# Wood shed-how many cords??



## johnpma (Jul 21, 2014)

Thinking ahead to next year, and what size wood shed to build. I have a small area where we stack our wood now (about 5 cords) and I'm just wondering how many cords your shed holds, and how big it is (not a personal question either  ) I don't want a huge shed as it is next to the house. Just trying to see what my options are


Post pics if ya have em


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## tsquini (Jul 21, 2014)

At minimum you need a shed to hold enough wood for 1 year of wood burning. At best 3 years of wood burning. There is a lot of talk on the forum about a 3 year plan. Three years off wood cut and stacked. My recommendation is to build a shed that can hold somewhere between 1 to 3 years of wood. How much wood do you burn a year?


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## johnpma (Jul 22, 2014)

not sure what we will burn, I'm guessing 4-5 cord. We moved in January to the home. I'm in the process of making energy improvements now for this upcoming winter. I have about 4 cords cut, split, and tarped for this season. Thinking ahead to next season I really would like a shed to put our wood in. The reality is between house projects, kids racing moto-x, soccer, and work a 3 year wood plan is a "pipe dream" at this point in my life.........


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## gzecc (Jul 22, 2014)

johnpma said:


> not sure what we will burn, I'm guessing 4-5 cord. We moved in January to the home. I'm in the process of making energy improvements now for this upcoming winter. I have about 4 cords cut, split, and tarped for this season. Thinking ahead to next season I really would like a shed to put our wood in. The reality is between house projects, kids racing moto-x, soccer, and work a 3 year wood plan is a "pipe dream" at this point in my life.........


 
Seems like truly seasoned wood is too!


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## johnpma (Jul 22, 2014)

gzecc said:


> Seems like truly seasoned wood is too!



lol you make it sound like I'm the only one without a "3 year plan"


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## gzecc (Jul 22, 2014)

johnpma said:


> lol you make it sound like I'm the only one without a "3 year plan"


 
If your burning 5 cords per year and you have 5 cord this year, its going to be impossible to get another 5 now,seasoned for next year. It takes a minimum of 12 months to season northeast hardwoods, excluding oak. Oak takes two years minimum.


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## johnpma (Jul 22, 2014)

The wood I have for this season was both standing dead wood, and wood that was down from storms two years ago. Most is cherry and maple.

I went to a buddies home. He has an enclosed wood shed. He opened the door and it was like a kiln.

Most the sheds I see are open side with a roof.


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## Applesister (Jul 22, 2014)

Everything I've done is on the free, concerning wood burning. I heat with electric and a fuel oil burner. Wood burning was a hobby, recreation. As I have substituted more wood each year less utilities I have "graduated". But I always weigh cost. If I was rich, I would have a contractor build me a corn crib/ gazebo type structure. I saw one at one of the Great Camps in the Adirondacks. And I always study designs of corn cribs and grain houses. If you have money...the world is your oyster. If you dont....lol...you might be a redneck if you cant remember what the blue tarp in your front yard is covering.


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## Applesister (Jul 22, 2014)

Its kind of a big dream to build a shed to hold 20 cords of wood. Most of the sheds I've seen here hold about 3 cords. Catch 22. If you have the money you dont need the wood/shed. If you dont have money to spend on it then the more you need it. And the less able you are to build what you need.


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## gzecc (Jul 22, 2014)

johnpma said:


> lol you make it sound like I'm the only one without a "3 year plan"


 
I'm not on a 3 yr plan. I'm two years ahead. Two years is the absolute minimum for truly seasoned wood. Even with two years most oak will not be ready. I stay away from oak unless someone drops it in my yard already split.


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## Chimney Smoke (Jul 22, 2014)

gzecc said:


> Seems like truly seasoned wood is too!



I understand that 2 years is better than one from a drying standpoint but it can be very frustrating to new burners to keep hearing that they can't burn wood unless it sits for 2 or 3 years first.  I have some soft maple that came down in an ice storm last winter.  The wood was cut to length in March, split the beginning of April and stacked mid April.  The wood is currently sitting around 22-23% moisture content with another 12-16 weeks to go before burning season.  I have red oak that was cut in September 2013 and split and stacked by the beginning of December 2013.  It's stacked in the sun where I get a little breeze when it's breezy.  Currently this red oak is around 25% moisture content.  It will be burning great for me come December.


