I was going to prune the top of a 30-foot oak, but on advice of this
forum, I simply chain sawed it down.

I cut up the logs into 20 inch lengths of from 1.5 feet in diameter down
to about six to ten inches in diameter.

I stacked the logs up, unsplit, and then began to wonder how long it
takes to 'dry' out for campfire use.

What's the rule of thumb (if any) for how long unsplit wood takes to dry
outside before being usable in a campfire setting? (The California
climate is such that it won't rain from now until December.)

I'm guessing the bigger oak logs might take all summer to dry out?

On Jul 8, 5:46*pm, arkland wrote:
I was going to prune the top of a 30-foot oak, but on advice of this
forum, I simply chain sawed it down.

I cut up the logs into 20 inch lengths of from 1.5 feet in diameter down
to about six to ten inches in diameter.

I stacked the logs up, unsplit, and then began to wonder how long it
takes to 'dry' out for campfire use.

What's the rule of thumb (if any) for how long unsplit wood takes to dry
outside before being usable in a campfire setting? (The California
climate is such that it won't rain from now until December.)

I'm guessing the bigger oak logs might take all summer to dry out?

Split the wood while it's green. It's a lot easier and the wood will
dry out much faster. Much.

R

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 15:09:46 -0700, RicodJour wrote:

Split the wood while it's green. It's a lot easier and the wood will
dry out much faster. Much.

I don't know about you, but, I'm a 40 year old man with a gut. I swung an
ax into those wet oak logs. The ax stuck. Took me fifteen minutes to get
it out.

Then, I bought a cone-shaped wedge and a triangle wedge. The points
barely make a dent in the log cross section, even with a 20 pound sledge
driving it home.

After, maybe a dozen or more swings, the wedge is firmly buried in the
center of the 20-inch long foot and a half (or more for the bottom logs)
diameter.

Then I drive the second wedge in to get the first wedge out. After
fifteen or twenty minutes, I've split a single log in half.

Splitting the half into quarters takes half the time of the original
split, but, the point is that these logs aren't going to get split any
time soon.

Plus, it would seem to me that a log would split easier when it's DRY!

Are you sure oak splits easier when wet?

Anyway, how does two months sound (all of July and all of August in the
sun) for how long a log should dry before burning?

On Jul 8, 6:48*pm, arkland wrote:
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 15:09:46 -0700, RicodJour wrote:
Split the wood while it's green. *It's a lot easier and the wood will
dry out much faster. *Much.

I don't know about you, but, I'm a 40 year old man with a gut. I swung an
ax into those wet oak logs. The ax stuck. Took me fifteen minutes to get
it out.

Then, I bought a cone-shaped wedge and a triangle wedge. The points
barely make a dent in the log cross section, even with a 20 pound sledge
driving it home.

After, maybe a dozen or more swings, the wedge is firmly buried in the
center of the 20-inch long foot and a half (or more for the bottom logs)
diameter.

Then I drive the second wedge in to get the first wedge out. After
fifteen or twenty minutes, I've split a single log in half.

Splitting the half into quarters takes half the time of the original
split, but, the point is that these logs aren't going to get split any
time soon.

Plus, it would seem to me that a log would split easier when it's DRY!

Are you sure oak splits easier when wet?

Anyway, how does two months sound (all of July and all of August in the
sun) for how long a log should dry before burning?

Go rent a power splitter...

Won't do much to solve your gut problem, but it will let you split the
wood...

Splitting wood with an axe requires one to be in good shape and
strong...

Swing hard, split good...

~~ Evan

I've heard that logs take typically two years to "season"
and get really good.

Know what you mean about the exercise. Sounds like time to
see if any friends know someone with a gasoline powered
splitter. Wood seasons a lot faster, if it's split. Easier
to split, green? I'm not sure.

Wish I had better news.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"arkland" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 15:09:46 -0700, RicodJour wrote:

Split the wood while it's green. It's a lot easier and
the wood will
dry out much faster. Much.

I don't know about you, but, I'm a 40 year old man with a
gut. I swung an
ax into those wet oak logs. The ax stuck. Took me fifteen
minutes to get
it out.

Then, I bought a cone-shaped wedge and a triangle wedge. The
points
barely make a dent in the log cross section, even with a 20
pound sledge
driving it home.

After, maybe a dozen or more swings, the wedge is firmly
buried in the
center of the 20-inch long foot and a half (or more for the
bottom logs)
diameter.

Then I drive the second wedge in to get the first wedge out.
After
fifteen or twenty minutes, I've split a single log in half.

Splitting the half into quarters takes half the time of the
original
split, but, the point is that these logs aren't going to get
split any
time soon.

Plus, it would seem to me that a log would split easier when
it's DRY!

Are you sure oak splits easier when wet?

Anyway, how does two months sound (all of July and all of
August in the
sun) for how long a log should dry before burning?

On Jul 8, 5:09*pm, RicodJour wrote:
On Jul 8, 5:46*pm, arkland wrote:

I was going to prune the top of a 30-foot oak, but on advice of this
forum, I simply chain sawed it down.

I cut up the logs into 20 inch lengths of from 1.5 feet in diameter down
to about six to ten inches in diameter.

I stacked the logs up, unsplit, and then began to wonder how long it
takes to 'dry' out for campfire use.

What's the rule of thumb (if any) for how long unsplit wood takes to dry
outside before being usable in a campfire setting? (The California
climate is such that it won't rain from now until December.)

I'm guessing the bigger oak logs might take all summer to dry out?

Split the wood while it's green. *It's a lot easier and the wood will
dry out much faster. *Much.

R

Agreed!!

On Jul 8, 6:18*pm, "Stormin Mormon"
wrote:
I've heard that logs take typically two years to "season"
and get really good.

Know what you mean about the exercise. Sounds like time to
see if any friends know someone with a gasoline powered
splitter. Wood seasons a lot faster, if it's split. Easier
to split, green? I'm not sure.

Wish I had better news.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
*www.lds.org
.

"arkland" wrote in message

...

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 15:09:46 -0700, RicodJour wrote:
Split the wood while it's green. *It's a lot easier and
the wood will
dry out much faster. *Much.

