Been a while

[django]

Hi folks, Been a while since I cruised the forum. Very nice to see the DOLMAR saws getting substantially more ink than the last time I was here. Great saws. Now that I have posted again I have a problem maybe ya'll can help me with. I seem to be afflicted with a neurosis that may also be a psychosis I'm not sure. Really seems to be bad this year. That's right, I'm talking about W.P.E. or. Wood Pile Envy. Every time I see a pile bigger than mine, I get edgy, and have an almost un-controllable urge to go cut wood. I start eye-balling the mature Maple and Oak trees on my property,wondering how bad I would miss them.
What's worse, I'll see a nice pile and see what KIND of wood he has. "Jeez", I'll say to myself, thats a lot of Hickory. He's got a lot of BTU's per cord, there. Then I'll look at my pile of Elm and Maple, and feel somehow inadequate. Is there a support group? Anyone else afflicted? Your help is appreciated
Django.

 

[max2cam]

You wouldn't want to see my place then, because I've got LOTS of wood. Under the eaves of my shop, under a roof attached to my house, in separate woodsheds, and in BIG piles. Cutting is my winter hobby and now I've added milling. I'll admit that my firewood isn't hickory like you southern boys have, but a mixture of sand oak, maple, jackpine, popple, and even some spruce that crackles and spits sparks from the woodstove. But it all burns!

In fact I just built a new woodshed this fall some 12 x 21 in size and am already planning to extend it 8 more feet. I built it high so I can just toss the wood in there and not stack it. Ever notice how much more wood you can pile when you neatly stack it? But it's so much quicker just tossing it out of the truck.

Got a nice fire in the stove this morning. Nice dry stuff kept under cover.

 

[django]

Oh yeah, that REALLY helps me. I hate to look stupid, but I see the word "Popple" on this forum a lot, what the hell is popple?
Nobody here in Ohio uses the term. "Punky" is what we say.

 

[che]

I've only got a small trailer full out there....mostly hedge (osage orange.)

Started my first fire of the year a couple hours ago.....sycamore and cherry to start, but threw a small stick of hedge on top....just to make it worthwhile.

 

[buckwheat]

I've been burning at night now for about two weeks, with today being the first time I stoked it up in the morning. Right now I'm using poplar, which is creates a lot of ash but is nice for this time of year. I end up mixing the ash in the compost bin as a good source of carbon.

I find myself turning my head when driving past a good stack of split wood, but my real problem is "downed tree syndrome." Whenever I spot a tree blown over that hasn't been cut up yet, I find myself inspecting it and wondering who I should talk to about cleaning it up.

'stands up in church basement..."Hi, my name is Buckwheat, and I'm a sawaholic."...

 

[johncinco]

There really is only one known cure at this time. A good couple of hours in the woods. A great couple is even better.

Popple around here is any type of soft wood but usually is poplar, birch, or a couple of others I cant think of right now.

 

[django]

Downed tree syndrome is a companion disease to Wood Pile Envy. Iam slso afflicted. I burn 15-20 pickup loads a year. Mostly Elm as a lot of them are dead around here. There is a beetle that is killing a large amount of ash tree's also. Sometimes Iget lucky and get some Hickory or Red Oak. My main frustration is finding someone to let me cut, as I don't own any woods. I live in a area that is equal parts farming and Manufacturing, and there are a lot of successful farmers that have trees to cut, but are afraid of liability. I don't blame them, but it is sad. ???? Lawyers. There are woods full of tree tops going to waste. Makes me sick. By the way Osage Orange is AWESOME fire wood. So is Black or red Locust. Hard on the saw though. Especially frozen.

 

[CMBetz]

Popple/poplar/aspen -- all the same.

 

[John in MA]

Don't feel so down, I just keep a modest pile of maple. Actually haven't started burning yet.

Now, then there's this guy in town with a pile of split hardwood larger than his garage.

 

[Fish]

I was born in Ohio, but I was raised to not discuss my "piles".

 

[Gypo Logger]

Hi John, you mean all this time I thought you were a taxidermist and mounted animals?
John

 

[bwalker]

I was born in Ohio

And you admit it?

