Soft wood not burning

[Yavne]

Hello folks!

I burned all hardwood in last months, have some dry soft wood. But the problem, it's not really burning, it's kind of smoldering. Am I doing anything wrong? Any tips how can I heat the house with soft wood?

Thanks!

 

[begreen]

The wood is probably damp in the core. What species of wood is this?

 

[EbS-P]

My soft wood is never as dry in the spring as it was in the fall. My guess is that it’s wet. I fight it every year. I’m going to build that woodshed this year!

 

[Bad LP]

Wasting time without a wood shed or other contraption to keep the weather off.

 

[jmb6420]

My soft wood is never as dry in the spring as it was in the fall. My guess is that it’s wet. I fight it every year. I’m going to build that woodshed this year!

👍

 

[Yavne]

Thanks guys! I'm not sure what species I have here, I would say at least 2-3 different species. I think it's pretty dry, it is sitting on my backyard for at least one year (unfortunately not full sun). I put some plastic to cover the top, but it's open from the sides. I have moisture meter, I can check it.

You're moving the wood to wood shed after it's dry, right? Doesn't it absorb the moisture?

 

[Yavne]

👍

View attachment 294320

Beautiful!

 

[stoveliker]

I put wood in the shed to dry it. Not after it's dry.
Is your wood off the ground, or just on the ground?

Get a moisture meter ($30 or so at big box stores). Get a few splits in the home, let them reach room temp (24 hrs or so). Resplit them and measure them along the grain. Most likely it'll be more than 25%.

 

[Yavne]

I put wood in the shed to dry it. Not after it's dry.
Is your wood off the ground, or just on the ground?

Get a moisture meter ($30 or so at big box stores). Get a few splits in the home, let them reach room temp (24 hrs or so). Resplit them and measure them along the grain. Most likely it'll be more than 25%.

I put pallets under the wood.

Yeah, I have one.
ok... so it won't be correct to measure it as is?

 

[stoveliker]

I put pallets under the wood.

Yeah, I have one.
ok... so it won't be correct to measure it as is?

No, the wood dries from the outside in, so you'd be getting the most favorable number. The bulk of the wood is much wetter than that.

Note that every pound of water (and a split of 3 lbs @ 30 pct moisture content contains 1 lbs of water ..) steals BTUs from your wood while you are boiling it so it goes up thru the chimney. And boiling water takes a LOT of energy..

 

[Yavne]

No, the wood dries from the outside in, so you'd be getting the most favorable number. The bulk of the wood is much wetter than that.

Note that every pound of water (and a split of 3 lbs @ 30 pct moisture content contains 1 lbs of water ..) steals BTUs from your wood while you are boiling it so it goes up thru the chimney. And boiling water takes a LOT of energy..

Thanks! I will split it and will test it.
But, sometimes I have not completely dry hardwood piece, so I see the moisture is coming from the side. I hear the sipping noise. I don't experience it with soft wood. Can it still be wet?

 

[stoveliker]

Yes. If you see moisture at the ends, it is *really* wet. It can be too wet even when you don't see water coming out of the ends.

 

[kborndale]

Wasting time without a wood shed or other contraption to keep the weather off.

That statement is simply not true. My wood is seasoned uncovered and dry's out just fine. While keeping it top covered all year may make it season a bit faster, uncovered wood seasons plenty over the summer. I don't have the space to keep my wood covered all year. In the late fall I put away the patio furniture from my covered patio and stack a winters worth of dry wood on it.

 

[jmb6420]

You're moving the wood to wood shed after it's dry, right? Doesn't it absorb the moisture?

Correct. The shed holds a winters with of wood for me. My fresh split wood starts out uncovered. I try to keep 2 years worth top covered and 1 year in the shed. Right now I'm staying about 5 years ahead.

 

[Poindexter]

I have never been to Nova Scotia, it looks chilly, damp and cloudy on TV.

I do agree the softwood is probably wetter than 20%MC. Typically with softwoods north of the US/Canada border they will foam or drip out the ends while on fire when the MC is 30% or greater. No foam or dripping, but still disappointing, likely in the 20-30% MC range, not down to 20% yet.

 

[Yavne]

I have never been to Nova Scotia, it looks chilly, damp and cloudy on TV.