I don't know about you, but, I'm a 40 year old man with a
gut. I swung an
ax into those wet oak logs. The ax stuck. Took me fifteen
minutes to get
it out.

Then, I bought a cone-shaped wedge and a triangle wedge. The
points
barely make a dent in the log cross section, even with a 20
pound sledge
driving it home.

After, maybe a dozen or more swings, the wedge is firmly
buried in the
center of the 20-inch long foot and a half (or more for the
bottom logs)
diameter.

Then I drive the second wedge in to get the first wedge out.
After
fifteen or twenty minutes, I've split a single log in half.

Splitting the half into quarters takes half the time of the
original
split, but, the point is that these logs aren't going to get
split any
time soon.

Plus, it would seem to me that a log would split easier when
it's DRY!

Are you sure oak splits easier when wet?

Anyway, how does two months sound (all of July and all of
August in the
sun) for how long a log should dry before burning?

Double that and you're almost there. Most folks say a full year to
really dry out if it is not split.

The trick when splitting is not to try to split the wood via the
centerline of the tree, but rather to approach it more like peeling an
apple, circumferentially. I usually spend a little time looking at
the grain to see where a wedge would split the wood the easiest. I
use a 6lb splitting maul and two steel wedges.

First I use the pointy side of the maul and give the log as strong a
blow as I can where I expect to put the wedge. If I am lucky, 75% of
the time, the maul make an indentation deep enough to more or less
support the wedge and then I drive the wedge on in until the wood
splits. Having a good solid base to put the log to be split on is
important. Putting the log on the ground means that you are not
coming straight down on the wedge. If you have some sort of a
platform to raise the log about 12 -18', it makes things much easier.
I usually use the largest unsplit log I have as a base because it is
about 16" thick/tall and gets me the correct angle for the maul to hit
the wedge squarely. I am 75 and only 160 lbs so my swing isn't what
it once was, but I find that splitting wood is actually easier now
that I have learned how to do it in a more efficient manner.

RicodJour wrote:
On Jul 8, 5:46 pm, wrote:
I was going to prune the top of a 30-foot oak, but on advice of this
forum, I simply chain sawed it down.

I cut up the logs into 20 inch lengths of from 1.5 feet in diameter down
to about six to ten inches in diameter.

I stacked the logs up, unsplit, and then began to wonder how long it
takes to 'dry' out for campfire use.

What's the rule of thumb (if any) for how long unsplit wood takes to dry
outside before being usable in a campfire setting? (The California
climate is such that it won't rain from now until December.)

I'm guessing the bigger oak logs might take all summer to dry out?

Split the wood while it's green. It's a lot easier and the wood will
dry out much faster. Much.

R
Hi,
Ditto, and stack them conidering ventilation between layers. Will dry
out pretty easy.

arkland wrote:

I was going to prune the top of a 30-foot oak, but on advice of this
forum, I simply chain sawed it down.

I hope you burn in hell for that. Too bad the tree didn't knock you
down and split your skull open on the way down.

I cut up the logs into 20 inch lengths of from 1.5 feet in diameter
down to about six to ten inches in diameter.

The lumber in that tree was probably worth more that you make in a year.

arkland writes:

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 15:09:46 -0700, RicodJour wrote:

Split the wood while it's green. It's a lot easier and the wood will
dry out much faster. Much.

I don't know about you, but, I'm a 40 year old man with a gut. I swung an
ax into those wet oak logs. The ax stuck. Took me fifteen minutes to get
it out.

You have 2 problems:

1. Unsplit logs
2. A gut

The ax or the wedges can solve both problems.

A gas powered log splitter will only solve the first problem.

I'm 65.
You get the ax embedded in the log and then repeatedly smash the
log onto whatever surface you are cutting on. Wear gloves.

Save thousands in gym membership fees.

--
Dan Espen

On Jul 8, 7:22*pm, wrote:
arkland writes:
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 15:09:46 -0700, RicodJour wrote:

Split the wood while it's green. *It's a lot easier and the wood will
dry out much faster. *Much.

I don't know about you, but, I'm a 40 year old man with a gut. I swung an
ax into those wet oak logs. The ax stuck. Took me fifteen minutes to get
it out.

You have 2 problems:

1. Unsplit logs
2. A gut

The ax or the wedges can solve both problems.

A gas powered log splitter will only solve the first problem.

I'm 65.
You get the ax embedded in the log and then repeatedly smash the
log onto whatever surface you are cutting on. *Wear gloves.

Save thousands in gym membership fees.

--
Dan Espen

One tree that size isn't going to make much of a dent on a gut
though. I'm 77 and out there almost daily doing something at my
woodpile. Been at it over 30 years and my gut is still there. Of
course my problem is not "lack of exersize" but too many brews.

Harry K

On Jul 8, 2:46*pm, arkland wrote:
I was going to prune the top of a 30-foot oak, but on advice of this
forum, I simply chain sawed it down.

I cut up the logs into 20 inch lengths of from 1.5 feet in diameter down
to about six to ten inches in diameter.

I stacked the logs up, unsplit, and then began to wonder how long it
takes to 'dry' out for campfire use.

What's the rule of thumb (if any) for how long unsplit wood takes to dry
outside before being usable in a campfire setting? (The California
climate is such that it won't rain from now until December.)

I'm guessing the bigger oak logs might take all summer to dry out?

Most species will dry in one season. Oak seems to want 2 seasons.
But you want it for campfire use so it doesn't have to be 'dry'. A
couple months should do it. Expect rather smoky fires though.

Harry K

On Jul 8, 2:46*pm, arkland wrote:
I was going to prune the top of a 30-foot oak, but on advice of this
forum, I simply chain sawed it down.

I cut up the logs into 20 inch lengths of from 1.5 feet in diameter down
to about six to ten inches in diameter.

I stacked the logs up, unsplit, and then began to wonder how long it
takes to 'dry' out for campfire use.

What's the rule of thumb (if any) for how long unsplit wood takes to dry
outside before being usable in a campfire setting? (The California
climate is such that it won't rain from now until December.)

I'm guessing the bigger oak logs might take all summer to dry out?

You live in SoCal.

