Is this a bad pile?

[winland]

A friend of mine has very large pile of ash and hackberry. It is about 6' tall and 20'
Will the wood in the center and bottom ever get seasoned or will it rot?

 

[ShaneLogs]

A friend of mine has very large pile of ash and hackberry. It is about 6' tall and 20'
Will the wood in the center and bottom ever get seasoned or will it rot?

It depends on how tightly stacked the wood is, I would put it on pallets if I was you so air flow can get to the bottom of the pile and dry it out.

 

[Whitespider]

The wood in the center of the pile contacting the ground will surely rot... given enough time.
Wet rotten wood contacting good wood will cause the good wood to rot... given enough time.

 

[jrider]

Any wood left to nature long enough will rot...but if the stack is in full sun and gets plenty of wind, it will be fine to leave for a year plus.

 

[Snotrocket]

The biggest problem is not that it's in a big pile, but that it's on the ground. The bottom pieces will constantly suck moisture from the ground.

 

[CTYank]

Any wood left to nature long enough will rot...but if the stack is in full sun and gets plenty of wind, it will be fine to leave for a year plus.

It'll likely be still improving well after that- still air-drying, so long as it's up off the ground, and top-covered at least for any monsoon-type rains.

Some oak will not be ready to burn until after a couple of years' air-drying.

Some wood was found in Pompeii when it was excavated- little changed from original. So, it's not doomed to rot. Stable conditions help.

 

[trailmaker]

The biggest problem is not that it's in a big pile, but that it's on the ground. The bottom pieces will constantly suck moisture from the ground.

I believe this is correct. The ground contact is the problem.

 

[jrider]

It'll likely be still improving well after that- still air-drying, so long as it's up off the ground, and top-covered at least for any monsoon-type rains.

Some oak will not be ready to burn until after a couple of years' air-drying.

Some wood was found in Pompeii when it was excavated- little changed from original. So, it's not doomed to rot. Stable conditions help.

Unless you are storing your wood in an oxygen free environment like Pompeii, it will rot in nature - thats what I'm trying to say.
I store wood in piles like that each and every year, have no problems selling/burning myself upwards of 75 cords and my little side business is almost all repeat customers. A good 9-12 months uncovered out in the field does the trick every year and that is mostly red/white/chestnut oak.

 

[dingeryote]

Lots of folks I know simply pile thier wood up like that, and never stack.
Unless there is a tarp under it, the ground contact splits go to rot in a couple years, but the rest seasons well enough if in the sun.

If that's all Ash, it's worth stacking to save every BTU.

Stay safe!
Dingeryote

 

[CTYank]

Unless you are storing your wood in an oxygen free environment like Pompeii, it will rot in nature - thats what I'm trying to say.
I store wood in piles like that each and every year, have no problems selling/burning myself upwards of 75 cords and my little side business is almost all repeat customers. A good 9-12 months uncovered out in the field does the trick every year and that is mostly red/white/chestnut oak.

I also have no problem burning or giving away green or overly moist wood, but find that it burns MUCH better when the MC is down to 15% or below. Less latent heat as water vapor up the flue; less visible schmutz in the exhaust. That's what I'm trying to say. And lumber processors will tell you that most oaks take twice as long as other hardwoods to air dry, which I can confirm.

Except as stored in fungus incubators like that mound, I've had extremely little problem with wood rotting, except for the sapwood of black cherry or black locust. And ... that took years. There are variables.

After Pompeii excavation, the wood still did fine years later. Saw some m'self. :cool2:

 

[Felman]

Move the wood from center/bottom so to ,ideally, create a wind tunnel under the center of the pile, its the thought that counts

 

[D&B Mack]

Turn the pile over every once in a while if you can. I would try to get it off the soil as well.

 

[Wood Doctor]

Stack It...

Stack the wood on crushed rock or on pallets. That's what I do, and it lasts.

 

[greendohn]

The hackberry does not do well around here when left in contact w/the ground. It will turn into nothing better than wet card board in very little time. The ash will tolerate those conditions some what better but won't last forever. I have built a shed over an old cement slab which is cracked and allows moisture to come thru from the ground during rain. I have lost some wood over the years to rot because of this. Last couple of years I have been using the cheap landscape timbers to stack on, inside the shed, and haven't seen any signs of the bottom stack going bad.

 

[jrider]

I also have no problem burning or giving away green or overly moist wood, but find that it burns MUCH better when the MC is down to 15% or below. Less latent heat as water vapor up the flue; less visible schmutz in the exhaust. That's what I'm trying to say. And lumber processors will tell you that most oaks take twice as long as other hardwoods to air dry, which I can confirm.

Except as stored in fungus incubators like that mound, I've had extremely little problem with wood rotting, except for the sapwood of black cherry or black locust. And ... that took years. There are variables.

After Pompeii excavation, the wood still did fine years later. Saw some m'self. :cool2:

If the wood were green/overly moist, I wouldn't have the repeat customers I have built up through the last 16 years. You are welcome to come check out my fungus incubator any time you would like and I can bet you there won't be any except for the pieces in direct contact with the ground. If the sun is shining, its on the pile. I have tried the same method in a small clearing in the woods and will never do that again as there was plenty of moisture/fungus in the pile. That stuff I had to wait another year to sell.

 

[savageactor7]

Nice pile winland.

Like winland we also pile our wood. The pile sits on a pad of gravel and yes the wood in the center does season. Don't expect it to season as fast as neatly stacked rows. The good news is with the time saved when you throw it up while splitting you'll end up with so much wood it really doesn't matter.

I thinking this pile is close to 10' or 12 high. With piling these no catastrophic collapses if you're a less than perfect stacker. Over the years we'll use a wheel barrow to remove wood for burning and continue right threw to the other side of the pile then replace it to let it sit for for few years or so. We just make a determination which is the most seasoned section.

That pile I don't even bother to cover anymore. We have another pile closer to the house that's covered...if it's raining or snow covered we'll use that pile. Otherwise a day of wind or sun is enough to dry some wood from the uncovered pile.

Since the snow left we've been making rounds to replace the section removed for burning. It looks kind of strange really if, I think of it I'll take a pic and post it later.

Here's what it use to look like in the winter but I was disturbed on the over all look of the blue tarp so I stopped using one. The wood sits uncovered in the sun and that's good enough for me.

imo it's critical that stacked or piled wood get morning sun...or it will rot.

 

[Guido Salvage]

That pile is fine.

This is an example of a "bad pile"...