I have both red oak and white oak cut split and stacked at the same time. Felled 18 months ago, CSS about a year ago. Splits for this batch were done smaller than normal; many in the shape of a 1x4 but two inches thick instead of one inch. Remainders more the normal triangle shape, say, 3-4 inches per side. The red oak seems it will light with a match and burns so hot and fast, I have to leave my seat and it's just a regular fireplace! That seasoning time is FAR shorter than what the charts say. The white oak doesn't burn well, even added to a hot bed of coals and fire. I love seasoned white oak but this isn't ready. Have you found white oak to take at least an extra year, even split small? Have you had red oak season this fast? I will try to remember to take some MC readings. Stacks were not covered. Some sun and wind but not in a wide open area. The past summer, like most, was hot... quite a few 100 degree days.
I have had same experience with red oak, but it is always from a dead tree. Even though dead, still very wet and heavy but ready to go in a year split small. And yes white oak takes longer even from dead trees.
I've never had red oak dry that fast, ever. And the white family chestnut oak that I've been cutting and burning for the past 4 years will dry for me in that amount of time if split small. But like stated, that's dead standing. I've had fresh white oak twice and it sat for 3 years before I even considered it. Curious if you have a MM to confirm where these splits are?
Oak no doubt dries a bit faster in the deep south. I have not noticed what you have with red oak and yes, white takes a bit longer to dry and never lights off as quickly as red oak.
I just had a red oak limb split bubbling after being ssc for 4 years. That is worrisome since I sell wood.
Yes, I have the same experience with red oak which is what I get the most of. White oak certainly takes more time. Size of splits, location, and sun/wind exposure all play a large role in how fast or slow wood seasons.
I've had the understanding of just the opposite. White Oak has a tighter cell structure. This made WO preferred for things like whisky aging.
Red oak is a LOT wetter than white oak for both green and dead here and so white oak dries faster for me. Water transport through wood is along both the tubes and fibers (otherwise splitting would not speed drying which relies on fiber transport). My guess is as the wood dries, red oak tubes are plugging with soluble material precipitating and so the higher wood moisture takes longer to dry. I suppose the red oak could have a harder type of fiber which would slow water transport since fiber properties vary among specie. Red oak is my wettest firewood.
I cut and sell a lot of white and red oak. Red oak is by far the wettest and takes months longer to get below 20%. I have been cutting on 18-22" 12 foot logs I purchased recently. All the logs were timbered at the same time frame. The white oak is very dry and below 20% after splitting. The red oak is above 25% and obviously very wet after splitting. I have cut and split red oak in log form over three years from harvesting. The outside is punky, but the inside is still red and wet. Size of splits, how and where you stack the wood and if top covered makes a big difference in overall drying times.
Cut and split this 16 month from harvesting red oak a few days ago. Looks seasoned from the outside, but almost 25% moisture readings. Similar sized white oak and hickory was below 20% and is ready to sell.
Whew....I knew someone somewhere had sad that while dried faster than red for them... But didn't know who or how to look it back up. It would be interesting to take some fresh cut green of both species, split similar and stack side by side and see what happens....
This load was cut six days ago and is primarily white oak with some hickory and beech. All below 20%. Same age as the red oak.
To muddy the water more, the 56 12’ logs I purchased that are sixteen months old from timbering consists of red&white oak, hickory, beech, black walnut and a little yellow poplar. All are within 18-22” in diameter. I tested all the types the same day of cutting and splitting. From high to low: red oak, walnut, hickory, white oak beech and poplar. Was surprised the walnut was reading 22-24% since it looked very dry. Have found 3-5% moisture levels decrease in the first week from splitting to selling size.
No matter how long, occasionally you will find a split that will bubble. Only 1 or 2 is not a problem. The omly problem is when the guys find one during a GTG. They will never let me forget.
My 7 year CSS’ed red oak, kept under a roof does that when lighting a cold stove. Burns great though.
Exactly the pic and ribbing you got that I thought of! And I'll bet I wasn't the only one thinking of that infamous pic!!! All in good nature; I'm sure you know that. Must have been due to the position it was split in..... Reminds me of a guy from Navy days. He would say this every once and awhile- And then there's this one.....
I only had walnut once about two cords from a tree job.I was surprised to see after a year of drying this wood still didn't burn well.
With my setup and in my experience, red oak is ready after 1 yr in most cases. I know geography has a lot to do with it but air flow is the predominant factor. I have never been able to burn white oak after 1 yr. I am currently burning 3yo red that was dead standing and it burns up so fast that I have recently had 2 fires go out overnight. Wood can be too dry to effectively burn and maintain heat, IMO, unless mixed with wood of greater moisture but still below 20%.
I've only seen and heard the exact opposite. White takes longer to dry than red. There's a reason white oak is used for booze and wine barrels, and not red. The cell structure of white oak is why.