Did you consider that maybe that tree had value as timber / lumber
rather than fire wood?

Additionally, burning wood logs in a conventional fireplace in the
South Coast Air Basin is just creating more air pollution.

The process you described is more or less the classical hand split
method.
Forget those silly cone wedges, they don't work.

If you have a gut & you're really able to swing a 20lb
sledge.......don't worry, that gut will be gone soon.
It's been more than a few years since I've hand split any appreciable
quantity of wood and I only used a 12lb.
A maul is a better tool but you still need at least 3, preferably 4,
wedges.

Your log lengths are too long, 16" or shorter would have been about
ideal, even 12" would have been better than 20".
At this point, if you're serious about the hand splitting, cut them
down to 10" and get busy splitting.

Shorter pieces will split easier.
Shorter pieces will dry quicker.
Shorter pieces will burn more efficiently....... the smaller the
piece of wood you add to a fire, the closer you come to wood pellet
behavior.
Dumping a huge log (20" long, 1/4 split?) on a fire will nearly kill
it.

If you can't split all of the wood completely in a reasonable amount
of time,
at least split ALL of the logs in half.

If you wait until the wood dries you will be amazingly unhappy.
As others have said, green wood splits WAY easier than dry wood.

Of course you can always do your own experiment and report back.


essay on hand splitting

http://writing.gather.com/viewArticl...81474976719724

Split the logs in 6ths.
Split in half & then each 1/2 into three pieces.

If stack the wood with stickers & space it "might" be burnable in 6
months.
If you stack it & air flow is inhibited....... you'll be burning it
Jan 2013.

Air drying wood is a function of air temperature, relative humidity &
air flow and the size / shape of the piece of wood.
Unsplit, the wood will take at least twice as long to dry....... its a
volume to surface thing, as well as length & width.

You can speed up the process with a properly designed stacking
arrangement supplemented with 20" box fans.
Estimated your Dec 2011 thru March 2012 usage and only force dry that
amount.

I used to dry full units of 2x4's by re-stacking the unit stickered &
placing two 20" box fans at the end of the unit.
Running the fans 24/7 I could get a unit of 2x4's down into the 12%
moisture content range (from 30%+) in a couple weeks.

The two fans cost about $1/day to run.
As they say....you can have it fast, cheap or right..... pick two.

cheers
Bob

"arkland" wrote in message
...
I was going to prune the top of a 30-foot oak, but on advice of this
forum, I simply chain sawed it down.

I cut up the logs into 20 inch lengths of from 1.5 feet in diameter down
to about six to ten inches in diameter.

I stacked the logs up, unsplit, and then began to wonder how long it
takes to 'dry' out for campfire use.

What's the rule of thumb (if any) for how long unsplit wood takes to dry
outside before being usable in a campfire setting? (The California
climate is such that it won't rain from now until December.)

I'm guessing the bigger oak logs might take all summer to dry out?

Wood may season at an uneven rate in bigger pieces. It dries from the
inside out, and the outside may be dry, but the inside still wet. I would
split it, and then allow it to dry for one season. If you split it too
small, it will burn too quickly. If you split it too large, or don't split
it, it will take a long time to dry. I try to make different sizes of
finished split wood, as once your fire is going, a large dry piece will burn
for a very long time versus feeding many smaller pieces in the same time
span.

I would say that 16 square inches would be a good size, 4" on a side, and
then 36 square inches for larger long burning pieces, 6" on a side.

Species of woods all have their btu ratings, and desirability for different
reasons. But, the basics apply to all woods, and that includes drying time.
Splitting reduces drying time.

HTH

Steve

wrote in message ...
arkland writes:

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 15:09:46 -0700, RicodJour wrote:

Split the wood while it's green. It's a lot easier and the wood will
dry out much faster. Much.

I don't know about you, but, I'm a 40 year old man with a gut. I swung an
ax into those wet oak logs. The ax stuck. Took me fifteen minutes to get
it out.

You have 2 problems:

1. Unsplit logs
2. A gut

The ax or the wedges can solve both problems.

A gas powered log splitter will only solve the first problem.

I'm 65.
You get the ax embedded in the log and then repeatedly smash the
log onto whatever surface you are cutting on. Wear gloves.

Save thousands in gym membership fees.

--
Dan Espen

I have a 26 ton splitter. If I didn't have a splitter, I would not be able
to have a wood stove. I have an artificial heart valve, and have had a 9
hour 5 way bypass/aortic valve replacement surgery. With the splitter, I
can do a lot of wood in a short time. No Luddites in this household.

Steve

"DD_BobK" wrote

Did you consider that maybe that tree had value as timber / lumber
rather than fire wood?


Sawyers won't cut yard trees though. Too risky on the saw blades. Yard
trees often have nails, hooks for clothes lines, etc.

arkland wrote:
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 15:09:46 -0700, RicodJour wrote:

Are you sure oak splits easier when wet?

Anyway, how does two months sound (all of July and all of August in
the sun) for how long a log should dry before burning?

Try driving a wedge in an oak 2x4 (dried from the lumber yard). You can
barely drive a NAIL in an oak 2x4.

"HeyBub" wrote in message
m...
arkland wrote:
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 15:09:46 -0700, RicodJour wrote:

Are you sure oak splits easier when wet?

Anyway, how does two months sound (all of July and all of August in
the sun) for how long a log should dry before burning?

Try driving a wedge in an oak 2x4 (dried from the lumber yard). You can
barely drive a NAIL in an oak 2x4.


I find the best time is when the wood is frozen for a week or so. it just
pops apart with one blow of the splitting maul. Problem si, if you live in
the south, your wife may get tired of seeing logs in the freezer.

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 22:22:39 -0400, despen wrote:

You get the ax embedded in the log and then repeatedly smash the log
onto whatever surface you are cutting on.

These are HEAVY logs! Solid oak. Very dense. And wet. I can barely lift a
20-inch long section, about a foot or more in diameter, in my hands, let
alone on the end of a stuck-fast ax!

I had a more robust friend try to split the logs and his experience was
the same. If this were lighter maple, or hickory, or pine, I could see
lifting the log by the ax - but not heavy oak.

