For those of you who burn wood

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15 December 2022, 22:05

Aspen Hill Adventures

For those of you who burn wood

Yep, winter is here and so is the need to stay warm. I thought this chart was interesting but it is not complete. Hickory, for one, is not listed. I have read it fits between white oak and dogwood.

I primarily burn oak and hickory but also several other species. My wood stove is working as I write this.

16 December 2022, 04:15

Bear Cat

Hi Ann
Nice chart ,
I burn mostly maple , red oak , and a mixture of others , but my favorite for maximum output is locust.... burns very hot ..
Bob

16 December 2022, 09:47

Norman Conquest

Here in the Texas Hill Country, we have beau coup of "cedars" Western junipers. They burn hot + fast + also leave a load of creosote in the stack, so oak is preferable. But if you want to heat the place up in a hurry, cedar will do.

16 December 2022, 19:05

Aspen Hill Adventures

Cedar/juniper are good for getting a fire going but it does not make the coals you need for sustained warmth like hardwoods.

I've been logging as is normal for this time of the year for me. I came across a pile of cedars I cut down in 2018 and cut the logs, still real nice inside so I will bring some up to the house.

I primarily burn oak and hickory as that is what our forests are here.

16 December 2022, 23:31

p dog shooter

Red oak and maple for 95 percent of the time.

With a few others mixed in.

17 December 2022, 09:42

Norman Conquest

In the 70s, I had a friend that let me cut in his pecan bottom. I did it, of course, but I never had the heart to use it for firewood as it was so good for smoking/cooking.

18 December 2022, 06:10

Grizzly Adams1

You burn what you have, here it's mostly spruce ,pine , fir, with some poplars, maybe birch and if you burn it wisely, work well. I have access to to the evergreens and poplar from my property, keeping me warm as I type.

My BIL was out from Ontario, where they have all those high density hardwoods for an elk hunt and started whining about the quality of what was going into the tent stove. I handed him the axe and told him to find us some oak and maple if he cared so much

Grizz

When the horse has been eliminated, human life may be extended an average of five or more years.
James R. Doolitle

I think they've been misunderstood. Timothy Tredwell

18 December 2022, 15:55

p dog shooter

quote:
I handed him the axe and told him to find us some oak and maple if he cared so much

A proper solution.

The best fire wood is free fire wood.

12 February 2023, 19:00

theback40

I wonder what they used for maple, in the chart shown.
Maybe silver maple or some such. Hard maple/sugar maple/rock maple, all the same tree, has more BTU's than beech.

12 February 2023, 19:11

Aspen Hill Adventures

quote:
Originally posted by theback40:
I wonder what they used for maple, in the chart shown.
Maybe silver maple or some such. Hard maple/sugar maple/rock maple, all the same tree, has more BTU's than beech.

The list needs to be more specific and complete. I am still amazed it doesn't have hickory on it. I would assume the maple is the soft species?

13 February 2023, 09:53

Norman Conquest

I just finished an article in the new edition of "Sporting Classics" that told of a heavenly cabin in the woods + a duck blind on the East Coast, + then the horror of how, years later, the cabin was leased out to a city fellow, who had no interest in hunting, etc. + used all the hand carved duck decoys for firewood. I have no personal involvement in that place, but it still makes me sick.

13 February 2023, 10:03

Norman Conquest

Down here in central Texas, we have an overabundance of cedar (western juniper). It is not a choice to stove fire wood. It does burn got + fast, but the coals will not make it through the night. Oak is required.
besides, the cedars sap is totally kerosene + one's flue gets coated with the residue.One gets religious about either replacing or cleaning out your stovepipes every season.

13 February 2023, 19:24

Aspen Hill Adventures

I've been doing a lot of cutting this winter. Did a bunch of hickory and ash yesterday and will bring that up to the house today to split and stack. I'm clearing along my southeast fence line. There is a big honeylocust slated for culling too. The thorn clusters on that thing are massive.

14 February 2023, 09:48

gsganzer

So does the chart represent BTU's per volume or weight? I've always suspected, with the exception of woods that have a volatile oil such as cedar and eucalyptus, that on a LB/BTU basis, most wood is similar in BTU's.

Does anyone know?

14 February 2023, 09:53

gsganzer

quote:
Originally posted by gsganzer:
So does the chart represent BTU's per volume or weight? I've always suspected, with the exception of woods that have a volatile oil such as cedar and eucalyptus, that on a LB/BTU basis, most wood is similar in BTU's.

In a sense, that list almost classifies them by weight. Oak is certainly denser than pine.

Does anyone know?