Rob_the_Sparky

Other solutions include guttering or large overhangs but yes that looks very neat. My logs are generally hanging out the front of the log store so no chance of fitting doors

I can only guess this idea of resin build-up either comes from people letting it smolder overnight or from burning on open fires.

If it is offcuts of interior wood then is it actually treated? It may not be. Pallets used to be a right mix but now you rarely find a chemical treated one, the are almost all heat treated now so fine to burn.

I'd guess he wasn't using a tube though so gunk is in contact with the wheel.

When you get more time, you can use 3" fence posts that are being thrown away to make good sized log racks, lots of supply out there. The 6' above the soil is generally in good condition and long enough to make a nice tall log rack. Pallet wood for the slats on the sides and back, material of your choice for the roof and costs are some wood preservative, screws nails and roofing (I have made a roof of pallet wood but think clear plastic is better). I don't have a lot of room so need to make the stacks taller and this worked out fine

1. Measure the dimensions 2. Ensure you use the right type of measurement for you: Loose, stacked or solid. There are standard values used to convert from one to the other (but afraid I can't remember them off hand)

Look at the LONG thread on here about et and dry measurements. Dry is the water content as a % of the dry weight, Wet is % of the total weight. I.e. a 50% reading for wet = 100% reading for dry. It maybe this that is giving you the high numbers. Also in that thread there is input from those who have done the weigh wood, dry in a oven and re-weigh. They were saying that meters are not that accurate anyway and this is the only right way to get a measurement of any accuracy. Clearly though you have wet logs and the fire temps confirm this. Note: Looks like a helpful soul has pinned a message describing meter differences in more detail

It is a trade off. If I were paying for dried logs I might go for hardwood. If I'm getting arb arisings then most tree surgeons will keep the hardwood for their own uses (selling for firewood for example) but the softwood is hard to get rid of. That means that those of us that are happy to put in the hours processing the softwood others don't want, pay very little for it. Regarding "bang for buck" you can't get much better. Last year I got two large trees dumped at mine for free that were being taken down opposite my house. Tree surgeon saved a couple of trips to base and I get free firewood (only cost is the electricity to run my saw). I generally do donate something for my wood but the cost is minimal compared to paying for processed logs. Rob P.S. I agree with reloading times, I try to find some hardwood if I need to keep the fire in but leaving the logs larger can also help increase the time between re-loads.

The "we must have hardwood" argument is a good one for us who are happy to split, dry and burn softwood but not so good for those who cut trees. It means the price of softwood is low and in some cases just dumped for free. Yes softwood takes more space and involves more splitting but it also dries faster and generates more or less the same amount of heat weight for weight (dry weight).

Sorry, a bit late with this reply, but what you are describing is the difference between bias and noise. Noise is the scatter and if you average out noise then you get the correct answer. This is what gives you the variation measurement to measurement. Bias gives you an error in the reading no matter how much averaging you do, it is an offset from the genuine value you are trying to measure. The noise is most simply described using standard deviation but as complicated as that is, it is still a simplification. It is a case of the more you know the more complex it becomes I'm afraid and probably not something you want to go to deeply into. The bias is best calculated by taking the mean of a lot of readings. Note: all of the above applies when trying to measure something constant. With wood the material is not constant from tree to tree and species to species. I'd be surprised if you get any sort of bias or noise data from a moisture meter manufacturer. As far as I can tell the meter is set-up to measure high resistances then uses a look-up table (or a simple equation) to convert that resistance reading into a moisture reading. They are not directly measuring moisture, the reading is an estimate of moisture based on the look-up table. Poor match between the look-up table and wood being measure = poor accuracy (bias). I don't know how much variation there is in moisture for a given resistance but I suspect it is quite a lot given all the variations in the wood. Those who have done a load of oven drying would know though.

Software in the meter could well limit the reading to 40%. I.e. it may well read 40% even if you put a dead short (like a piece of wire) across the terminals. Still how to tell if it is dry or wet basis?

Why would the hearth hit 100C? That is a hell of a lot so very unlikely, otherwise you would burn yourself if you touched the hearth and I have never heard of that happening. Mine is black granite and doesn't get much above room temp.

