The RPF Firewood Thread

[pcosmar]

But... but... global warming!

If only,,,

I would welcome it.

[jbauer]

//

[jbauer]

Tried the little dremel bits with no luck.

I use one of the $200 wastes of money from the OP and love it. As long as you use it correctly and adjust it as needed based on your chain condition they work great. I swap chains every other tank of gas or so and mainly do that because nothing beats a nice sharp chain. Takes me about 5 minutes per chain to sharpen them.

[oyarde]

I split wood yesterday and today , hoping I have enough to last to Feb 1 done now , that just leaves Feb to cover , Think I have enough trees down I dropped last Easter to cover that once I get them sawed and split. It is snowing here ,started hard by about 3:00 this afternoon .

[oyarde]

Considering the past three weeks , I may have to recalculate and get busier .

[phill4paul]

Considering the past three weeks , I may have to recalculate and get busier .

Lol. Same here.

[presence]

Split and stacked:

4.5 x 7 x 7 = 220 ft3 = on pallets, under roof
6 x 9 x 4.5 = 243 ft3 = on pallets, under carpet and 60mil pond liner
10 x 13 x 4 = 520 ft3 = on deck, under tarred carpet

983 / 128 = 7.67 cord

+ 120 unsplit 10" to 14" unsplit seasoned rounds
+ 8 @ 10 feet x 12" seasoned logs

ordered:
1 triaxle load March Delivery (7 cord)

already consumed since 10/20:
3 x 4 x 7 = 84 = 0.65 cord

[JK/SEA]

I split wood yesterday and today , hoping I have enough to last to Feb 1 done now , that just leaves Feb to cover , Think I have enough trees down I dropped last Easter to cover that once I get them sawed and split. It is snowing here ,started hard by about 3:00 this afternoon .

how many cords do you have now, and how many cords did you burn last winter?

i have 10 cords this year. I burned about 6 cords last year.

same question to anyone burning wood.

tia..

[Suzanimal]

Okay, y'all might know this trick but I sure didn't. It's painful to watch the boys splitting wood, I think this would help out a lot.

[phill4paul]

Okay, y'all might know this trick but I sure didn't. It's painful to watch the boys splitting wood, I think this would help out a lot.

I do it this way. Sometimes. Good on poplar. Won't work with oak.

[FrancisMarion]

You folks that have a continuous fire through winter ever looked into masonry stoves?

From what I have read they are better than metal. The thermal mass might take a little longer to get to temp, but once your there, your cozy.

I imagine they are expensive and you would have to be a highly skilled mason to build one.

[Suzanimal]

I do it this way. Sometimes. Good on poplar. Won't work with oak.

Good to know, they're working on an oak tree.

[Suzanimal]

Wow, that is nice.

You folks that have a continuous fire through winter ever looked into masonry stoves?

From what I have read they are better than metal. The thermal mass might take a little longer to get to temp, but once your there, your cozy.

I imagine they are expensive and you would have to be a highly skilled mason to build one.

[oyarde]

Good to know, they're working on an oak tree.

Phil is right .It would work on poplar , maybe pine but probably not hickory , sycamore etc

[oyarde]

how many cords do you have now, and how many cords did you burn last winter?

i have 10 cords this year. I burned about 6 cords last year.

same question to anyone burning wood.

tia..

I am probably down to four rick now , probably 8 would get me through end of Feb .I am not even sure how much I burnt last year , probably more than I ever have , even in the late 70's .I will probably get stated on my Feb splitting this coming weekend .

[JK/SEA]

I am probably down to four rick now , probably 8 would get me through end of Feb .I am not even sure how much I burnt last year , probably more than I ever have , even in the late 70's .I will probably get stated on my Feb splitting this coming weekend .

wish i could help you split. I love doing this. Great exercise and clears my head...

i started burning in mid Oct., and i've burned just over 4 cords now....weatherman is predicting a warmer winter here in the PNW which if holds true, i will have a nice inventory left over for next winter of which i will just add to....yay...

[luctor-et-emergo]

Started burning early November.. Burned through half a cord so far, we're having a really mild winter, normally we'd have used double and 5 gallons of petroleum in the upstairs petroleum heater. So far I have used a tiny amount of petroleum, not even a pint.

Just took delivery of a cord of wood today. More oak/birch mix which does fine. Time to do some splitting.

[phill4paul]

Started in Oct. Probably went through a cord and a half. Small stove. Jotul w/ a 18"x10"x12" box. Just a supplemental/emergency heat for the living area. I like the bedroom cooler. Have enough to get through Jan. Need to split for Feb. but flu/cold had me down. Hopefully finish off this years after New Years.

[tod evans]

wish i could help you split. I love doing this. Great exercise and clears my head...

i started burning in mid Oct., and i've burned just over 4 cords now....weatherman is predicting a warmer winter here in the PNW which if holds true, i will have a nice inventory left over for next winter of which i will just add to....yay...

