Spontaneous Combustion?

[Dryar123]

Does anyone have experience of anything similar.

Did a job yesterday reducing and felling a large landi.

I stacked branches intending to chip when I returned to site this morning to complete job.

 

I took a call from customer at 8.30 telling me my pile of brash was alight and burning well in garden. The site is nowhere near a footpath and there are no reasons to think anyone chucked a fag or deliberately set light to the stack.

 

The wood was very dry as tree was heavily dying back. It's been warm and sunny over past couple of days. I can only think all conditions combined have created right circumstances to smoulder and then burn.

 

Lesson learnt chip as you go! .

[william127]

I felled a dead lime pollard about 15ft high by 2ft across, it was so dead it exploded when it hit the floor and we shovelled about half of it into the truck! put it on the bonfire heap which had not been lit for 2 weeks, it disappeared overnight!

[difflock]

I think it highly unlikely to "sponteanously" combust so quickly.

The other factor is actually the dryness.

Such recorded cases are generally hay that was put in a shed too damp or wet.

A degree of oxygen excluding consolidation is also required.

Until heat generated, over days, pile then disturbed, oxygen admitted = woomph!

I simply cannot imagine branches "combusting" overnight.

cheers

marcus

[Adam Bourne]

Where you cutting any of it up where the exhausted on a saw could of set light to a piece and smouldered?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Arbtalk Mobile App

[Dryar123]

I know this seems daft and I get the science. The site is an enclosed garden with boundary well away from any public access. I stacked the brash and had a cuppa with the customer before leaving. I'm told the fire was seen burning at 6.30 am this morning and the seat was in the centre deep within my pile. I'm positive I left nothing combustible anywhere on site.

 

Not worth worrying about but neighbours are as good as gold so no worries there. Anyway no harm done and in fact saved a bit of legwork.

 

Cheers..