Oxygen ideas?

[Sprinter]

When I called them out on it they tried to tell me it was standing dead for years.

I just cut down a dead snag yesterday on my place that has been dead for a few years maybe more. When it hit the ground, it snapped into three pieces. When I cut it and split it open, it was in the mid 30% range. Wood won't dry with bark over it. In this case, it was actually punky and soft as well.

Here are a couple of meter options: The Harbor Freight one is about the cheapest available and users here seem to like it fine.
http://www.harborfreight.com/catalogsearch/result?q=moisture+meter

http://www.amazon.com/DUSIEC-Handheld-Digital-Moisture-Content/dp/B004KWAQAI

Or, Home Depot and Lowes have good ones.

 

[firebroad]

Muthagoose, your stove is behaving exactly like mine did the first year. My wood, though "seasoned" (dealer's words), was not ready. It will be better next year, and even better in 2015. For now, examine what you have, split by split. Does it feel light? Make a "klunk" rather than a "thunk" when you hit it on another piece? Get a moisture meter and randomly check those. Save the better splits to a separate stack, and mix them with some bio bricks or eco bricks, or scrap wood. You can have a bit of of fire while you wait patiently for the rest of the wood to dry, but keep tabs on your chimney for creosote.
All of the previously mentioned suggestions are valid, these folks won't steer you wrong. Welcome!!

 

[jharkin]

Well, it was delivered from a spot about an hour away, and it rained on it on the way to my house. But it's been 2 days in the garage since that happened. Would that be enough time to have it dry out again?

Also, Why is that your first thought when if the door is open it burns perfectly, only when I close the door it slows and weakens the flame??

Because in the 4 years Ive been here, probably 80%+ of the "Im having trouble getting my fire going or getting hot" posts end up being wet wood problems. The mods will probably say I'm guessing low

Being rained on once is not an issue. Thats just surface moisture that evaporates quickly. the wood needs to dry into the core, down to 20% moisture content or less. That takes a lot of time. The scientific way to test is to buy a wood moisture meter, re-split a log and check the moisture on the fresh split face.


If the wood yo have was recently delivered by a wood dealer I can almost guarantee you its wet. "Seasoned" wood from dealers never is.... just most people don't know any better. I didn't till I came here. Dont worry, you are in the right place to learn!

 

[Sprinter]

Because in the 4 years Ive been here, probably 80%+ of the "Im having trouble getting my fire going or getting hot" posts end up being wet wood problems.

And that makes it a huge problem out there. Almost everybody just getting started burning in a stove gets wood that's too wet inside for the first year because that's all there is. For a supplier to be able to deliver 20 - 25% firewood, it either has to be kiln dried, or split and stacked for a sufficient amount of time, sometimes up to 3 years for something like oak. Either way is expensive to do commercially and most people don't want to pay that much for firewood, so it's very rare to find.

It's scary to think how many people either buy or cut just the current season's supply every year for a stove.

 

[begreen]

Oh okay, well, this is the first cord of wood I've ever bought. So I'm very new to this... but, he said it had been seasoned and was dry prior to it coming.

Oldest story in the industry unfortunately. They say that even if it was split last week.

 

[begreen]

You can usually check the wood by simply resplitting a few thick splits. Your skin is a fairly good dampness detector. Put the freshly split face of the wood up against your cheek. If it feels cool and damp, it is!

 

[eclecticcottage]

It's scary to think how many people either buy or cut just the current season's supply every year for a stove.

Additionally, how many have problems (big ones) arise from it and don't learn. My aunt and uncle had a chimney fire many years ago. Scared the begeebers out of my aunt and she wouldn't allow the fireplace ever to be used again, rather than learning WHY and remedying it. At least they just stopped. A friend of ours stayed with a lovely older couple for some time a few years ago, and we went there for thanksgiving. Sat next to a big ole parlour stove that was cranking away. He told us about how they cut and sell wood every year, and how this was the second house on the property, the first one burnt down about ten years prior. How? Well, they had a creosote smell so bad, they replaced the pipe. somehow they didn't get a screw in well. And it popped out when they had a chimney fire because of creo build up-and the fire shot out into the office and caught papers, and...no more house-he saw it blazing when he came in from the barn, too late.

How many times do we hear locally and on here every year about a fire started by hot ashes improperly disposed of?

 

[begreen]

When visiting the mountain town of Koprivshitsa in Bulgaria I saw folks gathering and splitting wood, for that night. By morning the valley was blanketed with a low hanging fug of smoke. I imagine that they have burning like this for many generations. Our B&B on the other hand had every wall of the yard neatly stacked with splits, nice and dry.

 

[Sprinter]

Some states have laws that define the term "cord" for cord wood volume. Sellers have to follow that rule.

I don't know why the same couldn't be done for the term "seasoned". Seems to me a problem with more serious consequences.

 

[begreen]

I'm wondering if it's possible that setting strict definitions for "Seasoned" wood could do more to clean up pollution than going from 3gm to .5gm stoves.

 

[eclecticcottage]

Probably..but how would it be regulated? Especially for those that don't buy their wood. I guess by moisture content readings? Or would a seller be able to sell "green" wood too? For instance, we might pick up a few cord from a local guy that will deliver for like $60 a face cord just to have some hard wood around. I'd rather pay $60 a FC and season it myself than the $150 I'd probably pay if they could only sell seasoned stuff. Then there's log loads...

 

[muthagoose10]

additionaly, can anyone help identify this insert? Or possibly tell me where I could find the model #, I was not left with any owners manual and am having a hard time identifying it off any other pictures.