Alder as firewood again !!

[Lazurus]

It makes good flowers to.....

[Macpherson]

Nice flowers !!

The other good thing about Alder is that it grows about as quick you can burn it, in fact up here if it`s not cut it quickly becomes a bloody nuisance specially along the side of the roads.

[cessna]

Thanks everyone.

I think the load I had in yesterday must have been stacked in the shade for eight months, it has fungus on the butts ( 3mtr lengths) but it is all very wet when logged and split 28% /30% ish , I am not a happy chappy.:thumbdown:

[HertsWood]

I'm working in a alder / sycamore woodland.

Charcoal producers will bite your arm off for quality alder.

[Hanser]

Hertswood

Very nice setting! Is the mill functional/going to be once restored?

[openspaceman]

Thanks everyone.

I think the load I had in yesterday must have been stacked in the shade for eight months, it has fungus on the butts ( 3mtr lengths) but it is all very wet when logged and split 28% /30% ish , I am not a happy chappy.:thumbdown:

 

It''l be poor airflow rather than shade, remember bark is just about waterprood both ways so moisture in a long log in a stack has a ways to travel before it evaporates.

 

All the time the mc is above 20-25% microbes will be eating away, consuming the volatile solids first and then getting at the woody structure, as they metabolise this they are taking energy from the wood and reducing the wood to CO2 and water. The CO2 diffuses out easily but the water has to get out the same way the original moisture does. With perishable woods, like willow, poplar, birch, horse chestnut and alder and many of the softwoods they just end up a soggy mass inside the bark with little fuel value.

 

Alder is brilliant firewood as it splits easily and dries fast so split it when green to let it dry below the point which it will support decay as fast as possible.

[timberbear]

Got just under a cube from a ten year old stool yesterday. Always liked alder ideally mixed with slower burners but if you got a good supply its a great firewood, easy to cut and split. In fact I'm considering planting a few acres up for my own short term coppice firewood.

[HertsWood]

Hi Hanser,

The mill is a scheduled ancient monument & grade 1 listed.

It's here: http://www.secretisland.co.uk

[Lulu]

Hello Folks,

 

I am just a domestic woodburner, and have had the stove for a couple of years now, having replaced a coal burning range.

 

I usually use kiln dried ash which I buy in 2 cu mtr crates, and I buy sacks of kd birch both to top up my stacks and to use to get the fire up and going when it is first lit.

 

I recently bought a few sacks from a garage forecourt, not usually an economic option for anything, but these seemed reasonable as long as you bought five bags. There is no producer information on the sack, just "Premium Dried Hardwood".

 

The wood colour is darker` than ash, a sort of reddish colour, a bit like the sawn and planed "hardwood" you can buy in DIY stores.

It lights well and burns fast with darker smoke than ash/birch.

 

Could this be alder ?

 

I did feel a bit concerned that it might be something from a dodgy source, or might be impregnated with some sort of accelerant, old diesel fuel maybe.

 

Any thoughts from you experts, please ?

[Stubby]

The cut face on Alder reddens very quickly . Check the pics above .