# 2x4 Firewood



## wkpoor (Nov 20, 2011)

Ameritech training center in Columbus is being demolished Monday. Was over there doing a little pre demo myself. Brought home a bunch of 2xs that were quick and easy. Most already under 30" so I can put them right in.  Don't know how many heat with white lumber but it is nice dry stuff and very little work to get it.


----------



## firefighterjake (Nov 20, 2011)

I use old dimensional lumber for kindling . . . I wouldn't load the stove chocker blocker full of this type of wood.


----------



## mdocod (Nov 20, 2011)

2x's construction lumber is great because it's usually kiln dried, *usually* pretty straight grained soft wood for easy splitting into kindling and great fire starting. Good for short term fires where you just need to take a chill off the house but still want to hit healthy temps on the stove and pipe quickly. Enjoy!


----------



## nate379 (Nov 20, 2011)

That is all my Dad uses to heat his ~20x30 workshop.  It burns quickly, but the 2x4s are free (used in banding materials that come in where he works) and otherwise would just be throw in the trash.  When working in the shop it's no big deal to toss another load in every couple hours.


----------



## LLigetfa (Nov 20, 2011)

mdocod said:
			
		

> 2x's construction lumber is great because it's usually kiln dried...


Ja, but not kiln dried to firewood standards.  In fact barely even dried enough to building standards.  Probably a moot point however since this is a demolition and probably stood for years.

When I was building my home, the first wall I insulated and drywalled was the one behind the woodstove so that I could heat with it while I finished the rest of the interior.  I had cleared the land in the Spring and bucked up the logs for firewood which only had a few months to dry.  I mixed in the mill ends to help it burn better.


----------



## wkpoor (Nov 20, 2011)

firefighterjake said:
			
		

> I use old dimensional lumber for kindling . . . I wouldn't load the stove chocker blocker full of this type of wood.


Why not? How is burnng 2xs any different than burning pine. Thats all some places in the country have.


----------



## wkpoor (Nov 20, 2011)

LLigetfa said:
			
		

> mdocod said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Every piece I check is drier than any firewood is going to be unless its 10yr old firewood.


----------



## CTYank (Nov 20, 2011)

wkpoor said:
			
		

> firefighterjake said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



That implies recommending stuffing in loads of pine. Expertise and caution required, to not make page 1 of the local paper. (Some do.)

Packing pieces tightly enough to slow the airflow & damping the primary air boost probability of crap accumulating in the stove & the pipe.

Maybe you're firing an OWB like a steam boiler and have a stoker on watch?


----------



## mdocod (Nov 20, 2011)

When loading dimensional scrap lumber to use as primary fuel it's important to load it in a manner that will replicate the would-be-natural air-spaces between non-uniform splits/rounds that you would normally use. When I load up a batch I make up a sort of make-shift log-cabin sort of deal, but with the pieces at about a 50 degree angle from each other instead of 90. (diagonal from the front load, alternating, if that makes any sense)..

To extend the burn time with dimensional lumber without causing major smothering problems. Arrange groups of boards into tightly packed configurations that replicate a larger log size. Like 3x(2x4s) stacked on top of each-other to make a 4x6 "log." Most stoves should have room for a few of these stacks, try to leave a couple-few inches between stacks to let it breath.

Nothing wrong with pine, Just burn it with proper routine checkups on the chimney and plenty of hot blazing fires once and awhile to clean up the mess along the way. Pine accounts for a large chunk of wood heating in this country.


----------



## wkpoor (Nov 20, 2011)

I've been mixing it in with other wood that is always random in size, length, and width so it doesn't seem to make any difference in the outcome of the burn cycle. I have alot of pine and oak 1/2"x6" that goes in too. Sometimes they are stacked and sometimes they just fill in the spaces. I have unregulated secondaries but fully regulated primary. I guess the jist is I haven't noticed anything about lumber scraps that makes it any different than firewood.


