does chestnut burn well?

[Le Sanglier]

Sweet chestnut is a totally different wood to horse. I agree, avoid sweet, but horse is superb when dry. It's not an opinion, I've burnt the stuff and its hot as you like!

Of course the two trees only share a name. Creating confusion.

It is an opinion, and a wrong one. Sweet chestnut is coppiced and burnt everywhere in France (cannot speak for elsewhere on the continent)

Sure you can burn horse chesnut but it's only a by product of the felling of an amenity tree.

TBH the people who say it stays wet are doing something wrong.

Edited March 26, 2013 by Le Sanglier

[bigdave]

Well, it's an odd one Dave, out here chestnut is the "go to" wood for burners.

Cannot really help.

 

 

have been told by an old boy who used to be a timber merchant back in the day that sweet chestnut or spanish as he called it was a bugger to dry & can some times take years espically if it was a big stem it had come from!

 

 

 

the tree i got was 3 feet dia at base going up to 2 feet at the top of the stem

 

it is not taking up too much room so it can just sit there for the next year or two untill it is dry enough to burn!

 

this is my first experience of sweet chestnut i wont let it put me off just yet!!!!

 

 

i love the smell of it in the wood shed really is nice!!!!

[richardwale]

By product of felling an amenity tree. Ermmmm, yes that's right. What else would it be.

As for the French, they can burn whatever they like.

[nepia]

have been told by an old boy who used to be a timber merchant back in the day that sweet chestnut or spanish as he called it was a bugger to dry & can some times take years espically if it was a big stem it had come from!

 

 

That's why I said earlier it takes ages to dry: I had the honour of taking delivery of a 48"dbh newly dead specimen 6 years ago and I'm still trying to get rid of the bloody thing!

[Le Sanglier]

OK I give up, believe what you like!

[farmer rod]

have been told by an old boy who used to be a timber merchant back in the day that sweet chestnut or spanish as he called it was a bugger to dry & can some times take years espically if it was a big stem it had come from!

 

 

 

the tree i got was 3 feet dia at base going up to 2 feet at the top of the stem

 

it is not taking up too much room so it can just sit there for the next year or two untill it is dry enough to burn!

 

this is my first experience of sweet chestnut i wont let it put me off just yet!!!!

 

 

i love the smell of it in the wood shed really is nice!!!!

whack a wedge in it and split it, it will dry out a lot faster, it splits really easily

[bigdave]

whack a wedge in it and split it, it will dry out a lot faster, it splits really easily

 

 

 

its already in fire sized pieces & has been for 2 years & the bugger still wont dry!!!!

 

 

i split a piece today 20% out side mc 38% inside mc

 

 

theres about 10 m3 in the shed it can just sit there untill it is dry enough to burn!!!!

[richardwale]

Big dave you must be doing something wrong. Any wood, logged ready to for stove or fire, will dry in 2 years.

[bigdave]

Big dave you must be doing something wrong. Any wood, logged ready to for stove or fire, will dry in 2 years.

 

 

 

 

 

 

i`v had loads of other wood ash oak birch cherry beech etc cut & stored in the same way the exact same way & that is always below 25% mc on internal reading normally within 3-4 months

 

if i`m doing something wrong i dont know what

 

i have always stored my wood

 

raised off the ground on pallets in an open sided shed that has the highest side facing south to catch more sun!with wire sides & pallet devides to allow airflow through the piled wood!

 

the sweet chestnut is on an end aswell so has wind blowing at it from 3 angles!!

 

so dont know why its not dry yet!!

[openspaceman]

Big dave you must be doing something wrong. Any wood, logged ready to for stove or fire, will dry in 2 years.

 

Probably it will in a shed .

 

I've recently picked up an oak ring which was in the field at work, been there 2 years but in contact with the ground. Sap wood was rotten but I cut a 25 gramme section of heartwood and it oven dried to 12.6 grammes. That's 50% water, probably more than when fresh felled.