Wood stacks and drying

[Welderman85]

Ok I have a dumb question. I'm new to burning. Two of my stacks are ash that was dead when cut and stacked two years ago one stack was covered all the way,but the tarp had alot of holes. I check a few of those splits and there around 20 but I guess I figured the would be dryer. How do I dry the wood out better?

 

[jmb6420]

Just top cover so air can still circulate to remove moisture. If you cover all the way some moisture stays trapped in with the wood.

Lopi Endeavor
Lopi Republic
Northern tool 37t splitter

 

[BigJ273]

Covering the entire thing with a tarp is your first mistake. Air needs to be able to get in and escape for drying to occur. Otherwise your just trapping all that moisture under the tarp, and possibly making matters worse. All u need to cover is the top. Some say that’s not even necessary. I put metal roof sheets on top of mine. Every other side is completely open and exposed to wind and sun

 

[weatherguy]

The4 best way to top cover I've found is to get a roll of plastic at HD and stpale it to the top, your ash should be fine once you bring it inside and let it dry out a couple of days.

 

[Qvist]

Old rubber EDPM roofing works well too.

 

[FIDLER]

I use pressure treated plywood to cover and throw some old foundation stones on top to secure it. 20%ish will burn. Remember to split your split and measure the inside of that split to gauge; also have the split at approximately room temperature before measuring.

 

[hickoryhoarder]

I also use pressure-treated plywood, 2 feet by 8 feet, to cover. Hold it down with a couple heavy splits.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

there are a number of ways to season wood. one is top cover and keep the stack off the ground by like 6 inches. the other is build a wood shed. 4.5w x 6H x how long u need again up off the ground, with an overhang all the way around. Both are best to be facing the summers prevailing winds. lastly ther is the solar kiln

 

[motoguy]

I keep my wood off the ground, stacked on landscaping timbers which are placed on cinder blocs. So, 8" or so of air between the bottom of the wood stack and the ground. I do this 1) to help it dry, 2) to avoid snakepits, and 3) because termites are horrible in our area.

I've got access to lots and lots of trees. We burn roughly 4-5 cord/year in our Kuuma. I like to have a 3 year supply, which is about 15 cord. However, I have access to even more than that (actual requests to drop trees from others). So, I could bust butt an build additional years worth of reserves. However, I don't top-cover. I just stack. Our stack is highly visible in the neighborhood. While nobody seems to mind the stack, I've yet to find a suitable top cover.

How long will cut/split/stacked wood last, in an uncovered (but off the ground) stack? I don't want to CSS too much, if it will rot before I use it.

 

[Woody Stover]

the tarp had alot of holes. I check a few of those splits and there around 20 but I guess I figured the would be dryer. How do I dry the wood out better?

That stuff will burn fine. Get it covered a little better and it will dry out more, but 20% is pretty good.

 

[dquest]

Ok I have a dumb question. I'm new to burning. Two of my stacks are ash that was dead when cut and stacked two years ago one stack was covered all the way,but the tarp had alot of holes. I check a few of those splits and there around 20 but I guess I figured the would be dryer. How do I dry the wood out better?

Easy to build shed, holds 1.5 cords

 

[tadmaz]

I have top covered stacks in the woods. The wood isn't all that dry after 1.5+ years, and most of it is ash. Sun+wind+top cover should do the trick. Just top covered doesn't necessarily mean it will dry like you want it.

 

[Hksvr4]

View attachment 256056
Easy to build shed, holds 1.5 cords

Is that all treated wood?

 

[dquest]

Is that all treated wood?

Sides are, the rest is old stain I had lying around. Wanted something on it before winter. I'll stain it all Grey this spring. 5/4x6 was fairly cheap.