All Around Best Firewood

[mingo]

Hickory, white oak, hard maple, in that order. I liked locust without the bark tried some with the bark on it and it didn't give off much heat just seemed to smolder.

 

[haveawoody]

Whitespider,

Good point and good idea to make it something that is good in all respects.

I think Norway maple might be an all around winner, easy to split, good heat, shortish cure times, decent as overnight wood, leaves little ash, can be found pretty much everywhere.

I think it's about a 8 or 9 out of 10 on every aspect.
Not the greatest coaling wood but easily better than ash.
Norway maple i think is 25.9 mbtu/cord just a little shy of sugar maple for heat.

A good tip for rock elm, when it's dead on the tree split it stack it and give it a year seasoning.
Then burn it and nothing burns like it.
I pick it as the finest woodstove wood over anything else but if burnt before that year of seasoning it's just good.
Much like any of the dence fruit woods really need a year even after they are dead wood.
Guess they are just very slow to give up the deep core moisture.
Seems silly to have to season it a year after its dead but it makes a huge difference on rock elm and fruit woods.

 

[haveawoody]

Mingo,

Now that says to me one of two things.
Your locust isnt quite dry enough or your woodstove isnt hot enough.

Locust with or without bark takes a bit to get going but once going it should burn very well.
Try a chunk of silver or manitoba maple right under your locust.
The heat from those fast burning maples should make the locust burn well.
If not then your locust is not cured long enough or is getting damp to much while curing. JMO

 

[haveawoody]

J.W Younger,

I'm sure you will learn something but that knowledge might bump something else out of your memory.
How many times can a wife kill you for forgetting the aniversary or birthday? LOL

 

[Wood Doctor]

Walnut Gloat

CTYank,

... As for Walnut, it's decent firewood.
I find it to be very average heat/coals easy to split though.
A chunk of ash and walnut put in the fire at the same time and ash is still going after walnut is gone so it's not quite as good as ash, close though...

Well, that's good enough for me. A local sawmill just handed me 60 walnut logs, 10" to 14" dia. and 15' to 20' long apiece. Some are already dead dry with the bark off. I think I'll process it. Gloat, gloat, gloat...

 

[mingo]

Mingo,

Now that says to me one of two things.
Your locust isnt quite dry enough or your woodstove isnt hot enough.

Locust with or without bark takes a bit to get going but once going it should burn very well.
Try a chunk of silver or manitoba maple right under your locust.
The heat from those fast burning maples should make the locust burn well.
If not then your locust is not cured long enough or is getting damp to much while curing. JMO

The locust was given to me by a guy I did some work for. He had it piled in a shed and I had it stacked outside on pallets with a tarp over it. I think the bark sucked up moisture. I've burned locust with no bark and had no trouble with it. So you may be right about it not being dry enough. Thanks for your input.

 

[Hedgerow]

Honey locust has a high btu score... But it's far from my favorites... But then the oaks ain't my favorite either... They are slow starters... Elm and Hackberry get the heat rockin quick!!!

 

[haveawoody]

Wood Doctor,

I would think it was pretty good if someone dropped me of 60 logs.
No fear of you being cold in the winter. LOL

 

[haveawoody]

Mingo,

I figured it might be something weird since you are burning other real dence woods without much problem.
I bet at some point the entire stack of locust got soaked and like you say it got dry enough to burn but the bark didn't.

If you have some of it left i bet this year it's much better.

 

[haveawoody]

Hedgerow,

I can tell when someone has well cured elm.
Opinion on elm changes as it gets drier, think to many people rush elm and have results you would get with other wood aged only 4 or 6 months.

I think that is why the elm opinion is so wild from one person to the next.

I have never burned Hackberry, not here in ontario canada (it might be but never seen it),i suspect it's much like hawthorne.
Hawthorne is a wonderful wood like apple and oak put together.
Takes some collecting though since like apple and pear most of the trees you get are more like shrubs than trees.

 

[haveawoody]

Wood Doctor,

I got a good score on Friday morning for wood real close to home.

2 fallen trees needed removal so i went out expecting a couple old dead ash or elm trees would need a cleanup.
When i got to the site i discovered 120' x4' and 110' x3' sugar maples on the ground.
Odd trees because most of both trees were similar in width from top to bottom.
I chained all day Friday to get it to manageable sizes, loaded my big 4 wheel cargo trailer 4 times on Saturday and Sunday all day and ended up with 7 full cords of the heaviest hardest sugar maple i have ever cut.
Dulled to the point of not cutting 2 new chains cutting them up on a s361 and s390 and the third chain was almost to dull to cut when i just finished (didn't hit the dirt once).
Almost everything had to noodled to move (impossible to get a splitter anywhere close).

Growth so slow on the trees it was difficult to see defined rings, so i guess both were very old trees fighting for light and more like rock than wood.
Can't wait to burn them in my personal wood stove next year and beyond
If it burns anything like it cuts it should keep most of the province warm LOL

Nice to get paid for removal also after a find like that
Nice to have a hot tub after moving it all.

 

[wampum]

I have been burning for over 38 years on my own and since i was a toddler with Dad. Hands down my choice is Black locust. I love the stuff,I save it for the really cold days. I like to keep it a year
or two and the bark usually comes right off. No bark cleaner house. An other advantage it will keep for years if needed,no rotting here. I love to find dead standing locust.its clean and
already dry. The only problem I have with locust is forcing my self o give up fence posts. But I have even burned fence posts that were 50 years old.Just be thoughtful about the wire and staples.

 

[Wood Doctor]

It Depends...

Wood Doctor,

I would think it was pretty good if someone dropped me off 60 logs.
No fear of you being cold in the winter. LOL

Heheheheheh... That assumes that (1) I can keep the chainsaws sharp, (2) the log splitter does not croak, (3) the thieves and pranksters don't get there frst, (4) my back holds together, and (5) the bar nearby has enough brew after I work 8 solid hours on the pile of gold.

Take any of those items away, and the logs have little value to anyone (except maybe the thieves).

 

[haveawoody]

Wood Doctor,

LOL probably a good thing i don't live handy to you then.
I bet you will have a couple 8hr chainathons and wilt when you see the splitting pile of rounds.

I had a wilt moment when i unloaded my last load of sugar maple late sunday night and looked back at the mountain that needs splitting. LOL

My wife came out about that moment and asked if the king's chamber was suppose to go at the bottom of the pyramid.

 

[JimmyT]

Got to go with Red Oak all those pioneers and settlers couldn't have been wrong.

 

[haveawoody]

wampum,

Locust is really nice wood but i have to tell you when i see a big pile of rounds and the splitter i get ready for a tearathon.
2 year wood me thinks is the real way to burn locust.

 

[haveawoody]

JimmyT,

So many people ask for red oak but i think white oak is easier to split and better btu.
White oak sure could be a winner in the list of needs because it can easily be split with a maul and has good or great other qualities.

 

[Hedgerow]

wampum,

Locust is really nice wood but i have to tell you when i see a big pile of rounds and the splitter i get ready for a tearathon.
2 year wood me thinks is the real way to burn locust.

True... But locust gives up it's moisture quicker than oak... Just sayin...opcorn:

 

[J.W Younger]

True... But locust gives up it's moisture quicker than oak... Just sayin...opcorn:

And, red oak splits easier than white.
In my neck of the woods anyway.Btu wise I rank white oak right up there with hickory tho. And...I gots lots of all 3 and stuff.

 

[MacLaren]

I always loved splittin that red oak with a go devil. Nice stuff for sure.