Who is cutting wood?

**glademaster** · 10-24-2014, 10:26 AM

Originally Posted by stfu&gbtw

Howdy...

1. It's too late to fell even standing dead with the intention of burning it now. Even logs that usfs dropped years ago will need a month or 6 weeks to air out after you round and split them. If I had no wood today, I'd buy whatever I needed for this year and get a jump on next year's pile now.

2. Doesn't matter how big the pine is, it won't go all night. You'll need a source of hardwood if you want to sleep through the night and wake up to a warm house. In CO, we have to buy it. A cord of oak runs about $700 here.

3. Don't argue with your wife about the wood. Wood is cheap and easy compared to a pissed off wife. My neighborhood is nicknamed "Divorce Gulch" for a reason.

4. Doors closed. Damper controls temp and burn time. Closed, cool/long. Open, hot/short.

1. Pretty much true, you should be spending every free, waking daylight hour splitting wood now. Stack it OFF the ground. Get some pallets, and place them on cinderblocks, you want your wood to be 10-14 inches above the ground to ensure faster drying. Also, stack in single rows, perpendicular to the prevailing wind direction to maximize airflow through your splits. And I would recommend only top covering it. See if you can find some sheets of metal or plastic roofing, or hit up a lumber yard for lumber wrap, they will usually give it to you for free. Have some bigger tarps and use them if you're going to get a windy rain storm, and batten down the hatches for that, but top covering will keep 95% of the moisture off the wood while allowing it to get better airflow. Also, buy a moisture meter. You're looking for internal moisture content under 20%. Stick the pins firmly into the face of a split, aligned with the grain, and make sure you are testing a fresh face (i.e. resplit an already split piece and test the area you just exposed).

2. This is false unless you have a very small stove. I burn primarily lodgepole and subalpine fir and have no trouble getting 8 hours of usable heat out of a stove load, and I have ample coals to re-load on for several hours after that, and I don't even have a catalytic stove. Generally though, split your wood small for this year. If you can start working on next year's stack, you can split that larger as it will have 12+ months to season, but given your short seasoning schedule for this winter, split it small. If you want a longer burn, just pack those small splits nice and tight with minimal air gaps between them.

3. I like the house warm and I'm not married, so I can't help you here.

4. Doors closed for sure, wood stoves are vastly more effective than fireplaces for home heating because they do not draw nearly as much room air into the combustion chamber. Running with the doors open negates that benefit.

Is there a ~1 inch gap between that stone and the wood underneath it? If not, I think this setup is too unsafe with regard to clearances to combustibles to operate. You need an air gap for any sort of heat shield, stone has basically 0 R value. Also, what is the distance from your stove pipe to the wooden ceiling where it passes through. It looks like single wall stove pipe, which NEEDS 18 inches between it and anything combustible to be safe. I can't tell if there is a ceiling support box there or not, but given the age of this stove and the way it is set up, but if not, I think it is going to need some work before I would feel comfortable sleeping in the house with the stove running. You really need to familiarize yourself with the NFPA 211 standards, and ensure that your stove meets them. Chimney sweeps are notoriously unfamiliar with code and safe installations, at least here.

**XXX-er** · 10-24-2014, 01:41 PM

http://jotul.com/ca/home/pre-epa-air...c-clean-buring

Speaks^^ to the percieved need that people feel for a stove that will smoulder all night making a lot of smoke which goes against the modern clean burn practice, when you ask someone about their stove they say yeah its great cuz it burns all night which is apparently not cool for air qualtiy

The vermont castings cat stove I used for 5 years almost never burnt thru the night but it was very clean burning and really easy to relite so just relight in the a.m.

Burning clean is important here in a mountain valley that is almost constantly in an inversion all winter and the reason for stove buyback programs

**glademaster** · 10-24-2014, 03:07 PM

Originally Posted by XXX-er

http://jotul.com/ca/home/pre-epa-air...c-clean-buring

Speaks^^ to the percieved need that people feel for a stove that will smoulder all night making a lot of smoke which goes against the modern clean burn practice, when you ask someone about their stove they say yeah its great cuz it burns all night which is apparently not cool for air qualtiy

The vermont castings cat stove I used for 5 years almost never burnt thru the night but it was very clean burning and really easy to relite so just relight in the a.m.

