# burning pine..



## magna19 (Apr 14, 2012)

live in pa,got a inside stove,got an almost unlimited supply of pine,plus i get hardwood also. my chimney is flue lined,in good shape,been burning for over 30 yrs now,stove is about 8 yrs old or so,in good shape.how long should you let pine season before burning a lot of it,the coldest times of the year is more than likly the time i will burn it,and during the day when i or someone can keep an eye on it,hard wood at night to hold it over.

free wood is good!!


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## Steve2910 (Apr 14, 2012)

magna19 said:


> how long should you let pine season before burning a lot of it


 Until it rots into compost. Would never consider burning it here, other than in the burn barrel. FWIW, the Fireman around here appreciate coffee & donuts after putting out your chimney fire.


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## dingeryote (Apr 14, 2012)

A full season on most pine is about 8-12 months here, and there are few places as humid.

Pine is not magical and it dosn't have special secret chemistry. Burn it green and you'll get creosote and risk a fire if it isn't cleaned. Same as any other wood.
Burn it seasoned, and it is no different than any hardwood...except it burns a lot faster.

The folks out west burn pine almost exclusively and have done so for a couple hundred years now without killing everyone off.

We rarely get pine, but when we do, it goes into the spring and fall pile and gets run like any other species.

Stay safe!
Dingeryote


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## Steve2910 (Apr 14, 2012)

Del_ said:


> If you're having trouble with pine you are doing it wrong. There are places where there is nothing but softwoods for fuel and they have been burning wood for hundreds of years.



I guess if that's all you've got to work with... The OP is next-door "state wise" from me. Can't imagine the scrounging opportunities are that different than here in Maryland. PNW maybe, but here in the mid Atlantic, why bother w/ Pine?


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## dingeryote (Apr 14, 2012)

Steve2910 said:


> I guess if that's all you've got to work with... The OP is next-door "state wise" from me. Can't imagine the scrounging opportunities are that different than here in Maryland. PNW maybe, but here in the mid Atlantic, why bother w/ Pine?



Why bother?

Pine is excellent for quick restarts in the morning, Taking the chill of early summer evenings, and for use in the shoulder season to AVOID creosote buildup, from damping down on a load of slower burning hardwood. 

Heck, if it's free and sitting there, or worse...bieng "Disposed of" that's free BTU's. More importantly, running the pine and lesser species when appropriate saves the good stuff for when it's below zero, wind is howling, and the stove is hungry. 

Stay safe!
Dingeryote


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## turnkey4099 (Apr 15, 2012)

Steve2910 said:


> Until it rots into compost. Would never consider burning it here, other than in the burn barrel. FWIW, the Fireman around here appreciate coffee & donuts after putting out your chimney fire.



So you've never burned pine, never knew anyone who has and are only repeating old wives tales. Lots of places burn nothing but the softwoods and chimney fires are rare indeed.

Harry K


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## logbutcher (Apr 15, 2012)

Let's throw in ALL softwoods: pine, fir, spruce, cedars. 
Ding and Del said it--some northern regions burn what they got if only softwoods. This time of year is our shoulder season that can last through June--fast, hot fires for mornings and evenings. Snap crackle and pop time. Now that the paper mills pay low for pulp, we burn more of the spruce and fir for heat along with blowdowns.
Why not ? Creosote comes from poor burning and unseasoned wood whether soft or hard.
Damn, I love the smell of the softwood fires so much that I'll run out nude for a sniff in the morning. :cool2:


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## russhd1997 (Apr 15, 2012)

I burn a lot of pine but prefer hemlock and spruce. No problems with stack fires and keeps the coals under control. I'm not gonna fell a pine and let it sit and rot because I wanted the oak behind it. I'm gonna twitch out both trees and burn them. BTU's is BTU's and waste not want not keeps my house warm and water hot.


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## imagineero (Apr 15, 2012)

Nobody can give a definitive answer to that question, it depends on the species of pne, time of year it was cut, what size it was split, how it was stacked and your local climate. I wouldn't dry it any longer than other woods, and if split and stacked in the winter its certainly ready by the next winter in most climates.

The key to burning pine is keeping it hot, especially if your stove doesn't have any of that modern secondary burn stuff, and doubly so if your stove is small. Big stoves can carry enough heat in them to give a good thorough burn, but smaller stoves really do need to be cranking to get a good clean burn. Don't go throtting down, keep it so you're getting full combustion and you can keep the coffee and doughnuts for yourself. Chimney cleaning kits are cheap to buy and not that hard to use, but a hot flue is a clean flue. All this assumes that your flue/stove combination are properly setup and that you are getting a good draft, have the length of the flue right and setup for the right height for your roofline and local wind conditions.

Shaun


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## ratso (Apr 15, 2012)

*pine*

Well i have been burning for years.No other wood puts out heat faster than dry seasoned pine. My morning coffee would get cold waiting for hardwood to heat the house.


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## djones (Apr 15, 2012)

All soft woods are my fall and spring burn piles, free pine is also a deal I can't pass up, beats cutting my own and lots of people like clearing their home lots of pine, I say thank you and stack it up. Just burn it hot, crank up the air and let it fly.


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## zogger (Apr 15, 2012)

*I burn it*

Check out these two piles. Josh and I cut a lot of this up yesterday, it's all going into my stacks mixed in with the oak. There's cords of wood there, why would I not want to use it? And talk about easy, this is my backyard! There's still some smaller branches and the one whopper base trunk piece to go to cut up. That sucker is big.

It sat from last year, I let it sit until the bark got loose, then knocked it all off, then cut it. 

Man, lookit all that pretty pine Fiskars fun!


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## Rsquared (Apr 15, 2012)

I burned quite a bit of pine this year.. Pine is fine.....


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## Laroo (Apr 15, 2012)

Wow no pine!!! Here in the west your options are pine, quaking aspen, or cotton wood. I suppose you could try yer luck with sagebrush or cow chips I had no idea there was anybody anywhere who would refuse to burn pine!


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## logbutcher (Apr 15, 2012)

Laroo said:


> Wow no pine!!! Here in the west your options are pine, quaking aspen, or cotton wood. I suppose you could try yer luck with sagebrush or cow chips I had no idea there was anybody anywhere who would refuse to burn pine!



Nailed it La-roo. (You're welcome.)
Been in places, extremely cold , that had no trees, therefore no wood. Only dried dung for cooking, no fuel for warmth. Be thankful you "pine" doubters. opcorn:


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## zogger (Apr 15, 2012)

*Tradeoffs*



Laroo said:


> Wow no pine!!! Here in the west your options are pine, quaking aspen, or cotton wood. I suppose you could try yer luck with sagebrush or cow chips I had no idea there was anybody anywhere who would refuse to burn pine!



Every area of ther country has different stuff, and regional prejudices. For most folks in the east, you not only don't want to burn pine, but you shouldn't, because one time two hundred years ago someone filled up the stove with pine fatlighter, lit it off, proceeded to have a mini nuclear reaction, and got a chimney fire and their house burnt down. So to this day, hardly anyone burns pine except as campfire wood. But, like mentioned above, those who do if they choose to can vburn it, get it for free, and sell hardwoods or just not work hard to heat their homes. They bulldoze pines up and just burn them in bonfires here and there.

Unless someone is for real logging and taking saw logs or pulp, it is considered by most to be a "trash wood". Now I have burned it since the early 70s when I first started heating with wood. I have yet to have any problems with it.

