# When you cut a tree down do you split right away?



## olliek

Well right away meaning as soon as you find the time?

I brought my first tree down a couple of weeks ago (and the second last weekend) and started to cut down and split and stacked it right away.

Is there anything wrong with that? I have the second one cut into twice log sice (32") chunks right now but just wanted to make sure I don't do anything wrong when it comes to seasoning.

It is my first year after all.

Thanks!


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## firefighterjake

Depends . . . in the Fall I bucked up the wood, hauled it home and then split and stacked it. 

Once I had five cords of wood cut, split and stacked . . . and once the snow and cold came in . . . I just left the wood in the rounds . . . in the wood. Come Spring I'll move my wood in the stacks to the woodshed and then begin hauling the rounds from the woods to the home and start the splitting and stacking routine all over again.

My own opinion . . . if you have the time and space it is better to get things split up sooner rather than later to start the seasoning process . . . or rather to really speed up the seasoning process.


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## bioman

The sooner the better for me ! i like to take my splitter to the timber with me. alot easyer to load when its split. Let the seasoning begin .


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## ScotO

bioman said:
			
		

> The sooner the better for me ! i like to take my splitter to the timber with me. alot easyer to load when its split. Let the seasoning begin .


DITTO....that's the ideal situation, as soon as it is split it begins to season, so there is nothing wrong with that at all.  We do a lot of really big trees, and the rounds are a pain to deal with being that large so the splitter goes to those jobs with the rest of the equipment.  Don't get me wrong, you can let them in round form, but you're better off splitting them ASAP for the 'season' reason alone!


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## Thistle

ASAP depending on weather,work schedule & other time constraints.Have about 1 p/u load of dead mostly Red/Black Oak left to split & stack,that's been cut since October or so.Right now am concentrating on getting the green White/Bur Oak,Hackberry,Mulberry etc the County Road workers left for me in the right-of way ditches near parent's property & for about 2 miles to the NW along that gravel road.Can always split it later if I get snowed out of the woods.


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## mecreature

I do it as I find the time.

Right now I am just getting the rounds home and will split later.

I usually split by hand but I see a rental splitter in my near future.


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## A1stoves

According to my tree guy, John, who is somewhat of an expert, It is easier to split when it's freshly cut. We cut mostly White Oak and it hardens up pretty quick. Also the jump on seasoning is a plus.


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## smokinj

I split some logs Sunday that where down over 3 years...Still not seasoned that well. (Better than live standing though)


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## eclecticcottage

It depends.  For the ones we got over the summer and early fall, we split them within a week of dropping the rounds off at the Cottage.  Partly because we didn't own the Cottage yet (very odd situation, we were "caretakers" while we were waiting on the closing process from July to October when we closed), because we didn't want to leave the "mess" there and partly just to get it done.  The rounds (maple and pine) we scrounged in December that are at the Old House are waiting until spring and we'll split them there then bring them to the Cottage to stack and season.  The rounds we scrounged this month (willow and maple) will also wait until spring, since it's either muddy or snowy right now.

Anything we scrounge or cut after those are caught up will probably be done within a week or two of dropping them off at the Cottage.  To keep the "mess" look of a big pile of rounds down, and to get the seasoning started.


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## quads

master of disaster said:
			
		

> When you cut a tree down do you split right away?


Yes.


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## olliek

Thanks guys.

got a couple more dead trees to go and one that leans a bit too far for comfort.

Then I have some 50 feet Firs that seem to be no in such good shape, but i guess i will need a tree service for those.


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## Flatbedford

Being a scrounger, I usually cut up downed trees rather than cut down trees, but I always split ASAP. I halve or quarter bigger rounds as I cut to make it easier to load them on the truck. Green wood almost always splits easiest and that is important to those of us who split by hand.


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## Backwoods Savage

It definitely is usually best and easiest to split the wood when it is cut. However, using the hydraulic splitter we just stack the wood up in the winter and about the time the snow melts then we break out the splitter and split it all then. Definitely do not wait a year or more to do the splitting unless you like to work extra hard.


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## ansehnlich1

each and every round on my property is split and stacked, some 15 cord worth.

it ALL gets split and stacked.

NOTHIN' is spared


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## Kenster

I like to split as soon as possible BUT last summer I got two really large oaks from down the road.  I buck em up on site and brought them home.  I wasn't about to split them in 105 degree heat.  (This was before I bought my Huskee splitter)  So they sat until it got a bit cooler.  I didn't need them for this winter and they would not have been dry enough for this year anyway.  

