Cottonwood is the perfect wood for stretch-fires!

[fire_man]

Why do so many trash this great wood? I started burning the stuff this year and find it has the most perfect place in my burn cycle. Cottonwood lights quick, burns hot, and burns down fast to ashes. So its the absolute perfect wood for "stretch" fires. I needed a "placeholder" fire that is 4 hours long, from 4pm to 8pm every weeknight. Our last daytime fire is burned down by 4pm, the overnight fire has to be in by 8pm, but I need lots of heat in the mean time without lots of coals to burn down. Cottonwood to the rescue!!

I had a huge, 4 foot diameter cottonwood delivered last year, part of a Grapple load. I cursed every name in the book over this hard-to-split stinking styrofoam tree. Until now! I used to fight with that last 4 hour fire of the day, with my tight schedule not always fitting with the stove's schedule. So may be it's just me, but when my two cord of this stuff is gone I will be looking for more! :coolsmile:

 

[ecocavalier02]

I got Bout a cord or so of this stuff to That will be used for the same thing. Mine also was a 4'. Beast but weighed haal as much as What a chunk of oak would.

 

[ecocavalier02]

I got Bout a cord or so of this stuff to That will be used for the same thing. Mine also was a 4'. Beast but weighed haal as much as What a chunk of oak would. All wood is heat to me.

 

[stihltheone]

Wadda ya mean trash wood, around here that is the good stuff. Dont be spreding it around too much, cottowood is really goood wood to us. I am working on an 8'dbh righ now, will yield about 12 cords when done. The trick is to have a man sized stove to burn it in, these little "baby" sized stoves likely work ok with some good hardwood. I get 10 -12 hour burns everyday with cottonwood and pine.

 

[midwestcoast]

Curious how quickly it seasons. Also how likely is it to find standing dead that is ready to burn? Would limbwood with no bark likey be okay?

 

[benjamin]

Dead limbs would probably be OK, and would dry quickly inside, at least on the surface to start burning easily. Dead standing cottonwood is not the kind of tree I'd like to cut. It's so weak and rot prone I'd be real careful of dead limbs bonking you on the head, and you might find a septic situation inside of a dead trunk.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Benjamin, you beat me to it. That was the first thing I thought of when cutting dead cottonwood came up. The dead limbs that are down will do just fine.



Tony, wasn't it you I talked with at Woodstock about cottonwood? Maybe it was branchburner? Anyway, that is probably what I had said. It burns hot and fast. I really don't like the smell of cottonwood much when cutting it but once it is dry it is fine. Seems I also mentioned Wyoming or the west where lots of cottonwood is burned by necessity.



stihltheone, you are right that a bigger stove might be needed but one should also be aware of possible over firing. I know you guys burn a lot of that stuff out there. If you had a way, I'd gladly give you a few from our place. We don't burn it but the reason is only that we have better wood available. Ash burns much better and longer. I still don't hate cottonwood though. Danged stuff sure grows big! You need a big saw too.

 

[FireAnt]

Here is one I will be working on soon. That trunk is 75' long. The limbs went another 70'.

 

[smokinj]

There is a big one less than a 1/4 from my house for quite a few years now. Thats where it will stay! Around here silver maple can be had anytime you want to cut so cottonwood just not worth the effort.

 

[midwestcoast]

Good point on the dangers od standing dead cottonwoods. And around here they rarely seem to die until they're huuuge.

 

[fire_man]

Wadda ya mean trash wood, around here that is the good stuff. Dont be spreding it around too much, cottowood is really goood wood to us. I am working on an 8'dbh righ now, will yield about 12 cords when done. The trick is to have a man sized stove to burn it in, these little "baby" sized stoves likely work ok with some good hardwood. I get 10 -12 hour burns everyday with cottonwood and pine.

From now on it's a secret.

 

[fire_man]

Benjamin, you beat me to it. That was the first thing I thought of when cutting dead cottonwood came up. The dead limbs that are down will do just fine.



Tony, wasn't it you I talked with at Woodstock about cottonwood? Maybe it was branchburner? Anyway, that is probably what I had said. It burns hot and fast. I really don't like the smell of cottonwood much when cutting it but once it is dry it is fine. Seems I also mentioned Wyoming or the west where lots of cottonwood is burned by necessity.



stihltheone, you are right that a bigger stove might be needed but one should also be aware of possible over firing. I know you guys burn a lot of that stuff out there. If you had a way, I'd gladly give you a few from our place. We don't burn it but the reason is only that we have better wood available. Ash burns much better and longer. I still don't hate cottonwood though. Danged stuff sure grows big! You need a big saw too.