There is no sign of controlled air entry at the front (no sealed door), which suggests this is something more like a free standing open fire than a log burner. Difference being efficiency of ~30% for an open fire and 75+ for a log/multifuel burner.

Hmmm, I brought my dehumidifer into the house as an experiment (normally lives in the garage to keep the cars dry - yes I know pampered cars). It removed very little water so I put it back. That was after friends of ours had issues with damp as like you found the dehumidifer removed a LOT of water. If you are removing that much water I'd be concerned about where it is all coming from...

Sounds a bit extreme to me, a day or so indoors is only going going to dry the very outer surface. If the bulk of the log is wet then it will still be wet after a day or two indoors. Just bring them in the night before should be enough

The Norwegian Wood book tells you to light a wood burner by putting the big logs at the bottom, the opposite of what you might have thought would be right from lighting campfires. In effect you set a fire in between/on top of a couple of logs, letting the wood gas come up and burn. However, I find it works best for lighting if I use a small (~1" diameter) stick to lift the bigger logs off the ash. Flame gets underneath the logs lighting the whole surface of them faster than if they are just placed on the ash. (Not when re-loading, only when lighting)

Note: You can make a log store for next to nothing with a few pallets, nails, hammer and a sheet of some sort for the roof. Don't get put off by the cost of them.

Just how many of the general public will know about wet v dry humidity readings when on here it is a struggle?

I was asking myself this question a few years ago. Went for a wood burner and the chopping/drying of the logs keeps me fit/occupied. Happy I went for a wood burner...

Imagine we have a demand we have to satisfy for electricity that is likely to rise given the pressure to use electric cars and heating. If we can not get enough capacity from solar, wind, etc (no chance) then we need power from other sources. Would we rather that was from coal, gas, biomas, nuclear, etc? While biomass may not be as carbon neutral as it is cracked up to be (down to marketing) it is a heck of a lot better than coal or gas. Personally I'd prefer not to have to look after nuclear waste for a few thousand years so while we don't have enough carbon neutral power what are we going to use? Rob P.S. the trouble with wind, solar, wave etc. is that they do not provide power on demand. Once they become significant producers of power you will need to store huge amounts of power to cover the times they are not producing power...

Good luck with free dry wood, free waste wood from tree surgeons yes but not free dry wood, that is a product. As above you need to find somewhere that generates waste wood that is not treated or painted. Pallets may look attractive, and are certainly available, but you'd be surprised how many you need to keep a fire going. Also need to check the labels as some are treated, although TBH most are now fine, see here, look particularly at the treatment stamp (you don't want MB). Builders often dump off cuts in the skip as well but in fairly small amounts. The guys that did our patio also get a lot of hardwood boxes that the slabs from India come in that they were more than happy to give me (they did not like to see them thrown but had little choice normally). Note: if wood has been dried but then out in the rain for a few days or even weeks it will dry again MUCH more quickly than fresh cut trees. P.S. Tried a look on face book or a wanted ad? You will have to sift through all sorts of junk that people think you can burn but you might get some stuff that is useful.

Not seen the article but surprised there would be anything like this as the draw from the chimney should pull air/smoke into the stove, not let anything out.

Have you contacted your local companies? I sorted out my supply from a local tree surgeon a few years ago by doing this. He now just contacts me when he has wood he wants to get rid of. He also sells firewood but I don't care what the wood is while I think firewood customers do. I get a good supply for a donation of a few bottles of wine a year although I did initially off cash. I haven't used the tip site on here as I had my supply sorted before I joined.

Yeah, don't believe the myths about softwood. If you don't slumber the fire (over restrict the air to slow the burn) or burn wood wet then softwood is absolutely fine. Some are less dense but more or less the same energy per unit weight. Softwoods do tend to have higher oil content, which is why if slumbered they can fill the flue with tar but you really want to burn that oil/tar anyway before it gets to the chimney as you want the heat from it. Maybe the "it gums up the chimney" comes from burning on an open fire? I don't know where that all started but it is not true with a wood burner if you don't slumber. Also, if you want something free though you can't expect to pick and choose. Make it easy and convenient for the trader and they may give you some wood. I donate wine for my arbwaste and take any type of wood hence mostly I get softwood but he often has more to drop off than I use in a year (~3.5 cube stacked).

Welcome to cover our **** legal wording.