Oh boy, you're near where my cottage, and Mom is. I've been going there as long as I've been alive. We should meet up for a drink this winter. I get up to Tomahawk as much as the snow conditions allow in winter for snowmobiling.
Last load I picked up was the same it's all up the top of the garden when it drys it's getting burnt .
Welcome stumplifter! You are right that getting the wood split and stacked it the quickest way to get the wood dry. As far as the wood that you didn't get split and stacked, some species rot a lot faster than others. Birch will rot out almost immediately, soft maple is pretty quick too. The sapwood will rot on oak after a few years but the heartwood lasts for a very long time. Black locust is mother nature's equivalent of pressure treated wood, 20 years later it'll be as solid as the day it was cut. That said I'm betting that some of the wood that started going bad on you was birch or maple. Learning to identify what rots faster will help you figure out what needs processing sooner rather than later if you get into the same situation. Keeping the logs up off the ground helps also. Getting them up on stringers will keep the logs on the bottom a lot drier.
Ok, now that I re read this thread, and connected it to your thread about the absolute steel, I've got some assumptions I'll make. Mostly because I know the area you're in, what species of trees, forestry practices etc.. Pulp wood, in this area of the state is generally poplar, sometimes birch, soft maple, or pines. All tree types do better to get the wood split stacked, and top covered if they are to be used for firewood. Birch will rot quick if not CSS'd right away. It's great firewood if treated as such. Poplar will rot too, without being CSS, but not as bad as birch. Maple can rot too, but it seems to hold on best these tree types. Pine, it's a funny thing. It seems to dry out even if left in log form, as long as it's not in an area where it's wet, or out of sunlight. Even if the bark stays on it seems to dry out better than most woods. If the bark falls off, then even better. Red ( Norway) pine is very prevalent up north and that stuff send to shed it's bark readily after a couple of months being cut. If I was closer at the moment, I could swing by and figure out what you're dealing with as far as wood MC, punk, goodness, etc.
Can't find the thread I was looking for and as this is a newbie thread others may have the same ? Quite a few times over the last few weeks iv had no build up of ash in my pan or fire, it's when iv been burning timber mate dropped off. It's almost down to zero moisture whereas my logs are usually 20 ish % The question is , is it the lack of bark or the really low moisture or something else
Lack of bark, and what kind of wood it is matters on how much ash it makes. Some wood just produces more ash. Walnut, for example makes a lot of ash. Pine, makes minimal ash.
