Long story simple question

[sw18x]

We moved to a new property last August. Sounds completely backwards but the house we sold sat on a single acre with 4 trees and an OWB, the new property has a pretty efficient indoor stove and plenty of mature wooded acreage to cut from. I hauled in 6 trailer loads of my wood stash from the old house the week before we closed, and got through last winter on maybe 3 cord of it, but due to new house projects didn't (and won't) get to do any new cutting until this fall. Therefore I'll be relying on what's left of my old scrounge pile for this winter. My plan was to break down and pay for a few face cords this year to buy me some time til I can get in the woods, but as a matter of principle it kills me to do it when I've never paid for wood in my life except with my own sweat and labor.

So I finally had time this past week to get processing, most of it being ash in rounds from last year and a bunch of bigger splits left over from the OWB. And indeed it looks like I will be a little short, except I have plenty of oak which I'm not sure will be ready to go, and that's my question. I don't know what kind of oak since it was the only oak I ever scored, but the tree came down in May 2014. Some of it is still in rounds but I split a lot of it June 2014, the splits were then stacked in a tight pile 3 rows deep at the new house in august 2014 with no concern for airflow since we were just tossing them off the trailer as fast as we could in the heat of the move. There they sat, smaller rounds stacked on top of them, up to the present. I dug down and grabbed a piece today, put a moisture meter on it, and read 15 on the outside, but sawed one open and got readings around 21-22 in the middle.

So what do you all think? Any way the oak splits will season enough in the next 3 or 4 months to be ready? I can drag them out and stack in the open in single rows sometime in the next week, I was toying with the idea of cutting them all in half which I'll have to do with some of them anyways cause they're a little long for this stove. Or should I just buy a few face cords and focus on cutting for next year?

 

[Jere39]

I might not be understanding your question exactly right. If you have splits that are now about 12 months old, and you are getting 15% mm readings on the outside of them, but 20-22% inside. I would say, you might want to split them again, in half, rather than saw them again. Or am I missing something. Anyway, if you split them again, and expose them to the rest of August sunshine and three more months of drying, I believe they will be around 18% by January, and should burn nicely.

So, if I completely misunderstood your question, maybe a picture of this pile would clarify.

 

[blades]

Ditto

 

[esshup]

Another ditto. Split the ones that will fit, cut then split the ones that are too long. I wouldn't cut them in half, just cut them down to the size that the others are to make stacking more uniform.

 

[Marshy]

Regarding moisture content, I would burn everything you described without thinking twice or splitting twice. The rounds that you just split that are a little over 20% will be ready to burn if you get them split and stacked soon. Even most modern stoves state to burn wood 20% and dryer so I don't see the need to be concerned over what you have. I'd be more concerned with what you will receive if you buy some delivered wood!

 

[sw18x]

Nope you're not misunderstanding. I agree splitting them again would be the most effective, I just don't want to reduce them to matchsticks. Either way I have to make the saw cut on some of them to reduce them to the right length, hate to process 2x per split but if that's what it takes then time to get busy.

I also agree about being wary of firewood delivered this late. I was talking to one seller, he's still splitting to keep up with demand, I asked when were your rounds cut, he said may or June. Yikes...I could see if it was ash maybe but can't imagine I'd be better off in that case than I would with what I already got.

 

[Streblerm]

I highly doubt your stove or moisture meter will be able to tell the difference between 20% and 22% moisture. I would split the pieces that are too big to go into the stove and not worry about the others.

 

[Swamp Yankee]

Trim it, stack it, burn it.

At 20 to 22 percent you're almost there, no need to make work for yourself when you need to get going on the 2016/2017 season. Stack the wood, single row preferably or with some space between the rows for air circulation. Wait until you've had a couple nice dry weeks in the fall and cover the top of the pile and about a foot or so down the sides.

If possible, and this really helps, bring the wood into the house for a day or two prior to burning. The combination of low humidity due to cold winter air and the warmth of the house create fantastic drying conditions. This method will really help remove a lot of residual moisture. I do this with all my wood, placing it a couple feet from the stove. Having the stove in an unfinished basement makes this easy to do with minimal mess. Just be sure to check the pieces for ants and other critters before bringing it in to sit.

In the event you decide to purchase, let me give you a few tips that I give my customers, (been selling for 30+ years), or those people that ask how not to be taken by a CL hack.
1- Ask for a description of the wood. Species, when harvested, when split, etc. Tops will season in a couple years, treelength sitting in a pile won't.
2- For some reason people have a problem with this one, ask how long the seller has been in business, and ask for a couple of references. One reference should be from a long term 3 year or more customer. Having long term customers is usually an indication he sells a good product and doesn't short on quantity. Whether you actually check the references is up to you, but if the seller refuses to supply, that's a huge red flag.
3- Ask to meet him at his processing area and see the wood prior to buying. If he refuses, he's hiding something, most likely cutting off a pile of treelength to order, walk away and look elsewhere. I love it when people come to see my operation, the product sells itself. If they want I hand them my moisture meter and tell them to have at it.
4- Don't be afraid to open the wallet. Seasoned wood from a reputable seller will almost always cost more. A new seller trying to grab market share may price a decent product lower, and if you follow the 3 rules above you may get a bargain.

