Took the plunge!!
- Thread starter dyerkutn
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If you're gonna stack under the eaves be sure that the wood does not touch the house.. I keep my wood over 25 feet away but that's my preference to keep bugs and other undesirable critters away from the house..
Ray
Sorting out the bottom end of a couple pallets (as the snow slowly melts around the yard) and finding the usual remnants of mouse houses among the splits. For that reaso alone I also put the stacks away from the house. For me, a couple of old plywood or chipboard scraps on top of the stack, a small tarp over that, will let the air circulate, but keeps 95% of the rain and snow at bay. I pull the biggest pallets I can scrounge from the local lumber yards and I can get a bit over 1 full cord stacked on 2 side by side (a bit more if the stack is solid and I add another layer on top). Lots of sun and wind in that spot and the wood dries great.
I agree with others. If you have another option, get the wood away from the home. You can have a problem with critters large and small seeking the protection of a nice wood stack under the shelter of the eaves, and in addition will not have the wind and sun exposure that you will benefit from if away from the shelter of the home. Suring burn season a couple of weeks wood stacked under the eave is a different story. The stack then will be rebuilt often, and the wood already seasoned.
Since I don't have a lot of seasoned wood, I might start with kiln dried. Do you think those critters could still be a problem?
Critters will set up house anywhere they have the opportunity. They can (trust me) do an awful lot of damage if they get into your place (in the walls, ceilings, etc.). As Rideau mentioned, a few splits "in transit" e.g. a small pile in your porch, on your deck, etc. - stuff that's seasoned out in the yard - is probably not a big worry. Enough so you don't have to run a marathon outside to get a load for the stove, but small enough that it gets used up and turned over frequently when you are out there.
On the upside, the mice provide hours of entertainment for the dog (I think she put on 100 miles running around the stacks this year alone...).
Interestingly, I've also seen a short tailed weasel this year (which is kind of a new thing on my property). This may mean the mice population will go down somewhat - unlike the 110+ lb newf, the weasel can get right into the stacks.
On the upside, the mice provide hours of entertainment for the dog (I think she put on 100 miles running around the stacks this year alone...).
Interestingly, I've also seen a short tailed weasel this year (which is kind of a new thing on my property). This may mean the mice population will go down somewhat - unlike the 110+ lb newf, the weasel can get right into the stacks.
Over the past several years I have naively stored one cord of wood on my front porch against the house and the back of my driveway under the carport against the wall of an open-roofed storage area. I have never had any problem with bugs or mice--maybe because it is a high traffic area what with cars and people going in and out. It was also not sitting anywhere near dirt. On the other hand, the wooden shed out in my back yard get mouse nests every winter which I have to clean out every spring when I get the lawn furniture and equipment out.
OK so I am now working on a plan for storing the wood more out in the middle of the back yard.
I leave my outside stacks uncovered for a full year then move it into the shelter which I have been doing the past week. I find less mouse issues because rain gets through the stacks which makes mice unhappy as it ruins their fur lol.. Wood dries out quickly when in the wind.. I always find a dead mouse or 2 in the wood shelter probably due to stacks settling thus squishing them..
Ray
Ray you make a good point - the more I protect the top of the stack from the elements, the more comfy it becomes for the rodents. Unfortunately I don't have any other shed or shelter (yet) to transfer the wood to, so the splits stay on the same stack for a couple years or more, and go from there right into the house / stove. I'll probably tweak the whole system over time, for now it's as good as it gets.
As long as the little buggers aren't tearing up the insulation in the ceiling, I'm ok with it.
dyerkutn - you might be right the traffic and exposure might have made the mice a bit leary of nesting right there, I dunno, but I do know what it's like to deal with the headaches of mouse infestation, and I'd rather walk a half a mile to get my wood than to increase the risk of dealing with that again even a bit.
As long as the little buggers aren't tearing up the insulation in the ceiling, I'm ok with it.
dyerkutn - you might be right the traffic and exposure might have made the mice a bit leary of nesting right there, I dunno, but I do know what it's like to deal with the headaches of mouse infestation, and I'd rather walk a half a mile to get my wood than to increase the risk of dealing with that again even a bit.
I also am finding about 3/4ths of my wood loses its' bark by leaving it uncovered.. You could do this until maybe September or so then top cover it for the winter..
Ray
FYI, here is the moisture meter you can have.
http://forgreenheat.blogspot.com/2013/03/travis-takes-lead-on-free-moisture.html
that looks great--I would still like the wood but could use the MM right away since I am looking for wood this weekend. If I could swing by or you could leave it on porch or something--otherwise I might just grab a cheap one from home depot.
Congrats on upping your game!
MC is measured on a freshly split face, not the end grain.
You might want to pick up one of these.
http://www.walmart.com/ip/X27-Super-Splitting-36-Axe/20563578
. . .or the 28" version, if you are of smaller stature.
http://www.amazon.com/Fiskars-7854-X25-28-Inch-Splitting/dp/B00004SD7B
Unless you're talking kiln-dried and paying silly $, be very skeptical of wood vendors' claims. "Seasoned" means different things to different people, and that's being generous. . .some folks are just liars, and this lightly regulated industry seems to attract more than its fair share.
It's hard enough just trying to get an honest 128-cu-ft cord(measured stacked, not piled) out of most vendors; many of us have given up trying to find truly seasoned wood for sale. Some say that, today, it's not worth anyone's time to keep wood stacked for 1+ years before selling, which may be true, but there's no excuse for shorting the quantity.
While you're waiting for your wood to dry, you might want to look at wood bricks.
http://originalbiobricks.com
http://www.enviblocks.com
http://ecobrick.net
Not that it's intended as a reference, but the technique shown in that pic is incorrect.
MC is measured on a freshly split face, not the end grain.
You might want to pick up one of these.
http://www.walmart.com/ip/X27-Super-Splitting-36-Axe/20563578
. . .or the 28" version, if you are of smaller stature.
http://www.amazon.com/Fiskars-7854-X25-28-Inch-Splitting/dp/B00004SD7B
Unless you're talking kiln-dried and paying silly $, be very skeptical of wood vendors' claims. "Seasoned" means different things to different people, and that's being generous. . .some folks are just liars, and this lightly regulated industry seems to attract more than its fair share.
It's hard enough just trying to get an honest 128-cu-ft cord(measured stacked, not piled) out of most vendors; many of us have given up trying to find truly seasoned wood for sale. Some say that, today, it's not worth anyone's time to keep wood stacked for 1+ years before selling, which may be true, but there's no excuse for shorting the quantity.While you're waiting for your wood to dry, you might want to look at wood bricks.
http://originalbiobricks.com
http://www.enviblocks.com
http://ecobrick.net
OK thanksNot that it's intended as a reference, but the technique shown in that pic is incorrect. MC is measured on a freshly split face, not the end grain.
I am afraid my splitting days are well past---too old with too many back problems. Are these axes more efficient than say a 20 year old ax with wood handles.
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