I've been gathering hardwoods for the last six months from dump scrounging. I finally had about 1.5 cords and rented a gas splitter for a half day ($45). My electric splitter does Pine and Doug Fir just fine. This will be great for those -25 degree nights we get for about two weeks. A mix of Elm, Ash, Locust and Aspen.
Did you try your splitter on any of it? The ash, locust and aspen should split fine with the electric, the elm, well, it just depends on the tree and its current condition. Either way, looks like a nice pile o BTUs!
Maybe surprisingly, we often hear folks prefer the pine and fir when it gets really cold because these woods burn hot and don’t coal up the stove so you can keep feeding it.
Yes, of the hardwoods you can find out here, the quality isn't great. Much of the Ash has little burls/knots/crazy grain structure. It's rare to find hardwood that will split on the electric splitter. I can do Aspen on it and occasional locust. Much of my hoarded stack was stuff that Buzzsaw Brad wouldn't touch, like his ex gf.
Missed this thread. Nice pile of splits there Zac. How many cords will you burn in an average Winter?
6 cords of Pine and maybe 1 cord of Ash on those hard days. I'm learning to become picky, I'd like to say I'm learning from the best!