Burning clean is important here in a mountain valley that is almost constantly in an inversion all winter and the reason for stove buyback programs

Truth, a hot burn is a clean burn, and vice versa. With modern stoves you can't fully shut the intake air in order to limit smoldering fires. If you have a large enough stove (mine is one of the bigger ones that can be vented via a 6 inch chimney at ~3.5 cubic foot firebox), you can get enough wood in there to produce heat for most of the night with a good coal bed in the morning without choking it back too much. There's a lot of heat in 50-70 pounds of wood.

Vermont Castings stoves, at least those made after about 1980-85 and widely considered to be pieces of shit because, well, they are. If you want a classical looking stove that will actually heat your house and require a $1000 rebuild after 4 seasons, buy a Jotul. That being said, I do find Jotul's adamant opposition of catalytic technology and lower emissions standards to be sort of slimy.

Splitinbend, if you don't have them already, you should invest in stove top and stove pipe therrmometers. They're under $30 a piece, but give you a lot of valuable information about how you're burning. I recommend Condar brand.

**XXX-er** · 10-24-2014, 03:29 PM

Regardless of stove brand A hot burn IS a clean burn and IME there was almost no creosote, I would get up on the roof to run a brush down the pipe after a season of burning hot and the pipe was clean as a whistle, I doubt my comments will be a popular in this thread but googling around on smart burn or clean burn or epa or SFT ... that is what they are sayin

I went to a Govy burn smart seminar, they would tow around an old stove and a new stove on a trailer and crank them up outside of the seminar , the old stove would be belching smoke the new stove running pretty damn clean

I was just a roomie in that house for 5 yrs, the vermont castings medium sized stove worked fine, if I got up for a piss in the middle of the night I might thro in some wood but IME it may have burned thru the night unattended once

**glademaster** · 10-24-2014, 03:49 PM

Originally Posted by XXX-er

Regardless of stove brand A hot burn IS a clean burn and IME there was almost no creosote, I would get up on the roof to run a brush down the pipe after a season of burning hot and the pipe was clean as a whistle, I doubt my comments will be a popular in this thread but googling around on smart burn or clean burn or epa or SFT ... that is what they are sayin

I went to a Govy burn smart seminar, they would tow around an old stove and a new stove on a trailer and crank them up outside of the seminar , the old stove would be belching smoke the new stove running pretty damn clean

I was just a roomie in that house for 5 yrs, the vermont castings medium sized stove worked fine, if I got up for a piss in the middle of the night I might thro in some wood but IME it may have burned thru the night unattended once

My point about VT Castings quality wasn't really directed at the clean-burning nature of the stoves, but rather that they tend to be higher maintenance than others on the market, and have non-existent customer support. I agree wholeheartedly with your comments about burning hot and clean in a new EPA approved stove. I personally would not burn in splitinbends stove for a number of reasons, pollution being one of them.

I run an Englander 30-NC woodstove to heat my home, which is rated as the cleanest burning 3+ cubic foot secondary burn woodstove on the market. I get smoke out of my chimney for about 10-20 minutes on start up and reloads, then nothing but a heat signature until the very end of the burn when I'm down to coals, then I may get a little wispy smoke again. I am a huge advocate for being a responsible (i.e. with minimal environmental impact) wood burner. I burn dry, properly seasoned wood, run a new, clean burning stove, and run it hot, monitoring my flue gas temps with a probe thermometer.

The new stoves are remarkable in how clean burning and efficient they can be, but they need to be operated properly to realize those benefits. It's as much about proper woodburning education as it is about the stove you're burning in.

**~mikey b** · 10-24-2014, 06:06 PM

Perspective: my wife just lit the campfire - it's 72 outside....

**splitinbend** · 10-25-2014, 07:13 AM

Originally Posted by glademaster

. I personally would not burn in splitinbends stove for a number of reasons, pollution being one of them.

