# Will standing dead trees season faster?



## Knots (Mar 13, 2013)

Last year I was sitting pretty - 3+ years ahead on hardwood.  Then I moved.  Since inter-state wood moving is a no-no around here, I'm starting from zero.

I'm hoping to do some work in the next month to put up some wood that will be good in about 9 months.

So far, I poached some of the wood that the power line crews left behind.  Some very green soft maple and white birch that I will cut, split, and stack on skids in a sunny/windy area.  But this a small amount of wood.

My wood lot has plenty of standing dead trees that still have solid wood cores.  If I put this stuff up now, will it dry faster than green wood?


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## gzecc (Mar 13, 2013)

There are dead standing trees that are available immediately to burn. Usually just the tops. Your best bet is black locust and ash. They start out with low moisture <40% to begin with.


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## BobUrban (Mar 13, 2013)

Yes by virtue of no new moisture being introduced annually but to get to >20% it will depend on species, size of splits, wind, sun, and time.  I burned a lot of one year ash my first full season with good success.  That same wood is burning better this year and will be much better next.  Get it split small and in the stacks asap and you should be alright.  Much better than the alternative.


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## Knots (Mar 13, 2013)

Most of it is probably...ugh...red oak.  I can probably track down some maples, beech, and maybe a birch (they tend to go bad quick).


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## Paulywalnut (Mar 13, 2013)

Knots said:


> Most of it is probably...ugh...red oak. I can probably track down some maples, beech, and maybe a birch (they tend to go bad quick).


Yeah Knots as you probably know standing dead red oak will absorb water unfortunately. go for the maple and birch.


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## andybaker (Mar 13, 2013)

I would think if you get it split and stacked by  spring there is a very good chance it will be ready by next winter providing it's good and dead now.  I cut up a couple water soaked Oak limbs a few weeks ago.  I was curious how long they would take to dry.  They were completely water logged and three weeks later, sitting outside and undercover (the patio roof) they are now dry as a bone.  I am surprised but it told me that if I get this Oak cut up and stacked it will dry quick.  I have a huge dead Oak I'm planning on getting soon as the ground lets me back there to get it.  So I'd say get what you can, process it and get it up and keep it dry, I think you will be ok.


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## red oak (Mar 13, 2013)

Yes the tops dry faster, many are ready to burn soon after cutting.  The trunks not so much, but I think once they're split even the trunks dry faster than a tree cut down live.


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## Jack Fate (Mar 13, 2013)

get that oak started it's money in the bank ( substantial withdrawal applies ) maple is 2 types hard & soft .soft seasons faster but hard is better .Personally I don't like birch ,to me it just burns up like paper .Ash is good , If it's dead the tops do season faster ,keep the tops separate from the lower trunk.

need to get busy myself


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## jackatc1 (Mar 13, 2013)

Standing dead red oak, say 6" to 10" DBH, with the bark already gone
Should be fine for 2013/2014 if css now.


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## ArsenalDon (Mar 13, 2013)

Find some dead pine and you can burn it almost immediately


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## Knots (Mar 14, 2013)

Thanks for the info folks.  I'll get out there as soon as the snow melts.  Need to track down some skids too...


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## BobUrban (Mar 14, 2013)

I don't think dead oak is actually soaking up water anymore, just that it reluctantly gives up the water that is already there.  It must have something to do with the cell structure of oak but we will need a biologist to explain that.  PITA but best to keep the barkless and smaller stuff separate for first year burning of any standing dead.  Higher branches will be drier by virtue of exposure and less mass not to mention, gravity is your friend and water likes to be closer to the ground.


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## peakbagger (Mar 14, 2013)

As you discovered dont spend your time on standing dead white birch. Its almost always not worth the effort and cuting them tends to be dangerous as the tops and branches tend to fall off when disturbed. THe crowns usually die off first, so if you see a birch with patches of dead crown, its time to drop it.


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## Jack Straw (Mar 14, 2013)

I seem to have the best luck with standing dead elm. Seems to dry out nice with no rot. Most of my other standing dead seem to rot rather quickly.(mostly ash)


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## ScotO (Mar 14, 2013)

The others have already offered great advice.  Standing dead oak (any species) no longer absorbs water, but it also doesn't allow all of its moisture out, as well.  Its still gonna take 2 years minimum for those standing dead oak trunks to be optimal,  after they are C/S/S.  Id be going after all of that stuff in the coming months.  As for dead maples, elm, ash and birch.....I'd be concentrating on those wood right now, as they can be ready for next season.  Maybe take some of the smaller oak (tops and limbs), split them up smaller and that stuff may be ready to go next winter as well.

