# Rotating wood



## suprz (Dec 15, 2012)

I have been doing the CSS thing as fast as i can trying to get a good "future" supply of seasoned wood.  My stacks arent very pretty or well organized right now, but i wanted to get it split asap.   I know that come spring i will be redoing my stacks and i was wondering how many of you guys rotate or re-stack your piles of wood?  If it helps get a more evenly seasoned stack of wood, etc...  I wouldnt mind doing it as a process maybe twice a year?  I like to stack the wood, it is almost therapeutic....(my wife would probably think i am nuts if i told her that).....


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## pen (Dec 15, 2012)

I'll be doing it next year.

I have room for 3 years of wood on hand here at the house.  2 years worth in the wood shed (under my deck) and 1 year's worth on a stone base out in the yard.  This year is going to be the last time I mess with the tarps to burn that wood out on the stones.  Next time around, I'll burn from the wood shed and take the time in the spring to refill from the tarp covered stacks.

Thought about making another wood shed out there, or putting an aluminum car port over the area, but it's just not worth it the more I think of it so I'll do the extra hoofin' wood around.

pen


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## swagler85 (Dec 15, 2012)

I enjoy stacking as well but would rather process new wood then restack. I try to get down the number of time I handle each split to be more efficient on time. That's the hardest thing for me is finding time. I started stacking on individual pallet racks that I can move with my tractor so I stack into there and don't have to touch them again until I haul the splits in to the stove. Just move around with the tractor. But I did the same thing you are doing at first when trying to find the best way to do things being a new burner. Takes a few years to figure out what works best.


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## jebatty (Dec 15, 2012)

Keeping re-handling or repetitive handling at a minimum is where I am also. Besides the time required, it is just hard work and hard on the body. Much easier doing this at 40 years old than at 66. So, where I fell the tree and buck the logs is where I haul the splitter, split on site, throw the splits in the trailer, haul to where the splits will be stacked, and stack right off the trailer. The next handling will be when the splits move to the stove.

My stacks are 4' wide, 3 rows of 16" wood in each stack, about 5' high, up off the ground 8", and the stacks themselves are in long rows, with room between the rows to navigate whatever equipment I need to replenish depleted stacks and to allow plenty of air movement to season the wood. I also keep my stacks covered with old metal roofing or siding panels. A minimum of two full summers of drying, sometimes 3 summers, assures well-seasoned wood. And then I use the wood in a rotating fashion through the stacks, and stacking new wood in the then empty row space. Cutting uniform lengths that fit the stove makes it easy to maintain the rows without them tipping over.

Cheers for the Holiday season!


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## SolarAndWood (Dec 15, 2012)

I split and toss over a bank into a heap.  Sits for a year or two in the heap.  Good stuff then goes into the bucket of the tractor to long term storage.  Punk, junk, short and ugly goes in a pile under a roof to be burned sooner.  Good stuff gets restacked after a couple years under a roof within 20 ft of the stove.  Seems like a lot of handling but works best for me unless I come up with some kind of pallet system that I can move with the tractor.


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## smokinj (Dec 15, 2012)

I have a 21x21 concrete slab. It can be a bit in the butt if you dont use it in the right order. Once you have that down it still can get tricky but I would never stack twice. (If or when that happens it gets burnt first)


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## Blue Vomit (Dec 15, 2012)

I CSS splits one time... Period. I'm not moving them again, come hell or high water, until they are ready to go into the stove.


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## PapaDave (Dec 15, 2012)

C/S, then stack in the field for at least 2 years, restack into the woodshed the summer before use. No restacking before that unless something falls over.
Unless you're already ahead, splitting ASAP is best, even if you can't/don't/won't stack. Good job on that.
When I split, it goes into a trailer for stacking instead of picking it back up to throw in the trailer to move, but I don't usually split where I stack/pile ( I did about 2 cord that way a couple months ago).
I'd love to have the equipment to move pallet racks. I'd revamp the whole system.
When cutting in the woods, it's a different process, since I don't stack in the woods. It wouldn't dry well for me out there.
We all do what works in our particular situation, and we're usually looking for ways to cut down the work required.


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## chazcarr (Dec 15, 2012)

I C/S into one stack for drying.  Once ready I restack inside a woodshed so that it stays dry.


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## Hickorynut (Dec 15, 2012)

The only restacking I do is the wood I bring into the "attached" garage that I will be burning.  I have room enough in the garage that I can stack two or three pickup loads at time.  It stays dry and I can just take my log toter out in the garage to get a few pieces at a time all day long.


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## valley ranch (Dec 15, 2012)

I usually try to handle it once, but this year we got back to the upper ranch later than expected. So, when we bucked and split the wood we have stacked, even though the trees were dropped last year the wood is still moist.

We split some thinner and I have been chopping it into stove wood and stacking it behind the stove, rotating it as it dries to a box next to the hearth. The stove is large, I put a few large splits on the left side that are heated by the fire, as they dry and began to catch fire I move them over into the fire.


