Firewood

[jchamberlin]

Kraig: That's quite a lot of wood. Do you find that putting a tarpaulin over it helps preserve the wood for burning, or is it just to keep the snow off?

Just wondering . . .

 

[digger]

Jeremiah C
Stick your wood match in water and see how well it burns.

 

[jbaker]

Jeremiah, I am only speaking for my situation, but I only keep my wood covered during the winter.
Once spring arrives and snow chances are gone all my tarps come off. I have found that my wood dries better during the hot summer.

The hummid summers here create a makeshift green house effect with green growth when covered. I live in a spot with alot of air flow.

I recently came across several freshly removed billboard covers and they will be great free winter covers for next year.

 

[jchamberlin]

Charlie: I find that as long as my kindling is dry, and the wood is seasoned, it burns quite well. I've never covered my wood, and it seems to burn OK. Of course, I've never had quite so much wood at one time, so I'm wondering how I need to store it differently or sell all but 2-3 year's worth.

 

[kmcconaughey]

Jeremiah, I typically place the tarps over the wood piles in September when our usual rainy season starts. Sometimes during the summer I will place a tarp that is folded to just cover the top of the wood pile but not draped over the sides. Last year we had frequent rains all summer so I covered the wood piles a month or so early. Plenty of air can circulate around the wood as the sides are just draped over. The tarps are left on all winter to keep the snow off. This is my 19th year heating with wood, it took me a couple of years to figure out a good system and I think I have it down. I still want to build more of the wood sheds like the one at the far end of the lower photo. It has a fiberglass roof and plywood end walls the front and back are covered with tarps. It breaths nicely to allow the wood to dry but it keeps the rain and snow out, it holds a little more wood due to it being taller than I can stack the piles with the steel T posts as end supports AND I don't have to dig the wood out from under snow covered tarps.

 

[digger]

Jeremiah C.
But but but, Your down where it never gets FREAKIN FRIGID COLD WET and NASTY all at the same time!

 

[thoffman]

I think you guys need one of these....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdXzaGFkWfU

 

[erice]

Tom, if you or my Dad want to fund that nice little attachment we would have one in a heart beat LOL. My back feels great just watching that video but since I have been doing it the hard way since the late 70's I guess we will just have to keep, keeping on

.

 

[jchamberlin]

Tom: Thanks for posting that video, I've seen it before and I have tried to explain it to others, but its difficult to put into words.

 

[aschumacher]

Mr. Jeremiah Chamberlin at a loss for words... ? ? ? !

 

[jchamberlin]

Allen: You really made me chuckle with your clever riposte!

Edit: Its true that I do go on a bit at times.
As Blaise Pascal commented at the head of one of his letters, "This letter is long because I didn't have the time to make it short."

 

[vthomley]

Tom,

This quite the wood cutting splitting process!

See this video, this manufactured approx 1 mile from my house.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzAfZ16ORVY&feature=related

 

[jbaker]

I posted a few pics of what Vince linked us to back on the August 09 thread.

That thing worked very well, the guy lives in the next town over if I need him again.

 

[thoffman]

Vince, Yup that's cool, but for the price of the excavator that this is hooked up to I could burn logs made of gold and be cheaper off.

 

[jchamberlin]

Vince, that is an awesome machine.

On another topic, do you still have the Model 104 that you bought from Art Aytay, as pictured below?

If you do, I would be curious to see what it looks like now, if we can do that without hijacking the thread.

 

[vthomley]

I'll post pics of the 104 in the main section.

Firewood - I'll a bit jealous of everyone who uses it to heat their place - especially jealous the one day of each month when I pay my heating bill. I do have a small wood pile in my backyard...

 

[astrawderman]

I've got about a cord of wood cut with the help of the cub and stihl!

 

[jbaker]

Vincent I am not bragging but with my wood boiler I only fill my propane 500 gallon tank every 12 to 14 months

 

[digger]

I'll BRAG about mine!
When we first moved up north, it cost us $4200.00 for 3 months heating with LP.
After the boiler went in, we filled the 1000 gal. LP tank once! And it's still 65% full.

With the cost of the stove and wood over the last 3 winters, I figure I'm making money burning wood!

 

[proessler]

Making $ money to pay for your investment/wood burner. Looks like Ur goin' in right direction...