I run an Englander 30-NC woodstove to heat my home, which is rated as the cleanest burning 3+ cubic foot secondary burn woodstove on the market. I get smoke out of my chimney for about 10-20 minutes on start up and reloads, then nothing but a heat signature until the very end of the burn when I'm down to coals, then I may get a little wispy smoke again. I am a huge advocate for being a responsible (i.e. with minimal environmental impact) wood burner. I burn dry, properly seasoned wood, run a new, clean burning.

I can appreciate where your coming from wholeheartedly. However as a renter, this is the only heat source for the house and it's necessary I use it while were here. I love the spot but the rats during the summer pretty much solidified us(wife) not staying another year. Regarding safety, the landlords live next door on 10acres and lived in our place for years and never had an issue. I will make a concerted effort to learn the rules though. I've always felt a little strange thinking about living in a wooden tinder box and burning a fire in it all night. The owners are cool so I'll ask them about it. Would prefer to not burn this place down.

http://woodswomanextraordinaire.blog...m-heating.html

Pretty funny article written by a fire loving female

**splitinbend** · 10-25-2014, 07:37 AM

Anybody get their wood stolen ever?

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthre...572&page=5

**bodywhomper** · 10-25-2014, 10:08 AM

Originally Posted by splitinbend

Anybody get their wood stolen ever?

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthre...572&page=5

A friend had 2 cords stolen from his place last fall. He was in the process of moving out of the place to a town about 6 hours away and hadn't been around for about two weeks. Somebody came in with a trailer, moved a crib style timber fence to the side to access the wood, loaded the trailer, and bailed. Their place was on a single- lane dead end street. Totally an inside job, though neighbors claimed to not recognize the trailer; thought it was legit and friend had sold the wood to the guys with the trailer.

**char** · 10-25-2014, 10:32 AM

Originally Posted by splitinbend

Attachment 159399 Attachment 159400 Attachment 159401All you cutting mags I could use a bit of direction. I'll be burning this winter for my first time and the whole experience is pretty foreign. My wife and I moved into a log house in Bend April 1 and bought a cord of juniper for $225 for the last few cold weeks of winter/spring. Last week I bought a stihl ms271, and a fiskar x27. I split some rounds today I acquired as a gift, and I think it's lodge pole. My mentality was bigger pieces but am learning that bigger may not be better. I have 4 cord tags. A buddy of mine is taking me out to show me the ropes this Saturday but after reading through this thread I've got a few questions. I honestly don't know anything about efficient burning. Not sure how to split up my wood. Common sense would say get the fire hot then throw big pieces on to burn slower and keep the heat going all night. My unit is ancient, and the place were in is big. I honestly don't know how to use it. Keep the doors closed and open the vents? It is well insulated but I won't be getting up to feed the fire during the night if possible. Anybody got an idea with the wood in Central Oregon what kind of numbers I'd need to be set for the winter? My wife likes the house warm and I'd like to conserve wood as much as possible, especially since it's going to be a bit wet from this week. Any suggestions appreciated. I'm looking forward to the adventure and def thought splitting rounds was quite therapeutic but shit it's a ton of work. I've watched some youtube videos on cutting and splitting but some burning 101 would be cool from the frontline. Cheers.

I'm under the impression that cutting firewood around Bend is a complete shitshow due to the population density. (IE- not much wood, when a new unit gets opened up it gets cut out quickly.) I may be mistaken as I never had a wood stove when I was there.

You can usually burn dead standing lodgepole the season you cut it, but frankly at this point you probably would be better off buying a few cords from a reputable firewood seller (IE- not some guy who just went out and cut down a tree and is selling it as "seasoned"). There is a company out by Sisters that has stacks and stacks of seasoned wood. The health effects on yourself and neighbors of a poorly running stove are no joke.

Cut next years supply now. If you have a big truck and trailer, head east to the Ochoco and find some western larch. Lodgepole burns hot and fast, western larch for maintaining a burn.

**Game Over** · 10-25-2014, 11:47 AM

Id have to think the exact opposite in regards to wood abundance in Bend with all beetle kill surrounding it.

