Holy yippie jippie, put half red oak and half iron wood rounds in last night. Thought I was going to melt the stone on the fire view. Got 650 on stove top and from top to bottom the rest of the stove was sitting at 500 degrees. Granted -20 and 30 mph constant winds helped things. A rare treat to have iron wood where I am from. I think I got a taste of what the osage orange burners talk about! So the question is anyone else burn it, experiences with seasoning and or c/s/s??
Ironwood trees don't get very big around here, and aren't very common either. I've burned a little bit. It is pretty quick to season for a dense wood. 1 year is probably OK, but 2 would be better. Not quite as good as hedge/osage, but close.
I do know that it will wreck a chain in a real hurry, amazing to see the sparks fly. I might rescue a big section that my buddy has heaped in his burn pile. He said it wasn't worth the time cutting it. Anyone know what the value is for a saw mill? It's an 8 foot diameter and probably 2 feet around.
Ive never burned any Iron Wood. There are some in my area but Ive never seen one bigger than 6" DBH. I have burned some Osage Orange though, and as you say, WOW. It will embarrass Red Oak.
That is not the same wood we have here. What is called ironwood can be a few different trees. The ironwood in MI will not get that big for sure. We have some but not much. Burns great and have burned it after a year but 2 is better.
The stuff I was burning last night was 100 % positive iron wood, nothing bigger than 8" in diameter. There is a small stand that grows wild at the farm. I cannot be positive it is an iron wood log that my buddy has, but the bark looked like it and I counted 190 growth rings. My buddy had scored 3 log truck loads. The power company was putting in a big line and was dumping log truck loads to anyone who would take it. Wish I had gotten in on that score, but it is sad to see the big oaks, ash, maples and other old growth trees that were taken out in the name of progress.
A load of small rounds of Ironwood has the ability to warp a stove. Mega heat there if your not careful monitoring the burn.
I remember when I was a kid nobody would burn hedge because they said it would melt a stove! There has been a big improvement in stove design and damper controls since then.
They still say that around here. I've run about 10 cord through my stove the past 3-4 years and my stove has yet to form a puddle on the floor.
The trees I know as Ironwood are Carpinus caroliniana, also called Blue Beech or American Hornbeam. I have never seen one bigger than maybe 10 inches at the base, and I have never burnt any. There is another tree Ostrya virginiana that is called Hophornbeam or sometimes Ironwood, and I have burnt some of that tree. It is a small tree too, so I have always burnt rounds that are in the 4 or 5 inch diameter range. They burn hot and long, but not all that much better than rounds of other dense woods. Maybe I need to find larger trees to burn but neither Ironwood is common around here.
Never burned any but I have heard the stories of wreaking havoc on chainsaw chains. I bet it puts out some nice heat.
This is what the oldtimers call hardhack up here, I'll be burning some two year old stuff for next heating season. http://ohiodnr.com/forestry/trees/hophorn_am/tabid/5377/Default.aspx The Blue Beech (musclewood) we have is much smaller than the above. http://ohiodnr.com/forestry/trees/beech_bl/tabid/5337/Default.aspx
My average Hophornbeam (Ironwood) is probably 8 -10 inches DBH when it dies, as die it will. I have had a few grow as large as 14 inches, Have a 14 inch right next to my woodpile in front of my sliding glass door; it is RIGHT next to a large maple, and its top started to die two years ago. I will let it put on wood as long as possible, then take it down. Usually I just let them stand dead, as the roots slowly will rot and after about ten years they fall over, and are small enough that they don't do much harm when they do eventually fall. they have lots of short knarled branches near the very top, which tends to keep the trunk off the ground, so even once they fall they can be left for many years and are still good for firewood. Jdonna, to you mean two feet around and 8 feet long? Or two feet in diameter and 8 feet around? Just trying to picture the log...which is likely Blue beech vs Hophornbeam? I love burning Ironwood. It is leaps and bounds better than beech or sugar maple for heating.
Not much here either and not very big. I couldn't really give an accurate seasoning time other than to say 2 years like most everything else is a good plan.
I could see it melting a stove down! Fortunately with a fireview, single air control and a turn key as a safety. I know if I would have put it in my past "fire dome" technology stove, not to bash or mention any other stoves by name, it would be a puddle of cast iron! The log is 8 feet long and 2 foot or just shy of in diameter. I need a break in the weather and move his brush off the top to see exactly what I am dealing with. But I did have a good eye on it this fall after he mentioned trying to cut it and sparks flying. In MN, Iron Wood is called, Ostrya virginiana. 20-40 feet tall and 6-12" diameter.
So it is a Hophornbeam. That is absolutely huge for a Hophornbeam. Can you post a picture of the log? I would not be at all surprised if that was a record tree.