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## Applesister (Jul 22, 2014)

Oak is worth the wait. Dead oak laying on the ground and dead standing is my favorite. Bugs and punk aside, it usually dries beautifully. But there are a great many species of native trees that season in a year. Birches, red maples, silver maples, poplars, elms, beech, black cherry, pin cherry,


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## Applesister (Jul 22, 2014)

hackberry, tulip poplar, sweet gum, cedar, cucumber magnolia, tamarack, linden, tupelo, willow, box elder, mulberry, paw paw, Paulowina, buckeye, horse chestnut, kentucky coffee tree, sassafrass, mountain ash...silverbell, sugarberry, hophornbeam, ginkgo, buckthorn, catalpa, butternut, walnut, white ash, black ash, blue ash, smoketree, ailanthus, holly....


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## gzecc (Jul 22, 2014)

Applesister said:


> hackberry, tulip poplar, sweet gum, cedar, cucumber magnolia, tamarack, linden, tupelo, willow, box elder, mulberry, paw paw, Paulowina, buckeye, horse chestnut, kentucky coffee tree, sassafrass, mountain ash...silverbell, sugarberry, hophornbeam, ginkgo, buckthorn, catalpa, butternut, walnut, white ash, black ash, blue ash, smoketree, ailanthus, holly....


 
Too bad most of the new and old wood burners can identify 75% of those species.


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## tsquini (Jul 22, 2014)

johnpma said:


> not sure what we will burn, I'm guessing 4-5 cord. We moved in January to the home. I'm in the process of making energy improvements now for this upcoming winter. I have about 4 cords cut, split, and tarped for this season. Thinking ahead to next season I really would like a shed to put our wood in. The reality is between house projects, kids racing moto-x, soccer, and work a 3 year wood plan is a "pipe dream" at this point in my life.........


Home energy improvements are always good. As much as we like chopping wood we could chop less and still be as happy.


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## 8ball (Jul 22, 2014)

I'm in the north north east and have burned wood for 100% of my heating for 40 yrs.have never had a chimney fire and have never burned hardwood older than 8 months.I don't want my wood older/dryer than 8/10 months, burns to fast. I cut during the winter,split in spring,dry all summer (wood shed) warm all winter. Two year seasoned is just not worth the trouble


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## bmblank (Jul 22, 2014)

Here we go...


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## BrotherBart (Jul 22, 2014)

I  burn three cord a year. And have a four cord shed because every once in a while there is a "whoops" winter like the last one. For three years that one cord in the back went untouched. After being "aged" three years top covered outside before going in the shed.

Talk about primo firewood when I got to it this year.


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## Missouri Frontier (Jul 23, 2014)

We are currently working on a 9 cord shed 8' deep 24' wide enclosed on 3 sides(with vent gaps) open infront. The front will be 8 ft high and six feet at the back. The shed will be divided into 3 sections of 3 cord a piece. We burn about 2 3/4 cord per year. The plan is to burn a section per year and load a section per year. We will progress through the sections each year. Wood is cut split and stacked waiting on my lazy butt to finish the shed. lol, sounds like a 3 year plan just wating on the planner to get r dun!


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## johnpma (Jul 23, 2014)

Missouri Frontier said:


> We are currently working on a 9 cord shed 8' deep 24' wide enclosed on 3 sides(with vent gaps) open infront. The front will be 8 ft high and six feet at the back. The shed will be divided into 3 sections of 3 cord a piece. We burn about 2 3/4 cord per year. The plan is to burn a section per year and load a section per year. We will progress through the sections each year. Wood is cut split and stacked waiting on my lazy butt to finish the shed. lol, sounds like a 3 year plan just wating on the planner to get r dun!


 That right there is what I'm talkin about......would love to get to that point.


