How Long Does It Really Take Red Oak Firewood to Dry?
20,872
Published 2021-10-19
This wood was RESPLIT a few minutes before I made the video, so all measurements are taken on the re-split sides.
If you are interested in learning more about oak and many other species, check out this site. It's absolutely the best I've seen by far. The videos are all outstanding.
forestry.ca.uky.edu/common_ky_trees
General Moisture Meter:
amazon.com/General-Tools-MMD4E-Moisture-High-Mediu…
All Comments (21)
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Anything under 20% I’m burning
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South Mississippi here. Been burning a red oak for two seasons now in my wood heater. Good stuff. I split my wood quite small and at 16” lengths. Seasoned it for a little over a year. Averages less than 12%. It works me half to death but I keep the top of racks covered during wet weather, then pull off the tarps for those hot dry Mississippi days. Works every time.
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Great video. We use a lot of red oak here in WV and wait at least 2 summers. Check everything on moisture meter. Great info.
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Always wondered this. Keep it up.
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I've compared those prob moisture meters with sensing meters builders use on walls and find they work just fine to detect below the surface of the split wood. Your samples tells me it would be best to split soon as you cut the tree down. I get a lot of under 20% dry wood from the branches of dead trees I can burn right away. Cutting in winter the trees are almost half the moisture of summer cuts.
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Nice
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Very nice video but people here and all over seem to love burning red oak ? I just received some and it just sizzles in the stove but does burn so slow and low too much moisture must cut and leave out in the sun makes a huge difference in a short period of time. Please keep up these videos they are useful
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This year we tried something different. Bought a 20ft. Shelter logic, stacked 3 cords of Black oak in there. Left a 6 inch space between each row of wood. Put a cheap box fan in there. This was in April. Checking on the moisture with the same meter you have every few weeks. It was like a sauna in there during the summer. By the first of September the readings were below 20%. We have been burning it since November and it's below 15% now.
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Covering your pile is important!
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Great video!!! Do you ever watch the Back 40 Firewood live stream on Friday’s at 8:00 CST? It’s awesome!
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A big variable is when the tree was felled, not just in time duration but the month. Tree will be super high in moisture content in July when green. January, much less.
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First of all, thank you for the video, well done. I have that same moisture meter, how did u calibrate it? And does anyone know how to silence the meter? My dog is neurotic and when he hears my meter beep when the % is high it tears his nerves up, he’s hiding under the bed right now just from him hearing this video 🤦♂️.
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I stack my wood in a woodshed with a dark metal roof, slatted sides and back, open front, facing West. Everything is perfectly seasoned within 12 months. I'm in Eastern Australia where the sun is incredibly intense but our woods are much denser.
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Also the size does matter. Those pieces were not huge, however the smaller the split the better they dry. I love oak at around 15% burns hot no smoke.
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This was a great demo on moisture content. I decided early to be diligent about covering the wood when it rains and uncovering when it’s not. My red oak gets from the mid 20% range to below 15% in about 6 months. I also live in Atlanta, Georgia so it’s a hotter climate. All that said i strongly believe covering the wood makes a huge difference.
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My wood always seems to wet. I cut a year ahead. It's down dead tree and dead standing. Some of it will sizzle. I've found over the year that if I burn dead ash with it, all is good enough. I clean the chimney every year and it's generally a mess.
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There is a large chart on line comparing the BTU's per cord of dozens of tree species
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Wondering if there’s any correlation between thickness of the cut and time to fully season.
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What other variables is it stacked outside susceptible to weather ? Do you live in a humid climate ? Everything makes a difference
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You must split the sample or you just get the surface moisture level. The internal moisture is the important measurement.