Anyway, tradeoffs, you guys got pine, big mountains, wide open spaces, and elk (well, and grizzlies, too..). We have a huge variety of nice hardwoods, some decent spaces here and there between urban areas, some baby mountains..and giant hogs!

Hogzilla - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I've seen one near this size, down in mid georgia, dang close to that size, had a good shot but didn't take it. I am thinking "WTF will I do with it"? Didn't have any way to get it out of the woods, and not near the freezer for it at home.


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## CTYank (Apr 15, 2012)

There's always going to be some anti-conifer suburban snobbery. Just human nature. Some folks wear their diamonds out shopping. Some could not care about diamonds.

Many of the Yankees I know only want to know if it's ready to burn. And save the best for when it's necessary. Like January nights with "blue northers" blowing.


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## darkbyrd (Apr 15, 2012)

Went out of my way the other day to bring a load of pine and poplar to the house. There's no heat pump to make a 45 degree night comfortably cool in my drafty place, and a stove load of anything stronger would have me opening windows and still sweating the sheets soaked. 

Learn to inspect and clean your chimney, and burn it hot once a day, and you'll have nothing to worry about. Free wood is good wood, and all woods have their time and place.


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## ShaneLogs (Apr 15, 2012)

I also burn Pine and Sprice too. If you know what you are doing, You have any troubles with the softwood. I also burn some softwood too. 

Just a word,

Shane


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## Toxic2 (Apr 15, 2012)

I cant believe that some people burn nothing but oak:msp_wink:..i burn 8 cord a year between my shop and house.. gotta be close to 20 percent pine.. damn those oak coals that build up and dont throw any heat..LOL


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## Fred Wright (Apr 15, 2012)

If pine firewood had an inherent flaw, the folks in Alaska would be sol. 

Give it a year or so to season and you'll be fine. I've taken a few whuppuins over burning sweet gum... but I brushed our flue last weekend and it came out squeaky clean with no tar buildup. You've just got to let it season, split and stacked before you burn it.

Pine (and sweet gum) burn quickly. But that doesn't make them bad firewood.


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## Steve2910 (Apr 15, 2012)

Toxic2 said:


> I cant believe that some people burn nothing but oak



Around here, people who buy their wood want Nothing but Oak. Fine w/ me, I'll sell my Oak & keep my Black Locust for myself. I "supposedly" have the opportunity to get a ton of Hedge this Summer... If & when that happens (& once it's seasoned), maybe Locust will be my new "trash wood". :msp_wink: Hedge is not that common here, so even if it's all they say it is, my locust is not for sale in the foreseeable future


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## woodbooga (Apr 15, 2012)

Funny - for as much pine as we burn, I really don't know from experience how long it takes fresh-felled to season for stove use after splitting and staking.

All the pine I burn has been too low grade for milling and just sits for a few years in log length before I can buck and haul. 

IM0, the pesky issue with white pine is that the sapwood on these older logs can be easy to absorb rain and stingy to give it up.


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## Laroo (Apr 16, 2012)

Didn't want to start a pissin match, I was just surprised to learn that pine was disliked so much. I have burnt it for years, that's all there is. I live in a very cold area and heat solely with wood (as a matter of fact I am still burning) the fall, Sept and Oct then the spring, late March to early June, can be tough times for creosote, but as mentioned burn hot once a day. I tell people that I have a small chimney fire every day to prevent having a large one. And this time of year I brush it every week, once a month during colder times. And Elk ya we got Elk and Muleys too. (No hogs) hope nobody minds me showing off some hunting pics on a wood fourm. The last deer and last elk I shot.View attachment 233842
View attachment 233843


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## zogger (Apr 16, 2012)

Laroo said:


> Didn't want to start a pissin match, I was just surprised to learn that pine was disliked so much. I have burnt it for years, that's all there is. I live in a very cold area and heat solely with wood (as a matter of fact I am still burning) the fall, Sept and Oct then the spring, late March to early June, can be tough times for creosote, but as mentioned burn hot once a day. I tell people that I have a small chimney fire every day to prevent having a large one. And this time of year I brush it every week, once a month during colder times. And Elk ya we got Elk and Muleys too. (No hogs) hope nobody minds me showing off some hunting pics on a wood fourm. The last deer and last elk I shot.View attachment 233842
> View attachment 233843



Wayyy cool!


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## fishercat (Apr 17, 2012)

*I burned pine all the time in Connecticut.*

Chimney sweep asked what kind of wood I burned because I had the cleanest chimney he's ever seen.

Split stack and season there's nothing wrong with it.


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## John R (Apr 17, 2012)

The first winter that I had my OWB that's all I had to burn, it kept the house warm all winter.
Only thing I don't like about pine is the sticky sap when cutting and splitting it.


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## slowp (Apr 17, 2012)

If you don't burn fir or hemlock here, you either burn maple or live in the city where there are non-native trees. Douglas-fir is the most sought after firewood in this valley. It is *usually* easy to split and burns nicely. It also thrives in our area. Maple is being burned more now. We have something killing our larger, native Big Leaf Maple trees so they have to come down if near houses and roads or come down on their own. They burn well, but are harder to split and make more ash than the Dougs. 





I am in the minority in that I have Western Hemlock in the wood stove right now. It takes a while to get dry and then is light and burns quickly. It is also hard to split as it is a limby tree. But my house is easy to heat. 

Oh, I forgot about the soft hardwood--Red Alder. I have a few loads of that too. It does not put out as much heat, but that's a good thing for me. Unless we are having a cold snap which is laughable for people to the east, my stove heats the house up too much if kept going all day. 

We don't burn pine here. The only native pine is Western White Pine and some stunted Lodgepole near the crest of the Cascades. Doug-fir is easier to come by than those. I have burned lodgepole when I lived where it was handy, and I liked it. It held a fire overnight. It was easy to find. 






View attachment 234063
View attachment 234064


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## gwiley (Apr 17, 2012)

I burn pine in the OWB regularly - I love the smell. Properly seasoned it doesn't produce any more creosote than any other wood - just don't burn it (or any other wood) green if you want to avoid creosote buildup.

One nice thing about pine is that it is easier to get and easier to start - downside is that it burns faster (though not as fast as poplar).


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## half (Apr 17, 2012)

*pine*

View attachment 234161
pinus radiatea is our pine, and the country is covered in it.we build with it, export it,Big forests of it, its everywhere, and we burn it. I have a woodburner and it is good in there, gets hot and will slow burn all night.I get my chimney cleaned once a year ,mainly for house insurance purposes. OK it probably has a lower BTU than other wood. I,m not sure about our native species. Last year I had some old man oak and found that good but sooty 
We have beech, cyprus and gum as well but pine and cyprus would be the most common


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## zogger (Apr 17, 2012)

half said:


> View attachment 234161
> pinus radiatea is our pine, and the country is covered in it.we build with it, export it,Big forests of it, its everywhere, and we burn it. I have a woodburner and it is good in there, gets hot and will slow burn all night.I get my chimney cleaned once a year ,mainly for house insurance purposes. OK it probably has a lower BTU than other wood. I,m not sure about our native species. Last year I had some old man oak and found that good but sooty
> We have beech, cyprus and gum as well but pine and cyprus would be the most common



All the different pines are interesting. And it sure looks like you have a lot of them!


