I have a huge beech tree to cut up that fell in Sandy. I never delt with beech before. I was wondering how it splits and season time. Oh and does the wood stay good for long time or does it get punky.
Thanks, Tom
Thanks, Tom
American beech
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allstihl
ArboristSite Guru
beech is great. but if its not under cover you can have problems fairly quick
woodguy105
ArboristSite Guru
Yes easy to split and season.
stihly dan
Addicted to ArboristSite
Lots of knots, hand splitting is more difficult than oak or birch.
TreeGuyHR
ArboristSite Guru
How do you think this one would split?:msp_biggrin:
View attachment 276816
38 in. dbh, 90 ft tall, around 35 ft. to the major fork (just measured it last Thanksgiving). That's a full twist in the lower trunk. Tree is at my Dad's place in CT - he isn't planning on cutting it any time soon though.
I have a 7 ton electric splitter. Do you think that will be strong enough. I have split oak, Maple, crab apple,and honey locust on it. Never messed with beech. Tree is one big tree with 2 other 14" trees growing out of it. But it is really straight tree about 60 ft.
That one looks like it wood give you hell. My tree looks nothing like that.
Disagree, with easy to split.
Beech does not grow straight and is tough to split by hand. Not the hardest, but harder than oak.
I dont have camera right now or I would post a pic. The tree grew with the ground for about 4 feet then curved and shot straight up with 2 others coming out of it about 15 feet up. Im pretty sure its beech, my friend said it had real thin branch with a bunch on small leaves. Its almost smooth with some grain in it and silverish in color.
Great also but harder to split. In my experience, it lasts a LONG time even in direct contact with the ground. Also, I have some tops that I go into for kindling that took three whole years to get to the easy snap point.
Thats why I was asking about it. Everything I read has mixed views on the spliting but say its good firewood.
zogger
Tree Freak
You are gonna do either way, so it doesnt matter!
Do you normally hand split to get rounds smaller to use that smaller splitter? Sounds like youll need to do that with the big beech.
The bigest I used on the splitter is about 20" by 16" long. It split with no problem but since I bought the x27 fiskars I been hand splitting. I need the exercise. I figured the beech I would noodle than try and split it whatever way I can. I read its easy to split but you guys say its hard. I will find out soon enough.:msp_smile:
It just depends on the tree. We have a lot of beech and some of them can be split by hand while some have a "wavy" grain that with bounce out wedges. These trees are in the same woods and can be side by side. We had a straight log with no knots that was over 3 ft in diameter that had to have a saw cut just to start out slimmest tapered wedges. Just no rhyme or reason to it. Great wood to burn and BTU's is great. Sitting on the ground it sponges up fairly fast so get on it.
Standing dead sometimes is a crapshoot too. You can have sections in the logs that are good and then some doady sections. I just do some cuts to see if it's worth messing with. The tops always seem to break out then the rot from there.
Here's the biggest one we had. Ike took the top out 20 ft up. One limb was over 3 ft and the other was 4 ft. Trunk was over 5 ft in diameter and that IS a full size Dodge next to it. Over 13 cord from one tree.
Standing dead sometimes is a crapshoot too. You can have sections in the logs that are good and then some doady sections. I just do some cuts to see if it's worth messing with. The tops always seem to break out then the rot from there.
Here's the biggest one we had. Ike took the top out 20 ft up. One limb was over 3 ft and the other was 4 ft. Trunk was over 5 ft in diameter and that IS a full size Dodge next to it. Over 13 cord from one tree.
It just depends on the tree. We have a lot of beech and some of them can be split by hand while some have a "wavy" grain that with bounce out wedges. These trees are in the same woods and can be side by side. We had a straight log with no knots that was over 3 ft in diameter that had to have a saw cut just to start out slimmest tapered wedges. Just no rhyme or reason to it. Great wood to burn and BTU's is great. Sitting on the ground it sponges up fairly fast so get on it.
Standing dead sometimes is a crapshoot too. You can have sections in the logs that are good and then some doady sections. I just do some cuts to see if it's worth messing with. The tops always seem to break out then the rot from there.
Here's the biggest one we had. Ike took the top out 20 ft up. One limb was over 3 ft and the other was 4 ft. Trunk was over 5 ft in diameter and that IS a full size Dodge next to it. Over 13 cord from one tree.
That tree makes that dodge look like a mini cooper.:msp_biggrin:
tomtrees58
Addicted to ArboristSite
used it fast and keep it away from your other wood it gos bad fast black fungus will infect all your wood we dump it
stihly dan
Addicted to ArboristSite
I had got alot of 6 in trees of beech and maple, which looks the same at that size. Some of it I could tell the difference by weight, the rest when the fiskers hit it. If the split easy, maple. If a had to hit it twice or more beech.
I've got a lot of deceased beech that I try to take out before the good beech, the affected beech gets punky inside fairly fast and doesn't split well, healthy beech that is straight splits ok but if it has a twist in it, it takes some work, splitting by hand is not my preferred method with beech any time. The splits last a long time if kept dry and the bugs don't find it.
i'm in the process of splitting a 24" base beech and 3 white oak trees that came down during hurricane sandy and last years irene. i'm just about all done with the beech but have probably a cord left to split of the white oak. overall, i have about 3 cords split and stacked.
now with regards to splitting the beech, i did the entire thing by hand and i was amazed how easy it was to split.
now this wood is going to be for the 2014/15 burning season. i've never had this much beech before so how will it be seasoning with the white oak? i know theres been some talk about it getting punky and getting insect. what makes the beech attract insects over anything else?
oh, i'm in northern NJ and the wood is stacked on pallats with at least 6 hrs of sun.
now with regards to splitting the beech, i did the entire thing by hand and i was amazed how easy it was to split.
now this wood is going to be for the 2014/15 burning season. i've never had this much beech before so how will it be seasoning with the white oak? i know theres been some talk about it getting punky and getting insect. what makes the beech attract insects over anything else?
oh, i'm in northern NJ and the wood is stacked on pallats with at least 6 hrs of sun.
Im trying to figure out this beech wood too. Everyhing I read conflicts with other things I read. You say splits easy some say hard to split. Who knows at his point.
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