When to uncover wood pile?

[BrotherBart]

Three inches of rain in the last 24 hours and a tornado took out 50 houses just south of here last night. Made for a long night around here. Raining now and will be for at least four days. If we didn't keep the stuff covered we would be trying to burn wet sponges in the winter. I envy folks that can let it bask in the sun.

 

[savageactor7]

Pretty sure I dismantled my wood tent (14'x35x7) sometime in late march. I've had quite a few fires since then many of the logs burned were surface wet but they burned fine. As was noted above as long as the wood is not wicking moisture from the ground it will be fine...my wood sits on a 5" pad of run a crush. I don't stack it neatly I just pile it up high and then using 4" saplings I make a walk through tent with tarps in the late late fall. btw not stacking saves me tons of time that's why I do it the way I do.

The only wood I worry about uncovered is the little bit of punky wood I sometimes use for shoulder season use. When I burn it it's as light as a feather but left uncovered it will soak up water like a sponge.

Why would I burn punky wood? Well if a tree falls in the woods and it's in my way so I can't drive over it I remove it. Once split and off the ground will dry up quickly and make a good campfire wood and save my good wood for the winter. We have a lot of campfires all year long and it use to kill me to see the kids use my good wood. So 20 years ago or so I made it routine to start cleaning up dead stuff I couldn't drive over and use it for camp fires. This practice has improved my woodlot too.

Also this same punky wood is perfect for those cold mornings when you know it'll be 65*+ by 1100 am and you want any fire out. Yeah I suppose there's a lot of bugs in that wood but when I burn it in the winter they're dormant anyway.

In short good wood seasons well exposed to all the elements because it has the chance to dry off during the mild months.

 

[begreen]

My pile always stays covered - but by covered I mean just the top layer, never the sides. I use a heavy tarp or preferably make the top cover out of bark, flipped over so the curved side is up and lay it down like roofing tiles. Works great regardless of the weather.

BB, good to hear you're ok, there have been some really nasty storms just south of you this spring.

 

[Jerry_NJ]

Ok, what is "punky wood"? I'd guess pine and cedar...I have a lot of that and other softwoods on my property and that results in some "free" wood each year, which I burn, at least to start the fire going. I never burn 24/7...so I have a start-up fire every time I have a fire, even if it is the next night, the fire is out all day long.

 

[WOODBUTCHER]

Ask 10 farmers how and when they start corn....and you'll get 10 differnet answers. My stack is always covered....morning shade...afternoon sun...... works good for me. If your wood is dry & seasoned by November......then your doing it right.


WoodButcher

 

[begreen]

Ok, what is "punky wood"? I'd guess pine and cedar...I have a lot of that and other softwoods on my property and that results in some "free" wood each year, which I burn, at least to start the fire going. I never burn 24/7...so I have a start-up fire every time I have a fire, even if it is the next night, the fire is out all day long.

Punky wood is not pine or cedar. It's any wood that has started to rot and become soft and spongy. Some wood, like alder, does this really quickly if not kept totally dry.

 

[WOODBUTCHER]

Ok, what is "punky wood"? I'd guess pine and cedar...I have a lot of that and other softwoods on my property and that results in some "free" wood each year, which I burn, at least to start the fire going. I never burn 24/7...so I have a start-up fire every time I have a fire, even if it is the next night, the fire is out all day long.

Punky wood is not pine or cedar. It's any wood that has started to rot and become soft and spongy. Some wood, like alder, does this really quickly if not kept totally dry.

I'll add that Red Maple punks out faster than any wood I've come across here in CT.

WoodButcher

 

[fossil]

Three inches of rain in the last 24 hours and a tornado took out 50 houses just south of here last night. Made for a long night around here. Raining now and will be for at least four days. If we didn't keep the stuff covered we would be trying to burn wet sponges in the winter. I envy folks that can let it bask in the sun.

Yeah, man...that's the Northern Virginia I remember (just left last August after 12 years in Fairfax). Our first winter there was '95-'96...3' of snow on the ground, shut down the whole area for a week...government, Metro, everything. Remember the "remnants" of hurricane Fran? Never seen rain like that before or since. Then there was hurricane Isabel. Glad you're OK. Rick

 

[BrotherBart]

Yeah, man...that's the Northern Virginia I remember (just left last August after 12 years in Fairfax). Our first winter there was '95-'96...3' of snow on the ground, shut down the whole area for a week...government, Metro, everything. Remember the "remnants" of hurricane Fran? Never seen rain like that before or since. Then there was hurricane Isabel. Glad you're OK. Rick

Isabel took out two 150 year old oak trees right off the edge of the front yard in 2003. Fortunately they fell the opposite direction from the house since it is just 40 feet to the edge of the yard. Ivan spawned a tornado that touched down in the woods in front of the house and twisted the tops out of thirty six trees thirteen feet off of the ground. Took out a huge oak 18 feet from the corner of the house. I have been cleaning up after that since 2004 and have a lot left to do.

