How deep can a woodshed be and still dry the center of the stack? I want to make mine 8-10 feet deep, but I don't want to have problems with rot in the center. My current stack is 7 rows deep (not covered) and there is mold in the center, but that could be from not being covered.
The wood I stack in my wood shed is a cube of almost 8 feet on a side and 5 feet high. I have 5 sections like that I stack wood in.
There are other factors too, right? Sun and wind exposure, regional climate, wood type…I’m probably missing some stuff. On a related note, I splurged and bought brown tarps and hooks, and cover my stacks the way this guy does:
If you're starting with green wood and hoping to dry it several rows deep, you might be disappointed. Your stacks not being covered is why they're moldy.
I'm of the mindset that a longer woodshed with less rows is better. Just my opinion of course. More wood getting directly hit by the sun and wind. My woodshed holds 8 full cords. 3 rows of 20" long wood.
I have to ask. This seems like a lot of extra handling of the wood. Why not just put it in a open sided woodshed with a roof like I posted above? Seems almost the same concept. I can't imagine moving 8 full cords an extra time each year. I guess it would depend on how much wood you burn and how much time you have available.
Yes, by not top covering the wood you are allowing more moisture in rather than letting moisture out. You can stack about as deep as you want outside and it will dry IF you top cover it. I've stacked wood over 20 rows deep and had no problem. But here is one more factor; wood still needs time to dry.
My shed holds 2.5 cords, and that's just about what I burn in a season, so it's not a particularly monumental task to load it up in the fall. I don't mind the extra leg work.
My limited experience so far is that too covering is critical. The thinner the row, i.e. one course or three courses (like mine on pallets are three courses of wood/rows) the faster it will season from green to 20%. Others have mentioned variables.....sun and wind exposure, and then local variables like humidity and rainfall through the drying season. I too will move dried wood from the drying rows to a open sided (like sirbuildalot's) shed/covered stack up closer to the house each year. As long as it is dry when it is moved up, and stays dry, I'll stack it 6' high and many rows deep. I might add one row of pallets end to end down the middle just to facilitate air movement. If you're seeing mold INSIDE the shed, perhaps opening up the sides somehow will help. You might also pull a row or two out from the middle of the 7 rows. Once well seasoned, stuffing the shed shouldnt be a problem. I left uncovered rounds stacked in 4 rows last spring. With the rainfall we had here in the Northeast, I had more mold and fungus growing......purples and greens...little shroomies or whatever they were. Sca
I have tried both. Six rows outside, 4" spacing between rows, uncovered: lost some to fungus and would not dry below 20%. Six rows inside a metal shed, 4" spacing between rows, up on reinforced pallets: no rot, fungus, or mildew and dries to 16-18%. Obviously low on air movement. The best here is one row covered outside but that consumes too much space.
I do the hook & log thing with my pool cover. Was using zip ties and gallon milk jugs w/ water but the zip ties break. Good system. I gotta cut pieces of locust so they will last forever.
