I usually don't cover the wood I'm not burning this year but figured I'd give it a try for once. I bought a 25'x100' roll of of 6 mil plastic for the top cover them. The 6 mil stuff usually lasts a couple seasons before getting messed up. I've been on the hunt for rubber roofing but around here it's priced like gold. This is the first time all my stacks are top covered! Here are some lousy cell pictures of my "back" stacks. First 24' of the left stack is honey locust, second 24' is red oak, the right is 24' of silver maple. Left stack is the silver maple from the first picture, right stack is 48' of red oak. Left stack is the 48' of red oak from above, right stack is about 24' of white ash. Red oak and honey locust stack from other side. Middle stack is a 1/3 cord of red oak, I have about a 2/3 cord gap to fill when I find time to move some wood. A couple cords of mixed wood types. Right one is black locust and white oak, the left one is red oak and silver maple.
I can't remember for sure but it feels like I tried the clear stuff before and it broke down faster than the black. I could be making that up in my head though.
Lol, gotcha..... I was wondering if you found black absorbed the suns heat bettering the drying process as opposed to uv rays. Goofy hoarder question i guess.....
I keep most of my stuff top covered, all with black rubber roofing from a local demolition company. I gotta get some more for the newest stacks... As for top covering, some say it doesn't help but in my experiences it most certainly DOES. While it may not help dry the wood out per se, it does keep the rain and snow and ice out of the stacks, and more importantly, it keeps leaves and debris out of the stacks, which act like a sponge when soaked with water. And oak, as well as many other woods, when the bark and sapwood are constantly saturated they get rotted and punky so yes, top-cover will always be my method hands down....
Very impressive stacks! Single stacked, high off the ground with plenty of sun, and now topcovered too. I am also in the hunt for the rubber roofing material.. No luck yet.
I got a theory that clear will let the heat go straight to the wood, thus it will work better for drying. Basically, how do you feel sitting in the sun vs. the shade? But if clear breaks down faster its kind of useless. I used some clear 6 mil this year and it started falling apart a few weeks ago. Seemed like the cold made it brittle and the wind did it in. I sure the sun exposure had something to do with it too. But as for drying the top row of wood that was under the plastic definitely benefited.
Nice stacks Off the ground, in the open, a single row, good air circulation & now "top covered" Perfect seasoning stacks that will last many years. I'd say you are among the top 5% of wood burners burning well seasoned dry wood !
I like the wood separation technique. My wood is mostly mixed as I have trouble finding the time or the pallet to separate it out.
Looks good, should keep your wood nice and dry I used to cover, but got tired of fooling with tarps and roofing. I think either way is fine as long as there's a covered stop before it gets burned to ensure you always have some good dry stuff that isnt getting rained/snowed on
I don't recall offhand if I posted on this forum or on another, but because it had been many, many years since I had not top covered, one year we didn't cut a lot of wood and I decided it was once more time to experiment, especially with several folks saying the wood does not need to be covered. The wood was a mixture of pin oak, white ash, cherry and a little elm. It was stacked in single rows and just left. The stacks were out in the open to get both sun and wind. After 3 years we started to burn some of it. Without a doubt, we noticed a huge difference immediately when we started to burn. Was the wood dry? Yes, of course it was very dry. Did it burn good? Yes, but not as good as we were accustomed to. A load in the stove did not last nearly as long as the other wood and we also noticed a lot more ash from the wood. Bottom line is we estimated we'd need perhaps 1/4 or 1/3 more wood if we put up all the wood that way. By comparison, we rarely stack in single rows. We stack in the spring and do not top cover until in the fall or early winter. Once it is top covered, it stays put until it is needed. So yes, it does matter a lot if one top covers the wood or just leaves it.
This spot has evolved over the years out of necessity. When I started stacking in the "back" I crammed all the wood together like I see so many people do but after a couple years the wood was still as wet as the day I put it there. After the crammed space I double stacked on pallets. This area is a little wet and the wood seemed to soak up the ground moisture. Now everything in the back is off the ground, with enough space to mow between without getting off the tractor. I have about 8 cords stacked close to the house which have always been off the ground and space between(2'). I figured the back spot could be crammed together to save space and I'd move it to the close stacks the year before using them to finish seasoning. I'd like to limit the amount of times I move wood so I'm trying to get all my spots good enough to season everything in one spot. Here is how it started out.
rdust, I think you nailed it. You know what our ground is like so wet does not bother here. But, in a wet area like you are stacking in, it can make a big difference. (btw, did I send you a picture of the buck?)
