# Burned again by the pine myth



## red oak (Aug 24, 2012)

Talking to a coworker today that I hadn't seen in a few months.  She mentioned that a pine tree came down on her property this summer during a storm.  Then she said that she thought about calling me to let me have it (the tree that is) but thought better of it because she didn't want the pine clogging up my chimney.  So the tree removal guys got it instead.

I took a few minutes to explain the benefits of DRY wood, assured her that I don't burn green anything, pine or otherwise, and promised her that if she gives me trees in the future I will NOT burn my house down. 

So this evening I'm telling all this to my wife, who suddenly looks at me funny and says "Why would you want to burn pine?  Won't that burn the house down?" 

Sorry to complain......


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## BrowningBAR (Aug 24, 2012)

When I was posting on craigslist looking for a reliable firewood supplier I posted that I would be interested in pine as well. I had several people contact me let me know how much of a fool I was and that they hoped I had good homeowners insurance.


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## bogydave (Aug 24, 2012)

Wonder if any of the wood pellets are made from pine?
If  so, wonder if the bags come with warning labels?

"Be sure to have fire insurance"
"House fire imminent "


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## DexterDay (Aug 25, 2012)

bogydave said:


> Wonder if any of the wood pellets are made from pine?
> If  so, wonder if the bags come with warning labels?
> 
> "Be sure to have fire insurance"
> "House fire imminent "



Lots of Softwood pellets and No Warning labels!

Around me its the same way. Everyone thats sells wood says it well seasoned and they will.cut to there personal length.  And to not Burn Pine. As its not safe to burn in a woodstove 

Thats funny


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## eclecticcottage (Aug 25, 2012)

We gave up and tell people we want camp wood in regards to pine.  OR it's for an OWB, depending on the quantity.  Works like a charm


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## onetracker (Aug 25, 2012)

yep...plenty of opinions out there

this will be my first year ever burning pine. i haven't checked the moisture content but it was dead 2 years, then split in april, piled on pallets in one of the hottest, driest summers ever. i cover the pile (about 1 cord) whenever it rains (which hasn't been much) and when i pick up a split it's light as a feather. my goal is to get thru sept/oct with just pine. in a couple of weeks when i break out the splitter, i'm gonna split another cord or 2 and top cover it for winter and hope i can burn it in the spring. if it doesn't dry out, i've got plenty of hardwood.


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## Realstone (Aug 25, 2012)

I belong to, and follow the advice of this forum and it has really worked out well for me.  I also do the same for a hobby of mine, aquariums.  A lot of the wisdom that is touted on both forums goes against the grain of 'common' wisdom.   People really are like sheep; they tend to think as a flock and are happy in their ignorance.


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## certified106 (Aug 25, 2012)

I argued with an idiot at work about burning pine the other day..........Didn't matter what I said or the fact I burned over a cord of the stuff last winter he was adamant that it cant be burned. I even told him I usually burn a cord a year and I haven't swept my chimney in two years and he still told me I was an idiot. I finally walked away since you can't fix stupid! 

Just for a reference he burns oak that is seasoned for about two days before going in the stove and he usually has to drop steel weights and chains through his chimney two or three times per winter to bust the wheelbarrow load of creosote  out of his chimney. It usually get so thick in a month or two that the stove stops drafting. Yeah I guess I'm the stupid one.


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## onetracker (Aug 25, 2012)

certified106 said:


> I argued with an idiot at work about burning pine the other day..........Didn't matter what I said or the fact I burned over a cord of the stuff last winter he was adamant that it cant be burned. I even told him I usually burn a cord a year and I haven't swept my chimney in two years and he still told me I was an idiot. I finally walked away since you can't fix stupid!
> 
> Just for a reference he burns oak that is seasoned for about two days before going in the stove and he usually has to drop steel weights and chains through his chimney two or three times per winter to bust the wheelbarrow load of creosote out of his chimney. It usually get so thick in a month or two that the stove stops drafting. Yeah I guess I'm the stupid one.


 
same here certified -
i went 2 years without cleaning my 3 flues and last year i decided i'd better not be stupid about it (which is unusual for me ) and i ended up with about a sandwich bag's worth of dry dust from each of them. its all about the quality of the fuel and how you burn it.


