What's the largest split/round that

[Brick (ware)House]

you guys have burned in your stoves? Since I have to handle my fuel so many times prior to loading it into the stove (PH to be installed in December), I want it in the largest chunks possible. Any experience out there with burning really large splits/rounds? What were the dimensions of the wood? Did the large size alter the characteristics of the burn?

Specifically for PH owners: I am cutting to a length of 21" so that I have an inch of play given the 22" listed width E/W of the Progress. My question is just how precise is that 22" measurement? Is it difficult to get full length logs in there or will 22" fit easily? What if I miss my mark and end up with a few logs slightly longer than 22" - will I be able to fit them diagonally across the firebox or will I be spending time cutting them down?

 

[Waulie]

Hey Brick.

I haven't measured in a while but as I recall, 22" really is the max length. Yes, you can fit longer diagonal but that is a real pain because you then can't load the box full. I love large splits because they burn longer and require less splitting. I've had several that I have to turn the right way to fit through the door. The door is 9" wide. I don't really recommend that practice. I aim for 6 to 8" in the widest dimension. I cut mine to 19" in length (in varying degrees of accuracy). A couple things to keep in mind:

1. Large splits get real heavy at 22" long. I cut to 19" length thinking of the wife needing to load sometimes, because I'm not always that accurate, and it's nice to have a little play on either end.
2. Large splits take longer to dry. This isn't a concern for me as I'm a few years ahead and I'm cutting mostly dead ash anyway.
3. You will want some smaller stuff to mix in to be able to stuff the stove full. Instead of small splits (which requires extra work), I usually go for tiny rounds from branches. I love cutting up the branches too, sometimes down to less than 2" diameter. They're quick to cut, don't require splitting, and work great for stuffing the box.

 

[CenterTree]

3. You will want some smaller stuff to mix in to be able to stuff the stove full. Instead of small splits (which requires extra work), I usually go for tiny rounds from branches. I love cutting up the branches too, sometimes down to less than 2" diameter. They're quick to cut, don't require splitting, and work great for stuffing the box.

Do the small rounds dry OK? (without being split)

I am just starting to burn. (first year) When I cut trees I have been saving it ALL. Right down to the 1inch stuff that I actually lop off the tree first with an anvil pruner. LOL, I figure it will all burn so why waste any.

 

[Waulie]

Do the small rounds dry OK? (without being split)

I am just starting to burn. (first year) When I cut trees I have been saving it ALL. Right down to the 1inch stuff that I actually lop off the tree first with an anvil pruner. LOL, I figure it will all burn so why waste any.

I'm like you, why waste it?

They seem to dry fine to about 5" diameter or so. The bigger you go, the longer they take. Again, I've mostly been cutting dead ash so it's not the best gauge. But, I've burned hard maple, beech, and ironwood rounds around 5" after a year and a half or so without issue. Anything larger than about 5", I split. They usually take one whack so no big deal.

 

[Charles1981]

My VC Encore says it can fit 22 inch logs. It can fit about one and then the way the firebox is situated that is it. I originally cut my wood to 20-21 inches, but that wasn't ideal because I can only maneuver one piece in appropriately. I've had to cut the longer pieces to 16-17 inches otherwise I can't stuff the firebox full.

But sometimes I do throw a single monstrous 21 inch split in, but again one solitary split by itself doesn't burn very well and I have to maneuver some smaller pieces in. But they sure do burn a long time.

 

[Waulie]

I can get at least 3 huge ones in the Progress. From there, I fill in with the small stuff if I really need a full box which is rare for me.

 

[gerry100]

Width of stove inside is 24", I eyeball 22-23" because the airflow around the ends helps clean burning and makes it safer to hot load.

When not packing for overnite burn, any piece that will fit thru the 9" door height.( of course. the big uglies need to season longer)

 

[Waulie]

and IIRC, it's really only 22" at the corners due to the angles there...

 

[rideau]

I agree, 22 inches. I use all my branches down to 1 inch and less. This past week during the day only burned small stuff...was home working, and just loaded when the flue temp dropped to 400. Lets me save my splits and rounds for nights and real winter.
I have been cutting the wood up to about 3-4 inch diameter to 22 inches. Anything longer than that I cut progressively shorter, as I find the logs too heavy to easily load otherwise. I'd rather have an 18 inch long 7 inch log that I can easily load, than struggle with a longer log. AT this time of year, one split or log around 6 or 7 inches lasts all night for me. Once it gets cold, I'll be loading about three, like Waulie.

I wish the PH door was just a tad larger...but it is a lot larger than the Fireview door, and it is great to be able to load pretty good sized logs. I load many splits that are up to 11 inches wide, if they aren't too thick, cut from large logs.

 

[Grisu]

Do the small rounds dry OK? (without being split)

I am just starting to burn. (first year) When I cut trees I have been saving it ALL. Right down to the 1inch stuff that I actually lop off the tree first with an anvil pruner. LOL, I figure it will all burn so why waste any.

