Wood Shed “Speedy” Seasoning Idea

I ain’t admitting nothing!! And Those things may have saved lives, but my grandkids will be paying the interest on those things for their entire working lives!!! Betcha the guys in the Hindu Kush are using those things to store firewood just like you said. And if they top cover them, they could even throw some stinger missiles in there too!!

 

My guess and thought is that putting tarps out like you show will have zero effect on drying time or the amout your wood drys in any given time vs identical setup without tarps like shown.

I bet your tarps wouldn't even make it through summer before having to be replaced. And I think you would spend a fair amount of money on tarps over the year.

 

I think wind is more your friend than sunlight. If anyone makes a solar powered fan, point that at the pile and get the air moving. I have one part of my yard that has a constant breeze and another area that is behind a wind block. The wood on the breezy side seasons much more quickly.

 

To the OP, I kinda doubt that the solar reflector will work...unless you use a magnifying glass, if focused just right, the wood will dry REAL fast!
What I would do is to focus on cutting, splitting, stacking (CSS) woods that dry fast first...so forget the oak for now...hit the maple and poplar first...and if you have any Beech, take that too, it will dry in a year and burns like oak...also, boxelder and even pine.
Any dead ash (especially dead standers) will be burnable by fall (maybe even now) if you stick with the top half of the tree...once you get down into the trunk, that often needs a year to dry...maybe 1 summer if split smaller. You concentrate on these species you be warm this winter, and then you can concentrate on the oak after you have winter 23/24 covered.
BTW, what are you burning in?

 

Thank you for the tips, I will definitely focus more on those species and stacking in an ideal location that receives a lot of wind and sun. We do have plenty of ash still standing but there are piles of everything from rounds up to 7’-8’ where they setup the landings. I’ve been trying to work on processing these piles before they begin to get punky but if I can’t find a good amount of those other species, I’ll go for the ash.
I’m burning in a Harman Mark 2, which is probably another reason I’m going through so much wood.

 

Harmon Mark 2…….. Oh, Don’t like the sound of that..
Sell the wood, buy the coal…
You gotta be somewhat close to Superior ?? They are only @ $ 200.00 a ton, less than half of what alot of people are paying..

 

Not a fan of Harman stoves or burning wood in them?
Yeah, Superior isn’t far at all. They’re really only $200/ton? Seems way too cheap, I was hearing people say they’re paying anywhere from $400-$500 this year

 

Oh no, Harman makes great COAL stoves, they just don’t burn wood efficiently at all.. (as with most coal stoves)
Yes, Superior is @ 200/ton, bulk, you haul..

edit,
I posted pictures of my wood bins, here’s what I came up with for coal..

 

I like your idea of using the sun to both grow and then dry your wood. I think you can get mylar sheets in the form of emergency blankets in the camping section for a few bucks apiece.

 

Oops, did something wrong..

As I get older, I’m always looking for ways to be more better at being lazy… lol

 

Smarter not harder!

 

Yeah, definitely agree with you there. It does the job and heats the house plenty but it likes to chew through the wood. I’ve been looking into actual wood stove’s lately and will most likely be adding one before next year.
Liking that setup for your coal though! I’m a firm believer in working smarter, not harder as well