How many rounds in a cord

[bert670]

Just had my stove installed this year and had 2 cords delivered over the summer to have wood ready for it. Gonna start splitting my own going forward. Was wondering is anyone had a quick estimate of how many approx 16” long rounds would add up to split and stacked cords. I’m sure I could break out the calculator and attempt to do some math, but hoping someone could speak from experience. Lucked into some free ash/oak that I’ve been bucking up. Everything’s probably about about 14” wide, some wider some shorter. Have about 3 truck beds so far and trying to get some more.

 

[mcdougy]

72 rounds at 14" diameter and 16" long in a cord

 

[Woodsplitter67]

A cord is measured by size. 4x4x8ft.. It is difficult to say how many rounds will make up a cord as the rounds will vary in size. You will know exactly what you got once its split and stacked..

 

[stoveliker]

I agree with mcdougy. I calculate about 70 rounds.

 

[gthomas785]

If you assume the splits end up packed 100% efficiently then it will take 70 rounds. However the packing of a stacked wood pile is not perfect, nor should it be as you want some air flow between the pieces.

For example if you assume the rounds are all the same size and stack them all up with a hexagonal packing, then the stack will be 90.7% wood. So about 63 of those 14" rounds.

 

[stoveliker]

I did not assume 100% efficiency.

I took squares of 14" on a side. I.e. not a hexagonal packing but a square lattice, which includes a decent amount of free space and is less than the hexagonal 90.69 percent of the densest packing of a hexagonal lattice.

4 ft tall is a stack of ~3.42 14" squares tall (each square fitting one round in it).
8 ft wide is ~6.85 14" squares.
So one face cord is ~23 rounds (3.42*6.85=23.4) - when packing them in a square lattice.

That's unstable, and "mathematical reality" will thus be better than that because it'll relax into a hexagonal lattice. "Real reality" may not be better because our cylinders are not smooth, making the packing less efficient.

23 rounds times 3 (because 3 face cords in a cord because 16" long rounds), is 70 rounds.

Note that the packing of the resulting splits is likely more dense (because of flat surfaces rather than curved ones). So a cord of 14" dia rounds is about 70 rounds, but splitting and stacking them will likely result in less than a cord of split wood.

 

[gthomas785]

I did not assume 100% efficiency.

I took squares of 14" on a side. I.e. not a hexagonal packing but a square lattice, which includes a decent amount of free space and is less than the hexagonal 90.69 percent of the densest packing of a hexagonal lattice.

4 ft tall is a stack of ~3.42 14" squares tall (each square fitting one round in it).
8 ft wide is ~6.85 14" squares.
So one face cord is ~23 rounds (3.42*6.85=23.4) - when packing them in a square lattice.

That's unstable, and "mathematical reality" will thus be better than that because it'll relax into a hexagonal lattice. "Real reality" may not be better because our cylinders are not smooth, making the packing less efficient.

23 rounds times 3 (because 3 face cords in a cord because 16" long rounds), is 70 rounds.

Note that the packing of the resulting splits is likely more dense (because of flat surfaces rather than curved ones). So a cord of 14" dia rounds is about 70 rounds, but splitting and stacking them will likely result in less than a cord of split wood.

Well now feel like a dum dum, because I figured out 70 rounds to a cord using that same method and then forgot that I had already assumed they were square.

I should probably go to bed.

 

[stoveliker]

I likely have been there more often than you. Or so those around me say. So no worries.

 

[Isaac Carlson]

I get about 50-60 rounds/cord, but mine are bigger. I have had rounds that were 2-3/cord, but those are less common.

 

[stoveliker]

Wow. Monsters, that. 1/2 full cord.
(Not face cord, I presume, though even that is rather large.)

 

[bholler]

That would be 6 to 6.5 foot rounds.

 

[Isaac Carlson]

Wow. Monsters, that. 1/2 full cord.
(Not face cord, I presume, though even that is rather large.)

Bholler-Yep, big ones.

They were loaded with equipment and unloaded by pulling them out with a 4wd suv.
You can see some of the corners poking through the snow in the background. Needless to say, they got noodled up right where they were.