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## tawilson (Apr 17, 2012)

I leave it laying in logs for a few months. I have a theory that all them worms crunching away are sucking all the moisture out of the wood. And the holes they leave help too(another theory). Then when it's cut and split the bark falls right off. Plus I like seeing them white worms when I split the wood.
On a more serious note, someone mentioned hemlock and spruce. I've been wondering about that, I got a lot I want to burn.


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## darkbyrd (Apr 17, 2012)

tawilson said:


> I leave it laying in logs for a few months. I have a theory that all them worms crunching away are sucking all the moisture out of the wood. And the holes they leave help too(another theory). Then when it's cut and split the bark falls right off. Plus I like seeing them white worms when I split the wood.
> On a more serious note, someone mentioned hemlock and spruce. I've been wondering about that, I got a lot I want to burn.



I like hearing them when I walk past the stacks "crunch crunch crunch." Kind of a fishbait farm.


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## woodbooga (Apr 17, 2012)

My experience is that the heartwood dries real quick and that the sapwood, esp. past the bark falloff stage, is a real moisture sponge. Come October when I'm really only cutting deadwood kindling for winter use, I often will slpit away sapwood slabs to resplit super fine to maximize drying for kindling.

Here in NH, the dominant species is white pine. But the sponginess applies to hemlock too. These are the main softwoods I encounter.


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## logbutcher (Apr 18, 2012)

Downeast coastal and island bony woodlands with high Ph have dominant softwoods: White, Red, Black Spruces plus Balsam Fir, White Pine, some Hemlock. Formerly cleared land quickly grows into "dog hair" spruce within a decade if not managed by cutting or sheep. ( Many offshore islands named "Sheep", "Goat", "Pig", "Burnt" .) Those softwoods and Cedars easily blowdown with their shallow roots on bony ground. For quick fires during shoulder season or a fast heat in a workshop they're indispensable. 
The Snorkel Hot Tub eats the stuff here over the winter.

I do have unfortunate O.E. (Oak Envy ).


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## slowp (Apr 18, 2012)

tawilson said:


> I leave it laying in logs for a few months. I have a theory that all them worms crunching away are sucking all the moisture out of the wood. And the holes they leave help too(another theory). Then when it's cut and split the bark falls right off. Plus I like seeing them white worms when I split the wood.
> On a more serious note, someone mentioned hemlock and spruce. I've been wondering about that, I got a lot I want to burn.



I am burning hemlock right now. The problem is that it is heavier than other woods until it is dry. Then it is lighter than other woods. It takes longer (here) to get dry. The stuff I am burning was laying on the ground for a couple of years. I cut it a year ago. When I split it, water was bubbling up. I stacked it on pallets, with a tarp covering the top of the pile, and much to my surprise, it is now nice and dry. It burns fast.


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## cheeves (Apr 18, 2012)

darkbyrd said:


> I like hearing them when I walk past the stacks "crunch crunch crunch." Kind of a fishbait farm.


Powder Post beetles. Don't let them get in your house. They'll eat it!!


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## darkbyrd (Apr 18, 2012)

cheeves said:


> Powder Post beetles. Don't let them get in your house. They'll eat it!!



I keep the firewood a long way from the house. Good when it comes to beetles and termites, not so good when it comes to getting the wood for the week.


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## tawilson (Apr 18, 2012)

They are not powder post beetles. They are pine grubs.


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## darkbyrd (Apr 18, 2012)

tawilson said:


> They are not powder post beetles. They are pine grubs.



They're popcorn right now


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## rmount (Apr 19, 2012)

tawilson said:


> On a more serious note, someone mentioned hemlock and spruce. I've been wondering about that, I got a lot I want to burn.



The only bad thing I find with hemlock is that it pops a lot so I wouldn't use it indoors in an open fire place. In a stove or furnace it's fine.


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## ponyexpress976 (Apr 19, 2012)

This past winter I was upset that I didn't have more pine to burn. Warm temps and no snow removal meant I was home a lot and could keep after it. If I was a little more daring...I coulda sold more out of the "house" pile just burning pine, box elder, and the odd balls/cutoffs.


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## tawilson (Apr 19, 2012)

rmount said:


> The only bad thing I find with hemlock is that it pops a lot so I wouldn't use it indoors in an open fire place. In a stove or furnace it's fine.


I have an owb so no problemo. But a good point, I use it for campfire wood at my campground, make the girls squeal.


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## ShaneLogs (Apr 19, 2012)

rmount said:


> The only bad thing I find with hemlock is that it pops a lot so I wouldn't use it indoors in an open fire place. In a stove or furnace it's fine.




Same with Cedar too. Cedar pops a lot and make a bunch of noise but other then that it burns real hot and is a nice wood. It also splits really easy.



Shane


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## moose5180 (Apr 19, 2012)

Where i live Wyoming we have pine and aspen. I burn both and have done so for many years. I keep a year ahead on my firewood and clean my chimney once a season. I cut standing dead in early summer and split ASAP. Last year i burnt 6+ cords and swept about 1.5 gallons of flaky dry brown "stuff" out of my liner. No big deal, never had a chimney fire. Its the people who cut a green tree in september, don't split it till a day before they want to burn and never clean their equipment who have problems. I always get a kick out of "oh god don't burn pine", I live on top of the continental divide and we have some rough winters, below zero temps for months at a time with very high winds, my house usually has the front door open cause the wife has the stove cranked and the house is at 80. Please don't burn pine, i will gladly take your share.


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## magna19 (Apr 20, 2012)

well,i figured this wouldnt get many replies,but 4 pages! wow,here in the great northeast pa egion we got lots of hardwood,pine is considered scrap wood,always a craigslist ad for free pine,so now with all this wonderful info i guess the pine will get split,styacked and burned this year. got some rounds from last year still in a pile,so i guess drag out thew splitter and start splitting them!!

thanks


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## darkbyrd (Apr 20, 2012)

magna19 said:


> well,i figured this wouldnt get many replies,but 4 pages! wow,here in the great northeast pa egion we got lots of hardwood,pine is considered scrap wood,always a craigslist ad for free pine,so now with all this wonderful info i guess the pine will get split,styacked and burned this year. got some rounds from last year still in a pile,so i guess drag out thew splitter and start splitting them!!
> 
> thanks



I use a 2 step process to clean the sap off my hands. Fast orange, then rubbing alcohol (or hand sanitizer).


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## Angelos (Apr 20, 2012)

I've been burning pine for many years and never had a problem. I use it for my furnace not in open fireplaces.
Sometimes I mix it with olive tree wood which is very good , burns slowly , with a few smoke only.View attachment 234683
View attachment 234684


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## Snotrocket (Apr 20, 2012)

darkbyrd said:


> I use a 2 step process to clean the sap off my hands. Fast orange, then rubbing alcohol (or hand sanitizer).



I use a 1 step process. I wear gloves. :msp_thumbup:


The great thing about pine is it's so light after handling oak and maple all day. Almost feels like a fake piece of wood.


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## russhd1997 (Apr 20, 2012)

Snotrocket said:


> I use a 1 step process. I wear gloves. :msp_thumbup:



Me too! I've got work gloves stashed all over the place.


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## moose5180 (Apr 20, 2012)

I use a 3 step process. Cut dead, split and stack. No need for fast orange as good dead pine has very little sap. And the only alcohol i use is a few ice cold MGD's for refreshment after the work is done.


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## sbowman871 (Apr 20, 2012)

*Lit up some white pine tonight*

Started a little fire in the ring at home tonight. Burnt up some cardboard boxes first then few some split white pine on it that has been drying for about a year. I was suprised how light the pine was after the year of drying. Anyway, campfire at the house, some Miller Lites, and all is good!


