As usual, cold weather splitting has its moments. Hardest part for me is getting a cold engine to start when the temp drops below 15 F. But, then the fun starts. I've found that several species of logs make a loud pop when the log splits, especially when you start at the log's dead center. The log appears to actually blow apart, and the noise is sometimes as loud as a cherry bomb -- Boom! On occasion, you have to be darn careful that someone isn't too close by because the split halves fly apart fast.
First question is, "What causes the noise?" I've heard several theories (1) sudden release of trapped air, like a balloon blowing up, (2) sudden breakage of trapped ice inside the log, (3) the combination of both, and (4) cold air makes the wood brittle with very little slow give. Second question is "Which firewood species have you found that pop the loudest?" Last week I split some white ash that put on quite a show, but I recall fruit woods, such as Bradford pear also fire a cannon.
First question is, "What causes the noise?" I've heard several theories (1) sudden release of trapped air, like a balloon blowing up, (2) sudden breakage of trapped ice inside the log, (3) the combination of both, and (4) cold air makes the wood brittle with very little slow give. Second question is "Which firewood species have you found that pop the loudest?" Last week I split some white ash that put on quite a show, but I recall fruit woods, such as Bradford pear also fire a cannon.