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## rasp21 (Jul 23, 2014)

I burn 4 cords a winter here, my wood shed holds 3& 1/2 cords. I stack another half cord on my covered porch. I replenish the porch from the woodshed 2 times a week with a large wheelbarrow. My woodshed gets loaded in March or April, and sits all summer in the shed heat. I have the next years wood all c/s/s and ready to go in the shed next year. I do things a little different here, I have at least 4 years cut and split, but I just leave it in a pile uncovered. I will stack 4 cord in the sun and wind next spring after I load my shed with what is now stacked. This is pine and fir, I don't top cover as I am in the very dry part of the state of Wa. I just split a cord yesterday as it was nice and cool out. I just threw it in a pile. This wood won't be used for at least 3 years so I will not stack it till the year before. I know it sounds frustrating, but when you get at least 2 years ahead, you can then do your wood prep at a much more leisurely pace without all the frantic work and worry. Well worth it, money in the bank so to speak.
good luck, and stay with it as it will pay off in the future. My wood shed is 50 ft. from my covered porch.


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## rasp21 (Jul 23, 2014)

Also , I am in a rural area and have no neighbors that would have to look at an eyesore, I cant even see my wood piles from my house. Wood piles are tucked behind large rock outcrops.


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## Missouri Frontier (Jul 23, 2014)

johnpma said:


> That right there is what I'm talkin about......would love to get to that point.



Yeah I think it will be nice. I'm taking pics as I build. I'll make a full post when I'm done. It won't be much to look at. I'm using pallets for the floor and mismatched reclaimed barn metal for for the sides and roof. Lucky I have no neighbors to bellyache my eyesore.


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## JCrean (Jul 29, 2014)

Guess it depends on how big of a structure you want to stare at.  It takes a pretty big footprint to store 4-5 cords, and 3 years worth is huge in my opinion.  If I had room, I'd go as big as possible though!  You can never have too much


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## Got Wood (Jul 31, 2014)

Picture of my "shed", made from pallets and some scrap plywood - basically free. Holds approx 3/4 cord and is right next to my garage. Provides a close by and dry stopping point for my woods trip to its meeting with the heating machine. Gets reloaded when needed and time permits during heating season. Woodland currently holds 24+ cords of stacked wood.


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## johnpma (Jul 31, 2014)

guy in town just built a monster wood shed and he put solar panels on the roof that feed his home.....looks beautiful but he has over 100 acres 

Got wood.....that's my thinking simple, functional, cheap


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## tcassavaugh (Jul 31, 2014)

I can get about 7 cord, according to the math, in the shed. I try and stock one side for this year, one side for next year. I used to move it to the house using a wheel barrow, then my craftsman with a trailer, now a little john deere with a bucket loader.


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## johnpma (Aug 1, 2014)

tcassavaugh said:


> I can get about 7 cord, according to the math, in the shed. I try and stock one side for this year, one side for next year. I used to move it to the house using a wheel barrow, then my craftsman with a trailer, now a little john deere with a bucket loader.
> SHED 1.JPG SHED 2.JPG


 Very nice


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## firefighterjake (Aug 10, 2014)

I figure conservatively . . . 11 cords . . . figuring in space between rows. Outside dimensions are 12.6 x 21.6 . . . I stack approximately 6.6 feet tall.

Mainly built it this large since I was using some of the old (and very large) swingset cement footings.

And here's a picture . . . the white screen is for my outdoor movie theater which I've dubbed "The Behind the Woodshed Movie Cinema" . . . although technically it's in front of the woodshed.


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## Bigg_Redd (Aug 12, 2014)

johnpma said:


> Thinking ahead to next year, and what size wood shed to build. I have a small area where we stack our wood now (about 5 cords) and I'm just wondering how many cords your shed holds, and how big it is (not a personal question either  ) I don't want a huge shed as it is next to the house. Just trying to see what my options are
> 
> 
> Post pics if ya have em



My shed is 10' x 20' because bigger than 200 square feet requires a building permit here in WA.  It's divided into two 10'x10' bays.  I figure each side holds 4 cord.


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