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## half (Apr 21, 2012)

*pine is ok*

ok the story from all so far is what us pine burners already knew;
split green, dry under cover, if possible shed or leanto 
use gloves
clean the chimney once a year. [over here if you have a chimney fire and you cant show a profesional chimney clean within the last 12 months ,by reciept,insurance may not pay out]
just smile at all the hardwood lovers,
and charge top dollar for your hardwood
while you burn the so called s..t pine, [that you probably got for nothing]


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## magna19 (Apr 21, 2012)

thing is the first of every month i run the brush down the chimney and clean the pipe every 2 months or when it is needed.i got a lot of dead standing pine,and will have more shortly.best is i get hardwood also so i mixed it last year through out the winter we had here.kept the house right round 74 all winter long.

guess this summer i got my work cut out for me!!


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## tawilson (Apr 22, 2012)

I'da blew a nut trying to get a piece of hardwood this size into my owb. It loves chunks like this when it's really cold.


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## magna19 (May 20, 2012)

started the splitting process..got a pickup load split right now. getting easier to split as it gets drier.now for the big pieces, got a few 26"-30" pieces,a friend took a few to ny for a contest for targets i guess.now i get to split the rest he didnt take!!!


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## redheadwoodshed (May 20, 2012)

I burn pine because the beetles kill a lot of nice big ones and it makes the sweetgum smell better:msp_thumbup:Like Del_,to me burning prime hardwood is like burning money.I'm about 3 years ahead on my woodpile, but about a year should season pine just fine.


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## stihl sawing (May 20, 2012)

I burn it, Free wood is a lot cheaper than gas no matter what kind it is. I burned it all winter a few years back, I've been lucky as the oak is plentiful here now but if pine was all i had it would get burned in a heartbeat. I still use it on occasion to start a fire or get one hot fast. Nothing wrong with it, It don't last as long and needs to be dried out good though. If it's free it's for me.


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## ShaneLogs (May 20, 2012)

stihl sawing said:


> I burn it, Free wood is a lot cheaper than gas no matter what kind it is. I burned it all winter a few years back, I've been lucky as the oak is plentiful here now but if pine was all i had it would get burned in a heartbeat. I still use it on occasion to start a fire or get one hot fast. Nothing wrong with it, It don't last as long and needs to be dried out good though. If it's free it's for me.



X2 on that, I have access to a lot of Spruce and soft wood so I usually end up taking it home with me and burning it in my fire pit in the summer


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## turnkey4099 (May 20, 2012)

I just finished hauling the last of the rounds from a fair sized cottonwood home. It will be donated to my neighbor who runs a party barn with a fire pit. 

Pine? I would not turn it down.

Cottonwood? No way would I work it up for myself even as 'free wood' unless I were downright deperate.

Harry K


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## mikereynolds (May 20, 2012)

*I burn it!*

I burn Pine and most other woods available. I also clean my chimney because I don't care to put out a fire. I don't burn Athol, Palm, Joshbua Trees or styro-foam.


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## zogger (May 20, 2012)

Just started today on splitting and stacking some of the big pine that was cut down in the back yard last year. Cut to size and let sit, the bark is now loose and falling off, BUT, some of the larger rounds are still real juicy and don't want to split. Serious splashing when hit. There's some fine line there where once it gets "dry enough" in the round it busts like nothing, but I tried some of them today that were like hitting rubber. I'll just leave them sit in the heat another month. Even if they get bugs, once split and stacked the bugs vamoose. I managed to get a lot of them done though, only about 50-60 more to go out of that tree.....

I'm (well, my beautiful assistant) is stacking on a really large pallet I found the other side of the farm, it is around a 6x8, it laid flat on the back of my chebby bed, up on the rails, bringing it back. We levelled it out with pressure treated scraps and bricks. Should be able to fit an easy 1.5 cords on it, stacked loose. However much it takes *that* pine is going on *that* pallet, even if I have to stack with a ladder. I got too much other stuff to split laying around, freeking cords and cords and trees down all over to finish cutting up. Having to get creative with where I am stacking now.







That mambo log, what's left of the big pine we'll cut up, in the background there, I am saving for my friend Josh to try his soon to be new to him 084 out on. Have to have something worthy!


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## porta mill (May 20, 2012)

There are many thought on burning pine I burn a bunch of it but I do it in an owb . I personally would not burn it in a wood burner inside my house . I know a few people who burn it in a fire place in there house but there is probably a foot thick of concrete in the fire place . I also live in NE PA and I find hard wood all over the place for free. I am not sure where you live in in pa but there are farms all over the place a good source of scrounging hard wood .


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## zogger (May 20, 2012)

*My trick*



porta mill said:


> There are many thought on burning pine I burn a bunch of it but I do it in an owb . I personally would not burn it in a wood burner inside my house . I know a few people who burn it in a fire place in there house but there is probably a foot thick of concrete in the fire place . I also live in NE PA and I find hard wood all over the place for free. I am not sure where you live in in pa but there are farms all over the place a good source of scrounging hard wood .



My trick to avoid problems with any wood as regards chimney build up is..I STOPPED using a damper decades ago. I adjust my burn with species/size and air intake. When I used a damper all the time, because that was "how everyone does it" I was out there cleaning every month in the winter, etc, same as everyone else. I thought about it one day and just opened it up..learned how to run the thing properly that week, experimenting, then left it open all winter, and removed it entirely and plugged the little rod holes the next summer. Didn't have to clean the pipes again, short of in the summer take them out, knock them a bit, reinstall. I moved my stove out to the yard to cook on in the warmer months anyway, so that was no big deal. Negligible if any soot or buildup. 

Since then, no damper. I don't even own a damper. Our brick chimney here has zee-ro flaky stuff, ever, I check every year, and have yet to see any appreciable build up of anything.There's just nothing there to clean. And this is not a super dooper epa turbo charged direct forced air injection system, just an old regular old wood heater.

You car or truck is a heat engine, same as a stove, just has some pistons, but same deal. Does it make any sense at all to put a crimp or restriction in your exhaust pipe? Does it make it run better/cleaner/more power/better mileage? Nope, nope, nope and nope. I've never heard of anyone purposely restricting their exhaust to "improve" anything on any sort of heat engine pump except woodstoves.

I think dampers are "hoop snake" old wive's tales junk science from a hundred years ago and it is so ingrained, even with manufacturers, that you "have" to have a damper, that the practice continues.

Yes, it takes just a little more forethought on loading the stove and adjusting the air for the results you want at any particular time, but that's it. I get all night burns whenever I want, low cool fires, medium fires, infernos max heat, whatever it calls for that day/night. 

And it REALLY keeps the chimney clean.

AFAIK, I am the only dude in the known universe who doesn't run a damper on an indoor heater. I would certainly like to hear from anyone else who has tried that for an entire season.


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## darkbyrd (May 20, 2012)

zogger said:


> AFAIK, I am the only dude in the known universe who doesn't run a damper on an indoor heater. I would certainly like to hear from anyone else who has tried that for an entire season.



I have an old circulating stove, and I've never had a damper. I thought about getting one, but never did, and learned how to do it with the thermostat and species. It is easier now that it is airtight with a new top, but rarely do I wish I had a damper to calm the fire down, and that is usually an error on my part (usually misjudging afternoon tempertures). An airtight stove is important I think. If you can't control the air going in, you need control of the air going out.


