Stored firewood in garage 2 years...Still wet?

[Nick62388]

I have had wood stored in my insect free garage for almost 2 years plus. I use it in fireplace inside and its still wet and sizzles. It does not put out the kind of heat that a $5 stack of firewood from a grocery store puts out...Should I not leave it in the garage because it does not get any airflow? I thought the heat in summer would dry it out but I guess not. I have a bunch of firewood on pallets outside that have been there for more then a year and a half, but they were never covered and are very grayish in color... I feel if I try to dry my wood by having it outside, but with a tarp on it, the tarp wont allow it to dry? Any help or input would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Stihlsmoking]

I don't cover mine? But thinking about starting to by building wood rack out of scrap wood.
A lot of people just cover the top few pieces when stored out side not to the ground allowing air to dry it out. If you live it a really wet area may need wood shed?

Also what type of wood makes a difference some oak people let dry two seasons

 

[Nick62388]

Isnt your wood all wet though when it comes time to burn it from being outside with no cover? I am thinking about building the same type of thing maybe a little wood roof out of pallet materials at least or sum tiny little shelter/house to cover the wood but allow the sides to get air...Ya i have all different kinds lol

 

[Iaff113]

We cover all of ours with tin on top, that's it until we pull it two to three years later


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[Nick62388]

Why do you hold off so long?

 

[NSMaple1]

Wood in a garage won't dry very fast if put in green. Especially if stacked close. Air movement and lots of it is key.

 

[Stihlsmoking]

Ok I did cover mine one year with plastic hated it. I have a awning on back patio usually stack a week or two of wood out under it, And maybe a weeks worth by stove so it's dry by the time I feed stove.

 

[Iaff113]

Why do you hold off so long?

We hold off that long because 2 years is about the cycle that we have for when we start to burn that stacked section. So all the wood we split and stack this year will not be touched until November 2017.


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[066blaster]

I think it seasons better outside uncovered. Then cover or put in the garage a month or 2 before winter. It seems like the rain and sun deteriorates the outer surface and it burns better. Put it in after a few warm sunny days so it's dry when you put it in. I then move some in the house and let it sit for a few days before burning.

 

[Whitty21]

Best way in my opinion is to build a 2 sided lean-to. I will post a picture of our set up this weekend likey. Best case scenario is to keep the moisture off the wood without the wind being blocked. Snow doesn't concern us if that is the case, as you can shovel the piles off, leaving minimal moisture on the pile

 

[Marine5068]

Most hardwoods usually take about a year to season well. Oak and some very dense woods can take up to two years or more before burning.
You should stack them off the ground on rack or wood pallets in an area of good ventilation/lots of breeze and full sun too if you can.
I never cover my stacks out in the open, but I do have covered racks under the overhang of my front deck and roof peak.
You can cover the tops of the stacks though. and then when the wood is ready to burn (after one or two years out in the wind and sun) bring it in the garage to keep it dry.
Try that.

 

[olyman]

if stacked inside the garage,,when green,it wont dry. no air movement.....even with fans blowing on it,,it would take near forever...cant beat outside during warm weather for drying firewood........stacked in rows, with a space between...........

 

[sledge&wedge]

I think it seasons better outside uncovered. Then cover or put in the garage a month or 2 before winter. It seems like the rain and sun deteriorates the outer surface and it burns better. Put it in after a few warm sunny days so it's dry when you put it in. I then move some in the house and let it sit for a few days before burning.

@Nick62388 - I use a strategy pretty similar to @066blaster . I keep all of my wood stacked outside in the open, no building or cover to speak of. The sun and wind work their magic year round, and then somewhere around the end of September I wait for 3-4 good sunny days to dry out any rain in the piles and move an entire winter's worth of wood into the barn from whichever stack is the oldest. I have built some stalls along one wall to hold about 2 cords of wood, and that's where I pull from during the winter to heat the house. Another trick I have found useful is a week or two before you start moving wood under cover for the winter, go out and knock the top half of the stack off to let the sun and wind do a little extra work on the middle wood. Seems to work pretty well for me, might be worth a try.

 

[jrider]

Outside in the wind and full sun is best way for drying. Unless you live in area of constant rain, I wouldn't bother covering until burning season is upon you and still, that's not even necessary as any rain water on the wood usually dries up in a few days.