----------



## Backwoods Savage (Nov 20, 2011)

We've still got plenty of cut-offs from building the addition and like to burn them during the daytime.


----------



## LLigetfa (Nov 20, 2011)

wkpoor said:
			
		

> LLigetfa said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Really?  Then either you have crap firewood or your builder's supply has 10 year old lumber that was well stored.  You must not have ever worked in the construction industry.


----------



## woodchip (Nov 20, 2011)

Scrap lumber is surely not that different to old pallets. 

The pallets I get are 3 lengths of 4x3 and a row of 4x1/2 for the top. 

They are sturdy, dry quickly, and burn really easily (tops make super kindling). 

I'd never leave a fire unnattended with pallets, as they can burn quite violently at times, but then it's easy to plan ahead and burn better wood when you know you're going out.

The best thing is if the fire has nearly gone out, they are easy to get it going again  ;-)


----------



## wkpoor (Nov 20, 2011)

LLigetfa said:
			
		

> wkpoor said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


You need to go back and read the first post again. My 2xs are demo wood not scraps from a new build. If you have firewood as dry as old 2xs then it would burn like old 2xs.  I nor do most people have 8 percent  or less firewood.


----------



## LLigetfa (Nov 20, 2011)

wkpoor said:
			
		

> You need to go back and read the first post again...


Talking about reading comprehension, try rereading my first post.


			
				LLigetfa said:
			
		

> Probably a moot point however since this is a demolition and probably stood for years.


That it may have originally been kiln dried has no bearing in fact.


----------



## Thistle (Nov 20, 2011)

Its great for Spring & Fall or when I need to take the chill off for a few hours.

I burn a quite a bit every year,grabbing it from demolition and/or remodeling at various jobsites I'm working at.Also I like to bring home dunnage - timbers that are 2" x 2" to 6" x 6" in random lengths from 2 to 12 feet.Most are native hardwoods such as Red/White Oak,Cottonwood,Soft/Hard Maple,occasionally Hickory or low-grade Walnut & Cherry even.Once in a while Doug Fir or Southern Yellow Pine. These are used on flat bed trucks & semi-trailers hauling various large loads such as steel beams,pipe,rebar,stacks of lumber/plywood etc.

Its all pretty good stuff,some of the real clear sound stuff without cracks or knots have made many lathe-turned candlesticks,resawed into thin pieces for cabinet trim & small jewelry boxes etc.

At least 95% brought home is burned though.


----------



## wkpoor (Nov 20, 2011)

LLigetfa said:
			
		

> wkpoor said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Wood in my area will normalize to about 8%. So whether its been kiln dried or not given time it will go 8%. All the white lumber I checked was 8% measured with a lumber moisture meter not a firewood meter. That is better than any firewood I'm ever going to have.


----------



## firefighterjake (Nov 21, 2011)

wkpoor said:
			
		

> firefighterjake said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



As other folks have said . . . it's not so much the species of wood (I burn pine, hemlock, spruce, fir or whatever softwood the 2 x 4 or 2 x 6s I have cut up are made out of in my woodstove) . . . it's more of an issue of the exposed surface area . . . I also wouldn't load up my stove with a lot of small splits or rounds of hardwood or softwood . . . for the same reason . . . should have explained myself a little better.


----------



## Wood Duck (Nov 21, 2011)

I think the only problem with 2xs is that they burn faster and hotter than typical firewood, so if you load the stove and set the air the same way you would with hardwood cordwood, you can end up with an overheated stove. Burn the 2xs, just keep an eye on it.


----------



## Badfish740 (Nov 21, 2011)

When I tore out the jack wagon rigged "finished basement" in my house I just cut up the old wall studs into stove length and disposed of them that way.  It heated the house and saved me a trip or two ($35 bucks a pop) to the landfill.  The stuff was drier than a popcorn fart though so I was careful not to use too much at once.  Plenty of nails and wire staples (I saved the old wiring and made a little $$$ on the copper) to clean out of the ashpan but I burn pallets so that's nothing new.


----------

