Hey Guys, A friend of mine is Gung Ho about buying a few P/U loads of knots, crotch, and cut-off chunks of sycamore, pin oak, & sweet gum. The seller wants $25 a load and they range from softball size to 40 inches, mostly green, and some seasoned...mostly gnarly as hell! Have any of you noticed a much longer burn time with these particular shapes of wood? Seems like knots & crotch pieces burn bit longer...but I've never focused on it so to speak. He thinks he's going to triple his burn time in his fireplace! What say ye? Pic for reference only Later, Reg
I dont know about that maybe will burn a little longer but not much. I save all that stuff to burn in my stove and have had many stoves packed with stuff like that and never really caught my attention as to burning better or longer. Personally i wouldnt pay for stuff like that, not sure if it “wood” be worth the constant strain it would put on my splitter for hours of pushing through some of that gnarled wood. If you have a splitter like the one in the pic i might say different or if its the only wood you can get. Isnt gum a real PIA as it is and not great firewood??? Good luck bud!
I cut and split the crotches of trees I cut down or are given. I wouldn't go out of my way to get more, just too much work compared to straight logs, I've never noticed any difference in heat, just a difference in trying to fit those pieces into the stove.
I would say forget paying for that. Especially since it includes sycamore and sweetgum! I question my sanity each time I try to split gnarly stuff. It just doesn't seem worth it, I should leave it in the woods!
I wish I could find a buyer for P/U loads of knots and crotches I wouldn't waste time and gas noodling them into submission. <<triple his burn time in his fireplace>> yeah, must be all the web sites all over the world making the same claims that sold him on the idea
This is what I end up burning in my owb and it's a great place to get rid of that stuff but I sure as heck wouldn't be buying it. And lets be very clear....I would never ever pay any amount of money for gum although it actually splits easier where the crotches and knots are but it's still miserable. As far as burn times, he won't notice that big of a difference and its not worth the hassle of stacking and bringing in all of those odd ball shaped pieces.
It might have a longer burn time, but because you can’t fit as much wood in, it really doesn’t make a difference. I wouldn’t but to each their own
I've gotten a couple free loads like that and it's not worth it to me. Takes way too long to break down, doesn't stack well, and tough to fit in the insert. It does burn a bit longer, not 3 times as long, sappy pine crotches will burn really hot. The gnarly stuff that comes with normal firewood processing goes into the camping burn barrel. That's just because I don't want to throw it out. Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk
More power to him. If he thinks it will do him good, maybe it will. But I'll bet 10:1 that almost everyone else would pass on that situation. For sure some will burn longer but the problem comes in that fitting crap like that into a stove or fireplace will be more of a problem than what it is worth. Sometimes I get pieces that are so badly out of shape that I'll simply throw them on the brush pile rather than wrestling them about and trying to fit them into the stove; and that is after trying to stack that crap. Certainly not worth it and I would pass even if it were the best burning wood there is.
Completely agree with everyone so far. Making firewood is hard enough as is, who wants to add that much extra work and frustration. The three times as long thought is a pipe dream. You may get an extra 10-20% burn time, problem is you spend an extra 300% processing it.
Agree with the majority above. Would not pay for it. I get enough uglies as it is from just regular scrounging. Like burning uglies, particularly mixed with pine during shoulder season.
Think it’s all been thoroughly covered. Beat up your splitter unless it’s a monster,,,,,and a well made monster. Can’t stack it worth a darn. You’ll spend more time restacking than you’ll gain in burn time. But yes I would say crotches burn longer. Usually a much denser wood. That and the woods you mentioned, gum for instance is usually left to rot even in straight logs. Personally I wouldn’t want it free and delivered unless I really needed it.
Love this right here, "I wouldn't waste time and gas noodling them into submission!" He's on some type of hard substances...I just can't figure out which!
IMO the only thing tripling is the processing time. It may not be pretty but it burns and if he is willing to put in the time turning it into stove sized wood thats great. Most tree guys are more than happy to rid themselves of big gnarly wood. I would pass if it was dumped free for me unless i was REALLY desperate! Sycamore and gum are not primo woods either.
I had a grumpy old veteran I would give all my uglies. I would bring him a pickup and/ or trailer full. He would love it. Not worth my time to process, plus it helped him out. Old dude passed away last year.
What everybody else said... I have noticed it will burn longer, (not three times longer by any stretch) has more weight than straight stuff but yah, it's a pain to process/stack. Most tree companies around here, that sell firewood, will give away the crotches, to those who are gluttons for punishment. When I do have/get them, I just cut four inch cookies till they are gone. The cookies break up easy into short chunks and dry fairly quick. Makes it easier, but I'm not going looking for them and certainly not paying for them.
