Hi everyone. We just moved up to northern Ontario in the fall of 2018. We live on 40 acres of bush (mixed hard and soft wood trees), the previous owner left us no wood and we didn't have chance to c/s/s any of our own so we bought some, but what we bought is frozen, soaked and snow covered. My question is, what is the best way to get this wood thawed out and dry for burning, in our woodstove. I'm not new to firewood as my dad had his own firewood business so I grew up with it. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. TIA
Welcome to the club Patricia That is a tough spot to be in but you're certainly not the first to be there. If your financial situation allows I would consider picking up some biobricks. Here is a good discussion on their performance and cost: Woodstock IS + Fiber Fuel = Awesome! Best of luck to you!
I personally don't think there is any magic way to get it burnable, and usually firewood dealers aren't selling very seasoned wood anyway. If possible, find some dead trees to cut up in your 40 acre lot. Standing or blown over, whatever is dead and dry.
Welcome to the club, Patricia! I would stack some inside near the wood stove and get a small fan blowing on it. As Woody said, harvest anything you can find thats dead standing on your woodlot. Get it CSS and use it the best you can to make heat and to dry the other wood. It will be a fight but you'll get through it.
Welcome to the FHC Patricia .. the concept of getting dry wood in February is a tough one. You're only answer is dead standing trees. I would highly recommend a cheap moisture meter to know what the moisture content of the wood you're trying to burn is
Welcome Patricia. The posters above are saying what I would say. You mentioned softwoods are on your wood lot. Can you find many of them that are standing dead? The top half of these trees will be better than the bottom. Testing what wood you have with a moisture meter (using the proper method) is a good idea. How is your snow cover for accessibility in the bush? I know around here once the snow gets to deep you can only access the bush by sled or snow shoes.
What kind of wood burner do you have? If it is a non epa, epa, outdoor boiler, ect, it all factors in to what a person can use when it comes to questionable wood. If it is an option, standing dead with the bark fallen off is probably your best bet in a bad situation. Welcome to the club! Ask away, we have a bunch of people here with a wealth of info that are very willing to help with a multitude of topics about everything it seems.
Welcome to the forum Patricia We feel for you with the problem you have but admire you for the area you moved too. It has to be close to the climate of northern MI which is great...but not so much the black flies and mosquitoes. lol Firewood problems abound and even though your dad had a firewood business, there is no doubt in my mind but that he sold wood in the same year that he cut it. Most also split the wood just before it is delivered. It is understandable for wood sellers to do this because to do it any other way would be too much work and also require a lot more space. About the only thing I would know what to do with the wood you have is to constantly be bringing wood in to sit by the stove with hopes of it drying out but good luck on that one. Some of the bricks they sell might help you through this winter. You will find on this forum what we call the 3 year plan. I highly recommend it. Also, here is some reading material for you that you can read on a cold winter day. It has helped many: Primer on Woodburning by Backwoods Savage
Thanks for welcoming guys. To reply to some of your advice ( which is all greatly appreciated). First , yes my dad c/s/s and let all his wood sit at least a year outdoors and indoors before selling. Second, I have been bringing in about a dozen pieces of wood and drying it out by the stove and it seems to be doing the trick. Plus when the fire gets hot enough I throw a piece in to keep the temp down.. lol ( works great for that). The temp up here where I am, in Restoule is -42 with the wind chill and the bush is inexcessible at the moment . Believe in me come spring, summer and fall my back yard and bush will be full of c/s/s firewood ( my goal is 50 cord) by next fall.. thanks for all the advice.
Hey Patricia , welcome aboard. I can't offer any new advice, but it sounds like you've got it under control with a good plan for the warmer weather too. I will agree with moresnow to get yourself a brush and rods to clean the flue on a regular basis until you know how often that needs to be done. In a pinch, and if they're available, you can also use pallets to help get you through this winter. Lots of folks have resorted to this. Good luck, and keep us updated...............also, hang around and join the fun. First couple years after we moved here, we used the same tactic of putting wood next to the stove........didn't work very well, but we had nothing but nice freshly css Oak to work with.
Dennis, Backwoods Savage mentioned the "3 year plan". It's a good idea to have enough wood for three years and just replace what you use every year. It's not always needed to get the wood dry (depends on the wood) and ready to use, but there are other reasons for it. Life happens and we don't always know how that might affect our ability to put up firewood. I've been way too busy the last couple years and had to buy wood. The only reason that worked is due to the 3 year plan.
I've done what you are doing. Some indoors to try to dry it out. Standing up on end on a concrete basement floor. There was quite a puddle there for a while. Also it doesn't dry out so well outdoors in the Winter stacked so if you can crib a bunch of it to maximize wind exposure that can help. You've probably already weighed the heating costs to get by for this Winter to decide the most cost effective means to stay warm. Bio-bricks are about the same price as decent pellets here. There are fuel use comparison calculators that can save some pencil pushing like this one, online: Big Picture BTU Online Calculator or this one: Fuel Comparison Calculator for Home Heating | Coalpail.com Because the price of home heating oil is still relatively reasonable ($2.30) ( and we have a new fuel efficient boiler ) compared to the price of buying wood here ($250.00), we wouldn't likely be heating with wood if we had to buy wood. Hey, there's always trying to burn pallets too if you have the time and means. It's a bit of work but sometimes you do what you have to do to get by.
Hi Patricia and welcome. You are going to find many helpful wonderful people out here. We like beer, pets and pics. The more pics the better. How about one of your stove?
There's been a lot of great suggestions so far. Dead standing trees, up a few feet from the ground, a moisture meter, and a chimney brush will be your friends.
Your forest is likely very similar to our woods, which is mixed balsam, spruce, poplar, birch and black ash, and likely a lot of snow on the ground now. If you can get around to find some standing dead balsam, spruce or smaller poplar you might get by for awhile on that. Bigger dead poplar and birch are usually punky and no good. Some people will mix some the the dry wood they can scrounge this way with some of green and burn it with a lot of air before turning down the stove. You will get creosote, but this may keep it down a bit. I know a few folks that get their wood in the fall and winter, and burn an awful lot of it pretty green as their heat source, but it is definitely not the best way to heat a home. For the green stuff you have, get it split up smaller than you might otherwise, bring it in by the stove, and get it at least bit drier and mix it as described above.
Welcome Patricia , you’re gonna like it here, I guarantee it. It is true we like pics, dogs and beer, and it has been said above by my brethren the options you currently have. 50 cords put away by next years end is quite a lofty goal and certainly would put you well on your way to the 3 yr plan which cannot be overemphasized, it is imperative, should you wish to make wood your primary heat source (my gas bill is $10.10 a month as the minimum, I light my furnace once a yr just to ensure its working and cook with gas). As stated also, lots of wonderful folks here willing to extend advice or a helping hand, glad you found us and nice to meet you.
I forgot to welcome you to the group. Glad you have a good bit of experience dealing with wood burning...a lot of good advice here...just be safe with the dead standing trees...
