I need a strategy for burning this season

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Thats cool, should keep you in wood for a while, nice pictures but I am not sure what it is either but I bet we find out soon.:)
 
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Im not experienced with wood ID but the first pic I don't think is oak, Im sure someone on here knows better than I
Next to last photo, beech on right and black birch on the left. Top photo looks more like maple to me.
 
It looks like I'm going to head into the season without enough properly seasoned wood. I work from home, so I burn 24/7. I think I'll need about 5 cords to make it through the season. Here's what I have...

- 2 cords in my wood shed outside - fully seasoned (12-18%) moisture content.
- 1 cord in my garage that I just bought. I put it in there because I bought "fully seasoned" wood. It looks seasoned, gray in color, but it's not. - 24% MC (I'm not happy about that one).
-1 cord that I bought last spring stacked under a tarp in my yard. 19% MC
- 1 cord that I just scrounged last week from a free wood ad on Craigslist. It's old, a bit punky, and was sitting outside uncoverd for a couple years. MC is about 21%.
- 2+ cords that i just got free from the utility company who is clearing trees above the lines. These trees were alive last month and I'm still in the process of splitting and stacking. This will be for next year...hopefully. MC 25%.

Should I save my good stuff for the coldest months? Should I mix the good with the bad? I'm not sure what strategy to use. That's where you guys come in. :)

Thanks.

First, that oak you thought you had is soft maple. It will dry fast. It won't hold a fire as long as oak but is still very good wood. We've burned it in as little as 6 months after being cut, split and stacked.


Now on to your initial post. First, I doubt it will take 5 cord of wood to heat you through the winter. In our area of MI, most folks burn 3-4 cord except those with very large houses or very drafty homes or perhaps even with older stoves and very poor wood. I'd think for your area 3 cord should do just fine. We do 3 cord here and keep our home 80 degrees or more all winter.

That 2 cord in the shed will probably get you well into January. The one cord in the garage should be moved outside and stacked in a windy area. The cord under the tarp was starved, It should have been left uncovered. That cord you just scrounged should be put in the garage instead of what you have and that should be burned first. The 2 cord you just got should be good to go next year with no problems.

I think that you, like many others, have got a bit too much hang up over moisture content. I also think you will get along just fine this winter with the wood that you have. But, you also need to still learn what is the best wood and how to identify it. That takes time but you will learn.

Now quite worrying and enjoy the fall weather.
 
Dennis,I have a question for you. Is there any difference in wood that has been dried in the out of doors and kiln dried, if they are both the same moisture content? In other words is there an advantage to drying outside in the air, rain and snow?
 
Most times kiln dried won't be as dry as that which has been stacked outdoors. However, this is much dependent upon how long that wood has been stacked and where and how it was stacked. But, both will burn just fine. For example, at Woodstock we burned both kiln dried and outdoor dried. Both did just fine even though some thought the outdoor dried would be way too dry. Methinks it opened a few eyes! ;)
 
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Silver Maple, boy missed that one but I think BWS is right plus explains the lower moisture content.
I do believe some get too hung up on moisture content but that comes from inexpeirence so it will pass with time.
Moisture content is moisture content no matter how you dry it, outside wood only gets so dry depending on where you live.
 
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Most times kiln dried won't be as dry as that which has been stacked outdoors. However, this is much dependent upon how long that wood has been stacked and where and how it was stacked. But, both will burn just fine. For example, at Woodstock we burned both kiln dried and outdoor dried. Both did just fine even though some thought the outdoor dried would be way too dry. Methinks it opened a few eyes! ;)
I would have thought the same. Last year I had bought kiln dried because I couldn't get seasoned wood. I also had a cord of wet "seasoned" wood I bought. The seasoned wouldn't burn, but the kiln dried burned very hot and fast. Mixing them seemed to work the best.

Last night I burned some wood I know is a year and a half, but was left uncovered and had gotten rain two days before. It took a lot of kindling and about an hour of drying to get it to burn hot enough to not smoke. So many variables, and I'm trying to still figure out where to put the additional three cords to stay three years ahead. Looking for other ways to do it until I can level some property to hold it.

As usual, Dennis, great answer. Thanks.
 
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Thanks again everyone. I appreciate all the responses.
Just to button up this thread up, i walked my property and saw that there is actually 3 prominent tree species, not 2 like i previously mentioned. Here are the 3 leaves. Can i safely assume that they are oak, beech and silver maple?

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All this time I thought I had a lot of oak on my property. Apparently not. So, after a quick online search, of the 3, beech is the best burning, then maple, and then the tulip poplar?
I need to learn my trees. Looking at just the bark, the tulip and the maple look identical. Any tricks of the trade to ID those 2 when the leaves aren't on the trees?
 
All this time I thought I had a lot of oak on my property. Apparently not. So, after a quick online search, of the 3, beech is the best burning, then maple, and then the tulip poplar?
I need to learn my trees. Looking at just the bark, the tulip and the maple look identical. Any tricks of the trade to ID those 2 when the leaves aren't on the trees?

Could be for sure.

Ansky, the tulip will look more like ash than maple. The trick you are looking for is experience. That takes time.
 
Tulip poplar is very distinct once it's cut - the inside is almost white, and it has a unique smell that you will learn to recognize pretty quickly. It is very light and splits ridiculously easy. Not a lot of heat in that wood but it may get you by a bit in the early fall or late spring.
 
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And remember that sometimes that is called yellow poplar and it does make some excellent lumber.
 
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