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## gmule (Aug 25, 2012)

Pine is all we have to burn here. My transplanted neighbor from Oklahoma also thinks pine is a bad wood to burn. He would rather pay the propane man instead of burn the beetled killed trees on his lot. At least he lets me have his dead trees so that is a win for me.


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## Realstone (Aug 25, 2012)

gmule said:


> Pine is all we have to burn here. My transplanted neighbor from Oklahoma also thinks pine is a bad wood to burn. He would rather pay the propane man instead of burn the beetled killed trees on his lot. At least he lets me have his dead trees so that is a win for me.


I'm surprised he is being complicit in aiding & abetting  a fire hazard right next door to his own property


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## gmule (Aug 25, 2012)

Realstone said:


> I'm surprised he is being complicit in aiding & abetting a fire hazard right next door to his own property


 
I told the him those trees are going to burn one way or another. Either in a forest fire or my wood stove. After seeing a forest fire up close in May of this year he thought that I was the safest alternative.


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## thewoodlands (Aug 25, 2012)

Up here in Northern NY they look at you like your crazy when you tell them you are burning pine, most people take it to the wood dump or use it in the fireplace outside.

zap


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## jeepmedic (Aug 25, 2012)

I throw a little pine in our OWB frequently...if its dry it burns nice and hot and is FREE. Cant turn down FREE heat


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## PapaDave (Aug 25, 2012)

"I argued with an idiot at work about burning pine the other day."

You shouldn't do this. They'll just drag you down to their level, and beat you with experience.


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## Beetle-Kill (Aug 25, 2012)

bogydave said:


> Wonder if any of the wood pellets are made from pine?
> If so, wonder if the bags come with warning labels?
> 
> "Be sure to have fire insurance"
> "House fire imminent "


 I won't name them, but I have 2 pellet plants within an hours drive, (10 min. to the closest one)
warning labels are not required, the fuel is good. I've burned several tons without issue.
Disclaimer -(wash your hands after stacking, the Pine spirits seep through the bags.- I'm now bald and have a rash that won't go away, even after 5 years)


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## weatherguy (Aug 25, 2012)

Whenever I get into the pine discussion with someone I always bring up the burners out west and Alaska and ask them what they think those folks burn, thats about all the wood they can get and you dont read about houses out west burning down all the time from burning pine. They usually shrug and end the discussion.


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## red oak (Aug 26, 2012)

weatherguy said:


> Whenever I get into the pine discussion with someone I always bring up the burners out west and Alaska and ask them what they think those folks burn, thats about all the wood they can get and you dont read about houses out west burning down all the time from burning pine. They usually shrug and end the discussion.


 
I actually had someone tell me that the pines out west are "different" and okay to burn.  At this point I have to walk away!


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## Backwoods Savage (Aug 26, 2012)

certified106 said:


> I argued with an idiot at work about burning pine the other day..........Didn't matter what I said or the fact I burned over a cord of the stuff last winter he was adamant that it cant be burned. I even told him I usually burn a cord a year and I haven't swept my chimney in two years and he still told me I was an idiot. I finally walked away since you can't fix stupid!
> 
> Just for a reference he burns oak that is seasoned for about two days before going in the stove and he usually has to drop steel weights and chains through his chimney two or three times per winter to bust the wheelbarrow load of creosote out of his chimney. It usually get so thick in a month or two that the stove stops drafting. Yeah I guess I'm the stupid one.


 

This is a classic! And you'll never convince the guy, even if he lived in the same house.


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## firefighterjake (Aug 27, 2012)

certified106 said:


> I argued with an idiot at work about burning pine the other day..........Didn't matter what I said or the fact I burned over a cord of the stuff last winter he was adamant that it cant be burned. I even told him I usually burn a cord a year and I haven't swept my chimney in two years and he still told me I was an idiot. I finally walked away since you can't fix stupid!
> 
> Just for a reference he burns oak that is seasoned for about two days before going in the stove and he usually has to drop steel weights and chains through his chimney two or three times per winter to bust the wheelbarrow load of creosote out of his chimney. It usually get so thick in a month or two that the stove stops drafting. Yeah I guess I'm the stupid one.


 
Sometimes you can never convince a true idiot that they're wrong . . . even when they end up having a chimney fire and burning down their house.