General rule of thumb is do it as soon as is convenient but a couple of months isn't going to make much difference.


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## wetwood

Just get as much wood home the fastest way possible then the final work is done when time allows. By cutting trunks into rounds and leaving the limbs long I can load and unload faster. If it is a large tree I always bring the tractor. It's faster at loading the big stuff and can roll or drag the tree into the safest/easiest position to cut. A month ago we cut and split some elm trunks that were over 3 years old. Seems some of the softer woods around here don't get as punky if stored in rounds as they do if split right away.


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## steeltowninwv

work schedule plays a role for me...cut 3 big sycamore trees up about 10 days ago....going today to try to finish em all up...if bad weather would have come hell they might have been there until spring...so weather plays a roll to....but if possible i like getting em bucked and split as soon as possible...i dont cut on my own land so any mess i can clean up quickly is a plus


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## Dune

Depends. If splitting by hand, and splitting hardwood, I want to slit it ASAP. If splitting pine, I let it wait for a year, stacked horizontaly on pallets. Using a splitter it doesn't matter except that the sooner it is split and stacked, the sooner it starts seasoning.
Even though I have a big splitter, I split mostly by hand, it is faster. If the fiskars bounces off or if it is a fork, white oak, elm or cherry I use the splitter.


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## steeltowninwv

cherry for the splitter..i know every tree is different....but cherry is a easy one around here


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## muncybob

I try to split as soon as I bring the rounds home and are still in the back of the truck. Partly for the seasoning reason but also because it's much easier to lift out of the truck bed and place right onto the splitter w/o bending over. 

This weekend may be an exception though as I have a CL score to get Saturday of several hickory trees and unless I get some help I won't be able to spend time splitting so I can get all the rounds home in daylight. I have already sent emails to my buddies offereing food & beverage in exchange for free exercise!


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## Dune

steeltowninwv said:
			
		

> cherry for the splitter..i know every tree is different....but cherry is a easy one around here



Some splits fine, some are unbelievably twisted and bent here on Cape Cod. I tend to just throw it in the "hard" pile at this point.


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## mecreature

Dune said:
			
		

> steeltowninwv said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> cherry for the splitter..i know every tree is different....but cherry is a easy one around here
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Some splits fine, some are unbelievably twisted and bent here on Cape Cod. I tend to just throw it in the "hard" pile at this point.
Click to expand...


Seems when I split cherry by hand a lot ends up in that pile.


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## seeyal8r

bioman said:
			
		

> The sooner the better for me ! i like to take my splitter to the timber with me. alot easyer to load when its split. Let the seasoning begin .



I want my wood to dry as long as possible so I css as soon as I can. sometimes I just make a big pile for a few months and then spend the time to split but would prefer to get it all done asap. but to me there is no rush. it is easier loading up split wood.


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## wkpoor

With my schedule ASAP has been as long as 3yrs after bringing home the logs. Just now getting to some that where at least 3yrs maybe more. As long as I stack them in the open air off the ground not near any trees or structures they seem to be as good as the day they were cut except the ends are dark.


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## mesuno

I try to split as I go.  I know from experience I'm not very good at getting back to a stack of rounds once they are cut, but if I split as I go then the wood goes straight from tree to stacked in the shed. At least one fewer handling steps, compared to moving rounds home, stacking them, coming back and splitting, then restacking the splits in the shed.

By splitting when I buck the tree I load splits direct into my 4x4 which I can back right up to the shed. Split goes from 4x4 to the stack where it stay until it is burnt in 2 years time.


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## mecreature

Mesuno said:
			
		

> I try to split as I go.  I know from experience I'm not very good at getting back to a stack of rounds once they are cut, but if I split as I go then the wood goes straight from tree to stacked in the shed. At least one fewer handling steps, compared to moving rounds home, stacking them, coming back and splitting, then restacking the splits in the shed.
> 
> By splitting when I buck the tree I load splits direct into my 4x4 which I can back right up to the shed. Split goes from 4x4 to the stack where it stay until it is burnt in 2 years time.



Man that sounds great. 

I usually have to travel. That is double or sometimes triple touching everything. 
I need the exercise and I need the wood but man it gets old takes too much time.


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## Adios Pantalones

ASAP


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## corey21

I split and stack as soon as possible.


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## SnapCracklePop

My neighbor had a buddy come by with his chainsaw and cut some downed trees into rounds.

This was last spring.

The rounds are still stacked at the side of the yard.

It makes me itchy just looking at 'em.

Nancy


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