A moisture meter is a handy tool. We always make sure our split wood is not too big and certainly no more than four inches. This seems to help with the drying but we also dry our wood for at least two years
I like to be a year and half ahead. I do check the moisture as I am doing it and then periodically during the seasoning time. And unless you have the luxury of burning only oak ;) other hardwoods I would agree after two years you are losing BTU's. I have also started piling my wood in celtic sylos I find that speeds up the drying process. Be Well, Be Strong Wishing you warm fire's
I always test for moisture by splitting the wood, not every piece of course but rather a small sample. In my experience, firewood always has more moisture on the inside than the outside. oak takes about 2 years to dry. I have mainly maple and season for a minimum of 12-15 months. Thx for the video
I have wondered the same thing. I have some stuff that has been tarped up for about 4 years. It's so dry it burns so fast I nolonger getuch heat value out of it. One good thing is it burned all the black out of the woodburner. Nice that way but probably stoke it twice as often. Like to get a meter just to see how the different years of storage compares.
Thanks MCG, you always give us something to think about. Speaking of firewood and moisture meters, I'm in my 46th year of using a Fisher Grandpa Bear wood stove. I have to mix up the wood if I want a longer lasting fire. Seasoned wood burns good, but almost too good. I have to add some unseasoned wood (4-6 months) along with the seasoned (12+ months), or else I'll have to feed it again every three or four hours. Surprising thing I've found since using a moisture meter, a dead tree cut and split will have about the same moisture inside as a live tree (about 35 to 40 percent).
I like the consistency of the use of the meter. Parallel on the outside of the wood and across the grain on the inside.😮 I would check it Parallel with the grain on both next time.😊
Oak takes a long time to dry for sure. I am 2 years ahead so don't have a problem but I do check Oak when I go to burn a tote of it. I split some a few weeks ago that was dead standing and was cut down 2 years ago and I couldn't believe the moisture in it. I do split it smaller than normal also. Have a good week Ed.
Here in our area of North Idaho our family burns a lot of lodgepole pine and ponderosa pine just because we have a lot of it on our 4 acres. We let it season at least 1 year and it burns great (just way faster than hardwoods). I've always wanted a moisture meter so I'll follow your link to get one. Thanks for the info!!
Hey Ed! I’m in the laurentians of Quebec. Call it 7 hours from you. I burn maple. I’m about 1 year ahead so far. Great test I was always wonder the moisture level. Great idea! 💪🏻 be well. God bless. Keep em coming.😊🚜💪🏻💫🙏
For what it’s worth, I’ve never had a moisture meter and never checked. However, your results do not surprise me at all! Here’s my rules of thumb: Oak, season for 2 years. Almost everything else season for 1 year. Sometimes ash and red maple can be 9 months. Those are my minimums. Much of my wood goes longer. Seasoning takes place stacked in rows exposed to good sun and wind. Wood goes into the shed for the last 6+ months before burning. I know my wood is good based on how it burns, plus the condition of the chimney after a full heating season. It’s always a little dirty, but the chimney sweep says I have the stove running really well given the amount of wood we burn (5ish cord). Due to a late winter storm bringing down a lot of red maples, and several ash I took down due to the borer killing them, I’ve had 2 years of wood in sheds since June (some of which went in green), and about a cord out “seasoning.” By December, I always want to have all my wood for the following heating season cut, split and stacked. I cut little bits all the time. Winter is a good time for it. Cool weather for working, and it’s great when the ground freezes before we have too much snow because the tractor can get everywhere without rutting!
There are other complications to moisture meter readings. Temperature affects the reading. Moisture meters are usually calibrated for about 60 F. Lower temperature results in low readings. There are also wood species dependent adjustments.
My dad cuts down standing ash, oak, and elm. After cutting into 10-11" length pieces (12-28" diameter logs), it goes into the pole barn for 2-yrs before splitting. It's burned in a insert and mixed with osage orange pieces because the Osage has a tendency to burn too hot by itself.
@@MyClutteredGarage We have to wait until it's cold enough to split otherwise you have to handle it too much due to the stringy condition of the log pieces. We are using a 32-ton splitter. A 28" diameter 11" long piece is 60-80# and difficult to get on splitter. My dad is 82-yrs old.