Welcome to the nuthouse,  BTW!


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## Bigg_Redd (Mar 14, 2013)

Knots said:


> Last year I was sitting pretty - 3+ years ahead on hardwood. Then I moved. Since inter-state wood moving is a no-no around here, I'm starting from zero.
> 
> I'm hoping to do some work in the next month to put up some wood that will be good in about 9 months.
> 
> ...


 
Yes


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## Woody Stover (Mar 14, 2013)

Knots said:


> If I put this stuff up now, will it dry faster than green wood?


I don't know if it will dry faster but it'll be starting at a lower moisture content so it doesn't have as far to go. I've seen Oak limbs up to 4-5" that were already below 20%. Trunks might be in the mid-twenties but if they aren't split too big, they may be pretty dry after two summers. Soft Maple is really quick, even if starting with green wood. If you can hook up with a tree service and have them bring you some, and you stack it now, you should get by OK next winter.


Jack Straw said:


> I seem to have the best luck with standing dead elm. Seems to dry out nice with no rot. Most of my other standing dead seem to rot rather quickly.(mostly ash)


I've found White Ash to hold up pretty well, even on the ground. Dead standing with the smaller branches gone and the bark starting to slough is real quick to dry. I don't know about American Elm, but Slippery (Red) doesn't dry too fast but I get dead standing with the bark gone so it is already low twenties, smaller limbs in the teens, when cut.


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## Jack Straw (Mar 14, 2013)

I've found White Ash to hold up pretty well, even on the ground. Dead standing with the smaller branches gone and the bark starting to slough is real quick to dry. I don't know about American Elm, but Slippery (Red) doesn't dry too fast but I get dead standing with the bark gone so it is already low twenties, smaller limbs in the teens, when cut.[/quote]

My woods are very wet, I think that might be part of the problem.


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## TimJ (Mar 14, 2013)

I've found White Ash to hold up pretty well, even on the ground. Dead standing with the smaller branches gone and the bark starting to slough is real quick to dry. I don't know about American Elm, but Slippery (Red) doesn't dry too fast but I get dead standing with the bark gone so it is already low twenties, smaller limbs in the teens, when cut.[/quote]




Woody, did you put the moisture meter to the red elm you just got ?


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## jeff_t (Mar 14, 2013)

Jack Straw said:


> My woods are very wet, I think that might be part of the problem.



Mine, too. I find myself dropping them with an almost chest high cut, and still having to leave a round or two. The rotten stumps are getting interesting to work with. I am burning ash right now that was split and stacked last summer. It's plenty dry.


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## Woody Stover (Mar 14, 2013)

TimJ said:


> Woody, did you put the moisture meter to the red elm you just got ?


 Not yet, but gonna start splitting it in the next couple days. But some of the smallest rounds ring like a bell so I think most of the rounds will be in line with the Red I've gotten previously. I'll drag that thread back up when I split and test...


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## Woody Stover (Mar 14, 2013)

jeff_t said:


> I am burning ash right now that was split and stacked last summer. It's plenty dry.


That's encouraging; I split this last batch kinda big...


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## Knots (Mar 14, 2013)

Scotty Overkill said:


> Welcome to the nuthouse, BTW!


 
Thanks!  Most of my friends think I overdo it a little with the firewood preparation.  This seems like the right place to have that OCD validated.


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## Backwoods Savage (Mar 14, 2013)

Knots said:


> Last year I was sitting pretty - 3+ years ahead on hardwood. Then I moved. Since inter-state wood moving is a no-no around here, I'm starting from zero.
> 
> I'm hoping to do some work in the next month to put up some wood that will be good in about 9 months.
> 
> ...


 
Welcome to the forum Knots.

Really sad to hear you could not move that wood. We've had the same situation but got through it and you will too.

That soft maple you got definitely will be ready by fall. You can cut it in March and if you split and stack it, by fall it is just about ideal. White birch can also dry fast once it is split and stacked. White ash is another one.

On the dead trees, we cut quite a bit of dead elm and have for many years. We wait until the bark is off or most of it is off before cutting. The top third and perhaps the top half can be burned right away but not so on the butt. Oak is another animal for sure. Even standing dead it usually is high moisture and usually needs 2 years minimum.The beech and maple if dead could be ready by fall.

My suggestion is to cut as much as you can and get it split and stacked quickly. Split it on the small side. Stack it loosely; don't try for pretty stacks because you want air to go through the stacks for drying. I would not stack over 4' maximum and for sure stack each row separate from the others. Stack it in the windiest spot you have. Sun will help but if you have a choice, always go for wind. Air circulation is the key to drying wood.