I do agree the softwood is probably wetter than 20%MC. Typically with softwoods north of the US/Canada border they will foam or drip out the ends while on fire when the MC is 30% or greater. No foam or dripping, but still disappointing, likely in the 20-30% MC range, not down to 20% yet.

It's not too bad, probably not so cold as in Ontario or Quebec... But you're right, sometimes (usually spring and fall), it can be damp and cloudy.

 

[moresnow]

For most accurate moisture content readings, typically you should bring your test splits indoors and not re=split and test until the splits are at room temp.

 

[Yavne]

For most accurate moisture content readings, typically you should bring your test splits indoors and not re=split and test until the splits are at room temp.

Yeah, I put a few pieces indoor, will split later and test it. Waiting to see the results

 

[kennyp2339]

Time out for a second, we're at the latter end of the season, please make sure the chimney cap and chimney are not plugged, a quick cleaning with the brush should get things breathing correctly, then try the soft wood.

 

[brenndatomu]

please make sure the chimney cap and chimney are not plugged

Yup...my buddy tells me he is having his stovepipe replaced because the old one went bad (cheap singlewall) so I told him to spend the money on doublewall and be done with it...he then send me a text of the new pipe smoking from every joint, text says new pipe leaks just as bad as the old one, and the stove still won't burn right! I said your chimney is plugged...he said, nope, just cleaned it.
But it turns out his chimney brush was about 2' shorter than the chimney height (cleaning from bottom up) and he didn't buy another rod because he was worried that he'd knock the cap off, and have no way to put it back on (30' chimney) I said you gotta clean the whole way up, the top is often the worst part...so he bought one more rod section and cleaned it the whole way up...found the top plugged...said it works just fine now.
Wonder what the stove shop got 'im for on that new pipe he didn't need?! (Duravent...or whichever one it is that is doublewall)

 

[Yavne]

For most accurate moisture content readings, typically you should bring your test splits indoors and not re=split and test until the splits are at room temp.

I just checked, it shows 22%. The wood that I burned yesterday, I have some big pieces leftover that didn't burn... I will post some pictures tomorrow.

 

[yooperdave]

Warmer outside temps result in a weaker draft.

 

[begreen]

Warmer outside temps result in a weaker draft.

Yes, it can be a combination of factors like weakening draft, marginal wood, and a partially blocked chimney. The wood is at 22% which is not ideal but should burn but if the thicker splits are more like 25% then they will burn poorly.

Yavne, what stove make/model is this? Can you describe the flue setup from stovetop to chimney cap?

 

[Yavne]

Yes, it can be a combination of factors like weakening draft, marginal wood, and a partially blocked chimney. The wood is at 22% which is not ideal but should burn but if the thicker splits are more like 25% then they will burn poorly.

Yavne, what stove make/model is this? Can you describe the flue setup from stovetop to chimney cap?

Thanks Begreen! Drolet escape 1800 wood stove, double wall chimney pipe, was installed 2 years ago (so I am kinda new to this). The chimney pipe was cleaned on last November (see picture below). The wood stove installed in the basement, 90° from basement outside, two stories above basement (I guess about 25 feet length of the chimney pipe). I burned about 1 cord of hard wood this season. A few pictures of softwood below. Did I miss anything?

 

[Poindexter]

The black ends tell me your drying spot wasn't ideal. It looks like mold to me. I have an area, on the east side of my house, the east yard, that the wife and I hardly use. I stuck a cord out there one summer to see if I could get some cord wood off the south lawn, but it was no go, too much shade, not enough airflow, I had splits with black ends like that and mold spots on the faces. And you are at 22%.

If that was your sunniest spot with the best airflow, you will need a more sophisticated drying shed. If that was the sunniest spot your wife will let you use to dry cord wood, you will need a more sophisticated drying shed.

I think an important question at this point is how much gunk is at the top of your chimney pipe now with the season drawing to a close? 22% MC isn't awful, but I don't know how dry your hardwood was, and you might, no offense, have enough gunk up there now to affect your draft.

As above, @brenndatomu has correctly pointed out your biggest accumulation of crud is going to be in the top 2-3 feet of pipe. Can you get up there safely and just brush out the top two or three feet top down? I can't do that at my house yet this spring.

Don't give up, you have come to the right place.