Who is cutting wood?

[splitinbend]

I spent some time late last night hand splitting the last of seasoned hardwood that we have at home before this storm. Manzanita is the most satisfying wood to hamd split that I've encountered. The stuff shatters in a single axe strike.

I did the same thing except spongy beetle bored wood does not split with one swing, nor two but many swings. Fuck beetle wood.

[glademaster]

I weep for some of your neighbors given that a few of you are splitting wood now to burn this winter, your chimneys must look like the crematorium at Treblinka. Wood needs to be stacked 2+ years after being split to burn properly, the only exceptions being dead standing ash and lodgepole. Dead and on the ground needs at least 18 months CSS to be good to go.

[Grange]

I weep for some of your neighbors given that a few of you are splitting wood now to burn this winter, your chimneys must look like the crematorium at Treblinka. Wood needs to be stacked 2+ years after being split to burn properly, the only exceptions being dead standing ash and lodgepole. Dead and on the ground needs at least 18 months CSS to be good to go.

I cut most of my wood that I burn in winter in the fall and my chimney is quite clean. I sweep it every other year and do not get much build up. I burn wood just about every night for about 4 or more hours a night. I only cut dead wood that is dry. Standing oak, hard maple, or beech if I can find it with bark falling off is what I target, but have no problem taking dry wood laying on the ground. I cut a face cord yesterday and it could be burned this month if I wanted though by the time I get to it will be probably sometime in February or March.

[splitinbend]

I weep for some of your neighbors given that a few of you are splitting wood now to burn this winter, your chimneys must look like the crematorium at Treblinka. Wood needs to be stacked 2+ years after being split to burn properly, the only exceptions being dead standing ash and lodgepole. Dead and on the ground needs at least 18 months CSS to be good to go.

5 year dead standing lodgepole seems like enough time for me.

[DougW]

The idea of using wood from this fall for this winter is crazy to me but its been raining for 3 weeks and there was snow over night. If dead at least a couple of years and not on ground ( held up by branches) cut up early summer should be fine for that winter if something like Aspen or lodgepole. I would like to see green wood season two full summers under cover but I have 3 years worth of wood under cover right now. The trees I cut down this spring ( green) won't be burnt till 2018/19.

[Game Over]

I'm still cutting and splitting but kinda over burning. The idea is selling the $800 worth of wood (4 cords) we usually go thru should cover the extra heating costs and get rid of a lot of mess and time associated with burning.

[bodywhomper]

It was firewood day today at a local land trust preserve. A beautiful day in a large oak woodland. Lots of dead downed trees ready for limbing, bucking, and loading. There was also a mild off-roading element including a creek crossing that my trailer seemed to float across. good stuff!

I bought a moisture meter and am pretty stoked. A lot of the hardwood that I had not thought would be ready until next year is actually ready to burn now. This is a pretty big relief; I was starting to scramble and was starting to swallow the idea of buying overpriced rounds.

[~mikey b]

If a tree falls in the forest and glademaster doesn't hear it, is it ready to burn?

[LightRanger]

A lot of the hardwood that I had not thought would be ready until next year is actually ready to burn now. This is a pretty big relief; I was starting to scramble and was starting to swallow the idea of buying overpriced rounds.

Word. Gonna need some fuel this week...

[~mikey b]

Yeah it will be cold for a few days.

[Flyoverland Captive]

Anybody burning juniper? Looks like a bitch to split, but it's cheaper than fir or tamarack...

[Flyoverland Captive]

Anybody burning juniper? Looks like a bitch to split, but it's cheaper than fir or tamarack...

[Meadow Skipper]

If a tree falls in the forest and glademaster doesn't hear it, is it ready to burn?

Heh.

Anybody burning juniper? Looks like a bitch to split, but it's cheaper than fir or tamarack...

It might be a different juniper here in New Mexico, but it makes for great kindling - it burns fast, but very clean and smells good. I use piñon for the longer burn.

[stfu&gbtw]

Today is the very last day of wood pile for '15 here. Just bought my stash of oak and will stack it today. 7 cords of pine are done. 7x14 stacks, 18"-20", 6 rows deep. We're already halfway through the first row. It was an especially good haul this year, nearly all standing dead lodgepole.

Re: aging... It's so climate and species dependent. Back home, just about any kind of wood took years to cure. Of course, that was all hard wood, at sea level, in 80% humidity and rain half the time. Up here, north/central CO, 9600', low humidity, blazing sun, and cutting multi year old standing dead beetle kill, even if I do find any moisture, you can actually hear the wood cracking and popping as it's drying in the sun. I should have taken some pics this year... Our first haul was fairly green (not sdbk). I split and stacked it in June, and it could have caught fire if you held a match to it by the end of October. Still went in the back of the shed though. We'll burn that in April/May...

[splitinbend]

I too am complete with the wood pile for the winter.

[sb]

commencing to burn wood, ahhhhhh

[gretch6364]

So I am late to the party...just bought a house with a great wood burning stove in the basement. It is a cast iron side loading deal...really nice stove. We move in 12/5. Needless to say, I didn't cut any fire wood...not knowing we would be getting the house for sure and with no place to store it before hand.

What's my best option for buying some wood in the Denver area? I have a pickup, a saw with a 20" bar....but the snow is covering the free wood in the mountains now...don't need a ton, but every bit helps...thanks for any info!

[Cruiser]

I buy my wood from a dude on Federal near Evans. He's a terrible old curmudgeon but I kind of dig that about him. Name's Ed. Give him a call after 4pm cuz he has a real job and does firewood on the side. He's got great wood that's split and seasoned and you can choose whatever type (different hard woods) and amount you want. I gotta give him a holler myself cuz we just had our first fire of the season a couple of nights ago.

Ed: http://denver.craigslist.org/for/5273571876.html

In related news an arborist guy I know dropped off a bunch of big pieces of honey locust a couple of weeks ago. Man was that shit dense. Cutting it down into manageable rounds with my ace hardware electric chainsaw and then splitting it by hand was a chore for sure (cuz I'm a sissy). Gonna make some killer firewood for next year though. And considering what the local firewood guys charge for black locust and honey locust it was totally worth the effort.

[stfu&gbtw]

I've been buying oak at Santa Fe Sand, on SF, north of County Line, for a few years now. It' a pain to get there from here, but they're super easy to work with, and have high quality wood, properly seasoned and consistent pieces, very low percentage of odds and ends. Roll in with your truck and they'll drop a pallet (1/2 cord) or two in the back. Whole stop takes 15 minutes. Or you can load by hand. They have a variety of other wood as well, although I've never bought any.

[stfu&gbtw]

A few pics of this year's collection...

[DougW]

commencing to burn wood, ahhhhhh

I've been burning for a month. This morning it was -15C or pretty close to 0 F. Hard to start diesels this morning.

[Buster Highmen]

Finished the pile of rounds we had and after stacking it's just over 2.5 cords.

All hand split.

Thankfully I could call on the stacking crew to help queue up the rounds on the block, fill the wheelbarrow and stack in the woodshed.

I've got another pile of logs I'll buck up into another pile of rounds so I can get the wood cribs full to bring it up to 3 cords. That will get us set for the winter.

It's been 20F at night here, 40+ during the day but the wood fire is essential in keeping the house @ 70F.

[Grange]

I started burning wood the day after Thanksgiving. I've got 4.5 pick up loads split and stacked so I should be pretty good for this winter.

[Ripzalot]

has this been posted? not gonna read 19 pages of chopping wood but this looks smart:

[stfu&gbtw]

^ everybody looks like a genius splitting straight knotless wood.