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## Philbo (May 20, 2012)

Huh. Interesting post!

This past winter we moved to a house with very old wood stoves. The one downstairs in the kitchen is a rectangular stove about 28" deep. No damper, just two air inlet knobs that can be taken off completely or closed up completely, with a baffle in the top of the stove. I'd never used an indoor stove without some type of flue damper on it, and it took a little getting used to, but I was quickly and easily able to get all night burns (8 hours) with a nice bed of coals hiding out in the back of the stove in the morning. Just get it raging before bed, load it up with some nice chunks, and close off the air inlet knobs. Still drawing from the flue, but just radiates heat all night with a hot and slow burn (black locust mostly.)

As far as burning pine, I'm glad I read this thread. Here in the Southeast and Appalachian mtns, oak, locust, and maple are gold for wood burning and pine is frowned upon. I might just have to grab some from the wood stash (that's already been cut and sitting for a year or so) along with the other hardwoods I just cut up.....:msp_unsure:


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## dingeryote (May 20, 2012)

Philbo said:


> Huh. Interesting post!
> 
> This past winter we moved to a house with very old wood stoves. The one downstairs in the kitchen is a rectangular stove about 28" deep. No damper, just two air inlet knobs that can be taken off completely or closed up completely, with a baffle in the top of the stove. I'd never used an indoor stove without some type of flue damper on it, and it took a little getting used to, but I was quickly and easily able to get all night burns (8 hours) with a nice bed of coals hiding out in the back of the stove in the morning. Just get it raging before bed, load it up with some nice chunks, and close off the air inlet knobs. Still drawing from the flue, but just radiates heat all night with a hot and slow burn (black locust mostly.)
> 
> As far as burning pine, I'm glad I read this thread. Here in the Southeast and Appalachian mtns, oak, locust, and maple are gold for wood burning and pine is frowned upon. I might just have to grab some from the wood stash (that's already been cut and sitting for a year or so) along with the other hardwoods I just cut up.....:msp_unsure:




If ya get a chance, post up a couple pics of that old stove. The old ones are more interesting than the newfangled jobs...lots of variations on how to approach the same challenges. Lots of genius went into some of the old stoves.

Stay safe!
Dingeryote


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## zogger (May 20, 2012)

Philbo said:


> Huh. Interesting post!
> 
> This past winter we moved to a house with very old wood stoves. The one downstairs in the kitchen is a rectangular stove about 28" deep. No damper, just two air inlet knobs that can be taken off completely or closed up completely, with a baffle in the top of the stove. I'd never used an indoor stove without some type of flue damper on it, and it took a little getting used to, but I was quickly and easily able to get all night burns (8 hours) with a nice bed of coals hiding out in the back of the stove in the morning. Just get it raging before bed, load it up with some nice chunks, and close off the air inlet knobs. Still drawing from the flue, but just radiates heat all night with a hot and slow burn (black locust mostly.)
> 
> As far as burning pine, I'm glad I read this thread. Here in the Southeast and Appalachian mtns, oak, locust, and maple are gold for wood burning and pine is frowned upon. I might just have to grab some from the wood stash (that's already been cut and sitting for a year or so) along with the other hardwoods I just cut up.....:msp_unsure:



For real. People around here think three sticks of pine in your stove and kiss your house goodbye. Same as hoop-snakes will bite their tails and form a hoop and roll down the street and chase you. 

Get wood, get it good and dry, let 'er rip! Burning green half way seasoned anything, oak, hickory, locust, amazonian diesel wood, who knows, anything, all the hardwoods, then making it worse by trying to "save the heat" with a damper is what causes chimney buildup.

You just accept the fact that your exhaust, your chimney, needs to be warm enough to be drawing, then that's it, burn good really dried wood, give it some air. Less visible smoke, less crap to accumulate in the chimney or pipes, plus, mo heat from the stove. win/win. Use different species and sizes to regulate the heat output you need then. 

Anyway, glad to know I ain't the only one who has dumped the damper!


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## zogger (May 20, 2012)

darkbyrd said:


> I have an old circulating stove, and I've never had a damper. I thought about getting one, but never did, and learned how to do it with the thermostat and species. It is easier now that it is airtight with a new top, but rarely do I wish I had a damper to calm the fire down, and that is usually an error on my part (usually misjudging afternoon tempertures). An airtight stove is important I think. If you can't control the air going in, you need control of the air going out.



Cool beans! Ya, I bet I could get even better results with an airtight, but I think some of the leaks in my old yard sale junker help to get all the gasses burning as well as they exit the stove and go out the pipe. The main air controls work as intended, the little leaks around the top and bottom doors help to insure they always get enough air to not smoulder. It's that smouldering action you want to avoid. 

I think this would be a lot harder to pull off, if all you had was one size and species of wood in the stack. thje way I do it, I really need a big variety of species and sizes to make sure I always get what I want, along with a clean burn.

Another reason why I am not a species woodsnob. If I have to touch it, into the stack it goes!


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## half (May 20, 2012)

*burning pine in a woodburner*

I see a comment that someone would never burn pine inside their house in a woodburner, Well if that was the case here there would be a lot of cold houses in New Zealand. There is nothing wrong with dry split pine in a wood burner if you follow a few simple rules. open the damper fully for 1/2 hour when you first light it to get the flue hot, then shut down to a good heat setting. Mine is great with it just flaming and the flames seem to circulate around the firebox. After about on hour my lounge is around 90f, and 32-35f outside.[We dont get snow just good frosts,] then I start opening doors to let the heat go through the house.And it has a slow burn option so it goes all night. My box takes a 9in round 20 in long and it loves them, So i dont split too small


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## darkbyrd (May 21, 2012)

zogger said:


> Cool beans! Ya, I bet I could get even better results with an airtight, but I think some of the leaks in my old yard sale junker help to get all the gasses burning as well as they exit the stove and go out the pipe. The main air controls work as intended, the little leaks around the top and bottom doors help to insure they always get enough air to not smoulder. It's that smouldering action you want to avoid.
> 
> I think this would be a lot harder to pull off, if all you had was one size and species of wood in the stack. thje way I do it, I really need a big variety of species and sizes to make sure I always get what I want, along with a clean burn.
> 
> Another reason why I am not a species woodsnob. If I have to touch it, into the stack it goes!



My stove has an air hole at the top of the firebox, as well as an air hole on the thermostat-controlled intake. So there is always a minimum amount of air going to the fire. Makes it harder to shut down when it gets too warm, but I almost always get good burns out of it.


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## Dan_IN_MN (May 21, 2012)

I personally think the problem with burning pine is that it WILL burn very well green with its sap so flammable putting the moisture on to the walls of the flue. Sap from other wood isn't as flammable when burned green. 

Thoughts?


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## russhd1997 (May 21, 2012)

manyhobies said:


> I personally think the problem with burning pine is that it WILL burn very well green with its sap so flammable putting the moisture on to the walls of the flue. Sap from other wood isn't as flammable when burned green.
> 
> Thoughts?



When I've tried to burn greenish pine in a fire pit it just sits there and smolders. The best wood to burn green is white ash.


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## magna19 (May 22, 2012)

this pine i get is all free,cut into 12-20" pieces for me,plus dumped in a pile for me to split and stack at my leisure. 

yes hardwood is plentiful here in the great northeast pa,but that i have to go into the woods,cut it,load it,unload it,split it, then stack it. with the pine it is split it stack it.less work!my chimney is flue lined,plus i physically clean it once a month,myself.


