# what wood has the best scent when splitting



## JA600L (Nov 15, 2014)

I was splitting my favorite today with the Fiskars. White oak . What wood do you think smells the best as you split it?


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## Shane Collins (Nov 15, 2014)

I've never split white, heard good things about its smell.  My favourite that I've split is red oak.  I think beech smells pretty nice too but red oak was my favourite.


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## Lakeside (Nov 15, 2014)

I like black birch , smells sweet like - peppermint or wintergreen.


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## billb3 (Nov 15, 2014)

white oak, <3 that vanilla smell
the yellow birch here has a nice mint smell

I actually like white pine, too.


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## dadof3 (Nov 15, 2014)

Ash!!  Even better when it burns.... love that smell


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## TommyTally (Nov 15, 2014)

White oak smelled great the one time I had the chance to split it.


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## Snigg (Nov 15, 2014)

Cherry


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## johneh (Nov 15, 2014)

Western Red Cedar reminds me of my Grand Mothers linen chest


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## bsruther (Nov 15, 2014)

Cherry and most any type of pine. I don't find the smell of oak pleasant, but I like smelling it while splitting.


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## jeepnerd (Nov 15, 2014)

Cherry


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## KindredSpiritzz (Nov 15, 2014)

green aspen has a nice smell


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## Rebelduckman (Nov 15, 2014)

White oak and nothing comes close. Makes me want to pour up a stiff bourbon


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## mustangwagz (Nov 15, 2014)

White oak smells great when splitting it, Cherry smells best when burning, Red oak smells good burning too, only thing locust does good is burn! LOL Wet locust Stinks like a horse barn when splitting and when burning has a distinct smell. When the neighbor toss's locust in, i know it!


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## BrotherBart (Nov 15, 2014)

Red oak. It smells like I am gonna be warm in a couple of years.


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## prezes13 (Nov 15, 2014)

I like red oak.  I didn't split white yet.  Have about a cord on a ground to be split.


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## Applesister (Nov 15, 2014)

Black birch without doubt!
Not only does it have an incredible smell but its top shelf heat.
I cut the sticks up for the dog so she has minty breath.


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## Hoozie (Nov 16, 2014)

Juniper!  Smells great when burning as well.


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## TreePointer (Nov 16, 2014)

Black cherry and white oak are my favorites.  Most red oak is pretty good, too.


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## midwestcoast (Nov 16, 2014)

On smell alone, it's Cedar for me, I never get tired of that smell.

Red Oak burns really nice, but smells like piss when splitting if you ask me. And you sorta almost did.


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## Knots (Nov 16, 2014)

I've cut and split so much red oak I've begun to associate it with money.  Red oak smells like money.


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## Paulywalnut (Nov 16, 2014)

Red oak and cherry. You would think apple would smell good when splitting it but it has a surprising horse a... manure odor. Nice when it burns though.


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## Fi-Q (Nov 16, 2014)

For me it is Larch, fir and spruce, the best smell ever  . I know fir and stpuce are far to be the best burnin wood, but I use what I have. And last summer, Arthur brought a lot of then down on my land....


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## Chimney Smoke (Nov 16, 2014)

White pine, cedar and black birch smell awesome to me.  I love the smell of red oak as well but the first 3 are great.


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## Longstreet (Nov 16, 2014)

Does anyone line closets with anything other than cedar?  I think we found our answer.

Ok, Ok, I know that not exactly accurate but who cares, cedar still wins.


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## firefighterjake (Nov 16, 2014)

Cedar, cherry, apple, red oak, yellow birch and white pine ... I'm always stopping to sniff the fresh splits ... it's a wonder that I get as much wood split as I do.


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## mass_burner (Nov 16, 2014)

Cedar for me too. Doesn't red oak have a slight cat piss tinge to it?


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## aansorge (Nov 16, 2014)

Red oak!  Smells like peach yogurt!


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## 2late (Nov 16, 2014)

Love the smell of fresh split cherry.  I like the vinegary smell of the oaks but, I had a 56 inch Corley circle mill and opening a 12 ft red oak log would produce a blast of acidic vapor that would about take your breath away.  And, for what it's worth, cottonwood through the mill always smelled like burnt gunpowder to me.


