Firewood storage for newbie

[wrx-snowdrift]

I am new to firewood and have a few questions, I found some good information searching but would like a little more.

I have around 15 trees, mostly Ash but some Hackberry that I had an excavator come in and remove in an effort to thin out my grove and yard. I have cut the majority of those into 10-14' logs. The trees vary in diameter from 10 to 30+ inches so I feel like I have many years worth of firewood. I am planning on getting an add-on wood furnace (probably Kuuma).

I've gathered that the biggest thing is to get the wood off the ground and make sure it has decent airflow and preferably sun exposure. My questions are if I leave them log length will they last several years sitting outside or should I attempt to tarp them? I also have an old Quonset shed that isn't really used for anything that I could store some or all of it in if absolutely necessary.

Also, I assume it would be best to split it all now and store it in the Quonset but I don't have the time. However, I could buck some or most of it up into firewood length, would this be preferred? Is it easier to cut the logs now while they are still green rather than when they are more dried out?

 

[muddstopper]

I have no problem leaving wood in log form until its convient for me to process. Lots of times I will lay a couple of logs on the ground and then stack the remaining logs on top. Wood with ground contact will start to rot pretty quick, and doesnt seem to ever dry out. Of course c/s/s under a dry roof is the best way to store the wood, but again, I usually have a bunch of wood split and just thrown in a pile until I have time to get it stacked. As long as I have enough wood in the dry to last the winter I just dont worry about whats not all proper and perfect. Usually though, once I burn this winters wood, I will go ahead and stack next years in the dry, keeps everything rotated that way. Right now I have next winters wood stacked in the shed and the following years wood stacked outside the shed, with the third years worth just piled up close to the shed.. My shed is only half full and once I finish healing from knee surgery, I'll stack the piled up wood inside the shed.

 

[wrx-snowdrift]

Thanks for the info mud. I guess I won't worry about it too much. I'll attempt to get some processed and stored inside but it's off the ground right now, like you said I put it on some other logs to get it off the ground and to make it easier to grab with the forks on the loader.
Any thoughts on green wood being easier to cut than dry wood?

 

[sunfish]

Around here logs will rot pretty quick, but store for years when cut, split, stacked high & dry.

Might be different up there?

 

[wrx-snowdrift]

Around here logs will rot pretty quick, but store for years when cut, split, stacked high & dry.

Might be different up there?

Stacked inside or stacked outside and tarped?

I assume Missouri is more humid and has higher insect pressure than Minnesota. I guess I'll just have to get as much inside as I can and what doesn't make it will sit outside and hopefully it's fine for a few years. I have access to lost more wood but I hate being wasteful.

 

[muddstopper]

different types of wood will rot faster than other. Any wood on the ground will rot faster than wood off the ground. I love finding trees that have fell over, but not quite fell all the way down. wood like that can remain good for years. Same tree hits the ground and be doughty and soggy in one year. Thats why I always store logs by stacking them on top of a couple of other logs. Yes the two laying flat on the ground will start to rot rather than dry, but I am not leaving the wood for several seasons before using, so its not a biggie to me.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

I have some logs in decks we piled in 2012, still fine.

 

[Full Chisel]

C/S/S what you think you will need for a season's worth of burning now and worry about the rest later. Just make sure it's off the ground. I would go ahead and buck the logs to length to aid in moving and stacking. Pallets are the best thing I have found to store wood on.

You should only plan on burning this season if the wood was dead standing. Otherwise it really needs a full year of drying and preferably more for slow drying species like red oak.

 

[sawjunky23]

I agree with muddstopper. I leave wood in log form all the time. Ash will dry pretty quickly I have bucked Ash in the fall and burned it that winter. It works better for mr for storage to leave it in logs and then buck it split it and stack it.

 

[sawjunky23]

Thanks for the info mud. I guess I won't worry about it too much. I'll attempt to get some processed and stored inside but it's off the ground right now, like you said I put it on some other logs to get it off the ground and to make it easier to grab with the forks on the loader.
Any thoughts on green wood being easier to cut than dry wood?

Depending on species it makes a difference. I don't notice a huge difference in cutting but splitting is another issue all together. Go cut some Sugar Maple and let it sit in rounds for a couple years then try to split it. Cutting is not as much of an issue but some wood gets harder as it drys

 

[sunfish]

Stacked inside or stacked outside and tarped?