GYpo, You got it all wrong. When Fish isnt "fisherizing" beavers he is riding Llamas as he is a Llama pilot.

 

[eyolf]

Popple...a hick form of the scientific genus name <i><b>populus</b></i>, as for example <i>populus deltoides</i>, eastern cottonwood.

Most of us in the northern climes are familiar with Quaking Aspen, or "popple", big-tooth aspen, or "popple", Balm-of-gilead, or "rotten popple", and cottonwood, " kinda like popple". These are not to be confused with yellow poplar, sometimes also called "popple", and also sometimes called "tulip", nor confused with Lombardy poplar (populus candincans), better known as "d@mn lombardys"

Popple is a poor firewood, sometimes called "go-fer" wood, because you soon have to "go fer" more. Birch is sometimes mistaken for popple, but popple is also sometimes sold as "green birch" to unsuspecting firewood buyers.

Popple has become a valuable specie in many parts of the upper midwest, as there have been many processes developed for using it in engineered lumber products. If you have built a home lately, you have probably come in contact with aspenite or oxboard and perhaps with I-beam joists. I live about 5 miles away from a weyerhauser joist plant...they're buying aspen from Wisconsin sometimes because of competition for the raw materials.

 

[bwalker]

All the popple in this area goes to Mead paper.

 

[Bill G]

django,

How is your furnace and splitter working out for you ? How often do you fill your outside wood burner when you use elm ? I burn some here from time to time. It is generally burned in a pile about 100 foot long and as high as the dozer can stack it. I remember one winter when we cleared a ditch. It was mainly elm and cottonwood. We burned the large pieces in the shop stove. Boy that was a cold winter. All kidding aside you mentioned the best firewood in my opinion, locust. It is easy to split, straight, dries well, and burns hot. What more could you ask for. I really only burn locust and pass up most other. I do have about 4 very large dead elms that I am going to drop for a neighbor. He loves dead elm and they need to be romoved from the fencerow. It is a win-win situation.

Bill

 

[django]

Hey, Bill,
Stove and splitter work good. There are some things I would like to do to the splitter yet, just can't find the time. If I burn all elm, and it's really cold, I have to pack the stove as full as I can to get 12 hours out of it. The firebox is 36in. diameter, 44in. long, so that's a fair amount of wood. However, the house is 3500sq.ft, moderately insulated, and tons of windows. So I use a lot of BTU's to keep it a 75 degrees. I would keep it cooler, but the wife likes it warm. I think if she had a choice, it would be 85 degrees.
Yes, Mr. Walker, I admit to living in Ohio. The great benefit to living in Ohio, is no matter which way you go from here the scenery improves. Indiana has all the lakes, Michigan has all the trees, and Kentucky has.......well, I'm not really sure what Kentucky has.

 

[EDMman]

Fish!!!

 

[django]

That explains the smell.

 

[max2cam]

Popple (aspen) not a good firewood?

True, if you want to hold a fire overnight it's not too great, but this morning I put a few chunks of popple (aspen) in my stove and it heated up the entire place just fine. Lets me save my good oak for winter.

I'm not a snob when it comes to firewood. If it's dry I burn it. And if it's easy to cut and haul in that's the best stuff. Actually I don't have much popple (aspen) and like jackpine better if you want to beat up on softwoods. That stuff makes a great fire! In some ways I like jackpine the best. It's mixed woods around here and you cut what's growing. Works for me for the 27 years I've been heating exclusively with wood here in NW Wisconsin where it has dipped to 50 degrees below zero Fahrenheit. Cuts down on the wood envy too. Just remember: It all burns.

Now I suppose you'll tell me that burning softwood will clog up my chimney...I must have heard THAT a million times....

 

[django]

Hear Hear!! If it contains B.T.U's, BURN IT!! I don't have the luxury of having a lot of hardwood to burn, but I must say, I overwhelminingly prefer it. For an excellent fire that burns a long time, and smells great, Apple is the king, followed by Hickory.
Elm pretty much stinks. When your stove is out in the yard, and the chimney is 10 feet off the ground, good smelling wood is nice to have.