It's interesting that Gamble oak is #2 on the list. That stuff is EVERYWHERE around here in CO. I've always burned it in my fire pit, because it takes like 100 years for it to grow to a decent diameter. It's basically considered a weed here. My neighbor a few years ago burned a 9 inch diameter gamble oak round in his stove and it burned the gaskets out of his stove door. I haven't messed with it since. Didn't mean to thread jack. I just hadn't seen that chart until now.
We all have access to the temp of our stoves do we not Cash? I dont know chit from road tar but i do know when my woodstove gets overheated. Good on him just the gaskets.
I do agree. I have thermometers on both of my stoves. I've also gotten to where I can tell by the heat of the stove and the wash of the glass approximately how hot the stove is. If I had some larger gamble oak pieces, I'd definitely split them and save them for a cold night. I do keep a look out. But it grows very slow, and is a nightmare to process. It grows thick, like the rose bushes in beauty and the beast. Hardly worth my time. That's the real reason I don't mess with it. I should have been more clear
Yeah looks like maple to be as well. But here the hop hornbeam looks different. It has a dark Heartwood.
Yep. That and shagbark hickory is far too low on the charts. I've seen no oak that is more dense than others, so anything claiming any oak is higher than 24 mbtu a cord, I question it. There's other examples in that chat that are off as well.
Hophornbeam and hornbeam are two distinctly different trees, both of which grow up here. I was referencing hornbeam (not hophornbeam), also called blue beech, due to the similarity in bark. As shown in the photo below, when smaller in diameter hornbeam has smooth bark (like beech).
I thought Box Elder was considered "swamp maple"? Maybe that term is loosely thrown around to refer to any of the "soft" maples that tend to like wet feet?
According to UNH, boxelder maple is also called ash-leaved maple (Acer negundo) whereas red maple has several names: red maple, white maple, swamp maple, soft maple (Acer rubrum). https://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/Resource000980_Rep1106.pdf
Soft maple indeed has a smooth bark when it is young but as it grows larger it looses that smooth bark. Also, I've cut, split and stacked soft maple in the spring and burned it the following fall and winter with no problem. It dries super fast if handled right. It also makes one of the very best kindling woods available. Lights fast and easy and burns hot to get other wood started nicely.
Red maple around here is also called swamp. Seems to be the most prolific tree in areas that are swampy and/or the water table is high.
I'll take Red Maple all day long, good score. I was just bucking some up today. Easy to split, clean to work with, nice bright flames with decent BTUs, and it doesn't take eons to season. It's a winner in my book.
Wow, more for you anyway! I'd almost take maple over oak, especially if I'm looking for something to burn within 2 years. Of course if I had a choice I'd go for sugar maple but the red isn't bad and it's better than silver.
To be honest I am still working on the three year plan so oak isn’t the best choice yet. Someday I’ll get there.
