I have a good arms full of red maple I cut mid fall in the stove and it's burning pretty hot, 550 F on the meter. I cheated a little and tossed it on the stove about an hour before, but in a pinch it's still burning nice and hot. A few other types of wood I have in store now are cedar, pine, and some cherry. I hope to be able to ride the winter out like this until my stacks get seasoned, however I am looking for advice for fast drying firewood. I know softwoods dry the fastest; but other the standing dead trees I have no idea what is the most seasoned.
You burn what you got. Just inspect the chimney monthly & clean as needed You have a good plan, It gets better from here on out. It's the learning curve we all go thru.
Standing dead, depending on how long it has been dead, can be ready to burn. I have found that the top half or 2/3 of the standing dead Pine trees on my property are ready to burn. I take the bottom half or bottom 1/3 and put it in the pile to be split and stacked for next season. Keep your eyes open for opportunity for dry wood. Sometimes on craigslist, sometimes at lumber yards/hardware stores. You can ask around and tell them you burn wood and would be willing to haul away any scraps/junk wood they have. Many pay to have these hauled away to the dump. Much of it is kiln dried wood. Get a moisture meter if you do not have one and are trying to burn wood that is not properly seasoned. It can help you sort out what you want to burn and what you don't. Check the moisture on a fresh split side.
Do you have any money to buy some firewood? If you can find someone nearby that is selling some Ash that has been split and stacked for a few months. Ash seasons quickly. Use caution. Many will say they are selling seasoned wood and that is often far from the case. A moisture meter can be had for about $25 or less and you can check before you buy.
If you had cut, split and stacked that maple last spring, it would be good firewood now. It is one of the best for quick drying but it burns much better than popple or something like that. As you no doubt have read on the forum, many folks will get pallets and mix that pallet wood with the marginal wood. And as someone else stated, check that chimney at least once per month.
I'm really liking the Red the last couple years. Does a real nice job for all but the deep cold. Burns cleaner than Pine (both dry), easy to cut, dries in a year under the right conditions......what's not to like? I've got almost 2 cords ready for next winter that'll be over 18 months in the stacks. Should be real nice by then.
Look for standing dead if you can - the tops may ready to go, or if they're small and dead enough, almost the whole thing. They're harder to spot when there's no leaves, but there's usually clues, like no small branches at the top and/or bark falling off. If different wood isn't an option, keep what you got as dry as possible! And maybe get one of those inside firewood racks, or make something - enough to hold a couple days worth, so you can bring it inside and at least let it dry that much. Keep your fires on the hot side but watch the chimney! Fire extinguisher might not be a bad backup plan either.
I got a fire extinguisher for Christmas last year, always keep it in the house. I have a good amount of red maple stored up, if you have good experience with it drying in a years time I should be able to burn mine cleanly as well next year without much trouble.
A feller I know has cornered the market in town years ago. He talked to the carpenters in town and they throw their scraps in a tote and at the end of the project call him. To top off the scrounge he also contacted the school and the woodshop class saves all their scraps too.
