What's the most interesting woods to look at in a fireplace?
 

Meaning, either crackly, or different flame colors, or (i've seen at
some point) very bright white embers burning in the draft.

What's the most interesting woods to look at in a fireplace?
 

dean wrote:
Meaning, either crackly, or different flame colors, or (i've seen at
some point) very bright white embers burning in the draft.


Hmmm, that is an interesting question. I have found a few that were
interesting, although maybe not the best wood to burn. Sasafras tends to
pop and sort of mini-explode sending small pieces of hot embers across
the room. It is lively and can be loud, but it could be a fire hazard I
would guess. Wild Cherry tends to sparkle a lot, almost like a 4th of
July sparkler when the fire is adjusted or moved with the poker.

A well dried oak (I burn white oak most often) can create a very hot
fire with a lot of blue in the flame.

Rob
NE PA USA

What's the most interesting woods to look at in a fireplace?
 

In article .com,
says...
Meaning, either crackly, or different flame colors, or (i've seen at
some point) very bright white embers burning in the draft.

Not the best for any metal flue or damper, but driftwood taken from
sal****er tends to have multiple colors because of the salt.

--
is Joshua Putnam
http://www.phred.org/~josh/
Updated Bicycle Touring Books List:
http://www.phred.org/~josh/bike/tourbooks.html

What's the most interesting woods to look at in a fireplace?
 

Cedar is really nice I used to use it to get my oak burning. Cedar
burns really easy and very hot

Wayne

dean wrote:

Meaning, either crackly, or different flame colors, or (i've seen at
some point) very bright white embers burning in the draft.

What's the most interesting woods to look at in a fireplace?
 

I like Cedar. It smells good when cutting/splitting. Makes the house smell
wonderful! And crackles.

Also it is cool to burn a cardboard/paper egg carton with the cover closed.
It burns then keeps its shape for quite awhile. One whiff of air and the
whole thing will collapse.


"dean" wrote in message

Meaning, either crackly, or different flame colors, or (i've seen at
some point) very bright white embers burning in the draft.

What's the most interesting woods to look at in a fireplace?
 

Bill wrote:
I like Cedar. It smells good when cutting/splitting. Makes the house smell
wonderful! And crackles.

Also it is cool to burn a cardboard/paper egg carton with the cover closed.
It burns then keeps its shape for quite awhile. One whiff of air and the
whole thing will collapse.


"dean" wrote in message

Meaning, either crackly, or different flame colors, or (i've seen at
some point) very bright white embers burning in the draft.





What part of the country do you all who burn cedar live in where you can
find it growing locally? Where I live (Pennsylvania) there are no
species of cedar that grow here. We do have a variety of juniper tree
that is commonly called "Red Cedar" but it is not a true cedar species.
I thought I had heard that the only place real cedars live in the US is
in California, but I was not sure.

That being said, I would definitely make a fence out of juniper, but not
burn it in the fireplace as it has sap like other evergreens and is a
big source of creosote in a chimney.

Rob
NE PA USA

What's the most interesting woods to look at in a fireplace?
 

"Rob" wrote in message

What part of the country do you all who burn cedar live in where
you can find it growing locally?


I live in Oregon and plenty of Cedar here.

What's the most interesting woods to look at in a fireplace?
 

What part of the country do you all who burn cedar live in where you can
find it growing locally? Where I live (Pennsylvania) there are no
species of cedar that grow here. We do have a variety of juniper tree
that is commonly called "Red Cedar" but it is not a true cedar species.
I thought I had heard that the only place real cedars live in the US is
in California, but I was not sure.

Atlas Cedar (Atlantic Cedar) should grow fine in PA.
Port Orford Cedar, which is the good stuff for making arrows,
is mostly limited to CA/OR. But I think that that's actually
some kind of cyprus variant.

What's the most interesting woods to look at in a fireplace?
 

Goedjn wrote:
What part of the country do you all who burn cedar live in where you can
find it growing locally? Where I live (Pennsylvania) there are no
species of cedar that grow here. We do have a variety of juniper tree
that is commonly called "Red Cedar" but it is not a true cedar species.
I thought I had heard that the only place real cedars live in the US is
in California, but I was not sure.