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## bogydave (Dec 15, 2012)

chazcarr said:


> I C/S into one stack for drying. Once ready I restack inside a woodshed so that it stays dry.


 

+1
a year in the un-covered seasoning stack, then to the shed for 2 yrs


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## Backwoods Savage (Dec 15, 2012)

suprz said:


> I have been doing the CSS thing as fast as i can trying to get a good "future" supply of seasoned wood. My stacks arent very pretty or well organized right now, but i wanted to get it split asap. I know that come spring i will be redoing my stacks and i was wondering how many of you guys rotate or re-stack your piles of wood? If it helps get a more evenly seasoned stack of wood, etc... I wouldnt mind doing it as a process maybe twice a year? I like to stack the wood, it is almost therapeutic....(my wife would probably think i am nuts if i told her that).....



I don't mind stacking wood but no way would I restack just to rotate it. So you stack the wood in rounds, then split and stack. That is how we do it too. I cut during winter and after snow melt it gets split. Then it gets stacked right there right after splitting and there is stays for several years before I put enough in the barn for the winter's supply. Question: What do you think you will gain by restacking the wood? If it is just the "therapeutic" thing, okay but I doubt it will do the wood any good. Also, worry not about the wife calling you nuts. That happens a lot to many of us.


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## SolarAndWood (Dec 15, 2012)

Backwoods Savage said:


> Question: What do you think you will gain by restacking the wood?


 
I do it to get it under a roof.  As soon as there is 8 cord under a roof, the rest goes straight from the stack to the stove.  The 8 cord under a roof only gets used when conditions justify or I am just feeling lazy.


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## maple1 (Dec 16, 2012)

No way would I stack in rounds then split & re-stack. If it was going to sit for a while between cutting & splitting, it would just sit where it landed after cutting until it gets split. I think all the stacking related bending & unbending is the thing that gets to my back the most in the whole process - I don't do any more of it than absolutely necessary.


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## AJS56 (Dec 16, 2012)

Even though I enjoy c/s/s/ my firewood, I don't move or restack any extra times.  I have plenty of room by the barn, on old concrete for splitting & stacking.  I cut/buck in the woods, haul to the barnyard to split and stack, then into the garage for burning via small trailer (3/4 cord load lasts about 10 -14 days) and garden tractor.  Then just use a tote into the house by the stove. 
As for rotating, the biggest thing for me is that I like to keep track of how much wood I use by how much is gone from specific rows/stacks over the season.  Sometimes when I want to pull from multiple rows to get the mix I want, it screws with my tracking.  But I don't rotate stacks ever.  If it were boxes of cereal maybe, but hundreds of pounds of wood?  No thanks!


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## PapaDave (Dec 16, 2012)

AJS56 said:


> biggest thing for me is that I like to keep track of how much wood I use by how much is gone from specific rows/stacks over the season


I do that too. In the grand scheme, it's what's left at the end of the season compared to what I started with that matters.
I do like to keep track monthly though, and this year, I've pretty much been on the money with my estimated/actual usage.


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## firefighterjake (Dec 16, 2012)

I actually enjoy stacking wood . . . but not enough to make me want to restack it to rotate it around.

What I do . . . and what works for me . . . is I stack it outside uncovered for a year or two. The next year I bring that wood inside the woodshed and stack it front to back instead of side to side . . . that wood then sits there for another year while I use the wood I loaded up the previous year on the other side of the woodshed . . . since I use up my wood front to back I don't end up with a whole bunch of "vintage" wood in the back that never gets used up.


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## Backwoods Savage (Dec 16, 2012)

maple1 said:


> No way would I stack in rounds then split & re-stack. If it was going to sit for a while between cutting & splitting, it would just sit where it landed after cutting until it gets split. I think all the stacking related bending & unbending is the thing that gets to my back the most in the whole process - I don't do any more of it than absolutely necessary.


 
That all sounds good. However, we cut all winter then split in spring after snow melt. If we left the wood in the woods we would need a boat. Actually it takes very little time to haul it out and no matter what you have to haul the wood. So we haul the wood right to where it will be stacked after splitting. It takes no more time to unload the trailer and stack it than it does to just throw the wood so we don't think we are wasting time. In addition, when we are unloading those rounds, we are not bending and unbending. Not at all. We are standing but hate bending. It is all in how you handle things and the tools you have at your disposal. For example, I bought my wife a set of log tongs this year and she now absolutely loves them. She can pick up a firewood log and never have to bend. It also makes the carrying much, much easier and she doesn't even have to get her gloves wet or dirty.

One more thing. After I'm done cutting and get the splitter out, it makes things go much easier and faster as I can just sit there at the splitter and split away for a long time before I have to move the splitter ahead a few feet. I can just reach out with my left hand and grab. When I can't grab, I simply use the hookeroon or an axe to reach more. That is a whole lot better than lifting every piece of wood up onto a splitter.


