Split Size Opinions needed

[Caw]

If you like you can take tarps off in the summer months

I've actually been debating doing this. It will give me anxiety seeing it pouring rain on my beautiful wood in a summer rainstorm though.

 

[Wildflush]

I've actually been debating doing this. It will give me anxiety seeing it pouring rain on my beautiful wood in a summer rainstorm though.

Agree Caw that is why I have not done it yet 😂

 

[ericm979]

Summer rain is rare here, so I remove the tarps and covers for the season.

 

[KDubU]

All I really burn is red/white oak and some hickory. Those are gigantic. I would probably get 3 splits out of each of those. I like most of my wood fairly small though. 40% wood is not fun. Split small, criss cross stack in full sun and full wind.

Agreed. We have a lot of red oak here in ME and I split is small due to time it takes for a large piece to get to correct moisture. I’ll leave maple in larger pieces but it dries quicker than oak.

 

[Caw]

Agree Caw that is why I have not done it yet 😂

I'm pretty sure any rain would just re-evaporate in a day or two during the hot summer months. I just don't want to go through un-tarping and re-tarping more than I need to and keeping them covered year round has been working for me. I'd love to get my hands on some old rubber roofing but haven't found any yet.

I've been debating changing my whole setup to one big giant pallet area versus the racks. That may be on the agenda for the future we'll see. Level the ground with gravel and use pallets to make the shed. I can't afford to build a legit shed anytime soon but I could whip up a nice pallet building that would last a long time.

 

[Wildflush]

I'm pretty sure any rain would just re-evaporate in a day or two during the hot summer months. I just don't want to go through un-tarping and re-tarping more than I need to and keeping them covered year round has been working for me. I'd love to get my hands on some old rubber roofing but haven't found any yet.

I've been debating changing my whole setup to one big giant pallet area versus the racks. That may be on the agenda for the future we'll see. Level the ground with gravel and use pallets to make the shed. I can't afford to build a legit shed anytime soon but I could whip up a nice pallet building that would last a long time.

Rubber roofing would be great. So far I’m having good luck with the commercial tarps and para cord brick method. Easy to access the wood and just sling the cord back over the tarp. I do have one stack with 2 pallets together with one tarp. I built it higher in the middle to shed water off the tarp. Ends are exposed. Will have so much wood left over this season. I’m thinking I will only need to replace a cord.

 

[Caw]

Rubber roofing would be great. So far I’m having good luck with the commercial tarps and para cord brick method. Easy to access the wood and just sling the cord back over the tarp. I do have one stack with 2 pallets together with one tarp. I built it higher in the middle to shed water off the tarp. Ends are exposed. Will have so much wood left over this season. I’m thinking I will only need to replace a cord.

I think that method works well if it's not too windy. I get a lot of strong winds through my property so I use tarp ties to secure it well. I put 2x4s across the top under the tarps to give breathability and reduce the sharp edges.

Another thing I've considered is putting pallets on top of the stacks then tarping over the pallets. More airflow and a uniform surface to tarp. I've seen this method mentioned here with his success. I might give it a whirl on my next stack we'll see. Pallets are free and infinite. I just think it might look kind of ugly. Nicely strapped down tarps looks neat and tidy which keeps the wife happy. If I make the yard too "redneck-y" she isn't a fan lol.

 

[Wildflush]

Agree. My wife wants the stacks to looks neat. I have a long row along our concrete retaining wall next to our driveway so she wants it to look neat from the street. Have 2x4’s on top of bricks on the concrete walls that gets good airflow. Also have lots of sun. Never was concerned about just covering the top trapping moisture since the tarp is not hanging down the stacks. Sun drys the ends and sides are exposed. Air/wind blows through the stacks. If I get a 60 mph wind my method might not hold up but so far it’s worked well.

 

[Ashful]

Another thing I've considered is putting pallets on top of the stacks then tarping over the pallets. More airflow and a uniform surface to tarp. I've seen this method mentioned here with his success. I might give it a whirl on my next stack we'll see. Pallets are free and infinite. I just think it might look kind of ugly. Nicely strapped down tarps looks neat and tidy which keeps the wife happy. If I make the yard too "redneck-y" she isn't a fan lol.

Ashamed I never thought of doing this, myself. I had a bunch of spare 4" PVC drain pipe queued for a project that got furloughed, so I was using that, similar to your 2x4 method, before finally building my own sheds. But other than the work of hefting them up on top of 6 ft tall stacks, pallets seem like they'd be way better than drain pipe or 2x4's.

 

[Eman85]

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I've not bought any of these but I have seen them and they would make good wood covers.
I've left many stacks uncovered over the summer with no problems. Only problem I've had is not covering them early enough in the fall and getting leaves in there and then having it rain on them. The wood dries fine if there is air, leaves hold the moisture and cause rot if left.

 

[blades]

I have been using the billboard type tarps for a number of years, they last pretty well. Now days the billboard tarps that are being used are about half as thick as days of gone past 9 oz vs close to 20 oz. The industry of billboards is changing to that of digital units. cost is still partly based on size /location but now it is like radio and TV advertising, with time slots and repetition numbers. I always seem to get caught off guard by mother nature in the fall though. I have found that cross stacking is the best for drying , straight stacking just doesn't have the air flow like cross. I am out in farm country of WI. wind blows rain dang near horizontal, snow too. I just pulled a cord in from the stacks interesting to note that the ground under the stacks From about 6" on in was as dry as a bone ( stacks are top covered) vs out side the stacks where I was slip sliding in 1-2" mud last week. We are in yo-yo season as I call it, it can hit 40 above one day and be -10 the next.

 

[Garbanzo62]

This dead standing ash came down last week. Bucked it up on Sunday and had the boys pull it out of the ravine. Split a couple of the larger Limb pieces and they are coming in between 24 and 26%. I'll split these a bit smaller than before.