**char** · 10-25-2014, 11:53 AM

Just what I've heard. It isn't all available as you have to cut in designated units.

**Game Over** · 10-25-2014, 12:15 PM

huh. well if any of you guys in central oregon need some or knows someone who needs wood we have several beetle killed lodge pole pines on the ground at our Hoodoo cabin. It would be doing us a favor to get it out of there. Real easy to get to just back up right up to it. I was going to go round them some of them up this weekend but got busy.

**Cruiser** · 10-25-2014, 01:26 PM

Anyone have recs for a good Denver area firewood seller? Would like to buy about half a cord and pick up myself. Definitely prefer to burn hardwood and will pay some extra to do it. But I want good seasoned wood and not this year's stuff.

**stfu&gbtw** · 10-25-2014, 05:24 PM

Originally Posted by Cruiser

Anyone have recs for a good Denver area firewood seller? Would like to buy about half a cord and pick up myself. Definitely prefer to burn hardwood and will pay some extra to do it. But I want good seasoned wood and not this year's stuff.

Santa Fe Sand.

**Cruiser** · 10-25-2014, 06:30 PM

^^^ Really? They're like 5 minutes from me. Would be super easy to go over there.

**~mikey b** · 10-25-2014, 06:55 PM

Tahoe wood stove replacement

http://yubanet.com/regional/Wood-Sto...p#.VExGCdm9Kc0

**stfu&gbtw** · 10-25-2014, 09:31 PM

Originally Posted by Cruiser

^^^ Really? They're like 5 minutes from me. Would be super easy to go over there.

Yep. I bought a cord of oak from them about 3 weeks ago. Have already stacked it and it's all good stuff. They sell by weight. 2.2 tons was about $800.

**splitinbend** · 10-26-2014, 12:33 AM

Originally Posted by steepconcrete

huh. well if any of you guys in central oregon need some or knows someone who needs wood we have several beetle killed lodge pole pines on the ground at our Hoodoo cabin. It would be doing us a favor to get it out of there. Real easy to get to just back up right up to it. I was going to go round them some of them up this weekend but got busy.

I would gladly take your wood.

**~mikey b** · 10-26-2014, 08:10 AM

Yeah that's ridiculous. I'll pay $200-250 if I have to, but $800? Wow. At that point I'd just get a pellet stove. Some people have more money than brains I guess.

**Cruiser** · 10-26-2014, 11:12 AM

Wow, I didn't realize it was that high over at Santa Fe S&G. Will just go back to curmudgeon that I've been buying from for the last couple of years. He usually has a good selection of mixed hardwoods that the local tree trimmers bring to him. I can fill the excursion for a bit more than a hundred bucks.

**stfu&gbtw** · 10-26-2014, 08:46 PM

Originally Posted by telemike

Yeah that's ridiculous. I'll pay $200-250 if I have to, but $800? Wow. At that point I'd just get a pellet stove. Some people have more money than brains I guess.

It certainly is ridiculous, and it's the same all over around here. But it's not more than running a pellet stove or burning propane. Speaking of more money than brains... Add much?

**~mikey b** · 10-26-2014, 08:49 PM

Ok. I'm just lucky to live in the land or reasonably cheap and plentiful wood I guess. Seems like folks I know using pellets do ok too.

**stfu&gbtw** · 10-26-2014, 08:56 PM

Originally Posted by Cruiser

Wow, I didn't realize it was that high over at Santa Fe S&G. Will just go back to curmudgeon that I've been buying from for the last couple of years. He usually has a good selection of mixed hardwoods that the local tree trimmers bring to him. I can fill the excursion for a bit more than a hundred bucks.

I tried the "mixed hardwood" crap one year, and the railroad tie ends another... Neither were sufficiently cheaper enough to justify either the mixed bullshit wood, or the hassle of the rrt's... This stuff is all big pieces and it's nice to be able to put a couple in the stove and wake up to a warm house. I'd bet the back of your excursion holds about 1/4 cord. For $800, I got two 4x4x4 pallets and everything I could fit in between them and the stake bed. Stacked, it's 14x8x1.5=1.3 cords