red elm worth paying more for?

[mtj53]

Hey guys,
I have a question that has probably been asked before. Searched and found a ton of posts on elm, but not specific to this. I am going to purchase a load of logs this year. Locally, a load of various hardwood logs runs around 700, they give you the option of getting all red elm for 800. All things being equal as far as amounts etc, would you pay the extra for red elm?

Also have always read that any type of elm burns hotter/faster, doesn't sound good for all night burns?

Have seen many, many good and bad posts on elm. problem is, not alot of them that I have found are specific to red elm. Have heard about folks having a world of trouble splitting "elm", but have not seen anything on that as far as red elm is concerned. I'm sure I have split elm in the past because I've ran into some very stringy wood!....just not sure if that was regular elm or red elm.

Your thoughts, specifically on red elm? Thanks!

 

[Thistle]

Its great,one of my favs.Long burning,good density about the same as Red Oak & Mulberry,much easier (usually) to split than American or White Elm. Burned a fair amount of dead Red Elm back in early to late 80's,unfortunately not much left around my area,only ones that Dutch Elm Disease didnt hit so far are smaller & few medium sized ones.Those are the offspring of mature trees that died off in the mid 70's to early 80's. I only had 2 smaller dead Red Elms to cut last spring/summer.I'm hoping the ones still growing live long enough to get a good size,but who knows.

 

[mtj53]

Thank you Thistle...
I'm not that far away from you, over here near Dubuque. The logger I talked to said he ran into more Red Elm this year than he ever has or the price would be even higher. He mentioned the fact that it has little or no bark on it was a huge plus, just by looking at your pictures I can tell that's true. Don't like trying something new when stuff I've done in the past works, but definately going to have to try this. Thanks again...

 

[lukem]

Thank you Thistle...
I'm not that far away from you, over here near Dubuque. The logger I talked to said he ran into more Red Elm this year than he ever has or the price would be even higher. He mentioned the fact that it has little or no bark on it was a huge plus, just by looking at your pictures I can tell that's true. Don't like trying something new when stuff I've done in the past works, but definately going to have to try this. Thanks again...

Red elm is good stuff, no doubt. When it is dead and barkless it splits relatively easy (not like the elm horror stories you've probably read) and gives good burns. I would say it is probably about 15% - 25% less burn time than a load of white oak or hickory, in my experience.

I'm just curious what the "other" types of wood are before I could advise on whether or not it would be worth the extra spend. If they are ash, hard maple, beech...then I'd pass on the elm. If it is cherry, tulip poplar, sycamore, hackberry, etc....I'd grab the elm.

 

[mtj53]

That's what I was worried about more than anything is how it splits. I've had some wood that got stringy on me when splitting where even after you split it it's stuck together yet and takes everything a mans got just to pull it apart! Didn't want a whole semi of that stuff! The gentleman I talked with said this was cut last winter.

I asked him what the other types of wood were and he mentioned oak, walnut, some cherry and I think maple.

This is wood also that I am cutting for three seasons out....I have the next two years split & stacked, and I should have a couple extra cords of oak to use for overnight burns when it's time to burn this red elm if this is what I order. Given what you said, if I had to solely count on the red elm, I don't think I'd do it if I didn't have a bit of extra oak sitting there for overnight burns...a nice load of oak in the fireplace is just perfect for overnight burns right now on a cold night.

You have my curiosity peaked...you mentioned one of the woods you wouldn't pass up as ash....strictly curiosity, don't believe this is even an option, but does ash burn that good?

 

[ScotO]

ash is a great wood for burning. Not to mention it splits easily and seasons fairly quickly when split. I wouldn't use it for long extended burns but I mix it with locust and oak at night, or use it with soft maple during the days if we are home......

 

[lukem]

If you are already a couple years ahead, the mix load sounds better to me. I like a variety of wood for different weather. I would be curious what the percentages of the different types of wood are. Oak, cherry, walnut, and maple is all pretty good stuff. Cherry and walnut for shoulder season and oak and maple for peak heating demand. Even though the elm may not be terrible to split, all of the above mentioned mix will likely split better if doing it by hand.

Just this guy's opinion....

Ash, as previously posted, is a great all purpose wood.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Go for it!

 

[Ehouse]

You have to learn to know wood. If a seller is going to ask for more $ for a specific type, (seasoned, green, split,round, log, Cherry, Oak, Popple, etc.), Than you have to know enough to offer less for less valuable wood. Around here. (upstate NY), $60 a face cord is the average, so for $600.00 I can score 10 face cords, more than enough for a year's heat, and I can look it over to make sure what I'm getting. This summer I bought a shed full of super dry hard maple and red elm which turned out to be about 3 face cords for $75, and this Fall a face cord of popple for $35. For $ 110.00 I'm going into February with a week of that wood left. Most of the Ash I cut in the spring and split mid summer will go for next year and beyond. The Red Elm by the way is exellent, especially with the bark on, but tough to split by hand. If you don't know enough to dicker, buy it split , buy it dry, buy it close to home.

So, is Red Elm worth paying for? Yes! Is it worth paying more for? No.

Ehouse

 

[mywaynow]

May be a better option to have a mix of woods to assist in the burns??

 

[mtj53]

Well guys, I wanted to thank you for all the input. I did order a load, but I didn't go with the red elm. I went with the mixed. The red elm sounds great but in the end I agreed, not worth paying more for. I love the idea of working with wood that has no bark on it, but I'm used to loading my fireplace up at night and not having a worry until morning, so keeping overnight burns in mind I went with the mixed. Glad I did too because the load turned out probably 65-70% oak. Also wasn't too concerned for less ash because I only have to clean the fireplace out every4 days or so anyway...Thanks again....

 

[Backwoods Savage]

One big problem with that load is the oak. Oak is indeed one of the best woods but it gives up its moisture very slowly. Around here, we give oak 3 years to dry before burning it. Good luck.

 

[mtj53]

I"ve got that covered Dennis....the load that got here the other day will be cut/split within the month and will have until at least Feb-March 2015 to dry, more likely until Oct-Nov 2015. Been working hard getting ahead 3 years. Just about there! That's by far the best advice given on the site, glad I followed it when I first found hearth.com!