Pine, spruce, hemlock

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Jfk4th

Jfk4th

Minister of Fire
Hearth Supporter
Feb 8, 2007
683
NY
Compliments of the wind storm last week, I have snagged a lot of free pine and spruce. If I split it up sometime in the next month or so and put it in a very nice sunny, windy spot will it be ready for the fall or does pine take longer to season? Plus any problems with the chimney when using pine. I am lucky to have hardwoods around here but I just could not pass up the free wood. Even though I got sap all over my clothes :)

Oh one more thing, how does hemlock burn?
 
Pine seasons quickly- it should be fine in the fall. Hemlock has a lot of water when cut, but I think it dries pretty quickly.

"Oh one more thing, how does hemlock burn? "

Fire comes out of it. :)
 
Adios Pantalones said:
Pine seasons quickly- it should be fine in the fall. Hemlock has a lot of water when cut, but I think it dries pretty quickly.

"Oh one more thing, how does hemlock burn? "

Fire comes out of it. :)
Click to expand...

Can I split the rounds ASAP or should I wait? Waiting a bit for make it easier to split right. Thinking about renting a splitter for 65 dollars a day. Damn I want a splitter bad, just can't afford one right now
 
spruce will definitely be easier to split if you let it dry out a little.
 
But it does split easily. If you don't have a splitter a maul will work nicely.

I have a 5 ton electric splitter that ran just over 200 and it takes care of nearly everything I throw at it.

Matt
 
Ok, let's dispel a myth that I have been told. Is it really ok to burn PINE ? I just installed an Osburn 1800 insert and have been advised NOT to burn pine or cedar due to high creosote issues. I was advised NOT to burn it even in my open fireplace. Go figure, I have many, many dead red cedar and just cut a dead spruce down this past spring. Also have white pines 60 ft high. Please set me straight on this.........
 
Pine is fine....any wood that is properly seasoned can be burned without creating creosote..especially with
these new secondary combustion stoves.
 
Pine is fine as long as it is dry. For some people that's all they have to burn and they get by just fine. I think the old timers use to burn it before it was totaly dry because it was so light, but it still had too much water in it. I'd still give Pine a full year before burning it.
 
Like others have said, as long as it's dry, burn it. You should have no trouble seasoning pine/spruce/hemlock for next year if it's split this coming spring and stacked in a sunny, windy spot. Hemlock is very wet when first cut; I've had water literally pour out of some trees, but it seasons quickly. I actually like having some pine to mix in with my hardwoods: pine lights easily and burns quickly and hot, which is great when you have a big pile of coals in the stove.
 
brink said:
Ok, let's dispel a myth that I have been told. Is it really ok to burn PINE ? I just installed an Osburn 1800 insert and have been advised NOT to burn pine or cedar due to high creosote issues. I was advised NOT to burn it even in my open fireplace. Go figure, I have many, many dead red cedar and just cut a dead spruce down this past spring. Also have white pines 60 ft high. Please set me straight on this.........
Click to expand...

Can you say "Old wive's tale?" What do you think our Northern neighbors burn?
Anybody here from Alaska that's EVER seen an oak tree grow up there?
Prolly not...
 
JFK said:
Compliments of the wind storm last week, I have snagged a lot of free pine and spruce. 1) If I split it up sometime in the next month or so and put it in a very nice sunny, windy spot will it be ready for the fall or does pine take longer to season? 2) Plus any problems with the chimney when using pine. I am lucky to have hardwoods around here but I just could not pass up the free wood. Even though I got sap all over my clothes :)

Oh one more thing, how does hemlock burn?
Click to expand...


1) Yes, if not sooner

2) No.
 
JFK said:
Adios Pantalones said:
Pine seasons quickly- it should be fine in the fall. Hemlock has a lot of water when cut, but I think it dries pretty quickly.

"Oh one more thing, how does hemlock burn? "

Fire comes out of it. :)
Click to expand...

Can I split the rounds ASAP or should I wait? Waiting a bit for make it easier to split right. Thinking about renting a splitter for 65 dollars a day. Damn I want a splitter bad, just can't afford one right now
Click to expand...

