The Great Firewood Debate - Stack firewood or firewood Loose thrown on pallets
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Loose because there is more air space between wood pieces. Same logic as, will wood dry faster in the round or split? The more air space around the wood the faster it will dry.
Depends if wind can get through the pile. No wind makes for hard drying.
Stacked, and top covered. No dangling sides (save that for winter).
The less I have to move it, the better
The less I have to move it, the better
The best I've had wood dry is on pallets but log cabin stacked alternating stack directions. It uses more space over just straight stacking but leaves a lot of space for air to circulate. Too much space and labor so I just straight stack and give it a couple more years.
Try this: pallets on cinder blocks (9 each) 2 deep beneath a shed roof 12' high, spanning 100'. There's enough air space beneath the wood for animals to find shelter and the method of stacking, cross-wise all the way up, allows plenty of air while being fetching and strong (when you learn it - using the largest, sturdiest pieces for corners, staying level or pitching toward the center of the pile, so as the wood shrinks the pile falls in on itself and becomes stronger, etc).
I was worried the pallet furthest back would not season at the same rate due to less air and almost no sun, but I notice no difference in the quality of the wood - the wood I put up today will be burned in 6-8 years. I believe that the increased air in my setup (open pole barn, no walls, a generous crawl space, cross stacked, is more than enough to dry wood rapidly and well.
I was worried the pallet furthest back would not season at the same rate due to less air and almost no sun, but I notice no difference in the quality of the wood - the wood I put up today will be burned in 6-8 years. I believe that the increased air in my setup (open pole barn, no walls, a generous crawl space, cross stacked, is more than enough to dry wood rapidly and well.
It definitely depends, but I’m strongly of the opinion that for most people loose is much better. Unless it is stacked single row, lots of space in between splits and rows, covered top … etc etc.
We live in the middle of farmland, nothing but flat open fields all around us so we get hit with nonstop wind coming from whichever direction it decides to. I stack my wood single file along the perimeter of the property so the wind and sun hit it most of the day. The wood dries pretty fast. I also make sure not to stack the piles super tight so there are gaps for air flow.
There's a guy on youtube that piles it up on pallets and swears by it but a few of his videos he does mention that he has to take from the outside of the pile which is drier than the inside.
I was told wood needs sun and wind to dry so wood on the inside of a large pile doesn't get hardly any sun.
There's a guy on youtube that piles it up on pallets and swears by it but a few of his videos he does mention that he has to take from the outside of the pile which is drier than the inside.
I was told wood needs sun and wind to dry so wood on the inside of a large pile doesn't get hardly any sun.
The inside of a big pile doesn’t get any wind either.
The firewood processor runs on a different set of rules than a homeowner. He needs to touch the wood the fewest times in order to make money. You’re looking for a clean chimney. He’s not worried about your chimney.
The firewood processor runs on a different set of rules than a homeowner. He needs to touch the wood the fewest times in order to make money. You’re looking for a clean chimney. He’s not worried about your chimney.
I used to pile it right off the splitter. It dried just fine except for the very bottom and center of the pile. Now we have totes that we fill and that saves moving or restacking by hand. We grab a tote with the bobcat and set it on the deck.