I've split wood in Oregon and I've split wood in the Ozarks, if orarde's trees are like we grow here ya' won't catch me volunteering to split it...

Things are a bit easier working in below 30 degree temps but no matter how you approach oak-n-elm it doesn't split like alder....

[Barrex]

You folks that have a continuous fire through winter ever looked into masonry stoves?

From what I have read they are better than metal. The thermal mass might take a little longer to get to temp, but once your there, your cozy.

I imagine they are expensive and you would have to be a highly skilled mason to build one.

I am looking for designs for big open fireplace...preferably open on 3 sieds but I cant find good instructions (hight of chimney, placement of damper,slope etc.).

[phill4paul]

I am looking for designs for big open fireplace...preferably open on 3 sieds but I cant find good instructions (hight of chimney, placement of damper,slope etc.).

Seems to me tat a design like this should be stand alone. It's true that most heat goes up a chimney, however, that is also where creosote buildup occurs. I see no way to clean these so it seems that a "chimney fire" would have to occur on occasion to affect a reset.

[oyarde]

I've split wood in Oregon and I've split wood in the Ozarks, if orarde's trees are like we grow here ya' won't catch me volunteering to split it...

Things are a bit easier working in below 30 degree temps but no matter how you approach oak-n-elm it doesn't split like alder....

True , most of the good burning wood I split here is a bitch Worked @ it yesterday and will again next weekend , hopefully that gets me through Feb , then . Ten degrees out now .

[luctor-et-emergo]

Just split a weeks supply of wood.. I think it's nice to do on the weekends. I know, it's Friday, well thats when my weekend starts. The weekends is when I'm self employed so still plenty of work...

Anyways, I've figured out that a weeks supply is a neatly stacked pile of about 2x3ft, footlong pieces of firewood.

It's burned in one of these;
Very nice piece of equipment, although after 20 years it needs some new ceramic rope and caulking... Sometimes she can be a bit smelly but the draw from the chimney is good enough that it's not a direct worry, also the room it sits in is rather big so any bad gasses can spread out before they become a problem..

It has been below freezing for a while now, actually a decent winter.. I've gone through about 1 1/2 cords this winter, probably the same still until spring arrives. The actual cold weather here is usually more in Feb/Mar. We don't get many white Christmases.

[presence]

Just split a weeks supply of wood..

You asked via rep if I owned a Gransfors splitting maul...

No.

I'm using an old maul head that I've now put a few handles through and if you check the note below the image on the front page of the OP:

This is a 6lb splitting maul. I destroy a triaxle of logs every year with one of these Note the metal handle guard, finding a maul with a guard like this is difficult... I screw 5"x5" square, bent U shaped, piece of heavy 16g galv sheet metal on to my handle just below my maul head... it ensures your hickory handle lasts 5 years instead of 1. I also like to coat the wood where it passes through the maul head with some kind of petroleum product... used motor oil works well to ensure longevity; lately I like the smell of diesel. If your maul came with a cute leather sheath like the one above... throw it in the weeds.

I do find that a metal handle guard added after market to any wooden handle maul is crucial for longevity.

[Suzanimal]

A simple way to store kindling.

[osan]

On about 600 sqft of low pile commerical and some indoor/outdoor carpet I just rolled a bucket of black fibred roof coating:



I torch melted the edges to stop it from running... best damn firewood tarps money can buy

And if you keep your eyes open, you can get the carpet for nothing. Wall to wall is a nasty thing to put in one's house and some people see the light and out on the curb it goes. Scoop it up and you're fixed.

[osan]

You folks that have a continuous fire through winter ever looked into masonry stoves?

From what I have read they are better than metal. The thermal mass might take a little longer to get to temp, but once your there, your cozy.

I imagine they are expensive and you would have to be a highly skilled mason to build one.

Not necessarily. Masonry is mostly very straightforward. There is some magic there, but that's for very special tricks.

If you have a blueprint and can lay block, which is not that difficult a job if you understand the concepts of "level", "plumb", "square", and "straight".

[luctor-et-emergo]

First cord of firewood was delivered, just lit the first fire of the year. It was immediately comforting to sit in front of the window watching the flames.

[brandon]

Ohh I can kind of join this thread now that I'm a homeowner. My house is primarily heated by an oil boiler, but we have a wood fireplace in the living room which is on a slab foundation and does get cold.

I only bought a mere half cord for the year. Already through like a quarter of it. Will have to get a full one for next winter.

[presence]

I'm at +/-

2.5 cord under roof split small
2.5 under tarred carpet on deck split small
2.5 in the sun quartered
2.5 in rounds
2.5 in 10' logs near the house
2.5 cord in 10' logs that need to get hauled in off the land


I figure I'll need about 6-7 cord for the winter; its splitting season for me, I try to chop a 1/4 to 1/2 cord daily after morning coffee

I burn 10/20 to 4/20 nonstop

Its about 68 indoors right now, on south facing windows alone; high today of 55.