How do you limit dry pine from absorbing moisture in winter

Now that I have a catalytic stove, I'm very careful about only burning wood <20% moisture. In years past, pine would seem to get quite wet from the atmosphere even though it's kept covered. No shed but up off of the ground and covered with a tarp. Now I'm worried about next winter's wood since much of it is pine. Fir and what little oak that I score don't seem to absorb moisture nearly as much at all. Any thoughts or suggestions.

 

How are you checking your moisture content? Please be as specific as possible.

I've been burning pine and spruce covered with a tarp stored on pallets with no issues whatsoever. The spruce got all the way down to 12% in less than a year of drying after being c/s/s and was soaking wet when I got it.

 

Not knowing climate where you are at, if there is a dry season and it gets down on moisture content and then as seasons shift and it gets more moist maybe doing a 3/4 side cover may help if it is a misty/ foggy moisture in the air. I wouldn't feel right saying completely cover it. Or is the air just that humid that it 24-7 is just gaining from ambient humidity?

 

Don’t cover your wood with a tarp. It traps the moisture and prevents it from being able to dry.

 

He's in northern Cali according to his profile. I would think if he didn't cover his wood, it would sit there and rot.

 

Exactly. Covering the top is important. Covering the sides is a no-no because that would trap moisture. Splits need airflow and some kind of top cover to shed most of the rain whether it be a tarp, a shed, rubber, or metal. Whatever works for you. He's ahead of the game keeping it off the ground but we need more details.

 

I’ve never noticed Pine wood absorbing any more moisture than any other type of wood. Like LordOfTheFlies said. Coving the top and not the sides should keep it dry. I burn a lot of Pine, mixed with several other species of wood. I stack it on pallets with just the tops covered in the winter time. I uncover it for the summer. No moisture problems. Very little humidity here though.

 

I grew up in Northern California and lived there 20 years afterward. It won’t rot. Covering just the top is one thing. Covering the whole stack with a tarp is another. The moisture will get trapped and won’t be able the escape.

 

Thanks for the responses. In the past as the winter advanced the tarp would drape over the sides of my stack restricting the airflow. I would take wood from the sides of the stack allowing this to happen. Seems pretty obvious now.