Taking home wood tonight.

[pyper]

My friend just had a big ol' pecan tree taken down. The trunk is about 2 feet across, so there's a good bit of wood. We watched the guys work and it was pretty amazing. The wood looks really good. We were surprised there wasn't a lot more rot. I've got my saw, so I'm ready to take off work a little early and start cutting.

Time to get that Fiskars super splitter.

I don't know where I'm going to put it all. There's probably a full cord.

 

[Wood Duck]

Pecan is actually a hickory, so I'd expect it to have some nice, dense hardwood. A cord of pecan should be enough for a couple of winters in the deep south.

 

[ISeeDeadBTUs]

How long does a cord last in the Deep South? :wow:

 

[ISeeDeadBTUs]

Damn that Duck is fast!!

 

[pyper]

How long does a cord last in the Deep South? :wow:

Probably half a life-time ;-)

We got the stove in late December, and we had the longest, coldest winter in many years. My wood pile of seasoned pear (which burns pretty hot), was about 40 inches high and six feet wide -- single row of splits and small rounds. There's still a little of that left, but I had some other pieces that I've burnt.

I don't know how long the pecan will take to season, but I've got most of a small siver maple that I cut a year and a half ago that might be enough for next winter.

Including the four small dead or dying random trees I took down near my shed I ought to have at least 5 years of heat.

And then there's a giant water oak growing about six feet from the house with a rotting middle section. We don't want to cut it down because it provides a lot of shade in the summer, but we don't want it to fall on the house, either. I've got about 30 feet of chain in it now, which will hopefully prevent it from splitting low.

 

[ChillyGator]

Pecan is actually a hickory, so I'd expect it to have some nice, dense hardwood. A cord of pecan should be enough for a couple of winters in the deep south.

Well I'm about as deep in the south as you can get and not be surrounded by YANKEES! Florida is the only state that you have to go north to get south! but I digress........... ;-P

YTD I've burned through 3/4 of a cord of water oak in my itty bitty 7110. My father who heats only with his older Sierra has run through about 1.25 cords of the same. We did get two solid weeks of below freezing temps at night which is very unusual for us, typically we have 2-3 days of cold then a warm up. Several people I've talked with that heat with only electricity have seen their bills double from December.

Lots of Pecan around here and I plan on cutting some this weekend!

 

[blades]

1 to 2 years to season it

 

[ISeeDeadBTUs]

Well I'm about as deep in the south as you can get and not be surrounded by YANKEES! Florida is the only state that you have to go north to get south! but I digress........... ;-P

TFF! I've never heard that before! Even funnier than watchin a Southerner try to drive after 1" of snow :ahhh:

We prolly got peeps with OWB here that have burned more during the current 7 days than you guys burn in 2 or 3 seasons!!

 

[ChillyGator]

Well I'm about as deep in the south as you can get and not be surrounded by YANKEES! Florida is the only state that you have to go north to get south! but I digress........... ;-P

TFF! I've never heard that before! Even funnier than watchin a Southerner try to drive after 1" of snow :ahhh:

We prolly got peeps with OWB here that have burned more during the current 7 days than you guys burn in 2 or 3 seasons!!

I'll let you in on a secret....it doesn't take 1"......we had an ice/snow storm about 10 years back and I was riding around with my friend who proceeded to run off in the ditch turning into his driveway 3 TIMES IN ONE HOUR! I was LMAO each time!

 

[pyper]

I don't think my wife has ever driven in snow. I grew up in Kansas and learned to drive in the snow with the biggest Ford that was ever made with no power anything. Went up to Canada a few years back and got there just in time for the first real snow. I had a Pontiac G6 rental, and it was great in the snow. FWD, limited slip, antilock brakes. It handled in snow better than that old Ford handled in the dry. Wife was still scared about having snow on the ground :roll:

Anyway, we don't burn as much wood as we could, for two reasons.

First, we're both gone during the day, so 5 days a week there's only *potentially* a fire in the evening. Last night it was 54 outside, so we didn't need any heat at all. The night before it was a bit cooler and I made a small fire for a few hours.

Second, our house has a very poor layout for heating with a stove. When we had that cold snap a few weeks back (got down to 15°F for a few nights which is as bad as it gets) it was no trouble heating the living room to over 90°F, while the back of the house was in the low 50's.

 

[Jags]

We got the stove in late December, and we had the longest, coldest winter in many years. My wood pile of seasoned pear (which burns pretty hot), was about 40 inches high and six feet wide -- single row of splits and small rounds. There's still a little of that left, but I had some other pieces that I've burnt.

Did I do my math right? Is that just about 30 cuft at 18" lengths? (that doesn't sound right) Since December. Boy do I wish I had your problem.

 

[Captain Hornet]

My Son has a bunch of large old Pecan trees on his property that were there when he bought the place about ten years ago. The Pecans are in rows so I know they were planted there. They might be 100 years old because they are real tall and over three foot through the trunk. There are several varieties and the one I like the best is a paper shell. It has the most tasty nuts , they are around three inches long and as round as your thumb. All the trees have super nuts, some are just different than others. Every year I get fifteen gallons of nuts. I could get more but I wouldn't know what to do with them all. I consider these Pecans and nuts to be Gods gift to man and it's a crime to cut one of these wonderful trees. David

 

[ChillyGator]

My Son has a bunch of large old Pecan trees on his property that were there when he bought the place about ten years ago. The Pecans are in rows so I know they were planted there. They might be 100 years old because they are real tall and over three foot through the trunk. There are several varieties and the one I like the best is a paper shell. It has the most tasty nuts , they are around three inches long and as round as your thumb. All the trees have super nuts, some are just different than others. Every year I get fifteen gallons of nuts. I could get more but I wouldn't know what to do with them all. I consider these Pecans and nuts to be Gods gift to man and it's a crime to cut one of these wonderful trees. David

Quilty as Charged......especially if I was CHILLY........however, my friend has enough wood hitting the ground that I'll never have to cut down a live tree to get Pecan to burn. 240 acres of 60+ year old mixed varieties. He picks up wood by the trailer load each year to get ready to harvest. Had a terrible blowdown three years ago...lost over a hundred trees. None turned into cordwood and nobody wanted it for lumber >:-(
Those were some BIG burn piles and I didn't yet know I was buying a stove :shut:

ps: do I get charged for cutting Water Oaks also?

 

[pyper]

I consider these Pecans and nuts to be Gods gift to man and it's a crime to cut one of these wonderful trees. David

My friend and I both agree, but he decided it would be a greater crime to let the ice we're supposed to get tonight drop that 8" limb onto the next door neighbor lady's house, where it would do thousands of dollars of damage and perhaps cause an injury -- especially since it seemed to be "aimed" at the chimney. The same tree had already lost a smaller limb onto the neighbor's house. And unfortunately, since it's in the city, there's nothing to prey on the squirrels, so they get 100% of the nuts.

Anyway, I got a small truck bed full tonight, and there ought to be at least 5 more. It's going to be a challenge to cut up the 24" trunk with my 16" saw.