Good luck.


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## Knots (Mar 14, 2013)

Good advice.  My friends were glad I moved.  I stop by once in awhile and visit my old firewood!


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## happycamper (Mar 14, 2013)

Don Williams said:


> Find some dead pine and you can burn it almost immediately


i was told never to burn pine wood


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## Woody Stover (Mar 14, 2013)

happycamper said:


> i was told never to burn pine wood


As long as it's dry, it's not a problem. Out west some folks burn nothing but Pine because it's all they've got...and they live to tell about it. 
What stove do you have?


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## ArsenalDon (Mar 15, 2013)

happycamper said:


> i was told never to burn pine wood


Pine burns very well, nice and hot..just not as dense as hardwoods so the burns are shorter than say Oak. But because it is less dense it dries out in less than 1/3 of the time


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## Lumber-Jack (Mar 15, 2013)

happycamper said:


> i was told never to burn pine wood


Funny thing is, the people who give out this advice are 9 times out of 10 the same people who burn green wood.
Next time someone tells you that just tell them they are misinformed, and that there are people who burn pine almost exclusively. Me being one of them.


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## KodiakII (Mar 15, 2013)

Be very careful when felling your dead tree's.  An employee of  a friend of mine was killed by a widow maker from a dead tree.  
I ringed a white oak this winter that I am going to drop around the end of the summer (when thing dry up), but I am still figuring a good two years before it is ideal.


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## Backwoods Savage (Mar 15, 2013)

happycamper said:


> i was told never to burn pine wood


 
Welcome to the forum happycamper.

Don't feel badly. Most folks have heard that old wives tale over and over. They don't understand how some of these guys can do it either but in some areas, pine is all they have. Give it time to dry and it will be fine.

Really what started this goes back many, many moons. Most everyone years ago (and sadly still lots of them) cut their wood in the fall to burn that winter. The chimney gets gunked up. Throw in some fresh cut pine and watch what happens! Pitch gets hot fast, chimney gets hot fast, gunk in chimney catches fire......and the pine got the bad word because they though it was the pine's fault. Not so! The fault was first getting the chimney all gunked up and the second fault was burning that fresh cut pine. Hope this helps to understand why pine gets the bad word. Folks in the know have no problem burning pine.


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## ohlongarm (Mar 15, 2013)

Knots said:


> Last year I was sitting pretty - 3+ years ahead on hardwood. Then I moved. Since inter-state wood moving is a no-no around here, I'm starting from zero.
> 
> I'm hoping to do some work in the next month to put up some wood that will be good in about 9 months.
> 
> ...


 Absolutely nothing better than standing air dried wood.


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## red oak (Mar 15, 2013)

Backwoods Savage said:


> Welcome to the forum happycamper.
> 
> Don't feel badly. Most folks have heard that old wives tale over and over. They don't understand how some of these guys can do it either but in some areas, pine is all they have. Give it time to dry and it will be fine.
> 
> Really what started this goes back many, many moons. Most everyone years ago (and sadly still lots of them) cut their wood in the fall to burn that winter. The chimney gets gunked up. Throw in some fresh cut pine and watch what happens! Pitch gets hot fast, chimney gets hot fast, gunk in chimney catches fire......and the pine got the bad word because they though it was the pine's fault. Not so! The fault was first getting the chimney all gunked up and the second fault was burning that fresh cut pine. Hope this helps to understand why pine gets the bad word. Folks in the know have no problem burning pine.


 
I could, right now, get 30 cords of pine from the property of people that I know who are afraid to burn it, so it's just sitting there rotting.  (Well, not RIGHT now because it's dark outside.)  I am the ONLY person that I know, apart from this forum, that burns pine.  My FIL was helping me haul in wood a few weeks ago and part of the stacks was a few pieces of pine that blew down in the driveway.  He said, "You better be careful burning this stuff."  It was 5 pieces!  If it's that bad, not only should I not put it in my stove, I shouldn't even let it on the property! 

Now having ranted, I will say that most of what I burn is oak - MUCH longer burn times and more heat.  I don't go out of my way to get pine, but to be afraid of burning it is a bit crazy.


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## red oak (Mar 15, 2013)

Lumber-Jack said:


> Funny thing is,* the people who give out this advice are 9 times out of 10 the same people who burn green wood*.
> Next time someone tells you that just tell them they are misinformed, and that there are people who burn pine almost exclusively. Me being one of them.


 
That is a great point!  I'll remember that the next time I'm arguing with someone about this.


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