I assume Missouri is more humid and has higher insect pressure than Minnesota. I guess I'll just have to get as much inside as I can and what doesn't make it will sit outside and hopefully it's fine for a few years. I have access to lost more wood but I hate being wasteful.

Yes, very humid down here. I stack on pallets outside for a year, then into the wood shed. It'll set in the shed for 2-3 years before I get to it.

 

[ponyexpress976]

The tarp on top will probably trap some moisture and facilitate rot. The wood isn't going to absorb any appreciable amount of water from getting rained on. I'll tarp my stacks in the winter just to keep snow and ice off them....guess I need to start thinking about a shed!

 

[NSMaple1]

Couple factors.

Get it off the ground, whether it stays as logs for a while or you process it.

It will likely take a couple of years of drying, after you get it cut split & stacked, before it will burn decent in a Kuuma.

I would therefore process it all soon as I could, and likely make use of the quonset somehow. I would stack the first years supply outside in the open, exposed to the wind. A bit unsure of the quonset - might not be the best place to stack a bunch of green wood if there is not good air movement through it? Might be able to just heap it outside as you process it, then move it into the quonset & stack there over time as the top layer of the heap dries out some - aside from the first years supply which you should get stacked & drying faster. If the heap wouldn't all get stacked/moved before this winter, I would heap on top of pallets.

 

[wrx-snowdrift]

C/S/S what you think you will need for a season's worth of burning now and worry about the rest later. Just make sure it's off the ground. I would go ahead and buck the logs to length to aid in moving and stacking. Pallets are the best thing I have found to store wood on.

You should only plan on burning this season if the wood was dead standing. Otherwise it really needs a full year of drying and preferably more for slow drying species like red oak.

There were a few that were dying but even those are still pretty green. I was figuring it wouldn't be ready to burn this year yet but I do have another site that has some dead standing stuff that would maybe work.

 

[wrx-snowdrift]

Thanks for all the replies, great info and advice. Sounds like either way the best thing would be to just get to work processing

 

[wrx-snowdrift]

Couple factors.

Get it off the ground, whether it stays as logs for a while or you process it.

It will likely take a couple of years of drying, after you get it cut split & stacked, before it will burn decent in a Kuuma.

I would therefore process it all soon as I could, and likely make use of the quonset somehow. I would stack the first years supply outside in the open, exposed to the wind. A bit unsure of the quonset - might not be the best place to stack a bunch of green wood if there is not good air movement through it? Might be able to just heap it outside as you process it, then move it into the quonset & stack there over time as the top layer of the heap dries out some - aside from the first years supply which you should get stacked & drying faster. If the heap wouldn't all get stacked/moved before this winter, I would heap on top of pallets.

Quonset has large doors on each end that I could leave open or at least cracked.

 

[reddogrunner]

1. Get is off the ground. Pallets, bricks, lumber, whatever. No direct contact with the ground.
2. Make sure air can get around your pile for better evaporation. The more air movement the drier it will get.
3. No need to tarp. In fact, I believe it traps moisture in if you tarp to the ground. Maybe a narrow tarp on top of the stack but no more.
4. The quicker you split it the quicker it seasons, unless it was dead when you dropped it.

 

[jr27236]

All the advise is spot on. BUT(lol)
Start splitting it now. Even if you go out there and swing the maul. Just set yourself a goal each time, say like 10 rounds. Before you know it youll be splitting 15 and more because youll come across some easy ones. And then when you get that stove up and running you might not be in thr position to not be able to feed it. Nothing worse then having then having the feeling of paying someone for something you have.

 

[wrx-snowdrift]

All the advise is spot on. BUT(lol)
Start splitting it now. Even if you go out there and swing the maul. Just set yourself a goal each time, say like 10 rounds. Before you know it youll be splitting 15 and more because youll come across some easy ones. And then when you get that stove up and running you might not be in thr position to not be able to feed it. Nothing worse then having then having the feeling of paying someone for something you have.

Great advice. Thanks.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

Drying time will really depend on wood species and area. Here, 4-6 months will get most wood fairly dry. A year is ideal though.

But every year I have customers that wait until it's snowing to buy wood. It's going in the stove as I dump it.

We heat the shop with wood, rarely does the wood season more than a week. Heats the shop fine. Granted the stove is a section of 4ftx 5/8 wall TAPS pipeline and the chimney is 8" 1/4" well casing.