My wood is NEVER gonna dry

[skinnykid]

ok I recoverd 1 of my stacks.

I went to the store and bought 5 tarps for $1.50 each. What a bargain!!

well here is my test subject. A little much on the draping but I can't have everything!

what do you guys think???

EDIT: almost forgot to say. As always when ever I touch fire wood. It started RAINING as I was recovering that stack. I will have to cover the rest later or when they dry out. Or should I say IF they dry out

 

[BrotherBart]

Mine is under trees because everywhere on the place is trees. Out in the open with maximum sun would be 150 feet from on the drainfield and I did that bit for too long slogging through the snow to get wood. Now it is right outside my back door.

 

[fossil]

...this is my first year burning and didn't think it all the way through. I will do it different next season.

Well, dang it, skinny...didn't we tell ya not to light a match until you've studied this stuff for 6 years, submitted an approved thesis, passed your oral exam and earned yer PhD? %-P Rick

 

[skinnykid]

tell me about it fossil I shoulda studied more~~~~

 

[billb3]

With all this rain you might need a few boat anchors instead of splits to keep the whole stack from floating away.

Don't trip over one of those and go flying head first into tht rock.
It might break.

 

[fossil]

tell me about it fossil I shoulda studied more~~~~

You are studying, skinny...On-The-Job Training. The motto of the first college I went to was "Learn By Doing", and I believe in that philosophy as strongly as I believe in anything. Yer doin' great! Rick

 

[skinnykid]

Bill: I am gonna tie some survey tape around those ropes.

Fossil: yup I am learning but it will all pay off when I am sitting next to my hot stove watching the Patriots and Eating lots of food and watching my beautiful children playing through out the warm house.

 

[BadDad320]

You could just build a fire and dry out your wood that way..... (wink, nod)

 

[iceman]

ok I recoverd 1 of my stacks.

I went to the store and bought 5 tarps for $1.50 each. What a bargain!!

well here is my test subject. A little much on the draping but I can't have everything!

what do you guys think???

EDIT: almost forgot to say. As always when ever I touch fire wood. It started RAINING as I was recovering that stack. I will have to cover the rest later or when they dry out. Or should I say IF they dry out

put a 5 gallon bucket on top but under the tarp will help get some air under there or take some bricks and put plywood across then tarp and couple more bricks/wood then you won't have the trip hazzard

 

[iceman]

Iceman, just curious, your pics seem to show your wood in a somewhat shady area. Does your wood usually dry good there?. Seems to me you'd want it more out in the open, maximum wind and sun exposure. I'm not singling you out BTW. I've noticed many pics posted where they wood seems to be stacked under trees and i've always wondered how the stuff dried.

my stuff is mostly in the shade until about say 4pm then sun hits it from behind
do to the layout of my yard it was best there... i am thinking about dropping a tree that would give that location more sun
however that is the southwest side so it does get wind
also it get morning sun for an hour or so my yard is got alotta trees for that reason .....strategically placed for shade in the summer but get light in the winter because the trees are so tall
my wood isn't gonna dry until sept oct hopefully the rain will stop then...if not this winter when it gets cold

 

[GunSeth]

All wood dries. Not all wood truly lives.


After a week of rain in Rhody, I decided to finally cover my wood. This being my first year at this, I'm sure I'll go through several phases of covering-uncovering as I micromanage my woodpile much more than necessary.

 

[velvetfoot]

I've now moved 3.3 cords into the garage. I figure I can get 5 cords in there. One side of the pile I'm moving the wood from is wetter than the other. I hate tarps. Last year I tried to hold them down with splits on either end of ropes draped over the top. It still blew off. Maybe I could cover them with something else, like plywood, since that's not that good for me since I'm stacking three rows deep, or 48", so there'd be now overhang. Even then, you'd have to move the wood, metal roofing, etc, during the course of extracting wood over the winter. With the tarps the water pools on top and blows off. This time, I think I'll try tucking in the plastic under the top row on all four sides and leave some overhang so the water drips straight to the ground. Even then there's the inevitable pooling.

Sorry for the rambling.

 

[BrotherBart]

On the eighth day God made 45 mil. EPDM rubber roofing. I never want to see another tarp as long as I live. 55 mile an hour winds and it never moved.

 

[velvetfoot]

Thanks, I gotta check that out. When we went up north last weekend, near Corinth, NY, I saw a couple of woodpiles covered with some kind of stuff that wasn't a tarp...

 

[skinnykid]

velvet: I TRIED THAT TUCKING thing and what happen was the water ran off the tarps and drained onto the splits like 5 rows down and soaked them. so thats why i went with the rope tent like thingy.

 

[velvetfoot]

I'm thinking with more overhang after the tucking in...

