Firewood how long to dry out

One of the best ways to achieve the gaps is by stacking in a vertical, horizontal, vertical type stacking so the wood is stacked in opposite directions at each layer. You will want to remember that you do not want the wood to touch the ground. Laying down a tarp or better yet, a pallet, is ideal for stacking wood on. A sturdy enough platform that allows for air to flow up from under is ideal when stacking wet wood for it to dry appropriately.

It is best to prepare this or use some other type of wood that will not develop condensation on it so that the wood can dry and not continually get wet. If your wood touches the ground, you are leaving it open to the possibility of mold growth, bugs inhabiting the wood, and the wood never fully drying. Laying your wood above the ground slightly will help you avoid all kinds of nasty things happening to it. Once you have your platform, you want to start stacking the wood with the split side facing downwards.

This is so that the bark on the outside of the wood can help protect the wood against the elements. Furthermore, it allows for better air circulation. After you finish stacking your wood, it is best to protect it. Covering it with a tarp is a popular choice though it will take longer to dry as the tarp will prevent the air from circulating efficiently.

Having a shed or carport type structure is ideal as it allows for optimal airflow while protecting your wood from the elements. Furthermore, a tarp or any other plastic covering is likely to develop condensation that will drip onto the wood and not dry it effectively. Building a structure to put the tarp over allows for proper airflow while still protecting the wood from the elements. The airing out method means you stack your wood on the ground level and let the sun dry it out for you.

That means you need a sunny day or two or more. It is always a good idea to check the forecast well ahead of time before attempting this method. You will want as much sun as possible. The sunnier, the better. Depending on the amount of space you have, airing out your firewood can help to accelerate the process of drying. This method requires more air and sunlight than the stacking method.

It will also require a lot more space, but it is very efficient. As long as the weather is not rainy or causes precipitation, you are good to leave the logs to the elements. However, if rain is called for, you will want to cover them up or stack them in a shed. This method is best used when you have direct sunlight in the forecast. This method of drying wood is going to be the fastest but not necessarily the most efficient. This method is best used only when you need a fire, and you cannot wait for the wood to dry.

A few days before you know you will be burning the wood, you want to bring the wood into the house. When it comes to this method, you want to make sure you start your fire with good dry wood and kindling before adding the logs that were brought in to dry.

The key is that even though the logs may still be somewhat damp, they will still burn well once the fire is already going. Semi-damp wood can go into the fire once the fire is roaring. Make sure you adjust your damper to prevent the wood from smoldering. Semi-damp wood is going to smolder more and cause more smoke than fully dry wood will. There may be some snapping or gurgling sounds that the logs will make as excess water vaporizes. Wet firewood is not the end of the world, but it can cause a lot of trouble.

Firewood that is left wet can grow mold that smells bad and is not suitable for burning. How can you tell whether wood is properly seasoned? It's possible to test the wood with a moisture meter, which measures resistance to a small current and converts it into a moisture-content reading, yet this reading can vary widely from one area of the log to another.

With a little practice, however, you can use the following tips to judge accurately for yourself whether your wood is dry. Use as many as you can for the best results. Look for cracks and checks in the end grains that radiate out from the heartwood to the sapwood.

These appear before the wood is totally seasoned, so your testing should not stop here. Wood fades and darkens as it seasons, changing from white or cream to yellow or gray. As wood dries, the bark slowly begins to separate from the wood and eventually falls away. If the bark is still attached to the wood, peel it back with a sharp knife and check the cambium.

If the cambium is green, so is the wood. A cord of seasoned wood should have more wood without bark than bark-covered wood. Bang two pieces of wood together. Dry wood sounds hollow; wet wood sounds dull.

Seasoned wood weighs much less than green wood of the same species. If in doubt, burn some! Dry firewood ignites and burns easily; wet wood is tough to light and hisses in the fire. There are advantages to buying firewood green, provided you have the room to store and season it for a year.

Also, seasoned wood may be in short supply in some areas, so you may not have a choice. Firewood can take a very long time to properly season. Exactly how long is a matter of ongoing debate in wood-burning circles. The traditional rule of thumb is to season firewood for at least six months before the heating season; some hardwoods require at least one to two full years. The truth lies somewhere in the middle and depends on piece size, tree species and local climate.

The protective bark on a log helps prevent the interior moisture from evaporating, so firewood begins to dry significantly only after it is cut and split.

By splitting the wood into smaller pieces, you create a greater surface area, and the greater the total surface area, the lower the overall density, which means the wood dries and seasons at a faster rate. Trees with a dense wood structure, such as oak and elm, season much more slowly than do ash and birch.

Conifers have an entirely different cell structure than deciduous trees and take longer to dry, so they are best split into small pieces. Finally, if you live in a damp maritime climate, seasoning times may be longer. On top of that, the smell will blanket your house. Most importantly, however, is that unseasoned wood leaves more creosote in your flue pipe.

Creosote is a byproduct of burning wood and it can be dangerous. Third-degree creosote, for example, is the most dangerous. Wood dries over time so one could assume after many years, the moisture level will be really low. This always depends on your local climate, of course. The dryer the wood is, the faster it will burn. More smoke is produced and with enough airflow, the fire can get out of hand. Get yourself a digital moisture meter to be sure.

Answer: Covering your firewood with a tarp is a topic of debate within the wood burning community. When most people ask about using a tarp, I think they mean temporarily.

By all means, cover it with a tarp for a few days or until it stops raining. There is no problem using a tarp to cover your firewood temporarily. However, using a tarp can become a problem when its left on the wood for too long. When a tarp covers your pile of wood, it locks in natural humidity and blocks airflow.

These conditions are perfect for mold to grow. Especially if the wood is sitting on the ground, soaking up water.