# How does Pecan burn in a wood stove?



## linebergert (Jan 8, 2012)

Friend trimmed up his Pecan trees in the pasture and gave me the wood.I havent tried to burn pecan in my woodstove. Another friend says its junk for heating with but i have used a bunch in the smoker. Searched the web and have found different opinions 
about using it for heat. So im asking the experts. I know it needs to be seasoned good. 18 ft trailer 1.5 ft high and more on the ground. If it is going to be more hassle to use for heat then Ill just get the smoker fired up and get to cooking. And give some to friends who need it for cookingView attachment 216043


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## ponyexpress976 (Jan 8, 2012)

Considering the price tag, I'd say it's excellent for heating. There are a couple guys doing pretty well on ebay selling flat rate boxes full of chunks for smoking.


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## linebergert (Jan 8, 2012)

ponyexpress976 said:


> Considering the price tag, I'd say it's excellent for heating. There are a couple guys doing pretty well on ebay selling flat rate boxes full of chunks for smoking.[/QUOTE
> 
> 
> I have 200 acres of all the free wood i can cut but this was already bucked up on the ground all i had to do is load it so the price was really good. As far as selling it for smoking there are too many people around here doing it already.


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## ponyexpress976 (Jan 8, 2012)

I think that's why the guys doing it on ebay are doing well...sending out to people who can't get it regularly unless you stop in the box stores.


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## grapplermi (Jan 8, 2012)

I burn it as firewood, as they are all dying from the drought here in north Texas, and it does just fine. I always save some back to smake with, but I've got tons.

regards,
Matt


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## 4seasons (Jan 9, 2012)

*Pecan is hickory*

Hickory is the best btu firewood you can get. Pecan is a sub-species of hickory. Lots of people use hickory/ pecan in their smokers (including me, great taste.) All hickory species are hard to split (stringy.) If you can split it and you don't use it on the smoker or sell it to someone who does it is the best firewood you can get.


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## Frank Boyer (Jan 9, 2012)

Pecan for smoking is $600 a cord in N CA. Free wood always burns well.


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## haveawoody (Jan 9, 2012)

Pecan has the same burning qualities as hickory.
Same cure times also around 1 year.

Hickory is the second best firewood in North America.
Rock elm being about 10% better btu and twice as long to cure, rock elm won't burn well in a fire that isn't pretty hot already hickory will.

Don't try to make a pie out of your pecan though, the wood makes terrible pie.


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## greendohn (Jan 9, 2012)

we dont have any pecan around here. i'd like to try some in my smoker, though. an old timer told me several years ago that all of the fruit and nut bearing trees makes good firewood. so far as i can tell, he is rite.


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## haveawoody (Jan 9, 2012)

greendohn said:


> we dont have any pecan around here. i'd like to try some in my smoker, though. an old timer told me several years ago that all of the fruit and nut bearing trees makes good firewood. so far as i can tell, he is rite.



Not much around my area either other than the occasional garden planted one.
I've burned precious little pecan but in my opinion it's identical to hickory.

Pretty much all the fruit trees make excellent firewood, apple, crab apple, pear, mulberry, peach, plum etc all burn hot and smell like perfume when burning, everything other than mulberry is a 2 year cure though.

I store rock elm, apple, pear and sugar maple for my personal wood stove.
And a bunch of silver maple to get them burning.


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## Truck4 (Jan 9, 2012)

Pecan makes up about 80% of what I cut and sell, once it has cured ~yr. after being cut / spilt it makes excellent firewood, this yr. alone I have sold ~15 cords. I work with all the local pecan orchards around here (and there are some big ones!!) to pick up all there trimings each yr. As others stated it is also a excellent smoking wood I use it and mesquite in mine. Nice haul


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## avalancher (Jan 9, 2012)

I am heating almost entirely this year with pecan thanks to all the blow downs this year in town, and I love it. Like it even better than hickory for the simple fact there is far less ash than hickory, and the wife loves the smell in the house.

I cut all of this during the April storms, and it was ready to go this fall.A little on the wet side when I turned to the stacks that didnt make it into the drying shed, but I have no complaints. Lights easier than hickory in a cold stove, and makes some very good heat.

Top notch wood if you ask me.


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## Hedgerow (Jan 9, 2012)

4seasons said:


> Hickory is the best btu firewood you can get. Pecan is a sub-species of hickory. Lots of people use hickory/ pecan in their smokers (including me, great taste.) All hickory species are hard to split (stringy.) If you can split it and you don't use it on the smoker or sell it to someone who does it is the best firewood you can get.



2nd best... :msp_wink:
Just sayin...
:boss:


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## haveawoody (Jan 9, 2012)

OOps forgot (Osage-Orange) as #1 then Rock elm a very close second, then a few contenders Hickory, Sugar maple, Ironwood, Locust all similar btu.

It's all good if you got any of them though  

I just wish at least two btu charts were the same, or similar to each other even


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## Hedgerow (Jan 9, 2012)

haveawoody said:


> OOps forgot (Osage-Orange) as #1 then Rock elm a very close second, then a few contenders Hickory, Sugar maple, Ironwood, Locust all similar btu.
> 
> It's all good if you got any of them though
> 
> I just wish at least two btu charts were the same, or similar to each other even



Amen to that... One thing I'm sure of though... If all I had to burn was Hickory or Pecan, I'd be a happy man... They're just great "all purpose" species... 
:msp_wink:


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## haveawoody (Jan 9, 2012)

Hedgerow,

Dito for me, hickory of and floavour is darn good stuff.
And what other firewood can make you get up in the morning and have a sudden urge for 25 pieces of bacon and 1 egg LOL


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## sb47 (Dec 16, 2019)

I can't keep pecan in stock, It goes as fast as I can split and dry it. Smokers love pecan for all kinds of meats.
Makes great firewood as well. I have had tree guys drop off loads they just cut down that day and some logs have water dripping out the ends. But it does dry fast once split and stacked in the open with full sun. The draw back is it will soak up water like a sponge when it rains so keep it covered once you get it dried.
If you smoke with it always try to use heartwood without any bark on it. The bark can give it a very strong and some say a slightly bitter taste. Never smoke with green or pecan that is not totally dry. The key to great bbq smoked meat is the fire has to fit the firebox properly to get a complete clean burn with NO white smoke coming from the stack. White smoke is unburden fuel and contains lots of creosote. That means you have too much wood on the fire. Try a smaller fire with smaller pieces and what comes out of the stack should be almost clear with a slight blue tent to it. You should only see heat shimmers and very little smoke. No smoke means your fire is burning clean and your getting a full burn from both wood and smoke. This applies to any type of wood your smoking with. White smoke is bad smoke, clear smoke is good smoke.
It does put a nice dark color to your bbq and it taste great on brisket, pork butt, chicken.


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