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## Rookie1 (May 22, 2012)

I burn pine and have never had a problem. I dont go out of my way for it either though. Im sure its been said already but up north in Canada all they have is pine. Im thinking they have heated with it for years.:msp_mellow:


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## Coldfront (May 22, 2012)

I love burning dry pine, it seems the only people who put it down as bad are from out east. There is nothing wrong with burning dry pine. And btw I have 2 free standing inside wood stoves in my house. I have stove top thermometer on them and I can guarantee I can get a hotter faster temperature with pine than I can with dry oak, and yes I have plenty of dry oak also. You will get more btu's per pound out of oak because it burns much longer and leaves good long lasting coals. But if you want quick hot heat pine is better. I even burn a lot of pine in the coldest part of winter because it puts out more heat fast, I put oak in before I go to bed.


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## Whiteash (May 22, 2012)

magna19 said:


> this pine i get is all free,cut into 12-20" pieces for me,plus dumped in a pile for me to split and stack at my leisure.
> 
> yes hardwood is plentiful here in the great northeast pa,but that i have to go into the woods,cut it,load it,unload it,split it, then stack it. with the pine it is split it stack it.less work!my chimney is flue lined,plus i physically clean it once a month,myself.



I think youre right on the money!
I burn the same, whatevers really available. I have a ton of pine on the property and some of it has to come down to get to the other. I would say just like everything else too.. Try not to smolder it a lot and keep an eye on if the chimney is getting dirty. Usually I try to mix a couple pieces of hardwood and pine together on a load. Dont know if that makes a difference or not but its worked so far so im going to stick with it.


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## wudpirat (May 22, 2012)

*Sure I burn Pine*

My answer when I'm asked if I want that FREE wood.
Just remember to give it a lot of air and burn it hot.
I'm like Zogger, if I touch it, it goes onto the pile.
I have burnt the usual hard woods, Oak, Maple ,Hickory, Beech, Birch, Cherry etc.
I have also burned Ash, Mimmosa, Palonia (good firewood) Sassafrass. Poplar. Tulip and most types of Pine.
I think I would burn old christmas trees if they weren't so limby.
A BTU is a BTU, no mater where it comes from.
Your fuel must be dry, even cow chips need to be dry to burn.
Don't choke the fire, it needs air and smoke means creosote.
Older fellow I know is having four Pines taken down in his front yard. Tree Guy says " I'll give you a good price, Drop the trees. chip the limbs but you get rid of the trunks."
Me, Me. pick me, I'll take the trunks. Pine is soo easy to get, they're happy to give it away.
It don't work that way with primo hard woods, you almost have to kissass to get any FREE.

FREDM, Oxford, CT, The OLD WUDPIRAT

Always lookin to score a FREE load of wood or a chainsaw..


Almost forgot, I also burn woodchips. Those small hardwood branches, I chip them, dry them out and use them as kindling to start the fire. 
Now if I can figure a way to reburn the ashes.


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## half (May 22, 2012)

manyhobies said:


> I personally think the problem with burning pine is that it WILL burn very well green with its sap so flammable putting the moisture on to the walls of the flue. Sap from other wood isn't as flammable when burned green.
> 
> Thoughts?



No You have to split and dry it well, under cover if possible. I would never use green pine, It just sucks up the heat to dry it out and the output is rubbish. Mine is split and stacked for next winter now 2013 and its only late autunm. Im burning summer 2010 wood now so its 18 months dry [this probably sounds stupid but our summer is at xmas and winter is mid year]
split green, burn dry


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## ft. churchill (May 22, 2012)

We'de be cold in the winter if it was not for pinyon pine. We bought a flue brush soon after we got the wood stove, used it a couple of times but each time we only had 1mm at the thickest of soft fluffy soot. Hardly a problem. The only time we get hardwoods are from pallets, or scrounge a "town" tree, then we can get locust, russian olive, or chinese elm, they are just hard to find one to cut up.


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## Doc Hickory (May 28, 2012)

Like many of the guys are saying: let it season a year and let your stove draw. Creosote forms when the exhaust temps fall too low so as long as you give your stove plenty of air you'll be ok. I had about 2 p/u loads of half rotten mixed yellow/white pine last winter and that pile lasted a long time. Every time I got some for my woodrack out of the pile I couldn't believe I hauled that trash home, but it still put out a bunch of heat. Had some sad looking apple/maple mixed in with it too. What can I say, it was all 'gimme' wood, just cost me the gas to haul it home.


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## Greener (May 28, 2012)

I burn a lot of softwood here in the PNW, mostly fir, with some hemlock and spruce. I usually split it and through it in a pile in the sun over the summer. And actually, if I get it stacked in the shed by september, it is usually ready to go for a December fire. Pine will make more ash than other wood but burns fast. If you have a big supply, go for it. Hell, I burn cottonwood in the spring and fall from time to time-because it's plentiful here.


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## artbaldoni (Oct 24, 2012)

Just started burning pine in the OWB. I have tons that I never thought was good for anything. Brainwashed Pennsylvanian I guess. :bang:

It works great. Still get 24 hour burns in the mild temps. Can't wait to see how it does in the cold weather.


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## Coldfront (Oct 24, 2012)

I have been burning dry white pine for about a year now I found that a couple of big pieces of pine with a medium piece of oak on top works out great, the pine burns up all the oak coals into powder ash. And with the pine I can shut down the air intake quite a bit and still keep the stack burning at 400-500 degrees f Pine is good wood it burns hot puts out a lot of btu's is generally free for the taking, it just doesn't burn as long or leave a good bed of coals like oak. btw I burn 2 free standing inside stoves and heat my 2400 sq ft house 100% with wood heat.


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## snowdingo (Oct 24, 2012)

I'm burning all lodgepole pine right now, saving the birch for the colder months. In northern BC the bettle-kill pine is extensive so there is an unlimited supply of standing dead pine timber. It burns faster than the birch, but since it is free and plentiful, I don't mind it at all!


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## kodiakyardboy (Oct 24, 2012)

manyhobies said:


> I personally think the problem with burning pine is that it WILL burn very well green with its sap so flammable putting the moisture on to the walls of the flue. Sap from other wood isn't as flammable when burned green.
> 
> Thoughts?


That's the problem here. The only kind of tree on the island is Spruce and the lazy people won't ever cut their own wood. All the firewood for sale is green spruce tops from the logging operation and people split and burn the same day. Those of us who know better are a year ahead of the game and don't have chimney fires. I always have a waiting list for the firewood I sell because I cut standing dead and season for 6 months.


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## fauxknee (Oct 24, 2012)

*All dried wood burns*

Ever seen a house built? Ever seen a house fire? Ever seen oak 2x4's at the home depot? I've had some tough times and burned pallets for the past 5 years. Wasted good money on a brush and rods to clean my chimney this summer because after all that terrible pine wood I burned my chimney was almost like brand new. Never came close to a remote chance of a chimney fire. I saw a chimney fire once when i was a kid and it was in the oldest home in my town with a chimney that hadn't ever been cleaned. Come on people, theres a whole lot of BS about pine. dry it and burn it...end of story. go lite up the home depot if you disagree. Maybe it's the democrats that want you to believe that pine is bad because they've invested heavily in hardwood forestland. Nancy Pelosi is from my hometown of Baltimore and there's lots of oak here. I've lost many nights sleep over the poor folk that live out west and have to burn conifers. Godspeed to y'all and I hope you get indoor plumbing soon. And don't worry about me, I've found some real firewood.