If your drying wood that is to be used as lumber its 1 year for every inch of thickness. I don't know about firewood but I try to season it at least a year and a half before use. Pretty good info thanks!
The species of wood plays a large part in how quickly the moisture will lower. Another very important variable is the size of the piece of wood. The larger it is (as your example piece of seasoned oak) the longer it takes for the moisture to drop. To help speed up the drying process, I usually split down to at least 3 inches or so. It can be wider the other direction, but down to 3 inches or less will help that wood dry quickly. Oak is one of the slowest drying woods, so splitting it small is almost a must if you plan to burn it withing the next year. Good info on your video that some folks may not realize.
@MyClutteredGarage they last longer when they are big because the inside moisture is higher. It's your wood and I'm not telling you how to do your splitting, I'm just explaining what I've learned in the 5 years of making firewood and burning it in my own home and selling a little bit as well.
I use the exact meter as I’m a bit of a nerd that way. I had 4 cords of wood stored in an old barn on our property and it was less than a year old…when the barn burned down (electrical fault) that wood burned REALLY well. 😢 I’m sure the efficiency of a good catalytic stove would be a best case study but I just use my wood for daily campfires to relax by. So you tease us with boxed items in your background…what gives? Is this a new implement? Good stuff!
I may need to get one of those... We are storing our wood in IBC totes like you, as well as ventilated firewood bags, it would be interesting to see the difference next year...
Interesting. Nothing beats empirical evidence for a given set of inputs. And it makes sense. Might be interesting to plot moisture at a given depth to see how deep into the wood the "dry" reading goes. And across various wood types. As for me, as long as the wood burns well in the heater, I'm good. I use wood that is on the "greenish" side at night to help keep a coal bed as it burns longer. Very dry wood for starting and making quick heat and/or coal production. Love my wood stove.
I know people that wait two years to burn their wood up here in the PNW, most wait just one year here. Your test in NJ seals the deal 1 year isnt enough to get full BTU's
I recommend 2-300 year-old, kiln dried, historic tall ship planks. I use them every day in our fire pit, as my marshmallows must meet a certain standard.
That is interesting. I only have a firepit and put my wood in a pile, so I have no idea of the moisture content. But interesting to see how long it takes to dry out in the middle.
You checked the moisture correctly by splitting the wood and checking it in the middle I would point out that try to keep the moisture meter pens, parallel to the grain of the wood That piece of oak you did has been split and stacked for over a year still over 20% is not unusual oak is the hardest except for maybe locust to dry I sell many many chords of Firewood every year. I get premium money because when I sell it it’s 20% or less everywhere. When I do a delivery, I’ll pick a random piece of wood and split it and show the customer
Moisture meter used in this video (affiliate link):
amzn.to/3Dc6ND5
@@MyClutteredGarage Thank you for posting the link, for your moisture tester.
A moisture meter is a handy tool. We always make sure our split wood is not too big and certainly no more than four inches. This seems to help with the drying but we also dry our wood for at least two years
Hi Joseph. That seems to be the consensus!
I like to be a year and half ahead. I do check the moisture as I am doing it and then periodically during the seasoning time. And unless you have the luxury of burning only oak ;) other hardwoods I would agree after two years you are losing BTU's.
I have also started piling my wood in celtic sylos I find that speeds up the drying process.
Be Well, Be Strong
Wishing you warm fire's
I always test for moisture by splitting the wood, not every piece of course but rather a small sample. In my experience, firewood always has more moisture on the inside than the outside. oak takes about 2 years to dry. I have mainly maple and season for a minimum of 12-15 months. Thx for the video
We are 2 years ahead, have it stacked under a carport style woodshed. Oak and hickory mainly. I can definitely see the benefits in more BTU's.
I definitely need to get to work!
I have wondered the same thing. I have some stuff that has been tarped up for about 4 years. It's so dry it burns so fast I nolonger getuch heat value out of it. One good thing is it burned all the black out of the woodburner. Nice that way but probably stoke it twice as often. Like to get a meter just to see how the different years of storage compares.