Atlas Cedar (Atlantic Cedar) should grow fine in PA.
Port Orford Cedar, which is the good stuff for making arrows,
is mostly limited to CA/OR. But I think that that's actually
some kind of cyprus variant.

I have seen the specimen tree called the Atlas Cedar you mention in
specialized landscapes, but it is very rare in the US since it is not a
native species. Technically, there are no native cedars in the eastern US.

Rob

NE PA USA

What's the most interesting woods to look at in a fireplace?
 

According to Rob :

I have seen the specimen tree called the Atlas Cedar you mention in
specialized landscapes, but it is very rare in the US since it is not a
native species. Technically, there are no native cedars in the eastern US.

Eastern white cedar makes it down to the north eastern states. It's
a true cedar (unlike eastern red cedar which is really a juniper) and
native to North America.

See http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/si...cidentalis.htm

We have _lots_ of it on our property, about two hours drive north of the border.

It's great kindling for starting up hardwoods in the fireplace.

It's lighter, whiter, softer and more splintery than western red cedar, but
can be used in much the same way. Supposedly, it's better for making canoes
than western red.

It's locally available as lumber, but there's not a great deal of demand
because the trees usually don't get that big, and decent heartwood lumber
is much more difficult to come by in the larger sizes. So most cedar lumber
available for sale here is western red. Eastern white is mostly used as
rural rail fencing (in the round).
--
Chris Lewis, Una confibula non set est
It's not just anyone who gets a Starship Cruiser class named after them.

What's the most interesting woods to look at in a fireplace?
 

Chris Lewis wrote:
According to Rob :


I have seen the specimen tree called the Atlas Cedar you mention in
specialized landscapes, but it is very rare in the US since it is not a
native species. Technically, there are no native cedars in the eastern US.


Eastern white cedar makes it down to the north eastern states. It's
a true cedar (unlike eastern red cedar which is really a juniper) and
native to North America.

See http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/si...cidentalis.htm

We have _lots_ of it on our property, about two hours drive north of the border.

It's great kindling for starting up hardwoods in the fireplace.

It's lighter, whiter, softer and more splintery than western red cedar, but
can be used in much the same way. Supposedly, it's better for making canoes
than western red.

It's locally available as lumber, but there's not a great deal of demand
because the trees usually don't get that big, and decent heartwood lumber
is much more difficult to come by in the larger sizes. So most cedar lumber
available for sale here is western red. Eastern white is mostly used as
rural rail fencing (in the round).


I'm familiar with the tree you describe as it grows here and it is
called arborvitae here. Not to be technical but it also is not a true
cedar, just a species that is mis-named as a "cedar".

Rob

What's the most interesting woods to look at in a fireplace?
 

According to Rob :
Chris Lewis wrote:
According to Rob :


I have seen the specimen tree called the Atlas Cedar you mention in
specialized landscapes, but it is very rare in the US since it is not a
native species. Technically, there are no native cedars in the eastern US.

I'm familiar with the tree you describe as it grows here and it is
called arborvitae here. Not to be technical but it also is not a true
cedar, just a species that is mis-named as a "cedar".

Ah, you're going for the super pedantic view ;-)

By that measure (cedar == members of the Genus cedrus), there are no cedars
native to the western hemisphere - they're all in the Himalayas and
Mediterranean area.

In "normal" usage, in North America, "cedar" refers to the genus "Thuja". Western
Red Cedar and Eastern White cedar are both Thuja. So, if western red cedar
is a "cedar" in your terminology, then eastern white cedar is too.

Eastern Red Cedar, on the other hand, is a member of genus "Juniperus". Juniper.

Just to confuse things completely, the other "cedar" in North America is
"Port Orford Cedar", but, it's not a cedar, nor a thuja nor even a juniper.
It's genus Chamaecyparis, and is a form of cypress tree.

In north America "Cedar closets" and "cedar chests" are made with eastern red
cedar (ie: _juniper_, not cedar). Vastly more aromatic than Thuja.
--
Chris Lewis, Una confibula non set est
It's not just anyone who gets a Starship Cruiser class named after them.