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The Natural Philosopher · 28-01-2008, 09:44 AM posted to uk.rec.gardening,uk.d-i-y

williams wrote:
"Skipweasel" wrote in message
.uk...
In article ,
says...
Having had some trees pruned I now have a pile of logs. Cut to length
but
will need splitting before I can burn them in the grate. I have Holly
and
Willow wood.

Don't burn it, turn it! Get a lathe and start making things.

--
Skipweasel.
Never knowingly understood.

I love the signature and approve of the sentiment above.

I'm a 65-year-old who has heated with wood for almost 30 years now.

A cord, in Michigan, is 4'x4'x8', cut and stacked. However, since stoves
and grates are always smaller than 4' wide, wood is usually cut to lengths
of 16" to 18" or so. We call these "face cords", and they measure
4'x8'x16"-18". Here, the term "cord" refers to the "face cord". My Hardy
Outdoor Wood Furnace takes a log 16" in diameter, 31" long, much to large
and heavy to load into the furnace safely.

We try to cut for our purposes 24" and split everything down to "wife-size"
pieces.

I live in a 40 acre Northern Hardwood Forest and burn everything, from Sugar
Maple, American Beech, White Ash, to Basswood, Hoppes Hornbeam, local Hybrid
Poplar, anything I can get my hands on. I think 10 acres would easily be a
large enough stand if properly managed to glean firewood to support a home
on a continuing basis.

I NEVER burn a piece of wood that will some day become a saw log or has any
other marginal use (ash poles for pruning hooks, for example, or Black
Cherry and Black Walnut that can be trimmed up and used in a wood shop), but
I do burn all larger brush that can't be used or turned on the lathe. By
brush I mean branches large enough to be worth my time. All other "brush"
goes into my 30-year-old brush piles, a haven for many species of wildlife
living in my woods.

I rely mostly on windfalls, and am permitted to cut in my neighbor's woods,
which are extensive, so I've left my little paradise largely untouched over
all these years.

I find the species are different in some ways. Maple should always be split
immediately after felling the tree. If you let it sit for a while it will
go "punk" as we say, rotten, or solidify into a brick-like mass that defies
the sharpest of saws and prove nearly impossible to split by hand. White
Ash, however, splits easily wet or dry. I attempt to split everything I cut
immediately and stack it so the air and sun will dry it. More surface area
the quicker it dries. I don't even cover my very large wood pile. The sun
and wind dry it even through rains and snows.

I've seen charts that list the heat and weight of various woods and quality
as firewood. Please Google for that, as it is informative as to species.

I split everything I need to with a 6-pound sledge hammer and heavy iron
wedges, and I also occasionally use a 7-pound splitting wedge. Anything
that resists the first attempt is put aside and cut into smaller pieces by
chainsaw.

Perhaps it's just my belief, but swinging those mauls and hammers are the
very best exercise imaginable. It opens up your shoulders and back, spine,
hips, and legs. There's not a muscle in the body that isn't benefited by
splitting wood.

Have at it.

Willow is junk. Don't burn any conifer, anything that stays green all
winter, as they are full of pitch and you'll have a chimney fire. Burn only
dry wood, hardwood, and you'll get the best heat for the pound or dollar.
Some species (White Ash) actually seem to burn hotter and longer green and
uncured than others (Maple and Beech). Of course, if the wood is green, it
is wet, and you lose a lot of heat burning that water off before you benefit
from the wood itself. Burning green wood is also a danger for chimney fires.

Safety first.

Good splitting to you.

I know this is a gardening group, and hope this is not off-topic.

Great post. I split dry maple, but next time I'll split it green.