Oak. Overrated or incredibly overrated?

[Dan Curtis]

Dan, how can you borrow a load of firewood?

What sort of condition do you return it in?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Arbtalk

 

It's returned in the form of lovely sopping wet cord, stacked and ready to process.

[Hanser]

French friends cut oak for firewood from managed woodlands. They say it's no good unless it's seasoned for at least 2 years. It's split, stacked and left totally unprotected for the first year. The weathering does 2 things - the wood starts to twist and open up and the rain washes out the tannin in the oak. Both apparently essential for a good burn. Yr 2 top of stack covered over and then moved later on into the woodshed.

Voila, c'est simple

[Stubby]

French friends cut oak for firewood from managed woodlands. They say it's no good unless it's seasoned for at least 2 years. It's split, stacked and left totally unprotected for the first year. The weathering does 2 things - the wood starts to twist and open up and the rain washes out the tannin in the oak. Both apparently essential for a good burn. Yr 2 top of stack covered over and then moved later on into the woodshed.

Voila, c'est simple

 

Yep pretty much what I do

[Alycidon]

I've found you can significantly speed up the drying time for oak if you split it into small logs - six months I'd say.

 

As a general thing that is also very good for increased flame patterns and easy heat output, just does not last more than about 35 mins in the firebox.

 

A

[Robert_S]

I'm burning some of this oak this evening, burns great.

 

http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/video-forum/85048-nightmare-drag.html#post1263743

[woodrascal]

Burning a mixture of Oak, Ash and Sitka at the moment. The Oak has been cut to 10" lengths and split and air dried for 2 years. It burns very easily, very hot and leaves a great bed of embers.

 

I don't tend to use it on its own. It works really well in the range cooker and the outdoor brick oven - superb for roasting meat and making pizzas.