I've split lots of Hemlock and green or dry seems to split about the same.
 
brink said:
Ok, let's dispel a myth that I have been told. Is it really ok to burn PINE ? I just installed an Osburn 1800 insert and have been advised NOT to burn pine or cedar due to high creosote issues. I was advised NOT to burn it even in my open fireplace. Go figure, I have many, many dead red cedar and just cut a dead spruce down this past spring. Also have white pines 60 ft high. Please set me straight on this.........
Click to expand...

I burn pine without a second thought.
 
brink said:
Ok, let's dispel a myth that I have been told. Is it really ok to burn PINE ? I just installed an Osburn 1800 insert and have been advised NOT to burn pine or cedar due to high creosote issues. I was advised NOT to burn it even in my open fireplace. Go figure, I have many, many dead red cedar and just cut a dead spruce down this past spring. Also have white pines 60 ft high. Please set me straight on this.........
Click to expand...

We would freeze without it.
 
Pine is fine, burns hot, but also burns fast.
I use it for cold starts & when the coals are low for a quick easy restart.
Neighbor gave me 1 cord in rounds, and have about 4 biguns up on the hill down, might even rot away before I git to em.
I don't need several cords of soft wood anyways.
 
brink said:
I have many, many dead red cedar and just cut a dead spruce down this past spring. Also have white pines 60 ft high. Please set me straight on this.........
Click to expand...

I know eastern cedars are different, but I'm not a huge fan of the western cedar. Don't get me wrong, I burn it when it's free, but it's just a little too light when seasoned. Great kindling, ok for warmer weather, but not my favorite. Still, I haven't yet met a wood I'd refuse. Don't waste perfectly burnable wood!
 
Actually I'm looking around right now for some pine. It's fine to burn as long as it's well seasoned and you can't find anything better to get your fires started with and also when those coals build up real bad.......just pull them forward under your air vents and lay a piece of nice dry pine on top of them........open the air all the way and watch it help dissolve and burn away some of that coal bed for you.
 
I am the self proclaimed "softwood spokesman". I advocate using stuff like pine, aspen, spruce and boxelder. When dry, the stuff lights with a match and is great for getting things nice n hot in the morning.

I was a believer of the whole "XXX wood will cause too much creosote" thanks to my fahter in law, who made it sound like if we burned pine or birch that our house would burn down, the irs would audit us, the police would come and sieze our cars and we would have to endure all eternity watching Barney on tv as a punishment for doing so.

I now know that is not true. At least I hope not...
 
To take a phrase from Field of Dreams and twist it around a bit.

If you can cut it, it will burn . . . providing you allow for adequate seasoning.
 
Dry hemlock burns like a demon. Pops and cracks worse than most.
I burn it along with fir and pine.

I love fir. I love splitting it, the smell, and it burns very nice.
 
As others have said if it is wood it will burn. I burn Pine and Hemlock. The Hemlock pops and cracks a lot. I can get all you can pile onto a full size truck bed for $10.00 a load from a local Amish sawmill. It is slab wood but great for instant heat and starting up.
 
Wow, this site is great. I have some dead red cedar trees that are almost 2 ft. at the trunk. And a very large pine tree that I have no idea what type it is. Doug Fir? Spruce? Hemlock? I need to search the web for pictures. Thanks to you I will cut these down and season for next winter.
 
brink said:
Wow, this site is great. I have some dead red cedar trees that are almost 2 ft. at the trunk. And a very large pine tree that I have no idea what type it is. Doug Fir? Spruce? Hemlock? I need to search the web for pictures. Thanks to you I will cut these down and season for next winter.
Click to expand...

Post a pic of the needles and you should get plenty of opinions . . . and some may even be right. :) ;)

Here's a website which is specific to Maine . . . but it might help you ID your local trees as well.

http://www.umext.maine.edu/mainetreeclub/MTC.htm
 
Last year we heated our house with pine slabs from the mill and had no problems. I would say 95% of the wood that I burned last year was white pine ,red pine and hemlock.
This year we have burned about 50% hard wood and pine. The pine slabs were very easy but the guy I was getting them from put in a wood boiler and uses them.
 
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