I am sure there is a thread or two..... Can someone link a thread on covering vs not covering stacked and split wood ? I don’t want to open up a can but would like to read through some thoughts. I have my own but always open to other sides.
Dont have any links. There was one on here not too long ago. If youre in the open with lots of sun and wind i wouldnt cover Shaded area id top cover. My 2c worth. Im not always good at getting my stacks covered!
I cover my stacks in fall before the first rains and uncover them when the rains end sometime in the spring. We have a long hot dry summer that really helps the wood season faster uncovered. Brad
My 2cents. I think the necessity of covering depends on where you live and the time of year. If you get 60 inches of rain a year, the wood needs a top cover to dry. If, like me, you get 9 inches a year with low humidity, then covering isnt really necessary. Its also best to have the wood to be burned that winter covered so it is ready to burn. Also, the sides always need to be open for breezes to help dry & for the moisture leaving the wood to have somewhere to go.
Yeah I made the choice to not cover one season. Never again! I don't care when people talk down about tarps, it's a night and day difference from not covering. Yes they are a pain to deal with sometimes, but I'm on a 3 year plan so basically I cover a stack, secure the tarp usually with another layer of junk wood across the whole top and forget about it for 3 years.
I haven’t found a tarp to cover my stacks. 35’ long single stacks. And I’m in the open air and sun. I try and get the next winters wood in the basement by summer and it is plenty dry by burning time. I’d say if you have issues getting your wood down to 20% or less by the time you are burning, I would cover. Otherwise it’s not worth the extra time and effort spent for the same result. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I think the decision to cover can depend on species too.. Oak, for example, takes a long time to dry.. but the sapwood on oak rots rather quickly. So by not covering oak, at least in my region, while waiting for the heartwood to dry, the sapwood becomes punky and absorbs more water.. on the other hand, I can have a pile of cut and split white pine that will be ready to burn after a year with no cover.. all I have to do is stack it under cover (under the back porch) for about a month and any residual moisture is out of it.. by not having to stack it to dry, Im saving myself some time and space.. lots of variables to consider..
I single stack as well, roughly 80-90ft long and I have 3 like this. The green harbor freight tarps in any size work well but I usually get either the 11' or 15' ones. Just fold them. My oldest one is from 2016 now and once I burn the wood it's covering it will go in the garbage. Not a bad run for an $8-10 tarp!!!
After splitting I let it stand in open air uncovered for at least a year. Then at the end of every summer/early fall I move what will fit into the woodshed for the coming winter. Woodshed at full capacity holds 9 cords. I don’t always completely fill it yet there is always some left that carries over to the following year.
It's an age-old debate here and elsewhere, some people prefer to top-cover, some don't. I personally like to season it at least one year uncovered, then "top-cover only" until it's used, which in my case is 4 to 5 years or so.. Works excellent in our wet climate zone here in the mid-atlantic mountains of PA.
And as others have said, covering it keeps out all the debris, and it also keeps the bark from decomposing (in wetter climates). I like to top cover for sure.....
Now can we do the shift and argue bark up or bark down??? Bark down on bottom row. Everything else is bark up. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
There is no universal right answer. Depending on climate do what works for you. Here in Dakotah Territory there is so much God forsaken wind that I could not imagine trying to top cover and we only get on average 18" of precipitation a year. I CSS everything and have 2 wood sheds that hold about a cord each so they get filled before winter with seasoned wood and once one goes empty it gets refilled just to try and help freezing rain and ice from melting snow have a chance to melt off on days we go above freezing and be protected from any more building up, but beyond the 2 cord it is out in the great wide open year around.
