Some swear their wood is dry....

[begreen]

Eh, it's a quick pick off google. You make a good point. Looking at the pic there isn't much cracking. A lot of the bark has lifted though. I'd bet the weathered wood is drier than the other pic of fresh wood. The real question in the weathered pic is bark up or bark down. All but 2 of his/her splits are bark is up.

Matt

My impression was the same. Grey wood = weathering, but I see little amount of checking which is a better sign of dryness. I have a stack of madrona that is all grey on the ends but I know it is still too young to burn.

 

[Wade A.]

<sigh> These Yankees and their "two years" to dry mantra.

Here in the Heart of Dixie, we like to remind y'all it depends on what climate you're living in. One Alabama summer does quite a nice job of it, I can tell you.

 

[ScotO]

<sigh> These Yankees and their "two years" to dry mantra.

Here in the Heart of Dixie, we like to remind y'all it depends on what climate you're living in. One Alabama summer does quite a nice job of it, I can tell you.

Even if I lived in Puerto Rico, I'd be letting my oak season two to three. if nothing else, it'll be GUARANTEED to be bone friggin dry......plus it give me an excuse to go out and keep a-gittin wood!@!

 

[oldspark]

Been burning Oak that looks like hogs for 30 years, I can get it dry enough to burn in one summer but its always at least 2 years before I burn it and some times longer, and yes I did check it with a MM and it was OL when I cut it and right at 20% that fall and it burnt with out any sizzling, this was a test to prove I could do it.

 

[Bub381]

The main burning problems here are not knowing seasoned wood from wet.My buddy uses the wet wood burns longer.lol Clean your chimney pal, which he says has no creosote.That's BS

 

[Paulywalnut]

No usually when the wood is truly dry the cracks will re close though you can see sliver traces of where they where.

Pete

Anybody that thinks burning dry wood is easy should log onto Hearth forums. That'll show em!

 

[weatherguy]

Hog, why didnt you post this my first year, I thought one year seasoning was fine, and it was for everything but the oak and I had quite a bit of it, had to pick it out and put it aside for the future, took me a while to get three years ahead but it can be done, spent a lot of time scrounging and when I saw some good deals on split wood I picked a little of that up too. Now its just fill the empty bins when they're available.

 

[Hogwildz]

Hog, why didnt you post this my first year, I thought one year seasoning was fine, and it was for everything but the oak and I had quite a bit of it, had to pick it out and put it aside for the future, took me a while to get three years ahead but it can be done, spent a lot of time scrounging and when I saw some good deals on split wood I picked a little of that up too. Now its just fill the empty bins when they're available.

Better late then never. Keep filling those blank spaces up!

 

[oldspark]

Even if I lived in Puerto Rico, I'd be letting my oak season two to three. if nothing else, it'll be GUARANTEED to be bone friggin dry......plus it give me an excuse to go out and keep a-gittin wood!@!

So you dont trust your knowledge of wood burning and testing the wood with a MM and a test burn, thats not good, burning wood is all about knowing what you are doing. The people who have problems dont have a clue.

 

[ScotO]

So you dont trust your knowledge of wood burning and testing the wood with a MM and a test burn, thats not good, burning wood is all about knowing what you are doing. The people who have problems dont have a clue.

I don't even own a moisture meter....I'm old skool all the way, Sparky!

 

[oldspark]

I don't even own a moisture meter....I'm old skool all the way, Sparky!

That's fine scotty, I only use mine as a toy, better to do a test burn any way, no point in guessing. Here in Iowa it does not take 3 years to cure oak that has been dead. YRMV and it seems like many forget that point, and for the checking on the ends of the wood, that is from rapid drying and tells you little in terms of how ready the wood is.

 

[ScotO]

That's fine scotty, I only use mine as a toy, better to do a test burn any way, no point in guessing. Here in Iowa it does not take 3 years to cure oak that has been dead. YRMV and it seems like many forget that point, and for the checking on the ends of the wood, that is from rapid drying and tells you little in terms of how ready the wood is.

I can guarantee you here in central PA, it takes every bit of two years, better three, to get green oak at the ideal moisture level. We have tons of rain it seems, anymore. And the humidity in summer is crazy. Ive had some standing dead that was ready in a year or so, but they were exceptions to the rule. They had been dead since the late 80's from the gypsy moth, all the bark and sapwood was long gone, and they were nearly dry with the exception of the lower trunk.....

Anyway, I put myself 3 to 4 years ahead so I'm good to go either way.....

 

[firefighterjake]

The main burning problems here are not knowing seasoned wood from wet.My buddy uses the wet wood burns longer.lol Clean your chimney pal, which he says has no creosote.That's BS

Well no creosote after he has a chimney fire and it burns it all out.

 

[Jack Fate]

Gee thanks a lot Hodwildz,I got a Large twin oak that looks like that on the outside just under the bark. I wrote it off as rotted but maybe there may be some gold in there. I get dead branches that look like the center of that log you got there .Those branches are some of the best wood there is .My wife & I refer to it as petrified wood

So now I got to drop that Big sucker just to see if there's anything good to be had

Cheers

 

[Bub381]

10-4 Jake,ya can't teach an old dog new tricks is true.