Hello all. Attached are photos of my wood stacks. I’ve been seasoning the red and white oak for just under two years approximately and the moisture levels are about 25%. Wondering if anyone has any tips for getting a few more percentage points off in the next few months. Hopefully by January. I live in Delaware and fortunately the winters here haven’t been as cold as they used to be. Don
Really, that sounds about right for oak. I season oak uncovered for 3 years at least to get the moisture content below 20%. Nice stacks and splitting area though!
Would you guys say that oak at 25% is arguably burnable? Or should you absolutely wait till it gets below 20%??
I found over the past few years that firewood that I had stacked close to a shed or other building did not season as quickly. Looks like you have a few stacked up against the barn / house there. You might see improvement if you had that in an area where the air / sun could hit it from all sides, optimally.
You could always burn a lit in a bit outside and see how it does. If it lights easy, has a bright flame, and there's no sizzle then my vote is you're good to go.
I would stack what you plan on using single rowed with the stack pointing due North in the sunniest part of that field ASAP. That orientation gets the most sun and single rowed gets the best airflow. Stack the splits loosely too. The stacks in the shade look damp compared to the one next to the chipper in full sunlight. As stated ive experienced how much slower wood dries in the shade next to a building, but thats really all i have as an area to stack it. PITA to move stacks but thats my 2c worth. Oak can take a few years to dry enough. My main reason for disliking it.
It can be burned, but wont burn well/smolder/sizzle and get the optimal heat output. Can you crib stack some near the stove a couple weeks prior to burning? Most wood sellers ive seen around here sell oak at only a few months seasoned and/or CS from logs that have "seasoned for a time. Ive had new customers complain about that. A few years ago i used to sell one year oak without complaint, but most of my customers are "casual" burners. Now i let it go through at least two Summers.
As MikeinMa pointed out covering will surely help but make sure you only cover the top in order for it to get as much airflow as possible. If you have the room inside I'd bring in wood to get dried out by your heating system/stove/fireplace. I have a small 1/6 cord rack inside as well as an even smaller rack and always try to keep those filled so that I give the wood some help. It's not going to go from 25%=>20% but any bit of drying out will help.
Great looking stacks & property Donald Stamper Great advice already given above with top covers, max sun and wind exposure. Advice given to me here in the past is mix some of that not fully seasoned wood with wood you know is fully seasoned. Oak is awesome but it really does take long to dry!
You've got a little time to restack before burn season outside. Do as the group says and maybe you'll lose a couple percentage points before you need to burn. Also, stack inside and it will lose moisture if near the stove when it comes to that point. Amy chance you can get some dry wood to stay the season off?
I looked at the first picture and knew right away what your problem is and then more pictures supported this. Stacking wood next to a building is not the way to dry wood unless you have lots of time. To dry wood, the number one thing is air circulation and if something is blocking the air... In addition, as others have pointed out, the wood should be top covered. Yes, wood can dry without being top covered but I am convinced you lose a lot of btu by not covering, especially when the wood has set for more than a year. Read this: (7) Primer on Woodburning by Backwoods Savage | Firewood Hoarders Club
I live in SE PA. We basically have the same humidity. The humidity has been 80%+ for months. We just got a break in the last week. A few percentage points will drop doing nothing. If you can have wood in the stove room for even 48 hours before burning it will make a huge difference. I had two stacks inside and I alternated so wood was always in the stove room for a few days, usually a week. Indoor humidity levels were 10-15% next to the stove.