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## PA. Woodsman (Nov 16, 2014)

Black Birch, Cherry, Apple and let's not forget Sassafras!


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## FIshing_Fool (Nov 16, 2014)

Cedar, pine, fir...

I even kept fresh split cedar in my truck for a little bit for authentic air freshner. 

I got a bunch of Garry oak this year. Its a form of white oak (I believe). It had no smell at all. White birch had no smell either. 

Poplar is the worst I've come across so far especially when its on fire.


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## Andy S. (Nov 16, 2014)

Sass for me but firewood is like ice cream for me. All of the above work just fine.


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## Nixon (Nov 16, 2014)

Hard choice . For me ,it's a tie between Black Birch ,and Sassafras .


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## 2PistolPacker (Nov 16, 2014)

I just split 4 cords of black locust and my backyard smells like firewood heaven.


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## smokedragon (Nov 16, 2014)

I like a lot of them, but my favorite is cedar.  Just smells good.


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## Mellery (Nov 16, 2014)

Is there any wood that doesn't smell divine when splitting? Hmm if I have to pick just one, oddly it would be pine.
Second would be cedar.


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## Ash (Nov 16, 2014)

Red oak. And I still love the smell when I walk by it months after it's been split


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## Hogwildz (Nov 17, 2014)

Sassafras.
Any fruit wood, Cherry, Apple.
Oak..... both smell like pungent nasty, dirty, wet socks to me.
Oak is my staple for burning, and yes I do put my nose up to splits every once in a while and take a sniff(not just Oak). But Oak still smells like some nasty socks to me.
Beech ain't bad either.


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## Lumber-Jack (Nov 17, 2014)

mass_burner said:


> Cedar for me too. *Doesn't red oak have a slight cat piss tinge to it?[*/quote]
> .


Well I've been in enough smelly homes of people who own cats that I'm convinced that there are people out there who must actually like the smell of cat piss.  

Cedar wood has the best aroma


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## MaintenanceMan (Nov 17, 2014)

Several smell good, but I am partial to walnut myself.


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## Coach B (Nov 17, 2014)

I'm from Tennessee so...White Oak!  I also like Cedar and Sassafras. It seems weird, but I like Red Oak as well.


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## ryanm527 (Nov 17, 2014)

I think Cherry easily smells the best.  I like the smell of splitting red oak as well, though I'm not sure I could really say it smells "good"...I just kind of like it.  I think Pine smells good splitting AND burning, but it's pretty uncommon around here.


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## Danno77 (Nov 17, 2014)

midwestcoast said:


> On smell alone, it's Cedar for me, I never get tired of that smell.
> 
> Red Oak burns really nice, but smells like piss when splitting if you ask me. And you sorta almost did.


I'm glad someone else said this. I was reading votes for red oak and thinking to myself that maybe those people don't live in places where red oak is called "piss oak"


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## HackBerry (Nov 17, 2014)

I have some standing dead Red Elm that smells like vanilla...if I can split it with my x27.


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## check212 (Nov 17, 2014)

Danno77 said:


> I'm glad someone else said this. I was reading votes for red oak and thinking to myself that maybe those people don't live in places where red oak is called "piss oak"


 
It's my favorite. Has a vanilla/baby powder smell to me.


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## Gboutdoors (Nov 17, 2014)

Sassafras takes me back to being a kid playing out in the woods . Most of what I cut off our land is Red Oak and I got to say it does smell like cat piss. Have a nice White I am going to take down can't wait to see how that is.


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## Hickorynut (Nov 17, 2014)

Some red oak smells good to me, some smells like a cattle lot.  I think it is the pin oak that is the culprit.  White oak has a real good smell to me.  Don't necessarily get a big kick out of black cherry.....


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## JASFARMER (Nov 17, 2014)

I do very much enjoy white oak but I would say sassafras is my favorite. It has a lemony citrusy smell.  My order would be 
Sassafras
White oak
Cherry


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## Danno77 (Nov 17, 2014)

I forgot to vote for black walnut


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## Bigg_Redd (Nov 17, 2014)

JA600L said:


> I was splitting my favorite today with the Fiskars. White oak . What wood do you think smells the best as you split it?



Without a doubt - Western Red Cedar

Worst = locust.  It smells like hot garbage.


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## firefighterjake (Nov 18, 2014)

Truthfully . . . all wood smells like dollar bills to me.


