Firewood lore, traditions, and history

[Larry Ashcraft]

"A tree that has been hit by lightening will not produce much heat when you cut it up and burn it."

The version I heard was that a tree hit by lightning simply won't burn, period. I think that may be true of conifers, as some sort of chemical change in the resin may take place, but we had a large, dead cottonwood hit by lightning a few years ago, and what was left of it burned quite well.

The fire department came down and put it out, they thought. Five days later, it flared up again and destroyed about an acre before they could get it out again. The FD spent the better part of an afternoon making sure that fire was out.

They were very glad we had a road right to the burn, because fighting a fire on the river bottom would have been a nightmare if it had gotten out of control. I have some pictures somewhere if anybody's interested, but that should be in a different thread.

 

[Larry Ashcraft]

AOD said it best. Forced air blows warm air around, radiant heat heats objects instead of air.

My shop has forced air, and at home we have radiant hot water heat, plus the stove. The shop can be 72 degrees and I feel cold. At home, 70 degrees is quite comfortable.

 

[Vangellis]

AOD said it best. Forced air blows warm air around, radiant heat heats objects instead of air.

My shop has forced air, and at home we have radiant hot water heat, plus the stove. The shop can be 72 degrees and I feel cold. At home, 70 degrees is quite comfortable.

Thats what it's all about for me. Not just a cost savings, but it just heats the house better than my electric baseboard.




Kevin

 

[Spotted Owl]

The version I heard was that a tree hit by lightning simply won't burn, period. I think that may be true of conifers, as some sort of chemical change in the resin may take place, but we had a large, dead cottonwood hit by lightning a few years ago, and what was left of it burned quite well.

Several months back we had a monster lightning storm roll thru. We spent days cutting strike trees. I don't know what or how but it seemed like everyother one was like cutting thru a rock. The others were like cutting dust inside a half inch of shell or a combo of super hard and very soft all swirled together. The spirals that were left by the strike were the hardest part of the wood. It almost seemed like the wood was super compressed and turned to a hard coal all swirled together. That was probably one of the spookyest things I have done, you didn't know what you were in for when you started.

I don't know about Lor, but I have a truth. A truth in our house anyhow. If you wake up in the morning and smell hair you know the dog got cold and opened up the draft in the night some time.

I'm the one who stocks and dampers the stove at night so I know how it is set before turning in. The dog in the morning will be on the rug infront of the stave and his hair will be sort of foul smelling and the lower air intake will be opened some, leaving next to nothing to start up again.

This is a great thread. It has brought back a lot of memories of cutting fire wood with Gramps and the old timers when I was really small. Alot of what is already here was said by them and some others that I don't quite know how to clean up for posting. One of those guy was an old import Norweigen(sp) he had a ton of them.

Thanks for starting this.


Owl

 

[Haywire Haywood]

About the salt sprinkling... I heard that anything to do with salt "sacrifices" stems from the fact that salt was, in the beginning, a luxury item and fairly expensive. Don't know how true that is.

Ian

 

[woodbooga]

About the salt sprinkling... I heard that anything to do with salt "sacrifices" stems from the fact that salt was, in the beginning, a luxury item and fairly expensive. Don't know how true that is.

Ian

That's a good point I hadn't thought of! In Roman times, the legions were paid in salt - hence the term 'salary.' Shares an etymological lineage with salinization, saline, and all of those other words pertaining to saltiness containing the root 'sal.'

In colonial times, the saltcellar - the predecessor of the salt shaker - was located near the head of the table where the head of the household sat. The most important members of the family and any important guests like the minister were seated nearby. 'Above the salt' is an antiquated term for important; 'below the salt' refered to those less prestigeous.

I've also heard that adding rock salt to a fire will break down creosote in the chimney. (Wive's tale? Truism? I can't provide a testimony either way). So, like many traditions that seemed to have emerged from the mists of time, there are multiple possible origins. Personally, I like Haywire's.

 

[woodbooga]

The sound of one hand clapping?

Here's an old Yankee bit of lore with a philosophical twist:

Old farmer says, "This is the finest axe I've ever owned. Yessir, it's served me well all these many decades. I've replaced the handle four times and the axe head once. Wouldn't not ever part with it. Ah-yuh, this is the finest axe I've ever handled."

Question:Is it still the same axe?

 

[Wife'nHubby]

Here's an old Yankee bit of lore with a philosophical twist:

Old farmer says, "This is the finest axe I've ever owned. Yessir, it's served me well all these many decades. I've replaced the handle four times and the axe head once. Wouldn't not ever part with it. Ah-yuh, this is the finest axe I've ever handled."

Question:Is it still the same axe?