Thanks MCG, you always give us something to think about. Speaking of firewood and moisture meters, I'm in my 46th year of using a Fisher Grandpa Bear wood stove. I have to mix up the wood if I want a longer lasting fire. Seasoned wood burns good, but almost too good. I have to add some unseasoned wood (4-6 months) along with the seasoned (12+ months), or else I'll have to feed it again every three or four hours. Surprising thing I've found since using a moisture meter, a dead tree cut and split will have about the same moisture inside as a live tree (about 35 to 40 percent).
Interesting, thanks for sharing that!
I like the consistency of the use of the meter. Parallel on the outside of the wood and across the grain on the inside.😮 I would check it Parallel with the grain on both next time.😊
I will definitely try that! Thanks for the tip!
Oak takes a long time to dry for sure. I am 2 years ahead so don't have a problem but I do check Oak when I go to burn a tote of it. I split some a few weeks ago that was dead standing and was cut down 2 years ago and I couldn't believe the moisture in it. I do split it smaller than normal also. Have a good week Ed.
Good point - dead standing wood can be deceiving!
Here in our area of North Idaho our family burns a lot of lodgepole pine and ponderosa pine just because we have a lot of it on our 4 acres. We let it season at least 1 year and it burns great (just way faster than hardwoods). I've always wanted a moisture meter so I'll follow your link to get one. Thanks for the info!!
Thanks, I bet that stuff burns hot!
@@MyClutteredGarage It does! I use Outdoors with the Morgan's fire starter and I always am able to light a fire with a half a handful!
Thanks.....great information. Bob
Thanks Bob!
Hey Ed! I’m in the laurentians of Quebec. Call it 7 hours from you. I burn maple. I’m about 1 year ahead so far. Great test I was always wonder the moisture level. Great idea! 💪🏻 be well. God bless. Keep em coming.😊🚜💪🏻💫🙏
Thanks much! Sounds like you’re in good shape!
Thx
Thanks for watching!
For what it’s worth, I’ve never had a moisture meter and never checked. However, your results do not surprise me at all! Here’s my rules of thumb: Oak, season for 2 years. Almost everything else season for 1 year. Sometimes ash and red maple can be 9 months. Those are my minimums. Much of my wood goes longer. Seasoning takes place stacked in rows exposed to good sun and wind. Wood goes into the shed for the last 6+ months before burning. I know my wood is good based on how it burns, plus the condition of the chimney after a full heating season. It’s always a little dirty, but the chimney sweep says I have the stove running really well given the amount of wood we burn (5ish cord).
Due to a late winter storm bringing down a lot of red maples, and several ash I took down due to the borer killing them, I’ve had 2 years of wood in sheds since June (some of which went in green), and about a cord out “seasoning.” By December, I always want to have all my wood for the following heating season cut, split and stacked. I cut little bits all the time. Winter is a good time for it. Cool weather for working, and it’s great when the ground freezes before we have too much snow because the tractor can get everywhere without rutting!
You are well prepared! I’d say no moisture meter needed! I’d like to get to that point of firewood prep. 👍
There are other complications to moisture meter readings. Temperature affects the reading. Moisture meters are usually calibrated for about 60 F. Lower temperature results in low readings. There are also wood species dependent adjustments.
I have used that same moisture meter since 2017.
Red maple, 13 months since cut, stacked and covered last 7 months. Just split it down again and I have 10 -12 % on a surface meter.
Nice!
My dad cuts down standing ash, oak, and elm. After cutting into 10-11" length pieces (12-28" diameter logs), it goes into the pole barn for 2-yrs before splitting. It's burned in a insert and mixed with osage orange pieces because the Osage has a tendency to burn too hot by itself.
That’s good, but I think splitting them before storing them would be even better.
@@MyClutteredGarage We have to wait until it's cold enough to split otherwise you have to handle it too much due to the stringy condition of the log pieces. We are using a 32-ton splitter. A 28" diameter 11" long piece is 60-80# and difficult to get on splitter. My dad is 82-yrs old.