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## bob95065 (Nov 18, 2014)

I split acacia.  Smells like sweet licorice.

Eucalyptus smells like cough drops.

I wouldn't smoke meat with either.


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## MJFlores (Nov 18, 2014)

Sassafras is my best smelling wood to split, followed closely by Black Birch.  Red oak does have a strong smell to it...the more wet the oak the worse the smell to me anyways.  But, it's my favorite wood to burn...followed by American Beech.


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## mstoelton (Nov 18, 2014)

Honey locust smells sweet, Black walnut smells like walnut and cedar


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## Byrond (Nov 18, 2014)

Maybe it's just me but red oak smells like cat dung.


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## BrotherBart (Nov 18, 2014)

Byrond said:


> Maybe it's just me but red oak smells like cat dung.


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## Grateful11 (Nov 18, 2014)

Byrond said:


> Maybe it's just me but red oak smells like cat dung.



I agree. Sometimes it's a cross between cat and dog poop.


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## Byrond (Nov 18, 2014)

BrotherBart said:


> View attachment 144811


Looks like my "stray" tomcat.


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## BrotherBart (Nov 18, 2014)

That is my little buddy Michelle, The Woodpile Panther. Showed up around one year old in the rafters of the pole barn summer of 2008. Already spayed and really leery of humans so she didn't care for how somebody had treated her and left to live in the woods. First and only pet I have ever had in my 67 years.

 Asleep in front of the stove at the moment.


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## Byrond (Nov 18, 2014)

Mine was abandoned on the front porch at birth. He lives under the house with a opossum. He lives in harmony with the chicken and they share a bowl. He is very rough on the flying squirrels though.


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## Osagebndr (Nov 18, 2014)

Maple, apple any fruit wood and oak like that kitty Bart . I got a tiger that likes to sleep under the tarps on my pile won't come to anyone tho or eat cat food


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## Bigg_Redd (Nov 18, 2014)

BrotherBart said:


> First and only pet I have ever had in my 67 years.



And the pieces come together. . .


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## BrotherBart (Nov 18, 2014)




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## check212 (Nov 19, 2014)

Hickorynut said:


> Some red oak smells good to me, some smells like a cattle lot.  I think it is the pin oak that is the culprit.  White oak has a real good smell to me.  Don't necessarily get a big kick out of black cherry.....


 
White oak is nice, but it's very sublte to me, have a hard time smelling it.


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## hickoryhoarder (Nov 19, 2014)

JA600L said:


> I was splitting my favorite today with the Fiskars. White oak . What wood do you think smells the best as you split it?



An interesting question.  I like splitting any wood, due to the smell.  Red oak is very distinctive.  Cherry is good.  Apple is maybe the best.  Ash has the least smell to me.


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## Razo (Nov 19, 2014)

Black birch hands down. Next is sassafras and then cherry.


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## logman742 (Nov 19, 2014)

I like red cedar best


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## BHall (Dec 1, 2014)

White oak does make you want a good whiskey drink but I think the best is Cedar, that smell never gets old


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## eclecticcottage (Dec 1, 2014)

Pine and spruce.


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## drz1050 (Dec 1, 2014)

Black birch or cedar. Pine isn't that far behind.


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## rwilly (Dec 1, 2014)

While I like the scent of most fresh split wood, Alaska Yellow Cedar has to be one of the best.
You can smell it from a block away.


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## Bspring (Dec 2, 2014)

Lumber-Jack said:


> Well I've been in enough smelly homes of people who own cats that I'm convinced that there are people out there who must actually like the smell of cat piss.
> 
> Cedar wood has the best aroma



I agree on both.


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## splitoak (Dec 2, 2014)

Cherry


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## turn_n_burn (Aug 19, 2015)

Alligator/Utah juniper are the best by far. Western Larch and any fir/pine smell great too. I'm gonna get slammed, but I like REALLY dry elm too. Very mild sweet smell. Always thought oak smelled like the devil when wet. But so does elm. I just hope nobody says cottonwood. I'd have them committed immediately. But then I go back to my elm remark........Certainly most any fruitwood would be great. I've even experimented with smoking meat with Larch. It tasted great. I always loved the taste of a hotdog roasted over some kind of conifer fire.


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