Round timber

[woodacre]

Hi. How many years do you reckon round lengths of timber (ash, beech and oak) stacked outside in lengths will last before it starts to spoil?[emoji848] Cheers in advance [emoji106]

[woodrascal]

If it's kept off the ground, exposed to the sun and has a decent flow of air through it, those three types of wood should last for many years.

 

If it's lying on the ground, in a sheltered, shaded spot with rain pouring on it for most of the time, it won't last very long at all.

[woody paul]

Beech will go first. 

[sime42]

Beech will go first. 

Then Ash

[openspaceman]

1 hour ago, woodrascal said:

If it's kept off the ground, exposed to the sun and has a decent flow of air through it, those three types of wood should last for many years.

But if it's large diameter with the bark on it will still rot in the middle all the time the moisture content is above 20%

1 hour ago, woodrascal said:

 

If it's lying on the ground, in a sheltered, shaded spot with rain pouring on it for most of the time, it won't last very long at all.

I agree

 

Also I've just checked some red cedar slabwood left out in the rain and it has absorbed a lot, it was down to 20% in the summer

[Woodworks]

Plenty of variables in the question. Depends on your storage space and local climate.

 

We are in a very wet area but with a nice exposed storage space facing SE. I dont leave any roundwood longer than a year except chestnut. Oaks heartwood is fine for years but the sap rots very fast and can be a large proportion of small diameter timber. Beech is on the turn after six months or so. Ash oddly lasts pretty well in spite of not being classed as durable. Worst I have had is birch  which turns to polystyrene if it so much sees a raindrop! Softwoods such as Larch and Douglas fir seem to fair better.

 

Processed some roundwood nearby on a south facing site with fantastic drainage and many of the above woods had dried in the round without rotting after being left out a couple of years so as I say many variables.

Edited November 22, 2018 by Woodworks

[aesmith]

I've found that Ash keeps a long time if left as logs complete with bark, and it doesn't seem to deteriorate.  The inside has a sort of sharp fermented smell as if it had pickled itself.  

[openspaceman]

On 22/11/2018 at 14:01, openspaceman said:

 

Also I've just checked some red cedar slabwood left out in the rain and it has absorbed a lot, it was down to 20% in the summer

I brought a small 750 gram piece inside to test it, it had been in length on my lawn since about August as I had no covered space for it.

 

Though dry when I fetched it home it had reabsorbed  as much water as a freshly felled piece. In the warmth of my study it rapidly went down to 30% as it' averages out at 21C and 33% RH here.

 

It shows how with a good dry airflow will rapidly remove moisture.

 

I then dried it in the microwave on the1st December  and you will see how it reabsorbed 6 grams of water from the household air over night.

[defender tipper]

The Beech will go first, Good at 12 months good at 24 months, pretty rough at 36 months

but just about sellable if your customers are not too fussy, the ash will be the same but in better shape at 3yrs old,the Oak will last longer but very hard to get it dried to 20%mc