Simple system for drying green wood...fast

[Misfit138]

In the past, I have mentioned a system I have used to dry green wood. I figured I would try to add some scientific measurements and pictures for this thread.

In this case, I split a 16" green, Red Oak round into similar sized pieces (about 2-3" in width, by 16" long) and removed all the bark.

Testing for moisture immediately after splitting and bringing inside, (probes are jammed in as deep as possible):

I then stacked the pieces, house-of-cards-style, right next to my stove, for 3 full days- 72 hrs. During this time, the stove burned non-stop.

Testing for moisture 72 hours later, (again, probes are jammed in as deep as possible):

The pieces lit off immediately and burned hot. No sizzling whatsoever.

A few tips I have found which aid in drying:
Split into 4 sided pieces to maximize surface area.
Remove the bark as completely as possible.
Split into smaller pieces (2-3" wide) especially for dense hardwoods.
Stack right next to the stove-nearly touching the steel.

 

[ancy]

Sounds safe! Why not work a year a head?

 

[Guido Salvage]

Stack right next to the stove-nearly touching the steel.

And then that one stringy splinter curls up to the stove and begins its slow burn.....

 

[Hddnis]

I've done similar in the past when I ran out of seasoned wood for various reasons. Way I did it was two stacks that I alternated each week. My stove was set in a corner and I could put one stack on each side and still have over a foot of clearance to the stove. The wood I dried this way was not green, it was standing dead, but water logged to the point that splitting it squeezed water out. It kept us warm, worked good in fact. Added bonus was I didn't need the humidifier on the stove anymore.



Mr. HE

 

[kykayaker27]

man i like idea but my insurance agent would have a hayday,dave:msp_w00t:

 

[blackdogon57]

Bet it would dry even faster if you placed it on top of the stove.

 

[Misfit138]

Yeah. Why not work a year ahead? Things happen. Unforeseen occurrences, donating wood to someone who needs it more, etc.

Safe? Perfectly safe. Unless the room temp raises above 390 degrees Fahrenheit.

It's a great system, but only for intelligent, well informed people in need of drying wood quickly.

 

[ancy]

Yeah. Why not work a year ahead? Things happen. Unforeseen occurrences, donating wood to someone who needs it more, etc.

Safe? Perfectly safe. Unless the room temp raises above 390 degrees Fahrenheit.

It's a great system, but only for intelligent, well informed people in need of drying wood quickly.

So work two years a head! So your saying the side of your stove doesn't reach that temp? I think if I was in that boat I would be buying a load of seasoned wood as I was cutting the heck out of ash. I would think that would be the smart thing to do along with testing your smoke alarms!

 

[ponyexpress976]

I'dlike to know what one of those "dried" pieces measured in the middle...split it again and i'd bet they are still pretty close to 30% in the center after 72 hours.

 

[Hddnis]

I'dlike to know what one of those "dried" pieces measured in the middle...split it again and i'd bet they are still pretty close to 30% in the center after 72 hours.

I thought that at first too, and testing would be nice, I'm curious.

After thinking about it more, I'm not sure. 72 hours is a long time and temps in that area around many stoves will exceed 120° easily. Basically kiln drying. So, yeah, a resplit and test would be a simple way to know better how this works.




Mr. HE

 

[BSD]

we place a stack of wood along the side of our stove too, we try to keep the wood covered as well as possible outside, but this year was unprecedented rain fall and a lot of our wood got damp. the wood will sizzle for a few minutes if you put it right into the stove, however, if you let it sit next to the stove, we can dry it out in a day or two. the wood burns hotter and stove cleaner this way. win-win.

if a your pile of wood spontaneously combusts when its next to the stove, it's because the rest of the house is already on fire at that point. not much you can do at that point.

 

[branchbuzzer]

I guess I'm missing the point of stacking it right next to the stove. Seems like you could get better ( and safer ) results by stacking the wood to the side and near the ceiling. Whenever I've measured the temperature/humidity in my stove room it's always way hotter and drier at the ceiling than at the floor, even right next to the stove. The convection circulates air around the wood and no worries about the wood falling on to the stove.

 

[Valkyrie Rider]

I bringing about 3-4 days of wood at a time. Being that my wood is in the basement, I keep a large wood "hoop" full and then bring in and stack about another days worth on the floor. All wood is at least 6' from the stove.

My wood is all at least 2 seasons split and stacked, but my method works great for my stuff that gets rained or snowed on.

 

[Chris-PA]

Setting wet wood near the stove is an age old trick, but you don't need to have it THAT close. If you set a small fan to blow the heat at it it helps too.

 

[fields_mj]

Yeah, but what the heck am I going to do with firewood that 2"x3"? That's kindling, not firewood!

 

[CTYank]

I never let wood alongside the stove within 2" of stove, and stove has firebrick liner on sides to slow heat throughput there. I monitor things carefully, since as the wood dries the stove will get it hotter. IR thermometer works great for this. Get it hot enough, long enough, and it will ignite.

Once the face of a split exceeds 200 deg F, it gets moved to a stack on the other side, with the other end-face facing the stove. Same deal with temp monitoring. Once both sides done, move to stack a foot away. (Bottom of stack needs special handling, of course.)

Process can take 2-4 days. Splits brought in at 15% MC end up in single-digits. Some recently-cut white ash can be in the low teens- this is a year to not get fussy, and let the really good stuff rest covered outdoors, IOW, use the worst first.

Just don't get too casual and burn the house down.

 

[Misfit138]

So work two years a head!

Let me explain something.
Don't worry about me; I have enough wood. I am merely providing this process as an idea for people with common sense who may have the need.

So your saying the side of your stove doesn't reach that temp?

Yes, in my case, I am saying exactly that. I do not have an old smoke dragon. The outer steel walls on the sides of my stove (and many EPA stoves) are there to contain the convection cavities, where cold air is drawn up and heated, flowing out the top.

There is a one inch air gap in these side cavities, and I can place my calloused fingertips on them for ~5 seconds without getting burned. One the other hand, the top of the stove reaches 500 deg. F.

I think if I was in that boat I would be buying a load of seasoned wood as I was cutting the heck out of ash. I would think that would be the smart thing to do along with testing your smoke alarms!

 

[olyman]

man i like idea but my insurance agent would have a hayday,dave:msp_w00t:

dont tell him,,and tell the rest of the household mums the word..

 

[stihlrookie]

Kindling

Whats the point of splits that are 2-3"? If you are splitting wood that small to burn you should just quit burning altogether. Personally I like to place the largest pieces possible in the fire to maximize burn time. Who wants to spend all their time tending that mess, tiny splits, peeling bark, stacks next to the stove, reorganize stacks, loading stove.....sounds like a big waste of time and energy. Not to mention the humidity increase inside of your home, fine if you need it not so good if you already have high humidity. Be better off to scrounge up some dry wood and put the wet stuff to bed until next season.

 

[Misfit138]

e.....sounds like a big waste of time and energy...Be better off to scrounge up some dry wood and put the wet stuff to bed until next season.

Yes, of course.

However, over the past month or so, there have been a few threads started by people who were in the position of having no dry wood at their disposal, wherein several methods for drying (as a last resort) were recommended.

This is simply an alternative which may be useful for some, and for which I added some data. It has been helpful to at least 2 users of this forum.