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 22:14:04 -0400, Home Guy wrote:

The lumber in that tree was probably worth more that you make in a year.

I have other trees that I could sell. How does one go about selling 'the
lumber in that tree'?

Any suggestions?

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 20:44:07 -0700, DD_BobK wrote:

Did you consider that maybe that tree had value as timber / lumber
rather than fire wood?

Not until now. I have other trees that need felling. How does one find
someone willing to buy a standing tree?

Forget those silly cone wedges, they don't work.

Thanks. The "advertisement" makes it look all so easy. But, that point is
very blunt. It barely dents the center of the 20-inch long oak log!

cut them down to 10" and get busy splitting.

That's half the current size! I didn't know 10 inches was the right size
for splitting. I'm sure the length makes a huge difference!

the smaller the piece of wood you add to a fire,
the closer you come to wood pellet behavior.

I'm not sure what 'pellet behavior' is, but, for a campfire, you kind of
just want it to burn for a while as you sit around it drinking a beer.

Dumping a huge log (20" long, 1/4 split?) on a fire will nearly kill it.

Hmmmmm... Not the campfires we make!

at least split ALL of the logs in half.

Makes sense. But that first split is also the hardest one!

If you wait until the wood dries you will be amazingly unhappy. As
others have said, green wood splits WAY easier than dry wood.

I'm surprised. Mainly because dried oak is cracked while wet oak is
seamless. But, it must be (for some reason) that wet wood is easier to
split than dried wood as someone would have said otherwise by now.

I could get a unit of 2x4's down into the 12% moisture content
range (from 30%+) in a couple weeks.

I wonder how we measure moisture content in percent at home?

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 21:02:34 -0700, Steve B wrote:

It dries from the inside out

That's interesting!

allow it to dry for one season.

People keep talking about 'seasons'. Is a season a year?

Or are there four seasons in a year?

On Sat, 09 Jul 2011 10:37:50 -0400, Ed Pawlowski wrote:

your wife may get tired of seeing logs in the freezer.

Indeed. It never freezes here!

"arkland" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 21:02:34 -0700, Steve B wrote:

It dries from the inside out

That's interesting!

allow it to dry for one season.

People keep talking about 'seasons'. Is a season a year?

Or are there four seasons in a year?

If cut and split in the spring it will be ready to burn by Winter (
Alder,Maple,Fir Madrona no experience with Oak)
wood Dies from the inside out, it Dries from the outside in

"arkland" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 22:14:04 -0400, Home Guy wrote:

The lumber in that tree was probably worth more that you make in a year.

I have other trees that I could sell. How does one go about selling 'the
lumber in that tree'?

Any suggestions?

Start in the Yellow Pages. I would imagine that they might pick it up, for
a fee. You, of course, would have to delimb the tree, that is, cut off
everything but the major portions. After all the costs, I imagine you would
owe them money. A load of trees to a mill is roughly 80,000#. That is two
tandem trailers of 20-25' lengths of straight logs 12"+ in diameter. If you
got that much, you might make some money. Of course, the permits and
environmental impact statement is going to cost you thousands. You will
have to do all the labor, too.

Let us know how you do. At about $150 a cord for good oak in some areas,
firewood may be the way to go.

Steve

On 7/9/2011 8:06 AM, Ed Pawlowski wrote:

"DD_BobK" wrote

Did you consider that maybe that tree had value as timber / lumber
rather than fire wood?


Sawyers won't cut yard trees though. Too risky on the saw blades. Yard
trees often have nails, hooks for clothes lines, etc.

Maybe depends on how valuable it is. Some friends has trees that they
sold and the folks who purchased them scanned them with higher end metal
detectors before proceeding.

My brother does wood turning as a hobby and he gets pieces from a local
mill. They scan for metal before they process incoming wood.


And along the same lines a relative had a walnut tree stolen when they
were away.

"arkland" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 22:22:39 -0400, despen wrote:

You get the ax embedded in the log and then repeatedly smash the log
onto whatever surface you are cutting on.

These are HEAVY logs! Solid oak. Very dense. And wet. I can barely lift a
20-inch long section, about a foot or more in diameter, in my hands, let
alone on the end of a stuck-fast ax!

I had a more robust friend try to split the logs and his experience was
the same. If this were lighter maple, or hickory, or pine, I could see
lifting the log by the ax - but not heavy oak.

An ax is not the way to split the wood. What you need is about a 6 pound
splitting maul. Sort of like a sledge hammer, but one side is like a big
wedge. Use a light maul and bring it down fast instead of the heaver 8 or
10 pound ones.

On 7/9/2011 1:54 PM, Ralph Mowery wrote:
wrote in message
...
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 22:22:39 -0400, despen wrote:

You get the ax embedded in the log and then repeatedly smash the log
onto whatever surface you are cutting on.

These are HEAVY logs! Solid oak. Very dense. And wet. I can barely lift a
20-inch long section, about a foot or more in diameter, in my hands, let
alone on the end of a stuck-fast ax!

I had a more robust friend try to split the logs and his experience was
the same. If this were lighter maple, or hickory, or pine, I could see
lifting the log by the ax - but not heavy oak.

An ax is not the way to split the wood. What you need is about a 6 pound
splitting maul. Sort of like a sledge hammer, but one side is like a big
wedge. Use a light maul and bring it down fast instead of the heaver 8 or
10 pound ones.


Every rental center I know of rents log splitters. If you don't have a
vehicle with a hitch they will deliver the splitter for a nominal fee.

On Jul 9, 7:47*am, arkland wrote:
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 20:44:07 -0700, DD_BobK wrote:
Did you consider that maybe that tree had value as timber / lumber
rather than fire wood?

Not until now. I have other trees that need felling. How does one find
someone willing to buy a standing tree?

Forget those silly cone wedges, they don't work.

Thanks. The "advertisement" makes it look all so easy. But, that point is
very blunt. It barely dents the center of the 20-inch long oak log!

cut them down to 10" and get busy splitting.

That's half the current size! I didn't know 10 inches was the right size
for splitting. I'm sure the length makes a huge difference!

the smaller the piece of wood you add to a fire,
the closer you come to wood pellet behavior.