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## PapaDave (Dec 18, 2012)

firefighterjake said:


> I bring that wood inside the woodshed and stack it front to back instead of side to side . . . that wood then sits there for another year while I use the wood I loaded up the previous year on the other side of the woodshed . . . since I use up my wood front to back I don't end up with a whole bunch of "vintage" wood in the back that never gets used up.


Jake, I think I'm going to try that next year when I reload the shed.


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## osagebow (Dec 18, 2012)

firefighterjake said:


> . . since I use up my wood front to back I don't end up with a whole bunch of "vintage" wood in the back that never gets used up.


 

But 2006 was a great year for white oak. Save that vintage for company. Very oaky... with hints of oak.


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## PapaDave (Dec 18, 2012)

Oak is the new.....Oak.


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## bboulier (Dec 19, 2012)

suprz said:


> I have been doing the CSS thing as fast as i can trying to get a good "future" supply of seasoned wood. My stacks arent very pretty or well organized right now, but i wanted to get it split asap. I know that come spring i will be redoing my stacks and i was wondering how many of you guys rotate or re-stack your piles of wood? If it helps get a more evenly seasoned stack of wood, etc... I wouldnt mind doing it as a process maybe twice a year? I like to stack the wood, it is almost therapeutic....(my wife would probably think i am nuts if i told her that).....


 
I usually don't do much restacking, since I have been building a wood supply (i.e., adding new piles).  This year I scrounged about a cord of wood, so I did move about the same amount from one pile to another closer to the house.  This year I will be burning some older wood stacked on pallets and plan to replace those with wood collected next year.   I will rework some piles to implement techniques learned here, but, if all goes well next year, I will not have to do any restacking.


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## westkywood (Dec 19, 2012)

I stack mine in rows ( 30 ft ) and cover them with rubber roofing. I label each row by writing ( with a permanent marker ) on a small piece of metal flashing with the date and type of wood and nail it to stack. No mistaking on what kind of wood I'm burning and how old it is. My worst nightmare would be straight lined winds come through and push them all over mixing my wood.


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## muncybob (Dec 19, 2012)

Only 2 times I ever restack, 1 is expected and that's when we take the wood from the drying area and move it into the shed for the upcoming heating season. The other is when I got careless and had a stack fall over(only happened once so far).

I have changed my stacking style to single rows as I was disappointed in the MC of some splits from last year when I took them to the shed a month or so ago. Now putting several pallets in a row and 2 single rows of about 5' high on the pallets supprted on the ends by T posts. Hoping the additional air flow improves the drying process. Wife also likes this as it's easier to stack.


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## muncybob (Dec 19, 2012)

westkywood said:


> I stack mine in rows ( 30 ft ) and cover them with rubber roofing. I label each row by writing ( with a permanent marker ) on a small piece of metal flashing with the date and type of wood and nail it to stack. No mistaking on what kind of wood I'm burning and how old it is. My worst nightmare would be straight lined winds come through and push them all over mixing my wood.


 
You must have entered your post as I was typing...basically what we do. I also label the type of wood and date stacked or I would neve be sure of what is what!


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## JP11 (Dec 19, 2012)

I have made kind of a mess of my pallets.  I have a seperate area of red oak only.  I need to find a new area, as that stuff is over a year old, and I don't want to add new splits in front of stuff that's on it's way.

My use now stuff ranges in age from a year split to a month.  I had put older in the back row of pallets, and newer in the front.. but that sucks.  I'll need to keep the whole row plowed out.  I should have stacked back and front at the same time.

As of now.. I have 44 pallets.  Middle 15 or so is new.  Sides are older.  Front oldest, back row is a bit newer, but all good ash.  I'm only two pallets deep.  Long rows.

I guess I've gotta start painting the ends with a split date.  It's not a big deal to shuffle around.  But seems dumb.  Guess it's better than re stacking... AND.. I can listen to the stereo in the kubota while I move em.


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## Adabiviak (Dec 20, 2012)

I throw an extra rotation or two into my routine because I have very little level/usable area on which to maintain stacks, so I try to maximize its usage. My full pile of stacked splits isn't nearly as large as many others here or it might be a different story, but I'd be lying if I said that I didn't enjoy a couple weekend days a year maintaining the stack (checking/replacing pallets, cleaning out accumulated sawdust and bark from under the pallets, preventing spillage due to mismatched shrinkage, checking for moisture levels, giving the cat a shot at any mice that make a break for it, replacing any failed rubber fasteners*... that sort of thing). There will certainly come a time when I'm not into this (either because I don't feel like it or I physically can't do it), but for now, it makes for a couple good afternoons a year.

*I use irreparable inner tubes from my bicycles as bungee cords - they don't last forever, but they're getting a second life as bungee cords when they can no longer be patched.


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