roof for the same reason a spot in the garage is cleaned out for my wife's car. It makes life easier and less of a mess ends up in the house.

I definitely plan on building a wood shed. I fully agree with you on making life easier... Plus it is always nice to have everything organized well.

Is your green wood just laying in a pile on the ground? I have a couple green cords right now that are in a pile. Have not felt like stacking them yet. That green oak can be heavy too! I need to resplit it all as well.

It all goes in one heap which at its biggest is about 20x20x12. I graded the ground underneath the heap and put down runner crush to keep it well drained. It works for me as I have a windy site to aid in drying and don't have the room to stack single rows.

Yeah, I need to get some pallets as the wood is on the bare ground right now. I don't want it to turn punky. Wonder how long I can put that off. Will be going out of town soon for a week. : - / I will miss my wood stove and wood.

Quads, I can picture you in that chair with a 12 and beer just guarding that wood. LOL! Those stacks are pretty man!