I'm not sure what 'pellet behavior' is, but, for a campfire, you kind of
just want it to burn for a while as you sit around it drinking a beer.

Dumping a huge log (20" long, 1/4 split?) on a fire will nearly kill it..

Hmmmmm... Not the campfires we make!

at least split ALL of the logs in half.

Makes sense. But that first split is also the hardest one!

If you wait until the wood dries you will be amazingly unhappy. As
others have said, green wood splits WAY easier than dry wood.

I'm surprised. Mainly because dried oak is cracked while wet oak is
seamless. But, it must be (for some reason) that wet wood is easier to
split than dried wood as someone would have said otherwise by now.

I could get a unit of 2x4's down into the 12% moisture content
range (from 30%+) in a couple weeks.

I wonder how we measure moisture content in percent at home?

OP-


I was under the impression that the firewood was for home fireplace
usage.

Not to rain on your campfire fun but over sized / giant fires are
rather wasteful of resources.
The fire puts out so much heat you have to stand 20' away?
Never heard about the native American comment on "white man's fire" vs
small fire stay warm all night?
Maybe you're not a SoCal green type?

There is no "right size" for splitting or fire place usage.
Depends on the size of the fireplace but I prefer smaller pieces.
Pieces that are too large consume a fair amount of the fires heat to
get them going.

"Pellet behavior" refers to EPA rated wood stoves that burn wood
pellets with very little air pollution.

I don't know if you're a skier but Mammoth Lakes outlawed new log
burning fireplaces in 1995
and even with the moratorium on new installations,
a pall of smoke often hangs over the town in winter when all the
pre-1995 fireplaces are burning logs.

Smaller pieces of wood burn clearer, larger ones tend to smoke more.
Inadequately dried wood doesn't burn as well & can leave deposits in
chimney.
Though oak is less susceptible to it.

Not a problem in isolated areas but in SoCal (+20 million people)
or in a small town with 1000's of logs being inefficiently burned
problem

Like the killer air pollution in England (60's) due to coal
burning...... its all about density & dispersion.


, for a campfire, you kind of just want it to burn for a while as you sit around it drinking a beer.

Ahhh....now it is clear where that gut is coming from....

My suggestion....cut the log shorter, split by hand.

Smaller pieces will require you to get up a bit more often....
it will help a bit with gut, you get more heat out of the wood &
you'll reduce air pollution.

cheers
Bob

arkland writes:

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 20:44:07 -0700, DD_BobK wrote:

Did you consider that maybe that tree had value as timber / lumber
rather than fire wood?

Not until now. I have other trees that need felling. How does one find
someone willing to buy a standing tree?

You don't.
Unless you have a tract of land managed for lumber,
no sawmill will take lumber from a residential area.

Too great a chance of finding metal inside the tree.

--
Dan Espen

On Jul 9, 7:47*am, arkland wrote:
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 20:44:07 -0700, DD_BobK wrote:
Did you consider that maybe that tree had value as timber / lumber
rather than fire wood?

Not until now. I have other trees that need felling. How does one find
someone willing to buy a standing tree?

Forget those silly cone wedges, they don't work.

Thanks. The "advertisement" makes it look all so easy. But, that point is
very blunt. It barely dents the center of the 20-inch long oak log!

cut them down to 10" and get busy splitting.

That's half the current size! I didn't know 10 inches was the right size
for splitting. I'm sure the length makes a huge difference!

the smaller the piece of wood you add to a fire,
the closer you come to wood pellet behavior.

I'm not sure what 'pellet behavior' is, but, for a campfire, you kind of
just want it to burn for a while as you sit around it drinking a beer.

Dumping a huge log (20" long, 1/4 split?) on a fire will nearly kill it..

Hmmmmm... Not the campfires we make!

at least split ALL of the logs in half.

Makes sense. But that first split is also the hardest one!

If you wait until the wood dries you will be amazingly unhappy. As
others have said, green wood splits WAY easier than dry wood.

I'm surprised. Mainly because dried oak is cracked while wet oak is
seamless. But, it must be (for some reason) that wet wood is easier to
split than dried wood as someone would have said otherwise by now.

I could get a unit of 2x4's down into the 12% moisture content
range (from 30%+) in a couple weeks.

I wonder how we measure moisture content in percent at home?

Split dry or wet? It depends on species. I have never worked oak but
for B. Locust cut it green but split it dry. It splits with wedge/
sledge (10 lb) green fairly well but willa lmost fall apart with a
maul when dry.

Way back I read that wood, split and given enouth time will dry down
to the average humidity in the environment. I don't know if htat is
accurate but if you can dry firewood to 20% it is fine.

Me? I burn 6+ cords/yr and have since 1976. Knock two chunks of wood
together and if it goes "clunk" it ain't dry. It shoiuld 'ring'.

Harry K

On Jul 9, 4:50*pm, Harry K wrote:
On Jul 9, 7:47*am, arkland wrote:









On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 20:44:07 -0700, DD_BobK wrote:
Did you consider that maybe that tree had value as timber / lumber
rather than fire wood?

Not until now. I have other trees that need felling. How does one find
someone willing to buy a standing tree?

Forget those silly cone wedges, they don't work.

Thanks. The "advertisement" makes it look all so easy. But, that point is
very blunt. It barely dents the center of the 20-inch long oak log!

cut them down to 10" and get busy splitting.

That's half the current size! I didn't know 10 inches was the right size
for splitting. I'm sure the length makes a huge difference!

the smaller the piece of wood you add to a fire,
the closer you come to wood pellet behavior.

I'm not sure what 'pellet behavior' is, but, for a campfire, you kind of
just want it to burn for a while as you sit around it drinking a beer.

Dumping a huge log (20" long, 1/4 split?) on a fire will nearly kill it.

Hmmmmm... Not the campfires we make!

at least split ALL of the logs in half.

Makes sense. But that first split is also the hardest one!

If you wait until the wood dries you will be amazingly unhappy. As
others have said, green wood splits WAY easier than dry wood.

I'm surprised. Mainly because dried oak is cracked while wet oak is
seamless. But, it must be (for some reason) that wet wood is easier to
split than dried wood as someone would have said otherwise by now.

