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1:24 pm
April 20, 2010
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Dean
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I have several elm trees is my yard that I want to have cut down and cut
into firewood. If I cut them this spring will they be dry enough to
burn by fall? I read on this website that it can take a whole summer to
dry but I have also been told that it takes a full year for wood to dry.
How long does it really take?
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1:28 pm
April 20, 2010
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admin
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Post edited 3:24 pm – February 11, 2013 by admin
It all depends on your drying conditions. In some conditions it can take
a full year but in ideal conditions a full summer or most of a summer
is plenty of time. There are several things that can determine how fast
it dries. If it's split it will dry faster than unsplit rounds. The
smaller the pieces the faster it will dry. In a hot dry climate it will
dry faster than a cool or humid climate. If you leave it out in the sun
it will dry fast but if it's in the shade it will dry much slower. Also
stacking can help air circulation and help it dry faster.
I have
cut and split wood in early August and after sitting in the sun it was
dry enough to burn fine by fall. It may not be fully seasoned but
seasoned enough to burn just fine. The pieces on the bottom of the pile
where they don't get the sun would still be green though.
You
can find more tips here storing and drying firewood
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1:30 pm
April 20, 2010
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mtnman
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One trick that I used to use in a fairly dry climate was to wet down the
wood real good right after it was split seemed to half the drying time.
My guess as to why it would dry so much faster after doing that is that
it would help thin the sap and allow it to evaporate faster. I now live
in a very damp area and dont do firewood for a living anymore and the
hoseing down trick certainly does not work here in humboltd county
calif.
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1:32 pm
April 20, 2010
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James
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I never tried the sprinkler on wood but I have noticed the same thing
when I leave wood out in the rain for a while it dries faster. I don't
know why but it does make a difference. Thinning the sap like you say
makes sense to me or maybe it keeps the pores open more?
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1:33 pm
April 20, 2010
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treetopper
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i live in a modert dry to wet in valley of ore i got a good sunny spot
were sun shine all day i stack wood on pellet and loose cover with black
plastic so air can move freely around but plastic adds more heat
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1:34 pm
April 20, 2010
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James
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I have wondered if using plastic to hold in heat would help firewood dry
faster but I never tried it. I think the key there would be to have it
so the air can flow although that would probably take away some of the
heat. I know there are solar lumber dryers and the ones I saw are just
like a green house covered with plastic so I don't see why it wouldn't
help firewood dry faster too. I think they have fans to keep the air
circulating.
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1:36 pm
April 20, 2010
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firebowls
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Usually 6 mos. but better if you wait before the sap rises, cut them in
the winter time is best.
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4:48 pm
September 19, 2010
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I_Have_Wood
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What about standing dead? I found someone who wants to sell me some cedar cut from an area that burned more than a year ago. It's a super arid area (Central Utah), and the fire went through at least a year ago, though I think it's been 2 or more. The fire killed the trees, but didn't burn much other than the foilage.
They're just cutting and splitting it on site, then delivering it. So if I buy it, it will have only been cut for a day or two, though it's been dead for at least a year, probably more.
Will it cure in a couple of years while standing? Or would we need to cut and split it before it would be safe to burn it?
I'll be using it in a small wood/coal burning stove in a wall tent during our hunts, so I want it to burn hot, but I'd also like to avoid unnecessary sparking to protect the tent from embers leaving the flue (I've got a spark arrestor in place, but I've dropped enough $ on this tent that I'm probably being a little over-cautious). I'd also like to avoid a chimney fire, of course.
Any insight you can give would be appreciated.
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7:55 pm
September 19, 2010
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admin
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Some of the driest wood can come from standing dead trees. If the trees are big they may still be wet inside, especially in a more damp climate. But in an arid climate like yours and being at the end of summer I would expect 2 year old standing dead cedar to be very dry and burnable. I cut some standing dead cedar in Oregon earlier this summer and it was bone dry.
I would guess it is incese cedar and if you are concerned about sparks it's not the best choice of wood since it can spark and throw hot coals around as it burns. But other than that, cedar burns great.
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9:26 pm
October 6, 2011
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BuddhaKat
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It's sort of like asking how long will it take for a glass of water to evaporate. The answer is, it depends. It depends on the type of wood, when it was cut (or died), whether it's split, the temprature and humidity. Here in Reno I can cut a live pine tree in July and it's ready to burn in Oct. We're pretty dry here and the summers can get pretty hot.
As far as wetting the pile down with water to promote drying, I really don't know if that would work or not, but it sounds reasonable to me. I find I'm always having to explain to my customers that there's a difference between green wood and water wet wood. It only takes a day or two at most for water wet wood to dry out enough to light. I'm burning some right now that was snowed and rained on yesterday and today. We even got some snow. We brought it into the house for about 5 hours ago and it started up just fine. I'm one of those people that uses diesel and no kindling. I could hear the remaining water in the wood hissing a little, but the ever increasing temperature dried the wood out in no time. The stove is nice and toasty warm.
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