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## wagz (Oct 24, 2012)

so you guys that burn pine, are you letting it run wide open during the day to keep the creosote buildup low and then dampering down at night?


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## Garmins dad (Oct 25, 2012)

wagz said:


> so you guys that burn pine, are you letting it run wide open during the day to keep the creosote buildup low and then dampering down at night?



I run her where it needs to be to keep the house nice.. Some days thats wide open then fill her full of wood before i go to bed and slow it down to 1/3 open. Other days it's 1/3rd open all day.. All depends on if it's -45f outside or 22f.


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## Angelos (Oct 25, 2012)

I usually combine pine with olive tree wood.Sometimes it's only pine.I always remove the bark first. During the night I place a big chunk of olive tree wood and last till morning.


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## turnkey4099 (Oct 25, 2012)

wagz said:


> so you guys that burn pine, are you letting it run wide open during the day to keep the creosote buildup low and then dampering down at night?



There is no particular way to burn "pine" It is wood, it burns, We run our stoves by adjusting air supplyh to control the fire.

Forget the "Old Wives Tales".

I grew up in the 40s/50s - almost every house heated with PINE. Number of fires? 1 and it was started by something else in July.

Harry K


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## artbaldoni (Oct 25, 2012)

_Maybe it's the democrats that want you to believe that pine is bad because they've invested heavily in hardwood forestland. Nancy Pelosi is from my hometown of Baltimore and there's lots of oak here_.

How can burning pine be a politically charged topic?  

WOw, it must be an election year...:spam:


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## Henry and Wanda (Oct 25, 2012)

Hello,
I used to burn pine at my last house. We had a lot of pines on our property ( Pasadena, Md.) and they were always blowing over in storms. So I would cut them up, split them, dry them and burn them in the wood stove. I had enough after a while that I could wait 2 years before burning.......this really made them very dry and I would also burn the stove hot, so I never had any creosote problems !!!!! I read through all 7 pages of this thread and didn't see anyone comment on stacking the wood after being split !!!!! Since pine really shrinks up a lot during the time it is drying, my wood stacks were always shifting. Every so often I would have to take the sledge hammer or a good sized log and try to beat the wood back into a vertical stack. The wood would shift one way or the other as it dried !!! If I didn't do this, they would eventually fall over. That was the only complaint I had about burning pine. It was very irritating to see one of the stacks over on the ground after you had spent so much effort and time stacking it !!!! Stacking is also my least favorite aspect of burning wood !!!!!

Henry and Wanda


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## ole yukon (Oct 25, 2012)

My grandpa always said "if it will fit in the stove, I burn it". I have been one of those who burnt anything other than pine. The main reason I avoided pine was I HATE pine sap lol. I have a dead pine in my daughters yard that I need to cut down. After reading this thread, I may consider splitting it and burning it. If not I will give it to my neighbor who has an OWB.


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## arborealbuffoon (Oct 25, 2012)

An old book I used to have covered all aspects of wood burning extensively. The chapter about firewood "quality" (wood density) had the usual chart of BTU's per unit of volume. At the end of the chapter, it was pointed out that the "best" wood was that which falls closest to the stove. In these times of insane fuel prices, I find this to be especially true. 

At our place in the Black Hills of SD there is so much pine everywhere that you could fuel a large power plant 24/7 with it and never run low. The mountain pine beetle has devastated huge swaths of the forest there, and the standing dead that has dropped its needles is virtually ready to burn right off the stump. I just spent two weeks out there and burned ponderosa pine exclusively. Gee, I never got cold and didn't even have a chimney fire. Back here in Iowa, hardwood snobs will haul pine to the landfill while fighting over the oak and hickory. People aren't always too smart, I have discovered.....


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## gtsawyer (Oct 25, 2012)

Seasoned pine burns hot and clean. 

Things I like about pine:
- the sound of dry pine when it's split. It sometimes splits with a nice "ping" to it - kind of like a musical instrument.
- the smell of the wood
- the smell of the smoke
- it's easy to move around (if it's seasoned, it's pretty light stuff)
- it lights very easily, so it's a great way to start a fire

Things I don't like about pine:
- I hate the pitch on some trees. HATE
- It burns too fast; it's a low-btu density wood
- pine knots bother me for some reason, so I split every piece like a piece of pie - radially from the center of the round.


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## Steve NW WI (Oct 25, 2012)

I've been burning pine (actually a mix of different softwoods, probably some pine, some fir, some spruce) since late September exclusively. This is waste wood from work, 4' long 4x4s I cut down to 16". It's good and dry, burns hot, and leaves almost no ash. I really like it for this time of year. If need be, I can fill my big firebox on the old wood furnace full and get 8+ hours with it damped down, or get a quick warmup out of a 1/2 full firebox running hot and fast. I have an outdoor clay lined masonry chimney (aka creosote factory), but with the usual smaller hotter fires, it's cleaner than it would be burning hardwoods damped down.

Someone made a comment in another thread about this being something "poor people" did. I'm not independently wealthy, but I know that free wood that would otherwise go to waste, that takes almost no time to process and burns great, makes me more wealthy by not burning "good" wood when it's not needed, and keeping the furnace off. Ron White said you can't fix stupid, I'll add that ignorant is tough to deal with as well.


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## turnkey4099 (Oct 25, 2012)

Steve NW WI said:


> I've been burning pine (actually a mix of different softwoods, probably some pine, some fir, some spruce) since late September exclusively. This is waste wood from work, 4' long 4x4s I cut down to 16". It's good and dry, burns hot, and leaves almost no ash. I really like it for this time of year. If need be, I can fill my big firebox on the old wood furnace full and get 8+ hours with it damped down, or get a quick warmup out of a 1/2 full firebox running hot and fast. I have an outdoor clay lined masonry chimney (aka creosote factory), but with the usual smaller hotter fires, it's cleaner than it would be burning hardwoods damped down.
> 
> Someone made a comment in another thread about this being something "poor people" did. I'm not independently wealthy, but I know that free wood that would otherwise go to waste, that takes almost no time to process and burns great, makes me more wealthy by not burning "good" wood when it's not needed, and keeping the furnace off. Ron White said you can't fix stupid, I'll add that ignorant is tough to deal with as well.



Yep, the "old wives tales" live forever and the ones spreading them are the ones who know nothing about it. e.g., burning pine - the "you'll burn your house down" bunch are ones who have never burned pine and never knew anyone who had.

Harry K


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## Rsquared (Oct 25, 2012)

I'm with Steve on this one. Free is free and if it heats and saves the "so called" good wood and LP or natural gas, that is a bonus. I am still in the novice stage of wood burning, but I have burned pine, box elder, apple, birch, oak, and ash so far. I want to be warm when the weather calls for it plain and simple. I used pine quite a bit last year while I was home to feed the fire and yes while it burns fast, it does keep the house warm. My elderly neighbor who has heated with wood for 40 plus years, says he isn't happy if he doesn't have at least a cord of pine each winter to burn at some point. His house is still there. :biggrin:


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## darkbyrd (Oct 25, 2012)

Best one I heard was "white pine is crappy firewood -- it doesn't burn"


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## ft. churchill (Oct 25, 2012)

It's the moisture in the wood that being burnt that causes the creosote formation, not the amount of pitch in the wood. It combines with the smoke to make a tarry deposit if the temperature is low enough in the flue for it to deposit. We never had a problem in Colorado (nor heard of anyone having a chimney fire). That is the land of burning lots of conifer wood. Burn seasoned dry wood only and you'll never have problems.


