Are these things worth it??? I have split about 7 cords of wood in the spring and the past year I have tried burning wood and it's smoldered and was wet but finally have it drying and seasoning outside correctly. Will this 100% tell me that the wood is good to use with its moisture content? The day they make a tool that tells you which kind of wood it is will be a millionaire and I'll be the first to buy.
I have one and it has come in really handy, I don't use it as much anymore but I'm in a different situation now. If you are in the situation you described they are very useful. Keep in mind they are preset for reading moisture at a specific temperature. I think its around 75 degrees, so if your checking wood in the middle of winter its best to bring it inside for a bit. And always check on a fresh split, the inside will always have more moisture then the outside. The meter will help you figure out what is ready now and what isn't. I am three years ahead on my firewood now so I don't use it much anymore but it is handy if I'm curious about a few pieces.
I used my cheapo one for the first year I burned, it was nice to have to educate myself but in the end I discovered that if you are 2 years ahead just about everything will be ready to burn. I couldn't even tell you where my moisture meter is now, I haven't used it in 3 years.
Trust me I know...I bought a stack from the supermarket one time and it heated the whole room. I use the wet wood and it kicks and gives off no heat
It's a fun tool to have but when you get ahead enough it kinda becomes obsolete. I'm a data nerd so I like to know that kind of stuff even if I don't need to.
Agree with the others are saying and I'm super jealous of swag's wood inventory I have a wood insert and have to burn really dry wood. I use a cheaper moisture meter. I split a few pieces of a downed tree and avg the %. I then spray paint it and the date on the pile once it's stacked. It's kinda neat to check the % thru the year at least for me anyways
Some will chime in saying no, but I found mine useful at the beginning. Now less so, but I still like it. Get the cheapest one you can find - Harbor Freight, EBay, Amazon, big box stores, whatever. Always measure on a fresh split, you are looking for 20% or less moisture content.
Good advise, I don't think they're worth $50. I got this one, it was good to me while I used it and I'm pretty sure there's cheaper one's out there. https://www.amazon.com/Dr-Meter-MD-...qid=1468338322&sr=8-6&keywords=moisture+meter
20% or lower moisture content or less for good burning wood ok perfect. Are you saying all the split wood i already have split and seasoned isn't a good way to check for dryness? I can or should only check as soon as I actually split the fresh wood ?
The comment about a fresh split wood means that when you check the moisture reading, take a split that has been seasoned and split it in half and check the moisture content on the freshly split side. The reasoning is that the interior of a log will have more moisture than the exterior, even if it's been "seasoned".
I still use mine now and again even though I'm almost 4 years ahead. I have mostly red oak that can take longer than others to dry, so if I come across a dead stander I can check it and maybe have it take place of some questionable wood. It also helps you learn how well your drying spaces are actually working. One spot in the yard might take longer than another. It helps you recognize that and you can adjust from what the data is showing. And its always their to reinforce what we already know.... 2-3 years drying time is needed! It also helps me with my shoulder wood as that is harder for me to come by and only usually gets to season for a summer, and I can make sure its at least close to dry.
I have the harbor freight stihl knock off, most weekends it's in my pocket. I like checking fresh cut dead standing or blow down, or differences between seasons growing area ect. It's a fun gadget. I kown where I can substitute different species in my pile regardless of when they were cut if they are ready. I also use it mostly for all my sawn lumber stacks. I use it so I can sell lumber or firewood knowing it's good to go.
I have the same model shown (but purchased it for less than half the price some years ago). I use it on all of my stacks, and found it's a great opportunity to experiment with different drying techniques, especially since I'm quite a few heating seasons ahead. Also beware, some stoves really don't like wood that's down to 20% moisture. Mine is a prime example (Englander 13-NC) as it prefers wood to be at least 15% or less moisture content. Anything over that, it will complain like I stuck a piece of soggy wood in it. It's kind of a little insurance policy letting you know you do indeed have dry burnable wood. Dry wood equates to little to absolutely no creosote build up in the chimney as well as the maximum BTU's out of whatever species of wood your burning. So yes, to me a moisture meter (any brand, expensive to cheap) is an invaluable tool and well worth it!
what bassJAM said. For the price they are a very good tool to have. If you get ahead on your wood you likely wont need to use one if you follow proper drying techniques. I dont have the space to get 3 years ahead so for me they are more important. I also harvest standing dead trees that take the summer to get in the zone if they arent quite ready yet. Down near the trunk my trees may be 25% and half way up 20%.....
I was in the same boat when I started that he is now. Just bought a house and wanted to heat it with just wood. I scrounged every dead tree I could get my hands on. I learned a lot from here, specially from Backwoods Savage. For a number of years I busted my rear end to get ahead, now I cruise along and try to maintain what I have built up. There's many others on here like Scotty Overkill that are much further ahead then I am. One thing I've noticed is that the longer the wood is seasoned the better it performs in the wood stove. I would much rather burn 3-4 year seasoned wood then 1-2.
Recently I measured a dead standing lodgepole pine that I had just cut and split. I had heard that dead standing lodgepole would be dry enough to burn right away, but I found well over 30% moisture, so I guess the tale was wrong.
What I have noticed on dead standing is the top is usually ready to burn but often the lower part of the trunk still holds a lot of water.
Back in the days of plain smoke dragons it was probably just fine to burn. Newer epa stoves not as much. 30% is not bad though. Few months in a good spot and that's probably good to burn.
