Permsteading.com

How's everybody doing on firewood for this winter?

I've been splitting like crazy since.... well, I don't think I ever stopped. My goal was to get my shed filled to brim and I'm almost there but since I'm starting to burn a little I don't know if I'll get much more progress made.

A wise man visited me last year and suggested that I stack my wood in criss-crosses instead of just throwing it in a pile and this has turned out to be a good suggestion. I've got the shed stacked floor to ceiling, back to almost front. If I remember correctly, I think my shed measures 12' wide by 14' long by 8' high. The ground follows the same slope as the roof line inside so it's essentially a box. If I've done my math correctly then I should have over 9 cords when its full. It's stacked up into the rafters in the back and center, so I might be close.

That is a whole lot of wood! I'm so behind. Despite my good intentions and all the big talk last year, I'm only at a little over three cords fully processed. I've probably got three more at least on the ground that is in rounds, but I'm not going to get any more done until mid October with all the stuff I've got going on. I'll make it, my soft wood dries quickly once it's put up, but I really, really wanted to do better this year. Ugh, there's always next year. You are hard to keep up with!

To RJ Dudley.... " My wife kept asking me "Why do you keep building fires? It's unbearable in here!?" And all that I could say was "But, but, the bench is like 65˚"
It's now 44˚ outside, my house is almost 80˚ and that frickin' bench is barely warm to the touch!!!!!!!!!!!!!! " I don't know what your setup is , but what if you insulated the inside of your barrel with some ceramic fiber....sending more heat down stream. Just realized....post is about a year old....

Enjoy...

Beech wood fires are bright and clear,
If the logs are kept a year.
Chestnut's only good, they say,
If for long it's laid away.
Birch and pine logs burn too fast,
Blaze up bright and do not last.
Elm wood burns like a church yard mold,
Ev'n the very flames are cold.
Poplar gives a bitter smoke,
Fills your eyes and makes you choke.
Apple wood will scent your room,
With incense like perfume.
Oak and maple, if dry and old,
Keep away the winter cold.
But ash wood wet and ash wood dry,
A king shall warm his slippers by.
Anonymous

Nifty! A quick "Google" brought up a longer (original?) version:

http://allpoetry.com/The-Firewood-Poem

Thank goodness for the emerald ash borer.

I've never burned ash but will be adding it to my pile over the next few years. I can't wait to try it out.

Locust is about the heaviest slowed burning desist wood you can burn. It does take awhile to dry properly though. If your wood is split it will dry quicker. Six months min for some types of fire wood, a year is better for most types. Try and get your self 2 years ahead and you will always have a good supply of dry fire wood. I know, I know, that is a lot of work. But that is your goal. Get some split fire wood set aside and keep working on your pile until you are a year ahead. Then you can just keep cutting enough for a year this summer and burn what you set aside last year for this years burning. It only takes a lot of work one year, then you are set for the future.

Goats really are jerks. Aside from that Drew, they say that oak takes 3 years to dry, and I would guess locust is in that category. That's the goal, reality is that we often have to burn what we have, but I would guess that you will want to try to set that aside for next season if you possibly can. Great score though man! Nice work.

These self-assembling firewood racks are very convenient-