 

[Backroads]

I can't remember an August being so wet. I mean seriously, it's like the man is having fun watching me do the changing of the tarps.

 

[DiscoInferno]

Here's my latest approach (on the left). I use 4 48"x40" pallets for the floor (so total 13'4" x 4') and one for each end. Two rows of wood, plus fill in the middle of the rows with odds and ends. Tarp is 16'x10', and with the seams and the crowning it's just the right length. It's tied down at all 4 corners, but I haven't decided what to do with the sides. I might go for the tent effect, although I worry that the november winds off the lake will shred the tarp if I hold it out like that. Ideal would be some sort of weighted bumper that holds the tarp down and away from the sides but still allows some play. For some other stacks I went with 12' wide tarps, which will let me reach (near) the top of the pallets on the ground.

My "problem" is a little different, in that I'm not going for maximum seasoning speed but minimum wetness. I have about 2 cords of deadfall a year, but I'm lucky to burn 1/2 cord a year since it's seasonal. I'm up to about 10 cords, and until/unless I put up a pole barn or a big woodshed I need to keep this wood indefinitely out in the yard. On the right (behind the uncovered logs) you can see last years approach - total plastic wrap on same pallet stack. It should last at least one more year, but it's not a long-term solution. That wood was already seasoned when I wrapped it, although I was worried about creating a solar still there seems to be enough air under the pallets and through the ends to keep it dry.

 

[WILDSOURDOUGH]

On the eighth day God made 45 mil. EPDM rubber roofing. I never want to see another tarp as long as I live. 55 mile an hour winds and it never moved.

Buddy of mine gave me a piece a couple of weeks ago- wife saw it asked what it was (but not what it was for)...and directly took it over to cover the split stack- Smart Girl !
Now she has me 'begging' to get some more. Excellent Stuff.

 

[Jay777]

On the eighth day God made 45 mil. EPDM rubber roofing. I never want to see another tarp as long as I live. 55 mile an hour winds and it never moved.

Just sitting on top, not attached to anything?

 

[JPapiPE]

Brother Bart has a great idea covering a woodpile with 0.045 EPDM membrane. However the cost of such high tech, good stuff is $5.95/ 10 sq. ft. and comes in no less than 10' wide rolls. A full roll of 50'X10' will run you $200..( or $0.40/ sq. ft.) .Maybe if you go this way it makes sense to invest in a roll rather than a per foot price.

For a more economical approach, I suggest 7/16"X 4'X8' sheets of O.S.B. ( oriented strand board) which sells for $9.50/ sheet. This stuff will warp and curl to a certain extent, but can be flipped over and used again . Another option is AvanTeck which is a waterpoof O.S.B. and sells for close to $20 for a 1/2" X4'X8' sheet and is water proof..

If money wasn't an object i'd go with the EPDM membrane, but for my dollar, I'd go with the cheap O.S.B. and cut and secure pieces of OSB, with black dry-wall screws if your pile is wider than 4'. One can also secure this OSB directly into your wood pile with several 2 to 2-1/2" dry wall screws as this product may lift off and fly off your pile in very strong winds.

We have finally got Bart to talk about some of his secrets...He must have been tortured to reveal such information as he is usually very secretive. All I can say about Bart is be careful of that old bowtie he wears.

 

[JPapiPE]

Here is another remedy that I should offer before Bart zaps me with that old bowtie he wears....One can make their own tarps by going to a sewing store like Jo-Ann Fabrics and buying a grommeting kit. These kits are rather cheap and the grommets are easy to install in any tarp to make anchoring a cinch (pun there). Use bungies to attach tarp to ground...by hooking into tarp grommets and anchor with ground driven stakes with eye hooks screwed in to the stakes. Once you have the grommet tool , all you have to buy is loose packs of grommetts for very cheap $

 

[Adios Pantalones]

I bought 8'x8' blue tarps for something like $3 each at the local hahdware store 2 weeks ago. Perfect on the holz.

 

[Jay777]

Brother Bart has a great idea covering a woodpipe with 0.045 EPDM membrane. However the cost of such high tech, good stuff is $5.95/ linear foot and comes in no less than 10' wide rolls. A full roll of 50'X10' will run you $200...Maybe if you go this way it makes sense to invest in a roll rather than a per foot price.

http://www.flatroofsolutions.com/45mil-Black-EPDM-price.php

That's waaaaay cheaper. Did I search on the wrong thing?

 

[JPapiPE]

Same stuff, but cheaper. Good job finding this link. Cost for 1'X10' is $4.80 or $0.48/sq. foot, plus shipping. The price of my cash and carry dealer is $0.595 a square foot. Your link works out to be cheaper by the foot, but my per 50' rolls cost is $0.40/ sq,ft. ...a lot cheaper than per foot price. Maybe an investment for when one has 12-15 cord needing covering.