If your drying wood that is to be used as lumber its 1 year for every inch of thickness. I don't know about firewood but I try to season it at least a year and a half before use. Pretty good info thanks!
The species of wood plays a large part in how quickly the moisture will lower. Another very important variable is the size of the piece of wood. The larger it is (as your example piece of seasoned oak) the longer it takes for the moisture to drop. To help speed up the drying process, I usually split down to at least 3 inches or so. It can be wider the other direction, but down to 3 inches or less will help that wood dry quickly. Oak is one of the slowest drying woods, so splitting it small is almost a must if you plan to burn it withing the next year. Good info on your video that some folks may not realize.
Great points. I like the large pieces for overnight burns, but I may need to split them smaller.
@MyClutteredGarage they last longer when they are big because the inside moisture is higher. It's your wood and I'm not telling you how to do your splitting, I'm just explaining what I've learned in the 5 years of making firewood and burning it in my own home and selling a little bit as well.
I use the exact meter as I’m a bit of a nerd that way. I had 4 cords of wood stored in an old barn on our property and it was less than a year old…when the barn burned down (electrical fault) that wood burned REALLY well. 😢 I’m sure the efficiency of a good catalytic stove would be a best case study but I just use my wood for daily campfires to relax by.
So you tease us with boxed items in your background…what gives? Is this a new implement?
Good stuff!
Good eye! Stay turned! 🤣
I may need to get one of those... We are storing our wood in IBC totes like you, as well as ventilated firewood bags, it would be interesting to see the difference next year...
Nice hoodie, right?! 😄
@ I do love that hoodie!
Interesting. Nothing beats empirical evidence for a given set of inputs. And it makes sense. Might be interesting to plot moisture at a given depth to see how deep into the wood the "dry" reading goes. And across various wood types. As for me, as long as the wood burns well in the heater, I'm good. I use wood that is on the "greenish" side at night to help keep a coal bed as it burns longer. Very dry wood for starting and making quick heat and/or coal production. Love my wood stove.
Oak holds moisture well. I've had some Oak I got that was in a yard for 3 years and it held all the moisture.
I know people that wait two years to burn their wood up here in the PNW, most wait just one year here. Your test in NJ seals the deal 1 year isnt enough to get full BTU's
Interesting video Ed. Great thoughts and ideas on your behalf…to share with viewers! 👍👍👍
Thanks!
Totally Awesome video! I wood not have thought the inside wood be 4-5% higher, but it is! Also, I use that exact meter- love it
Thank you! You’d be surprised how long I’ve been wondering about this and finally just did it 🤣
@@MyClutteredGarage I done a stacked vs unstacked in a tote, and was stunned! (Comments wont let me add pics)
I big factor is how dry the air is around the wood. Damp air like in the spring and fall does not dry wood very well, and may even add moisture to it.
My experience with red oak when split to that size is 2 to 3 years to bring it down to 15% or lower.
Wow! That’s planning far ahead!
I recommend 2-300 year-old, kiln dried, historic tall ship planks. I use them every day in our fire pit, as my marshmallows must meet a certain standard.
🤣🤣🤣
That is interesting. I only have a firepit and put my wood in a pile, so I have no idea of the moisture content. But interesting to see how long it takes to dry out in the middle.
As long as it lights, you can burn it in a fire pit! 🤣
You checked the moisture correctly by splitting the wood and checking it in the middle I would point out that try to keep the moisture meter pens, parallel to the grain of the wood
That piece of oak you did has been split and stacked for over a year still over 20% is not unusual oak is the hardest except for maybe locust to dry
I sell many many chords of Firewood every year. I get premium money because when I sell it it’s 20% or less everywhere.
When I do a delivery, I’ll pick a random piece of wood and split it and show the customer
Thanks for sharing your experience! Great points!
My goal is to season it for 2 years. I always said that a person should be splitting wood for 2 years in the future.
Goals 😄
The moral to the story is to split oak smaller..
I think the meter is useful but I wouldn't use it as the only indicator.
Huh? It is the final indicator.
Oak- 2 years not a day less
wood drys about an inch a year
Oak takes 2 years to season not 15 months
First
Nice! 🤣