Good luck with the new home. In a couple years, since you now have an available supply, you'll be a few years ahead on the wood supply and won't need to worry about anything other than tractors, splitters, and all the associated equipment, (aka. toys), needed to harvest and process.

Take Care

 

[turnkey4099]

I highly doubt your stove or moisture meter will be able to tell the difference between 20% and 22% moisture. I would split the pieces that are too big to go into the stove and not worry about the others.

Yep. Cut the ones too long for the stove, split the ones too big for the stove, stack for ventilation nd everything will burn just fine this coming season.

Harry K

 

[zogger]

We moved to a new property last August. Sounds completely backwards but the house we sold sat on a single acre with 4 trees and an OWB, the new property has a pretty efficient indoor stove and plenty of mature wooded acreage to cut from. I hauled in 6 trailer loads of my wood stash from the old house the week before we closed, and got through last winter on maybe 3 cord of it, but due to new house projects didn't (and won't) get to do any new cutting until this fall. Therefore I'll be relying on what's left of my old scrounge pile for this winter. My plan was to break down and pay for a few face cords this year to buy me some time til I can get in the woods, but as a matter of principle it kills me to do it when I've never paid for wood in my life except with my own sweat and labor.

So I finally had time this past week to get processing, most of it being ash in rounds from last year and a bunch of bigger splits left over from the OWB. And indeed it looks like I will be a little short, except I have plenty of oak which I'm not sure will be ready to go, and that's my question. I don't know what kind of oak since it was the only oak I ever scored, but the tree came down in May 2014. Some of it is still in rounds but I split a lot of it June 2014, the splits were then stacked in a tight pile 3 rows deep at the new house in august 2014 with no concern for airflow since we were just tossing them off the trailer as fast as we could in the heat of the move. There they sat, smaller rounds stacked on top of them, up to the present. I dug down and grabbed a piece today, put a moisture meter on it, and read 15 on the outside, but sawed one open and got readings around 21-22 in the middle.

So what do you all think? Any way the oak splits will season enough in the next 3 or 4 months to be ready? I can drag them out and stack in the open in single rows sometime in the next week, I was toying with the idea of cutting them all in half which I'll have to do with some of them anyways cause they're a little long for this stove. Or should I just buy a few face cords and focus on cutting for next year?

Get em out in single rows and resplit any big ones (along with the recutting as you said to get them to fit). Use the ash directly with the oak to get that last bit of moisture out and don't choke the stove down.

I've had to burn fresh cut a few times now in my life, you can do it, just got to hustle and be creative. Stacking several days worth inside near the stove will drive a lot of moisture out. As you burn one day's worth, replace it, and just rotate oldest inside the house to into the stove. I do this even with what I know is dry wood, it does make a difference.

 

[muddstopper]

When I got my current wood stove, present from my wife in Oct of that year, I didnt have a single stick of wood on hand. I scrounged every thing I burnt and most of it was green as a gourd. It burnt. It maybe wasnt as efficient as it could have been, and I did have to clean the flue a couple of times that winter because it was clogging up. I say burn what you have, find what you need for this year, and throw that damn moisture meter away. You can start now getting your wood for this and next winter, stack it in single rows, burn what you need this year and the rest will be dry enough for next winter. If you have to cut green trees, let them lay until the leafs wilt before trimming. This helps pull some of the moisture out of the wood.

 

[513yj]

I might question the accuracy of the moisture meter. I had unsplit red oak rounds in a barn without much airflow that were still hissing after 5 years. I only get small amounts of oak and the stuff I got 2 years ago I will burn this winter unless it is mild enough to save. I always let it dry at least 2 years when split or 3 if I can get away with it.

 

[sw18x]

One of the reasons I posted this thread is the number of times I've heard people on this forum emphasize that they like to get two years of drying on oak before they burn it...so it's entirely possible my moisture meter is off, I don't use it as the final measure anyways, but just wanted to get an idea of how close I might be. I dug into that pile a couple days ago and got a nice stack of splits going, now it's up to mother nature to keep them cooking.

Thanks for the replies, I appreciate the advice on this one.

 

[muddstopper]

you know, I think this is the first time I have ever had all of my wood split and in the shed this early. Usually I have a little left over splits inside the shed, some splits laying around the shed. Some just bucked laying around the shed, and usually several logs waiting to be bucked and split. I need to find some more wood, it has gotten much to easy to mow around my wood shed, I got to get some wood just to slow down my mowing. Otherwise, my wife will have me digging in the garden or planting flowers or something.