I could get a unit of 2x4's down into the 12% moisture content
range (from 30%+) in a couple weeks.

I wonder how we measure moisture content in percent at home?

Split dry or wet? *It depends on species. *I have never worked oak but
for B. Locust cut it green but split it dry. *It splits with wedge/
sledge (10 lb) green fairly well but willa lmost fall apart with a
maul when dry.

I agree with the "depens on the species", but your example is a horse
of a different color. Locust was always split when wet. It's hard
work, but it splits fairly readily along the grain. The older trees
frequently drop limbs and split along the trunk.

This from Wikipedia:

Uses
The wood is extremely hard, resistant to rot and durable, making it
prized for furniture, flooring, panelling, fence posts and small
watercraft. As a young man, Abraham Lincoln spent much of his time
splitting rails and fence posts from black locust logs. Flavonoids in
the heartwood allow the wood to last over 100 years in soil.[6] In the
Netherlands and some other parts of Europe, black locust is one of the
most rot-resistant local trees, and projects have started to limit the
use of tropical wood by promoting this tree and creating plantations.
It is one of the heaviest and hardest woods in North America.

Black Locust is highly valued as firewood for wood-burning stoves; it
burns slowly, with little visible flame or smoke, and has a higher
heat content than any other species that grows widely in the Eastern
United States, comparable to the heat content of anthracite.[7] It is
most easily ignited by insertion into a hot stove with an established
coal bed.[citation needed] For best results it should be seasoned like
any other hardwood, however black locust is also popular because of
its ability to burn even when wet.[8] In fireplaces it can be less
satisfactory because knots and beetle damage make the wood prone to
"spitting" coals for distances of up to several feet.[citation needed]
If the Black Locust is cut, split, and cured while relatively young
(within ten years), thus minimizing beetle damage, "spitting" problems
are minimal.

It is also planted for firewood because it grows rapidly, is highly
resilient in a variety of soils, and it grows back even faster from
its stump after harvest by using the existing root system.[9] (see
coppicing)

On Jul 9, 10:47*am, arkland wrote:
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 20:44:07 -0700, DD_BobK wrote:

If you wait until the wood dries you will be amazingly unhappy. As
others have said, green wood splits WAY easier than dry wood.

I'm surprised. Mainly because dried oak is cracked while wet oak is
seamless. But, it must be (for some reason) that wet wood is easier to
split than dried wood as someone would have said otherwise by now.

Wait. You're surprised you didn't know something? It's quite clear
that you don't know wood from Shinola, so it shouldn't surprise you.
Having an inflated opinion of your unsubstantiated opinion is hubris.

I could get a unit of 2x4's down into the 12% moisture content
range (from 30%+) in a couple weeks.

I wonder how we measure moisture content in percent at home?

Cut a piece of wood, weigh it, heat it up in the oven at a low
temperature for a while, weigh it again. Do some math.

R

On Jul 9, 7:38*am, arkland wrote:
On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 22:22:39 -0400, despen wrote:
You get the ax embedded in the log and then repeatedly smash the log
onto whatever surface you are cutting on.

These are HEAVY logs! Solid oak. Very dense. And wet. I can barely lift a
20-inch long section, about a foot or more in diameter, in my hands, let
alone on the end of a stuck-fast ax!

I had a more robust friend try to split the logs and his experience was
the same. If this were lighter maple, or hickory, or pine, I could see
lifting the log by the ax - but not heavy oak.

OP-

Wrong again....

If this were lighter maple, or hickory, or pine, I could see
lifting the log by the ax - but not heavy oak.

do the research, check wood densities (green)

cheers
Bob

On Jul 10, 7:56*am, RicodJour wrote:
On Jul 9, 10:47*am, arkland wrote:

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 20:44:07 -0700, DD_BobK wrote:

If you wait until the wood dries you will be amazingly unhappy. As
others have said, green wood splits WAY easier than dry wood.

I'm surprised. Mainly because dried oak is cracked while wet oak is
seamless. But, it must be (for some reason) that wet wood is easier to
split than dried wood as someone would have said otherwise by now.

Wait. *You're surprised you didn't know something? *It's quite clear
that you don't know wood from Shinola, so it shouldn't surprise you.
Having an inflated opinion of your unsubstantiated opinion is hubris.

I could get a unit of 2x4's down into the 12% moisture content
range (from 30%+) in a couple weeks.

I wonder how we measure moisture content in percent at home?

Cut a piece of wood, weigh it, heat it up in the oven at a low
temperature for a while, weigh it again. *Do some math.

R

Or buy a moisture meter. They ain't that expensive.

Harry K

On Jul 10, 7:52*am, RicodJour wrote:
On Jul 9, 4:50*pm, Harry K wrote:





On Jul 9, 7:47*am, arkland wrote:

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 20:44:07 -0700, DD_BobK wrote:
Did you consider that maybe that tree had value as timber / lumber
rather than fire wood?

Not until now. I have other trees that need felling. How does one find
someone willing to buy a standing tree?

Forget those silly cone wedges, they don't work.

Thanks. The "advertisement" makes it look all so easy. But, that point is
very blunt. It barely dents the center of the 20-inch long oak log!

cut them down to 10" and get busy splitting.

That's half the current size! I didn't know 10 inches was the right size
for splitting. I'm sure the length makes a huge difference!

the smaller the piece of wood you add to a fire,
the closer you come to wood pellet behavior.

I'm not sure what 'pellet behavior' is, but, for a campfire, you kind of
just want it to burn for a while as you sit around it drinking a beer..

Dumping a huge log (20" long, 1/4 split?) on a fire will nearly kill it.

Hmmmmm... Not the campfires we make!

at least split ALL of the logs in half.

Makes sense. But that first split is also the hardest one!

If you wait until the wood dries you will be amazingly unhappy. As
others have said, green wood splits WAY easier than dry wood.

I'm surprised. Mainly because dried oak is cracked while wet oak is
seamless. But, it must be (for some reason) that wet wood is easier to
split than dried wood as someone would have said otherwise by now.

I could get a unit of 2x4's down into the 12% moisture content
range (from 30%+) in a couple weeks.