 

[muddstopper]

Everybody seems to think that wood should be stacked in nice need rows and covered to dry. Maybe they are right but, I usually buck my wood into rounds and those rounds might lay there for months before I get around to splitting. After splitting, that wood might lay around in a big pile for several more months before I get around to stacking it inside my shed. I feel, and I can be wrong, that leaving the wood out in the weather, in a big pile promotes air movement up thru the wood pile. Sure it get rained on, but it also gets the benefit of the sun beating down on it. I do like stacking under a shed before time to use because it keeps it dry from any rain or snow. No beating trying to freeup frozen wood. No carrying a wet mess into the house. My shed will hold about 2 years worth of wood. This is the first year it has actually been full. Just got about a cord yesterday. I had to dump it outside the shed. I get a warm day with nothing else to do, I'll probably go ahead and split it and just leave it piled up until after winter while I burn up the wood in the shed. I'll pick up some more wood here and there and do it the same way. Hopefully by next winter, I will have a years worth of wood ready to stack in the shed to used 2 years from now. For today, I think I will work on building the boom to mound on my dump trailer. I want to mount a electric winch on the boom and use it to pull 10ft logs up and load on the trailer. I can then haul my wood home and just dump it on the ground until I find time to work it up.

 

[blades]

I use both stacks and piles, all depends on ambient conditions. I have had Hickory & Oak, Sugar maple stacked for 3 years and still not be ready, and other times ready in a 1.5 years. Stacks generally fair better drying wise than the piles and this is all on asphalted surface with pallets under so pretty low on ground moisture rising. I generally try to cover what I need for the season mid fall or so just to keep rain and early snow showers off. Most of what I use during a season will be stacked in my small garage ( about 3 cord worth) by the end of Nov. and additional material will be top covered to ward off the elements. It has been so wet this fall that exposed but properly dried material is showing( when split open ) penetration of water sometimes 2 inches deep. Two or three days in the stove room and its fine again as this is not moisture trapped in the cells but externally to them.

 

[muddstopper]

I can see how stacking on asphalt and pallets would speed up drying. The asphalt heats up and prevents moisture rising from the ground, and the pallets increase air flow. Mine usually ends up laying flat on the ground, but thats not a problem since I have plenty of room and I'm not in a hurry to burn the wood. I have a buddy that just last nite asked me if he could bring a bunch of wood over to process and let dry. Said he had access to a 1000 acre farm with a bunch of standing dead trees they are wanting to remove. Cattle killed trees. I know the farm and it should result in a lot of wood. Of course I volunteer'ed to help in this little undertaking.

 

[reddogrunner]

I would not stack in a closed up garage for seasoning. Stack it outside. Cover, no cover - I prefer NO COVER. Leave it outside to season and then move it in a few months before you plan to burn. That woods needs air around it to get the moisture to draw out. Rain water dries quickly. Sap and other internal moisture does not. I palletize my wood and move it around in big 1/4 cord "baskets", so I leave it outside or under roof with no sides and then bring to garage one basket at a time. Usually lasts about 2-3 weeks. Give it a try next batch

 

[olyman]

Everybody seems to think that wood should be stacked in nice need rows and covered to dry. Maybe they are right but, I usually buck my wood into rounds and those rounds might lay there for months before I get around to splitting. After splitting, that wood might lay around in a big pile for several more months before I get around to stacking it inside my shed. I feel, and I can be wrong, that leaving the wood out in the weather, in a big pile promotes air movement up thru the wood pile. Sure it get rained on, but it also gets the benefit of the sun beating down on it. I do like stacking under a shed before time to use because it keeps it dry from any rain or snow. No beating trying to freeup frozen wood. No carrying a wet mess into the house. My shed will hold about 2 years worth of wood. This is the first year it has actually been full. Just got about a cord yesterday. I had to dump it outside the shed. I get a warm day with nothing else to do, I'll probably go ahead and split it and just leave it piled up until after winter while I burn up the wood in the shed. I'll pick up some more wood here and there and do it the same way. Hopefully by next winter, I will have a years worth of wood ready to stack in the shed to used 2 years from now. For today, I think I will work on building the boom to mound on my dump trailer. I want to mount a electric winch on the boom and use it to pull 10ft logs up and load on the trailer. I can then haul my wood home and just dump it on the ground until I find time to work it up.

if you left,, those rounds,, or split pieces in a round stack long enough, all the wood in the center, under cover,, would be rotted.......................seen it more than once. told friend about it,,was all oak,,he laughed at me.. until next year,,after thinking about it,,he went and stacked all the wood on old silo staves......... guess what he found???? guess who laughed loudest???

 

[muddstopper]

Oly, I have had rounds turn pukey before, but most of the time at my place, it dont lay around long enough to rot. It usually gets thrown in the stove before then. Any wood that lays on the wet ground will be sure to be soft, headed toward rot if left for more than a year.