cottonwood

[chumscustoms]

i have never burned it but to help a friend out i removed 4 large (22"-26")
cottonwoods from his back yard,
is it worth my time to split stack and burn in my CB OWB
i guess it is fire, but the dry stuff seems pretty crappy and the btu's are supposably only around 14.1

 

[Mike PA]

If you have tons of wood and have wood to spare, then no. Otherwise, yes. I burn whatever I get. Won't go out of my way for it, but you already did that, so why not use it?

 

[BigPITA]

:agree2: If you have so much wood that you don't know what to do with it all.... then pass on it. If you're like me and can always use more, then take it if there's nothing better to get out there. Is it as great as oak and many others... no... but would you rather keep the OWB going with it or pay the gas/oil/electric company when you run out?

 

[gink595]

In a wood stove, NO. Since you have a OWB why not???

 

[Wood Doctor]

In a wood stove, NO. Since you have a OWB why not???

+1. For OWBs, barrel stoves with lots of volume, and campfires, cottonood is fine to burn. Mix it with hardwoods and/or start the fire with it in any stove. Not much else will heat the stove up faster than cottonwood.

I delivered my seventh load of it Thursday to one of my good friends.

 

[Circle B MN]

Have yet to meet a seasoned wood that did not burn. Good thing with cotton wood is other scroungers pass on it. I'd say half my winter stash is cotton wood.

 

[mowoodchopper]

+1. For OWBs, barrel stoves with lots of volume, and campfires, cottonood is fine to burn. Mix it with hardwoods and/or start the fire with it in any stove. Not much else will heat the stove up faster than cottonwood.

I delivered my seventh load of it Thursday to one of my good friends.

#1 Burn the cottonwood and anyone who tells you its not worth burning, knows nothing about it!!!!!!!!!!

 

[flotek]

well its a matter of what your time is worth ,rolled up newspaper bundles will burn too ..but probably not something id be working for to heat my home with

 

[E&R_firewood]

i've burned a lot of cottonwood . . . usually small stuff that has suckered up between 4-10" in diameter, i season it for a year and mix it with more respectable woods. it has never failed to keep me and mine warm even during a 35 below zero january cold snap

 

[damifino]

well its a matter of what your time is worth ,rolled up newspaper bundles will burn too ..but probably not something id be working for to heat my home with

If I have a choice between oak or cottonwood, I will certainly choose oak.
But if all I can get is cottonwood then I will gladly take cottonwood.
It's all a matter of what is available to you.

 

[sbhooper]

It may not be the best wood if you have choices, but if it is free and available TAKE IT! If it is wood it goes into my furnace. I do not discriminate.

 

[mowoodchopper]

Er firewood, Damfino, SB hopper !!!!!!!!!!!!!

:yourock: Right on guys!!!! We would all like to burn all ash ,oak, elm, hickory
but you have to burn whats there.

And no matter what people say cottonwood will heat your house just fine!
Also is nice to work with. The people that really bash the old cottonwood have apparently never worked with it, at least not the cottonwood we have in NE, WY, Indiana

 

[Wood Doctor]

Have yet to meet a seasoned wood that did not burn. Good thing with cotton wood is other scroungers pass on it. I'd say half my winter stash is cotton wood.

+1. And it seasons fast to boot--primarily because the pores open up and release the moisture. Cottonwood also will not cake the chimney with creosote like pine, fir, cedar, and other conifers.

If you mix the cottonwood with denser species, you create the ideal fire. The other "scroungers" at the biomass woodpile that I work leave the dry cottowood and collect all the rest. I have two customers that love cottonwood and they get the leftovers. It's a good system.

Two other nice features. I can load the truck cab high with cottonwood and never worry about being overloaded. Finally, you will never have to worry about cottonwood becoming scarce. These trees multiply like rabbits.

 

[mowoodchopper]

+1.
Two other nice features. I can load the truck cab high with cottonwood and never worry about being overloaded. Finally, you will never have to worry about cottonwood becoming scarce. These trees multiply like rabbits.

Correct and for what it weighs you actually get alot of heat. If you could check the heat output for the weight I bet its as good as anything!

 

[lngbeard]

sweet rack

Woodoc,
That is a sweet rack you have on that little truck (Ford?). I like the pin release for the end piece. As for Cotton wood, when I tried to use some it was so wet I couldn't split it. The mall just sunk in up to the handle without splitting. So I waited for the rounds to dry and then split them. When I burned it, it burned so quick I was reloading every few minutes. I swear I had more ash coming out of the stove than the wood going in. I guess maybe one piece for a quick "heat the flue" fire, but for me that would be about it.

 

[Wood Doctor]

Woodoc,
That is a sweet rack you have on that little truck (Ford?). I like the pin release for the end piece. As for Cotton wood, when I tried to use some it was so wet I couldn't split it. The mall just sunk in up to the handle without splitting. So I waited for the rounds to dry and then split them. When I burned it, it burned so quick I was reloading every few minutes. I swear I had more ash coming out of the stove than the wood going in. I guess maybe one piece for a quick "heat the flue" fire, but for me that would be about it.

I made those truck racks using 4/4 ash hardwood. I have had several requests to custom build them for others who have trucks with rack wells in the side bed panels. The pins are 3/8" rod that I threaded on one end for the knobs. The posts drop into the wells, hold tight, yet and are easy to remove without unbolting from the rails. I estimate that the racks add about 25 cubic foot of extra volume capacity. So, the capacity of each load in my Ranger is bumped to nearly 80 cubic foot with the racks on board.

Another nice thing about them is that I can't even remember when a log ever fell off on the highway. The two crossed rope ties is all I ever use.

The best stoves for burning cottonwood need a high-volume firebox, such as a barrel stove. Cottonwood burns very well in open fireplaces and campfire pits. Other than that, I use it only for a starter and a mix with other dense woods in my airtight stove. Seems like the denser woods love having it (and soft maple or elm) around while they burn.

I also agree with Mowoodchopper that if you measured the heat output in BTU/Lb (not BTU/cu ft), cottonwood is about as good as any species. It just takes a lot of it to get the same weight. opcorn:

 

[qweesdraw]

Let it DRY before you try to split it!
It's easier on your splitter.
Cottonwood will ash more than most woods smells a might also.I tell wood customers that i am generally inside when i have a fire going,(if it bothers you put it in at night).
I heat with cottonwood bark as long as i can Late evening i will toss in a log.
Real wood goes into the stove in colder months.
Mark

 

[mowoodchopper]

I burn cottonwood in my airtight stove with no problems. NO smell, also not alot of ash, with cottonwood I have to take out ash once a week and sometimes even 2 weeks. Ash on the other hand I like to burn but have to take out the ashes about twice as often. Also no prob whatsoever heating the house no matter how cold ,you just have to get up in the night once and throw wood in!

 

[StihltheOne]

Hey mowoodchoper where in Neb are you?? We burn tons of cottonwood in Wy. It is about as good as wood gets here.