Log shed/storage shed

[L33 DA17ON]

Hi all I'm new to the forum, I've just asked my brother if I can start to clear out the Woodlands on out farm for fire wood. So I have a small yard and a lean too shed with only one opening. The shed is concrete floor and stone walls with tin sheet roof. Sizes would be around 6-8ft wide & 20+ ft long and max hight would be 10ft sloped down to about 6ft.How much air flow would the shed need if I splt the wood and heaped it up from the back? I'm planning on using pallets around the sides and on the floor and might stand a row down the middle. The wood I'll be cutting is a mixture soft and hard just whats been windblowen or or damaged in the process. I'll try post a picture of the shed tomorrow.

[neiln]

How big is the opening and where is it?  The more air flow the quicker the wood will season, so if you could add openings in the ends and along its length they would help. I dry a lot of wood in an old 6'6" X 8'6" garden shed.  It was a typical potting shed, window in one end and the front, door beside front window. I removed the door and windows and will completely fill the shed and wood seasons well, mixed hard and soft that is.  I'll be burning it next winter, starting into it about December/January after I finish another stack, and I'd normally have had it filled before now but I still need a couple of cube. As long as I get that done in the next month or so I expect it will be dry even though the last stuff in will be first out. So you don't always need super airy spots and single rows, but more air means faster drying generally.

Edited October 30, 2019 by neiln

[openspaceman]

2 hours ago, neiln said:

As long as I get that done in the next month or so I expect it will be dry even though the last stuff in will be first out.

It would be interesting to weigh a few logs that you load from now and mark their weight, then when you take them out you can see what the water weight loss was.

 

From my experiments I do not see much rate of drying after October, maybe 20% of what you will get in May.

 

To The OP it may be possible to slightly raise the roof at the back to get airflow.

[neiln]

Weighing only really helps if I finally dry the log in the oven and get a dry weight.  I will rummage my drawer and find my cheapo moisture meter and use that.  I've just got some oak, a cube or so, felled last week from my neighbours garden. I bucked it and piled it ready to split so I can measure and mark up a few splits as I work through splitting them.  Being the last to go in there is little air movement in the shed now, the stacked splits block both windows and the remaining space is the last bit in the middle and then right at the doorway.  It's prefer to have filled out before now, or to be finishing with soft wood, but I have Oak.  Since that's the hardest to dry it may be touch and go but I'm splitting for 3 small 5kw stoves... Smaller splits dry fast.  I'll try and leave a few larger ones and measure those too so I can see how it goes.

Depending upon whether mum manages to sell her house and move next summer I may be moving 2-3 cube to her.  If I start on that early enough I'll move this lot first to get into her airy log store and the bottom of it.  In which case I'll be checking moisture content next summer time.

[L33 DA17ON]

Thanks for the reply guys. Finally had time to get some pics of shed.

After laying the pallets I'm thinking of turning them the other way along one side so I can separate the stacks and keep track of the time of year it was processed. So will this be ok for storage of do you think itll need more air flow?

[pie eater pete]

Looks a good usable space...i have a shed about 20ft by 10 which i intend to put IBCs in then possibly considering a stove in the corner to help with drying..hoping this will then be a kiln of sorts..

[Ratman]

Thanks for the reply guys. Finally had time to get some pics of shed.
After laying the pallets I'm thinking of turning them the other way along one side so I can separate the stacks and keep track of the time of year it was processed. So will this be ok for storage of do you think itll need more air flow?

Mine have been outside for nearly 2 yrs now in a pallet store arrangement like your suggesting, but i’ve got rubberised corrugated sheets for roofs, its all beech and it was dry enough/i was burning it in yr one, you should have more than enough air flow around your stacks by building how you are suggesting, it’ll all depend how much air flows through the building to dictate your drying time thats all.

[gary112]

1 minute ago, Ratman said:

Mine have been outside for nearly 2 yrs now in a pallet store arrangement like your suggesting, but i’ve got rubberised corrugated sheets for roofs, its all beech and it was dry enough/i was burning it in yr one, you should have more than enough air flow around your stacks by building how you are suggesting, it’ll all depend how much air flows through the building to dictate your drying time thats all.

A nice few apples there Andy?

[Ratman]

Yeah thats last years pic, they’ve done nowt this year?!! Never made any size and dropped very early! Shes still only young though yet, and quite a few people have said to me dont worry about it, you’ll get a bad year every now and then?!! I’m still learning with it all yet. Will be replacing the 6ft fence panels and posts right round garden next year, so when log stores are gone they’ll be replaced with some block built and rendered raised beds. Will then drop my apple tree, acer and cotton easter in and hopefully they should all thrive again with being away from the big pots. ?‍♂️ time will tell.

[L33 DA17ON]

53 minutes ago, Ratman said:

Mine have been outside for nearly 2 yrs now in a pallet store arrangement like your suggesting, but i’ve got rubberised corrugated sheets for roofs, its all beech and it was dry enough/i was burning it in yr one, you should have more than enough air flow around your stacks by building how you are suggesting, it’ll all depend how much air flows through the building to dictate your drying time thats all.

Nice set up. Thanks for your info. Do you think I'll be better stacking them or ok just to heap them up.