Yup, Dennis, it was me. I brought a piece of wood that you personally identified to be cottonwood. I almost cried upon your diagnosis. But now I am happy - you had told me it would burn hot and fast, but I heard so many bad stories. I have loaded the stove and not had any problems with over firing. It seasoned very quickly - only took one year and it's bone dry. It's hard for me to properly season most wood, we are in the shade. God I love this cottony stuff.

 

[fire_man]

Here is one I will be working on soon. That trunk is 75' long. The limbs went another 70'.

Wow. Now that's a beast! I'd like to hear how easy it splits, mine was a nightmare. Very stringy, the splitter tore it rather than split it.

 

[benjamin]

Here is one I will be working on soon. That trunk is 75' long. The limbs went another 70'.

That looks like some real nice lumber for outbuildings to me. I cut one butt log, that actually started about 10' up the trunk, that yielded just over 100 2x4s. Cottonwood tends to warp worse than coniferous softwoods and you wouldn't want it completely exposed, but many old sheds are framed with it and it works great.

 

[oldspark]

There is a big one less than a 1/4 from my house for quite a few years now. Thats where it will stay! Around here silver maple can be had anytime you want to cut so cottonwood just not worth the effort.

+1

 

[JV_Thimble]

Several large cottonwoods on our 3 acres. Wife hated it when I cut down two that were 14-16" DBH or so. But those are small. And they burned well...

Would like to cut down some bigger ones and turn them into fuel as well - but no small potatoes, and would get a lot of heat from the boss on that.

 

[snowleopard]

That's all I've been burning this winter, because I had some cut to length and stacked here when I bought the property, and more standing dead and laying down (most of which was unusable). I get annoyed with it when it all dumps the cotton in a hot summer--tracks everywhere and sticks where it tracks. When I was in the hardware store looking for a splitting maul, I told the fellow that helped me there what I had for wood, and he told me he'd been heating his house with it for twenty years so that he could let the birch and spruce grow on; gave me some hints for harvesting, and said he usually seasoned for a year. I've used about 100 gallons of fuel oil so far this winter (which also heats my hot water and garage)--and I usually go through 800+ gallons. Still on the slippery slope of the learning curve, but my 2Ksf house is toasty warm most of the time, more so than in some winters. Some of the wood is punky, just good for getting other stuff going, but some is dense and tight, splits easily, and burns for hours. I'm grateful that I've had it to burn, and next summer will be cruising the acres looking for more.

 

[stihltheone]

We dropped another 6+' dbh yesterday, I did not have my tape, but it is at least 6' the short way and almost 9' the long way, as it had two trunks. I have vid and pix, but can not wrap my brain around how to get them on here. I am still working on another about the same size and have about 8 more that are waiting when I am ready. This trunk will yield about 7 cords, maybe a touch more. It was kind of a hairy one and there was severe rot at the base between the two trunks on one side, after the face cut was in, we had to "plunge" the full way through to start the back cut as the other stump was in the way. It fell within 12 inches at 40' out of where we had planned, not bad! I think I need a bigger bar!! I only have a 36" and we have to get a bit creative to work some of these.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Here is one I will be working on soon. That trunk is 75' long. The limbs went another 70'.

Looks like fun FireAnt!

 

[joshlaugh]

Good the hear that cottonwood burns good. My FIL has a decent size one(25-30"dbh) that he wants me to cut down and I have been putting it off. That tree is moving to the head of the line come January.

 

[fallsfire36]

Cotton wood is decent wood - but I like to call it "gopher wood"... once you stoke it , you best gopher more.

 

[JV_Thimble]

There is a big one less than a 1/4 from my house for quite a few years now. Thats where it will stay! Around here silver maple can be had anytime you want to cut so cottonwood just not worth the effort.

I totally get this, but I also like the idea of cutting down the less desirable stuff first. End up with a better forest. Just how I think.

 

[smokinj]

There is a big one less than a 1/4 from my house for quite a few years now. Thats where it will stay! Around here silver maple can be had anytime you want to cut so cottonwood just not worth the effort.

I totally get this, but I also like the idea of cutting down the less desirable stuff first. End up with a better forest. Just how I think.

Yea I do understand that, but I am a yard dog. Pure scronger saw for fire kinda guy. (wish I had even a couple acers of woods) Growing up on a farm never seen any cottonwood in any of My father or Grandfater woods. Most here seem to be more out in the open.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Jay, that is quite typical. The cottonwood we have are all along the creek. In the open areas you'll find lots along creeks and fence rows.

 

[smokinj]

Jay, that is quite typical. The cottonwood we have are all along the creek. In the open areas you'll find lots along creeks and fence rows.

Yea thats what I see as well.