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## cptoneleg (Aug 27, 2012)

Living in Virgina, I don't mess with pine ,because it takes as much work to prcess as Oak, Locust, Ash, and Cherry,  And their is plenty for free.

I have burned some that I cut on my own place, and didn't want it to go to waste,  just wouldn't bother to bring any home.

I am in Ohio on a job just south of Toledo,  and their are so many dead Ash trees it is sad.  I have heard some speak of  the  emerald ash borer, and here their are dead Ash trees everywhere for free.

  Very Sad I hope this thing is stoped from spreading any more.


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## DexterDay (Aug 27, 2012)

cptoneleg said:


> Living in Virgina, I don't mess with pine ,because it takes as much work to prcess as Oak, Locust, Ash, and Cherry,  And their is plenty for free.
> 
> I have burned some that I cut on my own place, and didn't want it to go to waste,  just wouldn't bother to bring any home.
> 
> ...



Its crazy how many there are... Everywhere you look, they fill the landscape. Cant drive anywhere without seeing dead standing Ash trees. 

After this year, that will be my Primary Wood for the next few years. Still have close to 40 I have to cut, at one little Farm I cut at..

I hope its stopped myself. Wreaks havoc on a good stand of timber.


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## Backwoods Savage (Aug 27, 2012)

cptoneleg said:


> Living in Virgina, I don't mess with pine ,because it takes as much work to prcess as Oak, Locust, Ash, and Cherry, And their is plenty for free.
> 
> I have burned some that I cut on my own place, and didn't want it to go to waste, just wouldn't bother to bring any home.
> 
> ...


 
Oneleg, I agree with you. It actually takes more time to cut up the pines than it does to cut ash or oak or most anything else (exception is pin oak) because of so many branches. If you can get good hardwood in the same amount of time then I say get the hardwood and leave the pines. Heck, we got a few thousand dollars last winter from selling a bunch of pines and I spent the time cutting ash.

It really is a sorry sight seeing all the dead ash. It seems every year it gets worse! Amazing how many there are.


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## red oak (Aug 27, 2012)

I agree with oneleg.  The only time I'll cut pine is when there's a dead one on my property.  Once I had to cut one that had blown down across my driveway, it was the only way I could get to work!  Once it was split and seasoned it burned great, but splitting it took a lot of effort.


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## Ashful (Aug 27, 2012)

I've started taking pine when it's offered, based on the advice of this forum.  Having grown up with three open hearth fireplaces, we lived by the "do not burn pine" rule, right or wrong.

I turned away about 16 cords of free cedar two weeks ago.  Was that a mistake, as well?  Seems that stuff burns crazy, scary, HOT!


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## Realstone (Aug 28, 2012)

Any wood is fine, including cedar, with the exception of sumac.

Saw this on a local Kijiji ad:
*Wanted: WANTED FIREWOOD* 





I will take firewood from anyone delivered or picked up FREE
I use it to heat my house,I will split it
Just drop it off on my property



Date Listed 27-Aug-12
Address Bradford, ON L3Z 2G2, Canada 
View map

I will take firewood from anyone delivered or picked up FREE
I use it to heat my house,I will split it
Just drop it off on my property
_*No pine please *_(my italics & bold)
Thank you


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## fahmahbob (Aug 28, 2012)

I have a few cords of white pine because there were pine trees where I was putting my driveway early last spring (2011). My original plan was to push them into the woods to rot, but first I decided to cut and split a little bit just to try it. I've burned wood all my life, and had never burned it before (besides in a campfire). Well, even though it can be a total PITA to split, it's turned out to be fantastic for quick hot fires in the summer to heat my hot water, and gets my boiler up to temp way faster than the driest of my oak (which is very dry, by the way). Once up to temp, in goes the oak for a nice long fire when needed. Needless to say, I now have completely changed my attitude regarding the much maligned pine. Once these stacks of pine are running low, I'll probably even go out of my way to get more!


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## swagler85 (Aug 28, 2012)

I have never burned it inside but have about 1/2 a cord from dead standing trees I took out a from this ago. It's currently piled by my outdoor fire pit but I am tempted to bring it inside to burn. Gona have to get a mm and test how dry it is


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