OK, I'm gonna cave...

[nola mike]

Have had a hard time scrounging enough dry wood to burn for my first season. Now that I'm installing a stove in my primary house (maybe today or tomorrow if it doesn't snow...), I'll need something to get me through the season; I should be able to scrounge/season enough green stuff for next year. I realize that I'm going to have a tough time finding decent stuff on CL. Looks like it's going for around $150/cord here. So...
1. What is the minimum moisture content I should accept? I realize that I want <20%, but I doubt that's gonna happen.
2. What kind of wood should I be looking for. Seems like a lot of folks are selling "mixed hardwood". I've been trying, but can't ID wood for the life of me. I can tell pine from "not pine", but that's about the extent of it. Do I just hold my nose and buy whatever they're claiming it is?
3. Anything else I should be looking for?

I'm going to start with 1/3-1/2 cord to see what I'm dealing with...

 

[smokinj]

Might get a moister meter from harbor freight. About 10 bucks and in your case should be worth the coin.

 

[soupy1957]

If you are lucky enough to have someone near you that sells firewood that is dry at this time of year, and they have it "seasoned" as well, I'd want as close to 20% moisture content as possible, and I'd find a place in my home to continue keeping it dry.

Hardwoods are best, but you can burn soft woods if you want, as well. Pallets inside factories are dry.......maybe there is a business nearby that will give you some skids you can cut up. Don't burn treated or painted wood.

Keep a lot of kindling around..........considering your "experimental" stage at this point, you probably will be starting and re-starting your fire frequently. You could always order Super Cedars or Fatwood as a fire starter helper too. (There, Thomas........I put a plug in for your product.......).

Start saving your newspapers (not the colored sheets, .....just the normal pages) in a basket somewhere.

-Soupy1957

 

[wood-fan-atic]

Make phone calls. Ask questions - lots of them. Tell them you have an EPA woodstove, and that you can only burn seasoned hardwood under 20% MC. Many will say they have it.....few actually do. If you bring a MM to their yard (and a maul to split a piece open for a reading in the middle), you can know what youre getting b/f you purchase. Ask neighbors (anybody with a woodpile) if they bought their wood, and if so, where? If you put in the footwork, and are willing to pay more for quality,dry, hardwood - you MAY get something burnable. If you go with blind faith, and buy from the first guy that advertises "Seasoned Hardwood" on Craigslist, them you will almost certainly be disappointed. Any hard wood will do,and most dealers will sell a mix - oak,beech,maple,locust,ash,etc. You know that 20% and under is best, but you can have pretty decent heat and success with 22-24%. Any more than that, and your wood will be hissing, hard to keep lit, and the fire will use all the BTUs to boil the water out, rather than heat your house. Good luck, we've all been there before. Just make sure youre not in this position next year, and you'll be ok. ;-)

 

[John the Painter]

Pallets and cut off waste from construction sites can be a major help to have some dry wood.Just make sure it's not pressure treated.Good luck.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Have had a hard time scrounging enough dry wood to burn for my first season. Now that I'm installing a stove in my primary house (maybe today or tomorrow if it doesn't snow...), I'll need something to get me through the season; I should be able to scrounge/season enough green stuff for next year. I realize that I'm going to have a tough time finding decent stuff on CL. Looks like it's going for around $150/cord here. So...
1. What is the minimum moisture content I should accept? I realize that I want <20%, but I doubt that's gonna happen.

25% maximum.


2. What kind of wood should I be looking for. Seems like a lot of folks are selling "mixed hardwood". I've been trying, but can't ID wood for the life of me. I can tell pine from "not pine", but that's about the extent of it. Do I just hold my nose and buy whatever they're claiming it is?

Maple, ash, cherry and birch might be some good ones. Stay away from oak. It is one of the very best firewood but very slow to give up its moisture. We wait 3 years before burning oaks.


3. Anything else I should be looking for?

Look at the quantity of wood you get compared to what is advertised. Many sellers short people.


I'm going to start with 1/3-1/2 cord to see what I'm dealing with...

And burn your fires rather on the hot side. Check the chimney often and clean as it needs it.

 

[Kenster]

Take your moisture meter and a maul with you. Test several pieces. I would dig some out of the middle and back of the pile/stack. They may be salting the stack with prime wood on top.
Also, I've read many times here that the moisture meters are set to read moisture of lumber and will actually indicate about 5% high on split cord wood. So if you split a piece and reads 25% it will actually be closer to 20%.

 

[nola mike]

thanks for the tips. yeah, i already have a HF MM, and plan on using it. Most of the ads are for the wood delivered, which is fine by me. I'll let them know ahead of time that I won't accept delivery of anything other than what's advertised. 25% max. And I have pallets already, and just found another 20 or so waiting for me. Good for kindling, but they burn quick. Moving forward...swept the chimney today and dropped the liner. Insulate, block off plate, and stove install tomorrow. Hopefully burning in time for the Pats game!

 

[Duetech]

a general rule of thumb I use is if it doesn't weigh much it won't have many btu's. SOooo check the stuff out before you buy. It's worth the drive for a hands on. Avoid poplar/aspen, tulip (yellow poplar), catalpa, silver maple and most elms (red elm is pretty good but you want the splitting done before you buy unless your last name is Kong). There are some btu per chord charts out there that are very helpful. Black cherry is around 19 million btu per chord and that's where I draw the line for wood to buy. 2cents.

 

[CodyWayne718]

Try to find someone that has some locust, pretty low MC even when green. Might get lucky and find some that is dry enough.

 

[firefighterjake]

+1 to the comment about finding some pallets -- they'll help you get the fire started and help "drive" out any excess moisture for semi-seasoned wood . . . still . . . as Dennis said it's a good idea to frequently check your chimney and clean it when needed if you are burning wood that is marginal.