I wonder how we measure moisture content in percent at home?

Split dry or wet? *It depends on species. *I have never worked oak but
for B. Locust cut it green but split it dry. *It splits with wedge/
sledge (10 lb) green fairly well but willa lmost fall apart with a
maul when dry.

I agree with the "depens on the species", but your example is a horse
of a different color. *Locust was always split when wet. *It's hard
work, but it splits fairly readily along the grain. *The older trees
frequently drop limbs and split along the trunk.

Firewood charts list the splitabilithy as "easy". I would rate it
'moderate'. Splitting green 4-5 smacks with wedge/sledge will halve a
2' round then a splitting maul will reduce it to splits.

I am harvesting and stockpiling B. Locust, every stick I can lay my
hands on. The Locust Borer is killing it off around here. My stock
currentlyi is around 40 cords and that doesn't count the 6 I burned
last season. Most of it split by hand. Makes for good physical
excersize. My hydraulic splitter only comes out for the knotty/
crotchy stuff. I alos split fence posts out of it years ago - not a
hard job at all, time consuming though. 3 wedges, sledge, start on
one end and chase the crack down the length of the log.


Hazard of quoting wikipedia. That article is fairly accurate but does
have some things I don't agtree with and one major error. See below:



This from Wikipedia:

Uses
The wood is extremely hard, resistant to rot and durable, making it
prized for furniture, flooring, panelling, fence posts and small
watercraft.

Dunno about it as finished lumber. It checks extremely badly as it
dries and is very splintery. I have never seen any of it after
planing. Won't say it isn't done, but I hae never seen it.

As a young man, Abraham Lincoln spent much of his time
splitting rails and fence posts from black locust logs. Flavonoids in
the heartwood allow the wood to last over 100 years in soil.[6] In the
Netherlands and some other parts of Europe, black locust is one of the
most rot-resistant local trees, and projects have started to limit the
use of tropical wood by promoting this tree and creating plantations.
It is one of the heaviest and hardest woods in North America.

Black Locust is highly valued as firewood for wood-burning stoves; it
burns slowly, with little visible flame or smoke, and has a higher
heat content than any other species that grows widely in the Eastern
United States, comparable to the heat content of anthracite.


Wrong! It is highly valued as firewood because it is very dense.
Truth is that _ALL_ wood species have approximately the same heat
value pound for pound. A pound of balsa wood will produce
approximately the same BTUs as a lb of locust.

snip remainder of interesting article

Harry K

On Jul 11, 12:17*am, Harry K wrote:
On Jul 10, 7:52*am, RicodJour wrote:









On Jul 9, 4:50*pm, Harry K wrote:

On Jul 9, 7:47*am, arkland wrote:

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 20:44:07 -0700, DD_BobK wrote:
Did you consider that maybe that tree had value as timber / lumber
rather than fire wood?

Not until now. I have other trees that need felling. How does one find
someone willing to buy a standing tree?

Forget those silly cone wedges, they don't work.

Thanks. The "advertisement" makes it look all so easy. But, that point is
very blunt. It barely dents the center of the 20-inch long oak log!

cut them down to 10" and get busy splitting.

That's half the current size! I didn't know 10 inches was the right size
for splitting. I'm sure the length makes a huge difference!

the smaller the piece of wood you add to a fire,
the closer you come to wood pellet behavior.

I'm not sure what 'pellet behavior' is, but, for a campfire, you kind of
just want it to burn for a while as you sit around it drinking a beer.

Dumping a huge log (20" long, 1/4 split?) on a fire will nearly kill it.

Hmmmmm... Not the campfires we make!

at least split ALL of the logs in half.

Makes sense. But that first split is also the hardest one!

If you wait until the wood dries you will be amazingly unhappy. As
others have said, green wood splits WAY easier than dry wood.

I'm surprised. Mainly because dried oak is cracked while wet oak is
seamless. But, it must be (for some reason) that wet wood is easier to
split than dried wood as someone would have said otherwise by now.

I could get a unit of 2x4's down into the 12% moisture content
range (from 30%+) in a couple weeks.

I wonder how we measure moisture content in percent at home?

Split dry or wet? *It depends on species. *I have never worked oak but
for B. Locust cut it green but split it dry. *It splits with wedge/
sledge (10 lb) green fairly well but willa lmost fall apart with a
maul when dry.

I agree with the "depens on the species", but your example is a horse
of a different color. *Locust was always split when wet. *It's hard
work, but it splits fairly readily along the grain. *The older trees
frequently drop limbs and split along the trunk.

Firewood charts list the splitabilithy as "easy". *I would rate it
'moderate'. *Splitting green 4-5 smacks with wedge/sledge will halve a
2' round then a splitting maul will reduce it to splits.

I am harvesting and stockpiling B. Locust, every stick I can lay my
hands on. *The Locust Borer is killing it off around here. * My stock
currentlyi is around 40 cords and that doesn't count the 6 I burned
last season. *Most of it split by hand. *Makes *for good physical
excersize. *My hydraulic splitter only comes out for the knotty/
crotchy stuff. *I alos split fence posts out of it years ago - not a
hard job at all, *time consuming though. *3 wedges, sledge, start on
one end and chase the crack down the length of the log.

Hazard of quoting wikipedia. *That article is fairly accurate but does
have some things I don't agtree with and one major error. *See below:



This from Wikipedia:

Uses
The wood is extremely hard, resistant to rot and durable, making it
prized for furniture, flooring, panelling, fence posts and small
watercraft.

Dunno about it as finished lumber. *It checks extremely badly as it
dries and is very splintery. *I have never seen any of it after
planing. *Won't say it isn't done, but I hae never seen it.

*As a young man, Abraham Lincoln spent much of his time

splitting rails and fence posts from black locust logs. Flavonoids in
the heartwood allow the wood to last over 100 years in soil.[6] In the
Netherlands and some other parts of Europe, black locust is one of the
most rot-resistant local trees, and projects have started to limit the
use of tropical wood by promoting this tree and creating plantations.
It is one of the heaviest and hardest woods in North America.

