I have enough wood to last through next winter and I have come across probably another 5-8 cords of unsplit FREE oak. My question is, how long can I safely leave this wood unsplit in direct contact with the ground before it begins to rot? I don't want to go to the trouble of gathering all this wood just to have it rot away in a short period of time. I plan to split it next fall or early winter. Thanks...
Unsplit wood
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That's the best kind of firewood "FREE". Oak is pretty tough, and if the bark is on I would think it would be ok til next fall as long as it is in a dry open place, not swampy wet.
If you've already split next year's wood, why not keep chipping away at the year after wood?
I've thrown down a couple semi-straight branches and stacked oak rounds on them just to keep them off the ground. It only takes a few minutes to stack a goodly amount of rounds this way, two or three (maybe four) high. At least it keeps them from soaking up a bunch of new water, or perhaps continuously soaking up water, from the ground. Then I split them months later.
I've thrown down a couple semi-straight branches and stacked oak rounds on them just to keep them off the ground. It only takes a few minutes to stack a goodly amount of rounds this way, two or three (maybe four) high. At least it keeps them from soaking up a bunch of new water, or perhaps continuously soaking up water, from the ground. Then I split them months later.
Oak can lay in the round for a good long while ,meaning a few years , before it would rot totally. It may get 'punkey ' in the first half inch or so after a while but its not like softwoods, birch popple, or pine. Red oak splits fairly well but if its white oak it has a twist to the grain and can a challenge or impossibe on larger rounds.
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