The same for me. Small stuff works well as kindling or to get the stove hot. However, my experience with unsplit branches drying is not the best. Even after 2 years in the stack those 3-inch rounds were the ones that sizzled in contrast to the split stuff. Since then I split everything 2-inches and up. Electric splitter works well for that or putting it sideways on the chopping block and hitting it lengthwise right in the center. Most of the time the small round nicely split in two halves.

 

[bag of hammers]

The same for me. Small stuff works well as kindling or to get the stove hot. However, my experience with unsplit branches drying is not the best. Even after 2 years in the stack those 3-inch rounds were the ones that sizzled in contrast to the split stuff. Since then I split everything 2-inches and up. Electric splitter works well for that or putting it sideways on the chopping block and hitting it lengthwise right in the center. Most of the time the small round nicely split in two halves.

Have to agree - I burn everything, with a small saw like the Husky 136, the branches are easy to process pretty quickly. But they do seem to hold onto the wet for quite a while. It's not too unusual to see a bit of water boil out the end of one occasionally, meanwhile the larger splits are dry. Still, the stuff like this is great shoulder season fuel- throw a bunch in the stove for some quick heat. If I'm out tinkering around by the woodpile, I'll usually grab an axe and knock a bunch of the larger rounds in half.

 

[Brick (ware)House]

I agree, 22 inches. I use all my branches down to 1 inch and less. This past week during the day only burned small stuff...was home working, and just loaded when the flue temp dropped to 400. Lets me save my splits and rounds for nights and real winter.
I have been cutting the wood up to about 3-4 inch diameter to 22 inches. Anything longer than that I cut progressively shorter, as I find the logs too heavy to easily load otherwise. I'd rather have an 18 inch long 7 inch log that I can easily load, than struggle with a longer log. AT this time of year, one split or log around 6 or 7 inches lasts all night for me. Once it gets cold, I'll be loading about three, like Waulie.

I wish the PH door was just a tad larger...but it is a lot larger than the Fireview door, and it is great to be able to load pretty good sized logs. I load many splits that are up to 11 inches wide, if they aren't too thick, cut from large logs.

Glad to hear you are able to get really large wood into the stove. Going big will allow me to cut down on the number of logs I have to handle. I continue to be amazed by the apparent efficiency of the PH. If I am able to get an overnight burn on 3 or 4 large splits I will be extremely happy!

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I agree it is nice to have some larger splits or rounds for holding longer fires during the nights. We typically will place a large piece (split or round) in the bottom rear of the stove and fill from there with splits.

As for the cutting, we tend to stop cutting around 3" and also leave those in the round. Anything larger than 5" or 6" usually gets split except for keeping some for those longer burn times but 6" is about maximum for us. As for drying, we tend to want all of our wood 3 years in the stack so we have no problems with drying out the wood.

 

[Brick (ware)House]

I agree it is nice to have some larger splits or rounds for holding longer fires during the nights. We typically will place a large piece (split or round) in the bottom rear of the stove and fill from there with splits.

As for the cutting, we tend to stop cutting around 3" and also leave those in the round. Anything larger than 5" or 6" usually gets split except for keeping some for those longer burn times but 6" is about maximum for us. As for drying, we tend to want all of our wood 3 years in the stack so we have no problems with drying out the wood.

I can't wait to get the new stove in so I can begin to experiment with different sizes and loads. Plus it has been cold here and the 2 big furnaces are burning a lot of nat gas to keep it at 63 degrees!

Processed a standing dead elm (bark off, really dry) a few weeks ago and have about 1.5 cords of that inside and ready to go. Ended up with a good mix of smaller limb wood, larger rounds up to 6", and lots of large splits. "Borrowed" another half cord of small and medium oak splits that have been in my dad's stacks for 3-4 years. Bucked and split 2+ cords of oak and put it in the stacks and have another 4-5 cords of bucked oak that will get split and stacked at Christmas. Going to do my best to keep my hands off of the oak for 2 years!

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I can't wait to get the new stove in so I can begin to experiment with different sizes and loads. Plus it has been cold here and the 2 big furnaces are burning a lot of nat gas to keep it at 63 degrees!

Processed a standing dead elm (bark off, really dry) a few weeks ago and have about 1.5 cords of that inside and ready to go. Ended up with a good mix of smaller limb wood, larger rounds up to 6", and lots of large splits. "Borrowed" another half cord of small and medium oak splits that have been in my dad's stacks for 3-4 years. Bucked and split 2+ cords of oak and put it in the stacks and have another 4-5 cords of bucked oak that will get split and stacked at Christmas. Going to do my best to keep my hands off of the oak for 2 years!

Just be careful of that dead elm. Even though the bark is off and it has been dead for a time, the bottom part of the trunk can be full of moisture. If you can get those split at least in half it will help a lot.