Maple good for burning?

[NickZ]

I have a Maple tree that is largely already cut up from a storm a couple of years ago - I just have neglected to haul it from the part of our property where it fell.

Is maple good for burning?

it has been sitting outside for 2 years - tyhrough all the snow and rain that Montreal has to offer...
You are reading a post from someone who has yet to start a fire - what do I look for or nee to know in order to prepare this wood - or should I juts scrap it?

Thanks,
Nick

 

[kjklosek]

What kind of maple?

Silver maple and Box Elder burn like poplar, fast and will get hot. It dries fast too, about 3 months in the summer and it is ready to burn.

Hard maple(Sugar maple) and Red maple will burn a little longer since it is a slower growing tree. Takes a little longer to dry.

It's all good to burn.

J.P.

 

[Rhone]

Anything is good for burning in todays stoves. If it's a sugar maple (there's a sugar maple blight going around) it's excellent as it's a very dense type and similar to oak, but red maple is very common but no sugar maple, it's more like pine and doesn't burn long. You can see a list of wood btu's per type at https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/articles/heating_value_wood

 

[woodconvert]

"Is maple good for burning?"

Obviously the harder/denser the wood the better burn time and heat you'll get (and the longer it will take to dry). That said, I segregate my woodpile so my fall/spring supply is maple, elm and pretty much anything dry. The winter stack is all red/white oak, hickory and a little bit of locust. I find I don't get very good burn times with maple but you get pretty good heat...more than adequate for 35degree days.

Everyone's situation is different but if you burn occasionally and the wood is dry and not punky...burn it, you'll get heat.

 

[JBinKC]

Its all good to burn but I think red maple has more 10% more BTUs than most websites give it credit for. A cord of dried red maple weighs about the same as hackberry and black walnut per cord and 320 lbs more than silver maple.

 

[DriftWood]

Maple Wood ? It all burns. I have burnt tons of maple.
YES burn it this year, Cut it and split it as you need it. Two year old dead wood should burn great once you split it. Just pile the split wood it in a place that's dry and out of the weather before you use it.

 

[derbygreg]

yes maple is great firewood. I have burned a lot of Maple and Ash. Split it and burn it.

 

[NickZ]

Thanks for all the responses.
I have cut it into decent sized logs when it fell last year - but it has been sitting out in a field for the last year - so I guess it isn'tdry enough to use this year - especially considering all the rain we have had lately.
Split it and stack it and save it for next year I guess?

 

[jpl1nh]

Thanks for all the responses.
I have cut it into decent sized logs when it fell last year - but it has been sitting out in a field for the last year - so I guess it isn'tdry enough to use this year - especially considering all the rain we have had lately.
Split it and stack it and save it for next year I guess?

There's a good chance you lost a lot of the internal moisture in that wood over the past year which is what seasoning wood is all about. If you finish cutting it to length, split it, stack it loosely in good sun and wind, maybe top cover it when it rains, I think you might have fine wood in 6-8 weeks. You'll be able to tell as soon as you start splitting it. If it feels pretty dry inside when you split it you should be in good shape. If it's still damp inside when you split, you probably will have to wait til nest year, or at least to the end of the winter. Sugar maple is very hard and has lots of btu's, excellent long burning, red maple has good heat, a nice medium heat value fire wood, silver maple a bit less btu's than red maple, and box elder?, well yes technically its a maple but I just think of it as box elder and its a lighter wood thats fast burning and not as much heat. Well dried they all burn just fine, sugar maple burns the longest, box elder the shortest. I would get it cut up, split, stacked and covered soon though so it doesn't start to rot because then the heat values of all the varieties go down quickly.

 

[NickZ]

Thanks for the response - will buy a maul tomorrow and see what is what...
Thanks,
nick

 

[DriftWood]

When you go shopping get a sledge hammer and at least two steel wood splitting wedges too. Around limbs and knots malls are very had to use when splitting wood. I have at least 8 wedges, on big rounds I can easily use 4 to 5 of them. A chain saw cut into a round face will also help split the twisted grain wood. Sometimes just using the saw to cut up a round is the way to go. Good luck!