Black Locust is highly valued as firewood for wood-burning stoves; it
burns slowly, with little visible flame or smoke, and has a higher
heat content than any other species that grows widely in the Eastern
United States, comparable to the heat content of anthracite.

Wrong! *It is highly valued as firewood because it is very dense.
Truth is that _ALL_ wood species have approximately the same heat
value pound for pound. *A pound of balsa wood will produce
approximately the same BTUs as a lb of locust.

snip remainder of interesting article

Hmmm. Honestly, I didn't read the whole wiki article and just did a
quick skim and cut and pasted that bit, but you're right about a
couple of things being a bit off. Your point about the BTU/weight
being very similar, and I have serious doubts about the heat value for
locust being the same as anthracite coal. I'd think the coal would
be about double the heat value per pound.

I'm still going to quote wiki because it's easy and I'm lazy. ~

R

"seasoning" also involves drying out the water that is in
the wood. Burning wet wood, much of the heat from the fire
is consumed, turning the water to steam.

In theory, some kind of heat exchanger could turn that vapor
back to water, but you'd probably get a lot of creosote and
other problems.

--
Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..


"Oren" wrote in message
...

Split and seasoned wood will burn much hotter, in terms of
BTU's.

When I burned Maple for home heat in New York I would buy it
well in
advance and allow it to dry and season 12-18 months?

On Jul 10, 10:51*pm, RicodJour wrote:
On Jul 11, 12:17*am, Harry K wrote:





On Jul 10, 7:52*am, RicodJour wrote:

On Jul 9, 4:50*pm, Harry K wrote:

On Jul 9, 7:47*am, arkland wrote:

On Fri, 08 Jul 2011 20:44:07 -0700, DD_BobK wrote:
Did you consider that maybe that tree had value as timber / lumber
rather than fire wood?

Not until now. I have other trees that need felling. How does one find
someone willing to buy a standing tree?

Forget those silly cone wedges, they don't work.

Thanks. The "advertisement" makes it look all so easy. But, that point is
very blunt. It barely dents the center of the 20-inch long oak log!

cut them down to 10" and get busy splitting.

That's half the current size! I didn't know 10 inches was the right size
for splitting. I'm sure the length makes a huge difference!

the smaller the piece of wood you add to a fire,
the closer you come to wood pellet behavior.

I'm not sure what 'pellet behavior' is, but, for a campfire, you kind of
just want it to burn for a while as you sit around it drinking a beer.

Dumping a huge log (20" long, 1/4 split?) on a fire will nearly kill it.

Hmmmmm... Not the campfires we make!

at least split ALL of the logs in half.

Makes sense. But that first split is also the hardest one!

If you wait until the wood dries you will be amazingly unhappy. As
others have said, green wood splits WAY easier than dry wood.

I'm surprised. Mainly because dried oak is cracked while wet oak is
seamless. But, it must be (for some reason) that wet wood is easier to
split than dried wood as someone would have said otherwise by now..

I could get a unit of 2x4's down into the 12% moisture content
range (from 30%+) in a couple weeks.

I wonder how we measure moisture content in percent at home?

Split dry or wet? *It depends on species. *I have never worked oak but
for B. Locust cut it green but split it dry. *It splits with wedge/
sledge (10 lb) green fairly well but willa lmost fall apart with a
maul when dry.

I agree with the "depens on the species", but your example is a horse
of a different color. *Locust was always split when wet. *It's hard
work, but it splits fairly readily along the grain. *The older trees
frequently drop limbs and split along the trunk.

Firewood charts list the splitabilithy as "easy". *I would rate it
'moderate'. *Splitting green 4-5 smacks with wedge/sledge will halve a
2' round then a splitting maul will reduce it to splits.

I am harvesting and stockpiling B. Locust, every stick I can lay my
hands on. *The Locust Borer is killing it off around here. * My stock
currentlyi is around 40 cords and that doesn't count the 6 I burned
last season. *Most of it split by hand. *Makes *for good physical
excersize. *My hydraulic splitter only comes out for the knotty/
crotchy stuff. *I alos split fence posts out of it years ago - not a
hard job at all, *time consuming though. *3 wedges, sledge, start on
one end and chase the crack down the length of the log.

Hazard of quoting wikipedia. *That article is fairly accurate but does
have some things I don't agtree with and one major error. *See below:

This from Wikipedia:

Uses
The wood is extremely hard, resistant to rot and durable, making it
prized for furniture, flooring, panelling, fence posts and small
watercraft.

Dunno about it as finished lumber. *It checks extremely badly as it
dries and is very splintery. *I have never seen any of it after
planing. *Won't say it isn't done, but I hae never seen it.

*As a young man, Abraham Lincoln spent much of his time

splitting rails and fence posts from black locust logs. Flavonoids in
the heartwood allow the wood to last over 100 years in soil.[6] In the
Netherlands and some other parts of Europe, black locust is one of the
most rot-resistant local trees, and projects have started to limit the
use of tropical wood by promoting this tree and creating plantations.
It is one of the heaviest and hardest woods in North America.

Black Locust is highly valued as firewood for wood-burning stoves; it
burns slowly, with little visible flame or smoke, and has a higher
heat content than any other species that grows widely in the Eastern
United States, comparable to the heat content of anthracite.

Wrong! *It is highly valued as firewood because it is very dense.
Truth is that _ALL_ wood species have approximately the same heat
value pound for pound. *A pound of balsa wood will produce
approximately the same BTUs as a lb of locust.

snip remainder of interesting article

Hmmm. *Honestly, I didn't read the whole wiki article and just did a
quick skim and cut and pasted that bit, but you're right about a
couple of things being a bit off. *Your point about the BTU/weight
being very similar, and I have serious doubts about the heat value for
locust being the same as anthracite coal. * I'd think the coal would
be about double the heat value per pound.

I'm still going to quote wiki because it's easy and I'm lazy. *~

R- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Same here. It is a lazy way to research things

I also doubted the 'coal' comparison. Basicly both coal and wood
provide carbon for burning. I am sure that coal packs it far more
densely. Too lazy to research it tho. Maybe later.

Harry K

Harry K

let wood sit to dry, a year is best splitting will be MUCH EASIER,
many logs will crack and be kinda pre split....

its not a high tech operation