The tornado last night was a generous 9 miles from us.

 

[savageactor7]

Yeah, to those interested punky wood is rotten wood it can be any kind of wood. Usually if a tree falls in the woods and left unattended for 4 years it will become punky. It's super light to the heft. Leave in on the ground though and it weights a ton from soaking up water plus it won't burn. It's not good for squat ...except for keeping my LP gas stove from kicking on.

 

[RedRanger]

Yeah, man...that's the Northern Virginia I remember (just left last August after 12 years in Fairfax). Our first winter there was '95-'96...3' of snow on the ground, shut down the whole area for a week...government, Metro, everything. Remember the "remnants" of hurricane Fran? Never seen rain like that before or since. Then there was hurricane Isabel. Glad you're OK. Rick

Isabel took out two 150 year old oak trees right off the edge of the front yard in 2003. Fortunately they fell the opposite direction from the house since it is just 40 feet to the edge of the yard. Ivan spawned a tornado that touched down in the woods in front of the house and twisted the tops out of thirty six trees thirteen feet off of the ground. Took out a huge oak 18 feet from the corner of the house. I have been cleaning up after that since 2004 and have a lot left to do.

The tornado last night was a generous 9 miles from us.

BB: that sh luck only lasts for so long--got your bunker built yet? ;-)

 

[gyrfalcon]

Wow lots of contrasting advice. I really wish i had one of the upside down U buildings thats really cool. I think what im going to do is put up a tarp but have it like a lean to. Then come the end of may ill uncover completely till October.

If you have a place under cover to store a few days' supply of wood or more, you do not need to cover your stacks. The water wetness dries out very quickly (er, as opposed to green wetness). I got some wood in the middle of last winter that had spent six months sitting in a big uncovered pile in the middle of a field, by then also thick with snow and ice, and had no problem with it. Indoors near the hearth, it dried out completely in one or two days. In my enclosed attached but unheated woodshed, it took 10 days or so. Make the top layer of your stacks with bark up, and you really shouldn't have any problem at all.

 

[jadm]

I love these topics! Such a variety of experience and I get to throw mine in too.

For starters I have only been burning wood since the winter of 2005. I knew nothing when I started and my learning curve was pretty jagged.

I did luck out though and firewood delivered in the summer was always fine by Oct. to burn except for last summer...

When I knew nothing I just piled it up in stacks in the back yard and left it. Last year I asked if I should be doing anything special and whom ever I asked recommended covering it so I did. I let the tarps hang over the sides and left about 2-3 feet open at the bottom...

This past winter my wood wasn't as dry as it had been in the past. Two factors - wood delivered was greener than had ever been delivered here before and my covering it.

So, when I ordered wood a couple of months ago I asked for seasoned wood and got it. (Had never had to specify that request before...) Now it is sitting in stacks. Some is covered but I have only covered the tops as is recommended here by a lot of people. Some is bare because I'm still scared to cover it because of my experience last year.....I think I am going to wait until the fall to cover it. But then again......I am still undecided and continue to read all of the input here and know I will simply learn from experience.....

 

[BrotherBart]

A little revisit to the subject. Two days ago we got three inches of rain. Since noon today we have gotten 2.56 inches and it is still falling at 1/2" an hour. Seven inches for the month and it is only the 11th and not midnight yet. Without cover my wood would be floating down the hill.

I am moving to Seattle to dry out a little.

 

[begreen]

LOL - Seattle average about 32-34" rain per year. Where we live is a microclimate averaging 17" per year. In this month, which is just 1/3 over, you've already had 40% of our total rainfall.

Maybe consider investing in snorkels .

 

[Robbie]

Think about it...........just a cover on top will keep the main part of rain off..........then the wind and sun can blow right through.....from top to bottom.

It will get dry, stay dry and be dry.........er........when ready to burn.

All your doing is covering the very top layer which keeps water from running all the way down and over every piece until it finally reaches the ground.

This is a no brainer to me...........my top layer of wood is popcorn dry after being covered 3 years.......no way it holds any moisture.

Simple: the sides are uncovered and my piles are 6 ft. high.......sun, wind and no rain.

Robbie

 

[BrotherBart]

LOL - Seattle average about 32-34" rain per year. Where we live is a microclimate averaging 17" per year. In this month, which is just 1/3 over, you've already had 40% of our total rainfall.

Maybe consider investing in snorkels .

I just checked and we are over 2.8 inches since noon and still pouring. 29.89 inches in the last year before an update for today. Look out Seattle we will catch ya by sunup.

 

[Todd]

Wow lots of contrasting advice. I really wish i had one of the upside down U buildings thats really cool. I think what im going to do is put up a tarp but have it like a lean to. Then come the end of may ill uncover completely till October.

Like this? This makes it easy to cover or uncover. 2x4's, connected to heavy duty black tarps with eye hooks. If I see a soaker on the way I roll the tarps over the piles. Otherwise I leave them rolled up til fall.

 

[Robbie]

Looks perfect, nice job.

Robbie