# SWEET GUM - BTU's



## r_d_gard (Feb 9, 2010)

Hey Guys, 

My Father in Law has several Sweet Gum (Liquid Amber ?) trees that he is going to take down.  He wants to know how good they are for burning and how long you would have to season them for.  These puppies are 25-30" and will be bucked and split into the usual lengths, any input would be greatly help.

Cheers

Ray


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## thewoodlands (Feb 9, 2010)

rayza said:
			
		

> Hey Guys,
> 
> My Father in Law has several Sweet Gum (Liquid Amber ?) trees that he is going to take down.  He wants to know how good they are for burning and how long you would have to season them for.  These puppies are 25-30" and will be bucked and split into the usual lengths, any input would be greatly help.
> 
> ...



I'm not sure if this will help but give it a try.

http://mb-soft.com/juca/print/firewood.html

http://www.donnan.com/firewood.htm

Zap


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## rathmir (Feb 9, 2010)

http://www.xpectsnow.com/BTU_Energy_Chart.html


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## maxed_out (Feb 9, 2010)

no offense intended, and I generally take all the scrounged wood I can get, but I try to avoid sweet gum these days.  small stuff 6 inches and down is fine but I had a heck of a time splitting the big stuff.  I might have let it sit too long ( 2 years).


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## flash49 (Feb 10, 2010)

If you don't cuss like a sailor now..you will learn real fast when trying to split Sweet Gum.


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## Wood Duck (Feb 10, 2010)

flash49 said:
			
		

> If you don't cuss like a sailor now..you will learn real fast when trying to split Sweet Gum.



I think this post belong in the thread 'Unplanned Perks of having a Wood Burning Stove' over in the Hearth Room.


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## myzamboni (Feb 10, 2010)

maxed_out said:
			
		

> no offense intended, and I generally take all the scrounged wood I can get, but I try to avoid sweet gum these days.  small stuff 6 inches and down is fine but I had a heck of a time splitting the big stuff.  I might have let it sit too long ( 2 years).



You need to split Sweetgum the day you take it down and buck it.  If your maul/axe/splitter isnt' causing the wood to spit or piss, then it will be tough splitting.

Give it a year to season and you're good to go.  Burns hot and fast like pine without the sappy mess.


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## WOODBUTCHER (Feb 10, 2010)

I've burned Sweet Gum before, If I had someone offering me free stuff like that, I'd take it no doubt.


WoodButcher


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## johnsopi (Feb 10, 2010)

rotts fast, hard to spilt. Much better then Black Gum which is aweful.


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## bigtall (Feb 12, 2010)

It will take you 3 times as long to split a cord of sweet gum as it would oak, maple, etc., and it will burn faster than pine. So you will be putting a whole lot of labor into very little BTUs. It just aint worth it.


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## Wood Duck (Feb 12, 2010)

bigtall said:
			
		

> It will take you 3 times as long to split a cord of sweet gum as it would oak, maple, etc., and it will burn faster than pine. So you will be putting a whole lot of labor into very little BTUs. It just aint worth it.



Unless you're doing it for exercise as well as firewood, in which case you get triple the exercise for the same loss of storage space in your stacks.


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