# Butternut?



## ikessky (Aug 15, 2012)

Anybody ever burn butternut?  My father-in-law is nice enough to cut and haul cords of wood with his processor and forwarder, and this year he had a few butternut trees that he took down to get at some maple and ash.  The stuff splits really easily, but I imagine it won't last long in the furnace.


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## Backwoods Savage (Aug 15, 2012)

I've never burned any and wasn't aware of any near us but was told last winter by a logger that one tree I could not ID was butternut. So, I might burn one just to see how it is.

EDIT:  I just looked up butternut and now I know that is not what we have here so I won't be burning any.


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## fishingpol (Aug 15, 2012)

Butternut is highly prized by woodcarvers and can be pricey.  You can put some aside and dry it out to sell to carvers and turners on Craigslist.


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## onetracker (Aug 15, 2012)

i think it dries fairly light and falls into the 'medium-btus' category. but i would defintely burn it if it were readily available.
i was making a bow out of it and it snapped very early in the process.
i knew someone who had a dining room table made from 2 big slabs bookmatched and biscuited together and it was gorgeous.


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## nrford (Aug 15, 2012)

Burns like Basswood, fast .


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## Thistle (Aug 15, 2012)

Getting quite scarce & expensive thanks to Butternut Canker.Threatened in several states now.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butternut_canker


Save some of the nuts if you can,they might grow up to be resistant to the disease.


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## bogydave (Aug 15, 2012)

It's all BTUs.
I'd think it would be similar to black walnut but "chimney sweep" has it at 13.2 MBTU/cord
http://chimneysweeponline.com/howood.htm
Butternut (White Walnut)


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## fishingpol (Aug 15, 2012)

Thistle said:


> Getting quite scarce & expensive thanks to Butternut Canker.Threatened in several states now.
> 
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butternut_canker
> 
> ...


 

That is sad.  Another story of invasives decimating tree populations.


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## ikessky (Aug 16, 2012)

Thistle said:


> Getting quite scarce & expensive thanks to Butternut Canker.Threatened in several states now.
> 
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butternut_canker
> 
> ...


 I'm guessing that is what is happening to a lot of the butternut on our land.  Many standing dead and many tipped over.  Maybe I'll start cleaning some of that stuff up.  At the very least I can use it in the fire pit.


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## Ironwood (Aug 16, 2012)

Due to Butternut canker we have burned a lot. Very light after it's dry. Burns fast and sparks when first added to hot coals.


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## DBoon (Aug 17, 2012)

Butternut is one of the best cabinet making woods there is - light and fairly soft and easy to work with, and very dimensionally stable.  If the trunks are long and straight, you might want to call a lumber mill near you and see what they will give you for them.  It is probably worth more in cash than in firewood.


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## jackofalltrades (Aug 17, 2012)

It would be terrible to burn it if it is usable in some other way. It is a prized wood for lots of woodworking, but sometimes, if its low grade stuff, put 'er in the heater and watch 'er go.


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## ikessky (Aug 17, 2012)

DBoon said:


> Butternut is one of the best cabinet making woods there is - light and fairly soft and easy to work with, and very dimensionally stable. If the trunks are long and straight, you might want to call a lumber mill near you and see what they will give you for them. It is probably worth more in cash than in firewood.


My FIL logs for a living, so if he is putting it in my firewood pile, I'm sure he doesn't have a market for it. For instance, he told me not to cut any yellow birch that is growing straight because he gets great money for it. Not many mills want white ash for fear that their loads will get quarantined because of the ash borer. Around here they are cutting logs for veneer and smaller stuff/soft wood for pulp. An occassional load goes to the pallet mill.


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