i'm wondering if soft woods such as popple and soft maple would be seasoned enough to burn next season if i get them cut, split and stacked by this spring or early summer?
how long for soft wood to season?
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I will season soft maple for 90-120 days resplitt it stack it in the garage next to the wood furance for another 10-14 days and burns very nice!So if your waiting til next season it will be ready!
I've never heard of maple referred to as soft wood. Even maple that isn't hard/ or sugar maple is not really soft wood.
If it's stacked in early spring it will burn come Oct. if left in the sun and wind.
Matt
If it's stacked in early spring it will burn come Oct. if left in the sun and wind.
Matt
silver maple or some call it rock maple is considerd softwood with 20 million btu per cord is very high for softwood. I burn it 80 percent of the time.(it pops and krakles like hard woods as well)EatenByLimestone said:
EatenByLimestone said:
There are hard maples and soft maples. Hard maples put out a little less heat than oak, soft maples put out a little more heat than pine. Sugar maple is a hard maple.
EatenByLimestone said:
Matt: you are correct. If anyone goggles maple? All maple is referred to as "hardwood". Just some maples are much harder and others much softer--but all are hardwoods.
Big leaf maple is ready to go in approx 8 months after being split and stacked in the sun and wind.
Douglas fir is even quicker at 6 months.
Does the silver maple burn clean? A friend has a big silver maple I can have if i cut it down. Is it worth it,Is it like burning poppler?
Webfoot
Webfoot
It'll burn just fine. Even poplar will burn.
Free wood is free wood, what ever type it is. It'll keep you and your family warm.
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I was referring to softwoods such as pine, etc.
Soft Maple isn't s a soft wood. It's not as dense as sugar (rock) maple, but it sure as heck isn't soft wood.
Now poplar is a fun wood since it is a hardwood, but is pretty soft! Yellow pine is a soft wood, but works pretty nice for a handtool bench. It's plenty hard. Trying to bore a nice hole through old yellow pine can be a bugger.
Isn't wood fun?
Matt
Free wood is free wood, what ever type it is. It'll keep you and your family warm.
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I was referring to softwoods such as pine, etc.
Soft Maple isn't s a soft wood. It's not as dense as sugar (rock) maple, but it sure as heck isn't soft wood.
Now poplar is a fun wood since it is a hardwood, but is pretty soft! Yellow pine is a soft wood, but works pretty nice for a handtool bench. It's plenty hard. Trying to bore a nice hole through old yellow pine can be a bugger.
Isn't wood fun?
Matt
webfoot said:
Last winter I burned a lot of silver maple. It burns hot, but it burns fast. It cuts easy and it splits easy too.
I had five big ones in the yard, I now have three. I had to cut one down last fall, because it had big branches hanging over the garage. I still have a big pile of logs up there that needs cut and split. If the maple you're talking about has shaggy bark like this, it's silver maple.
Woodford said:webfoot said:
Last winter I burned a lot of silver maple. It burns hot, but it burns fast. It cuts easy and it splits easy too.
I had five big ones in the yard, I now have three. I had to cut one down last fall, because it had big branches hanging over the garage. I still have a big pile of logs up there that needs cut and split. If the maple you're talking about has shaggy bark like this, it's silver maple.
![[Hearth.com] how long for soft wood to season?](https://www.hearth.com/talk/attachments/w7bhnq-webp.208684/ "[Hearth.com] how long for soft wood to season?")
the maple i have is a smoother bark... and it's growing in bunches that come together at the base. mostly growing in low wet areas.
sadworld said:
Both of those will be ready for next fall as long as you get them cut and split. We burn a lot of soft maple but will leave the popple to you. lol
For the others, technically, any tree that drops its leaves in the fall is a hardwood. However, those who work with timber have a different set of rules. Yes, there is a soft maple and a hard maple and popple is also softwood to us.
Sadworld, while you are cutting that soft maple, cut some just a little short; like around 12" and then split it into about 1" square pieces as it makes excellent kindling. It starts quickly, burns hot and fast. We always keep a good supply of that on hand.
technically speaking, any tree that has leaves as opposed to needles is a hard wood... but some are way less dense that they are refered to as soft wood. I have some boxelder that I cut this year, same time as some sugar maple. The box is bone dry, where the maple is still not 100% seasoned. Hell, I have some box that I am burning now that was cut in late july that is burning as we speak!
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