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## russhd1997 (Oct 25, 2012)

darkbyrd said:


> Best one I heard was "white pine is crappy firewood -- it doesn't burn"



:hmm3grin2orange::hmm3grin2orange::hmm3grin2orange:

My neighbor just brought over some pine logs for me to burn in my OWB today! I don't scoff at free btu's especially when it's delivered! :msp_wink:


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## BrokenToys (Oct 25, 2012)

As I mentioned a while back and apologize for reposting:

I have one uncle who burns all hardwood with a dampered stove, and have to clean his chimney out mid winter when possible or the creosote will plug it up. He swears it's fine and always remarks about how pine will clog your chimney with creosote. 
I have another uncle [brother o 1st uncle]who burns pine along with hardwood ( 50-50 ratio or thereabouts ) in his non dampered stove and I don't even fuss with a good cleaning out his chimney because it's a two story gambrel roof house and steep and stuff like that; and in the last 8 years his flue has been damn near spotless. I do one pass up and down with the brush basically to hope someday can see some creosote and believe that pine is the culprit !! 

Both have clay flues; both built by same people; and I have to agree somehow it has something to do with the damper and having excessive creosote buildup from cooler burns. Just going by what I see....

Myself; Pine/Spruce/conifer softwoods just stain my clothes with sap so I pretty much pass on it.


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## Steve NW WI (Oct 26, 2012)

I stuffed the firebox full of pine before leaving for work today, first time this year the weather's been cold enough to justify an all day burn - we had a few snow flurries this afternoon. I came home with just enough coals to refire without a match. 10 hours, 20 minutes between loadings, intake air damped down to about half. 

Granted, my old wood furnace has a huge (7 or so cu ft) firebox, I used about 5 cu ft to fill it, being cut 16" in a 24" firebox, but that's as good or better than I can do with box elder, my other "crap" wood here.

Speaking of box elder, I'll be on break from burning pine this weekend while I make some box elder disappear up the chimney, to make room for more pine in the wood room.


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## artbaldoni (Oct 26, 2012)

The next batch of pine to burn. 












Yeah, I know there is some oak in there too. Didn't want to just leave it in he woods...some folk say you can burn that too...:rolleyes2:


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## Coldfront (Oct 26, 2012)

I burn pine as if it were any other wood, I have a stack and stove top thermometer and burn at 400 - 600f my stoves have no stove pipe damper just the air intake control. When I get my stoves burning to the temp I want you can't see any smoke come out of the chimney. I honestly haven't cleaned my chimney in almost 2 years. I look down with a flashlight and it is clean as a whistle all the way down. I am running very modern epa stoves with secondary burn.


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## Morgan in AR (Oct 26, 2012)

*dang it.*

You all are making me want to go and cut up a pine tree just to see what it looks like. The only problem is I don't have a pine tree on the entire farm. I do have one in the back yard of a rent house, but it would probably take a skilled arborist to drop it. I think it's above my skill set. :msp_angry:


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## turnkey4099 (Oct 26, 2012)

Morgan in AR said:


> You all are making me want to go and cut up a pine tree just to see what it looks like. The only problem is I don't have a pine tree on the entire farm. I do have one in the back yard of a rent house, but it would probably take a skilled arborist to drop it. I think it's above my skill set. :msp_angry:



There must be a pine or two in city parks, neighbor's yards, street right-of-way 

Harry K


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## 1967 Tempest (Apr 30, 2015)

Ive been seeing a lot of pine on the side of the road. I might grab some. Split it now and comingle it in with the mountain of Ash I have.


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## Vibes (Apr 30, 2015)

I'll burn Yellow Pine over Silver Maple anyday.


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## svk (Apr 30, 2015)

There must be a dozen threads on this topic floating around this forum. Always fun to hear all of the wives tales regarding this subject lol. 

I've got three cords of Norway pine that will be going through the chimney next winter.


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## JeffHK454 (Apr 30, 2015)

^^^ that. 

I've got limited space dedicated to firewood and I fill it with the best stuff I can , I'd burn Pine if I couldn't find something better.


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## MuskokaSplitter (Apr 30, 2015)

I wish i had more pine. Great for the morning and throughout the day. Hardwoods in the evening and night.


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## flotek (May 1, 2015)

Pine is okay for taking the chill off but I wouldn't want it to be my only wood in the dead of winter . Yeah it can heat your house ( so can cardboard boxes and newspapers if you have enough) but it's the same amount of labor for a third of the btu of good hardwood .. it Coals poorly and leaves tons of ash . That doesn't stop me from burning it !...but it better be free and easy Pickens to bother with .


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## turnkey4099 (May 2, 2015)

flotek said:


> Pine is okay for taking the chill off but I wouldn't want it to be my only wood in the dead of winter . Yeah it can heat your house ( so can cardboard boxes and newspapers if you have enough) but it's the same amount of labor for a third of the btu of good hardwood .. it Coals poorly and leaves tons of ash . That doesn't stop me from burning it !...but it better be free and easy Pickens to bother with .



People out here would gladly accept your offer to replace the pine/fir etc. THAT IS AVAILBLE here for good hardwood THAT IS AVAILABLE where you are.

Harry K


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## unclemoustache (May 2, 2015)

Greener said:


> Pine will make more ash than other wood but burns fast.



I see you've never burned Sycamore. I'm pretty sure Sycamore leaves more ash than there was wood to begin with!

I have about a cord of pine this year - I'd like to get rid of it as I now am getting tons of oak delivered for free!


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## olyman (May 2, 2015)

Steve NW WI said:


> I've been burning pine (actually a mix of different softwoods, probably some pine, some fir, some spruce) since late September exclusively. This is waste wood from work, 4' long 4x4s I cut down to 16". It's good and dry, burns hot, and leaves almost no ash. I really like it for this time of year. If need be, I can fill my big firebox on the old wood furnace full and get 8+ hours with it damped down, or get a quick warmup out of a 1/2 full firebox running hot and fast. I have an outdoor clay lined masonry chimney (aka creosote factory), but with the usual smaller hotter fires, it's cleaner than it would be burning hardwoods damped down.
> 
> Someone made a comment in another thread about this being something "poor people" did. I'm not independently wealthy, but I know that free wood that would otherwise go to waste, that takes almost no time to process and burns great, makes me more wealthy by not burning "good" wood when it's not needed, and keeping the furnace off. Ron White said you can't fix stupid, I'll add that ignorant is tough to deal with as well.


 tho old post steve,,id add arrogant as well...


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## olyman (May 2, 2015)

svk said:


> There must be a dozen threads on this topic floating around this forum. Always fun to hear all of the wives tales regarding this subject lol.
> 
> I've got three cords of Norway pine that will be going through the chimney next winter.


 ok,,i want to see you put that thru the chimney..........


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## zogger (May 2, 2015)

unclemoustache said:


> I see you've never burned Sycamore. I'm pretty sure Sycamore leaves more ash than there was wood to begin with!
> 
> I have about a cord of pine this year - I'd like to get rid of it as I now am getting tons of oak delivered for free!



Split it up real thin for kindling, bag it, sell it along with your hardwoods. Two bucks a bag maybe.


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