According to Greek legend:

A ship named Theseus was preserved by the Athenians and over the many years they took away the old planks as they decayed, putting in new and stronger timber in their place. Eventually not one piece of original wood remained, yet the structure of the ship was the same and the ship's name perservered.

So, after many years, did the ship named Theseus still exist?

Philosophers have had a ball figuring this one out..... This is known as the "Theseus Theory" and also applies to your axe example.

Shari

 

[woodbooga]

Philosophers have had a ball figuring this one out..... This is known as the "Theseus Theory" and also applies to your axe example.

Shari

...as has anyone who's ever restored an antique car or an old house!

 

[demographic]

About the salt sprinkling... I heard that anything to do with salt "sacrifices" stems from the fact that salt was, in the beginning, a luxury item and fairly expensive. Don't know how true that is.

Ian

Theres an old superstition over here about if you spill some salt you're supposed to throw a pinch of it over your left shoulder cos thats the side where the devil comes up on you.
And if I remember right I read something years ago about pictures showing the devil giving something to a person always show the devil giving it to them with his left hand.
Left handed being the hand of the devil and all that tosh.

 

[Scootermsp]

Pellet Stove

About 10 years ago I woke up late one morning (GF had left for work) to find the front window of my pellet stove was all black with some substance melted on it. I had just cleaned the window the day before so I was perplexed. I called the GF at work and asked what she did to the pellet stove, she swore up and down she didn't touch it. At the time I had no kids or animals. I spent over an hour cleaning the mess.
Several hours later I got a telephone call from the GF from work. It seems when she went to the ladies room and dropped her skirt to answer nature's call she found that BOTH butt cheeks were missing (melted off) from her black nylons...She confessed she loves the heat there in the morning and got dressed in front of it....On this particular morning she was a little too enthusiastic in warming her buns! :jawdrop:

 

[Wood Scrounge]

Theres an old superstition over here about if you spill some salt you're supposed to throw a pinch of it over your left shoulder cos thats the side where the devil comes up on you.
And if I remember right I read something years ago about pictures showing the devil giving something to a person always show the devil giving it to them with his left hand.
Left handed being the hand of the devil and all that tosh.

They brought that one over here, I heard my grandmother say that 100s of times.

 

[woodbooga]

They brought that one over here, I heard my grandmother say that 100s of times.

My wife enjoys a show called "Supernatural." Long and short of it is a couple of brothers are at the vanguard (or stuck ing the middle) of a multidimensional struggle versus the forces of good and evil. The brothers often defend themselves against daemons with shotguns loaded with rock salt.

 

[woodbooga]

...BOTH butt cheeks were missing (melted off) from her black nylons...She confessed she loves the heat there in the morning and got dressed in front of it....On this particular morning she was a little too enthusiastic in warming her buns! :jawdrop:

Gave ya some rump rep for that cautionary tale!!!

 

[buzz sawyer]

Great idea for a thread!

Seems like I read somewhere that the term "seasoned wood" referred not to whether it was dry but whether it was cut in the proper season - winter, when the sap was down.

Lot's of nice posts!

+1 Woodbooga

 

[DTB]

Folklore

My father told me that the Amish keep their firewood in rounds because it burns longer. It makes sense because the wood would not be as dry as split wood but I think this would decrease the efficiency and heat production, thus causing more creosote.

 

[buzz sawyer]

My father told me that the Amish keep their firewood in rounds because it burns longer. It makes sense because the wood would not be as dry as split wood but I think this would decrease the efficiency and heat production, thus causing more creosote.

Interesting - The drier wood on the outside gets the fire started so the inner wood will catch and burn longer. Kind of like putting a hind quarter on a spit over a fire and slicing off the outside as it cooks.

 

[myzamboni]

My father told me that the Amish keep their firewood in rounds because it burns longer. It makes sense because the wood would not be as dry as split wood but I think this would decrease the efficiency and heat production, thus causing more creosote.

Maybe they burned all small rounds and anything bigger was milled for lumber.

 

[woodbooga]

Seems like I read somewhere that the term "seasoned wood" referred not to whether it was dry but whether it was cut in the proper season - winter, when the sap was down.

LOL! I'm going to remember this next time someone tells me they bought seasoned wood that underperformed. I can just imagine the following exchange between a first-time woodburner buying cord wood off from a straight-faced laconic old yankee:

Newbie: I've heard I should only burn seasoned wood.
Yankee: 'tis true.
Newbie: Would you kindly elaborate what you mean when you say 'season'?
yankee: Ay-yuh. 'twas summah. And raht proppah, that.

 

[jerryw66]

good stuff guys, I had an old uncle, long gone now, and he said "man who cuts his own wood, It will warm him twice" " same man farts in church and he sits in his own peu"