How many years will split wood last?

[njtomatoguy]

I was offered some free wood- apparently this guy had loads of wood delivered and his family stopped burning- It is a friend of the family - 40 miles away -one way , soi i'll be renting the biggest truck I can get.
He has not told my family how old the wood is, but was just interested in getting rid of it.
So, how long does split wood last?

 

[jpl1nh]

If its protected from wood's greatest enemy, H2O, decades. If not 3-6 years perhaps depending on what type of wood. Oak, black locust, longer, birch, pine shorter. If it was well protected go get it!!

 

[thephotohound]

Depends on the species of wood... I would say most hardwoods are good for at least 3-5 years out in the open. If it was covered, maybe more. If it was stored in a damp place, maybe less.

 

[Gooserider]

I was offered some free wood- apparently this guy had loads of wood delivered and his family stopped burning- It is a friend of the family - 40 miles away -one way , soi i'll be renting the biggest truck I can get.
He has not told my family how old the wood is, but was just interested in getting rid of it.
So, how long does split wood last?

I would consider driving over and evaluating it first, both for how much there is (no sense in getting the wrong size truck) and what condition / variety it is.

In the right storage conditions it could be good almost indefinitely, but if its' been sitting exposed it could rot away fairly quickly. If it is dry and solid when you look at it, it's worth having. If it feels like a sponge, looks like a mushroom farm, (small amounts of fungus are OK) or falls apart when you pick it up or handle it roughly, then it's not worth the effort.

Also keep in mind that wood is heavier than the average U-Haul is designed for - make sure you don't overload!

Gooserider

 

[DiscoInferno]

I just dug up, cut, and split an 8' maple (sugar or red, not sure) log that was buried in damp sandy soil since summer 2003. It was in amazingly good shape. Had it been any of the other species around here (beech, birch, balsam) it would probably be mush. OTOH, I have gone to scrounge wood more than once that was stacked in the open for less time, cut but unsplit, that was mostly to completely punky. You'd expect that the middle and upper logs in a pile on the ground would be in better shape, but some types of fungus send out long tendrils to the ground to bring up their own moisture. Look for flat dark narrow ribbons attached to the ends of the wood.

 

[Eric Johnson]

(broken link removed to http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070806/sc_afp/hungaryarchaeologyforests;_ylt=AkS1lXj5RHFHkps_7tZ.l1ms0NUE)

I don't know why the link doesn't work. It does if you cut and paste it into the address bar. Anyway, it's a link to the following story:

Archaeologists discover 8-million-year-old forest in Hungary Still solid wood.

 

[begreen]

Cool. Here's another link:
(broken link removed to http://www.caboodle.hu/nc/news/news_archive/single_page/article/11/prehistoric/?cHash=8484a22f0c)

 

[BrotherBart]

See there. Don't split your wood and it won't season for eight million years.

 

[jpl1nh]

Wonder how much a cord of 8 million year old unseasoned wood goes for?

 

[Gooserider]

Wonder how much a cord of 8 million year old unseasoned wood goes for?

No idea, but judging from the links, the stuff sounds like it wouldn't burn for chit...

Gooserider

 

[stoveguy2esw]

my neighbor's neighbor , an older lady who's hubby passed away about 10 years ago, asked me if i would remove some wood that jack (hubby) had stacked in there several years before he passed. the wood was dry as dust , but hard as a rock , mostly oak and locust wood, i moved it out , cleaned up her wood shed and later helped her install shelves where the wood was stacked. wood could be lit with a match literally