Kiln dried Firewood

HW100S

Hello

I recently harvested about 5 Tonne of ash hardwood and was wondering if it is possible to get it kiln dried? It is cut in 8foot lengths.
Is it possible to get it done or should I just cut it to short length and leave it out for a few years to air dry.
I need timber for next winter though.

Thanks in advance.

fergus1001

Ash will be around 25% moisture in 6 months and then slowly make its way down to below 20, it's all in how you store it I find if you put pallets down under where you store the timber (in a shed) the increased airflow through and under the stack increases the drying rate, also cut to 8 to 10 inches and split it all before storing

Fiskar

HW100S wrote: »

Hello

I recently harvested about 5 Tonne of ash hardwood and was wondering if it is possible to get it kiln dried? It is cut in 8foot lengths.
Is it possible to get it done or should I just cut it to short length and leave it out for a few years to air dry.
I need timber for next winter though.

Thanks in advance.

As Fergus 1001 says and my experience Ash drys out naturally very quickly. There is no need to get it kiln dried.

HW100S

fergus1001 wrote: »

Ash will be around 25% moisture in 6 months and then slowly make its way down to below 20, it's all in how you store it I find if you put pallets down under where you store the timber (in a shed) the increased airflow through and under the stack increases the drying rate, also cut to 8 to 10 inches and split it all before storing

Thanks for the response. I have a fairly large shed with plenty of space for timber storage. However, the shed is pretty well sealed and not much air circulates around inside. I stacked some ash early last year (cut about 10 inches long and split) in a corner but it was not raised off the ground. However, I got a tar build up in my stove because it was not dry enough, hence the reason for my question.
I will consider your suggestion of stacking on palletts if I do the same again with this lot.
I have plenty of space outside. Would it be any more benificial if I stacked the cut timber outside and covered it?
I live in a hilly area and there can be a lot of moisture in the air (morning & evening mist, even in summer).
There would be much moisture in the garage but less drying.
What do you think?
Thanks in advance.

Fiskar

It is february now, leave the ash outside until September and then bring inside the shed. it should be plenty dried by then

wayoutwest

I've just cut and chopped some ash into 10" logs - they have been put in my covered and well ventilated shelter. Unless we get an unusually warm, dry summer I doubt that I will be able to get the moisture content down to 18% by Sept/Oct ......more like 25%. If we get a 'normal' summer I will be burning them this time next year at the earliest.

HW100S

wayoutwest wrote: »

I've just cut and chopped some ash into 10" logs - they have been put in my covered and well ventilated shelter. Unless we get an unusually warm, dry summer I doubt that I will be able to get the moisture content down to 18% by Sept/Oct ......more like 25%. If we get a 'normal' summer I will be burning them this time next year at the earliest.

In reality, I'll burn them in winter 2017/2018 so hopefully they will be ok by then. I'll just be buying timber for next winter.....:(

wayoutwest

Perfect -you will end up with 16-18% m/c logs by then and will have doubled the value of the firewood.I was a bit short of hardwood at the end of last summer so I bought in some chopped/split Ash at € 60 /cubic metre loosethrown - it was around 25-28% m/c .....its now reading 20-24%......by Autumn it will be 'Fully Seasoned' and be worth over €100 a cubic metre to buy in......watching wood dry can be very satisfying (and profitable).

timfromtang

wayoutwest wrote: »

I've just cut and chopped some ash into 10" logs - they have been put in my covered and well ventilated shelter. Unless we get an unusually warm, dry summer I doubt that I will be able to get the moisture content down to 18% by Sept/Oct ......more like 25%. If we get a 'normal' summer I will be burning them this time next year at the earliest.

Greetings all,
howdy wayout, we dry our firewood in a polytunnel (an idea i borrowed from a gardener friend) stacked in windrows on pallets in a polytunnel with both ends open you can expect to dry green ash to below 18% mc in three months or less anytime from march to october. Care needs to be taken when stacking the windrows as the sunward side of the stacks will dry fastest and shrink tipping the row sideways, a simple solution is simply two rows, side by side with the odd long stick joining the stacks.
tim

post script
an advantage of solar drying is that there is a greatly reduced risk of "case hardening" the wood which traps moister wood in the centre of the log which is subsequently very difficult to remove (i suspect this is a problem with many water heated boiler based diy firewood kiln setups).

HW100S

timfromtang wrote: »

Greetings all,
howdy wayout, we dry our firewood in a polytunnel (an idea i borrowed from a gardener friend) stacked in windrows on pallets in a polytunnel with both ends open you can expect to dry green ash to below 18% mc in three months or less anytime from march to october. Care needs to be taken when stacking the windrows as the sunward side of the stacks will dry fastest and shrink tipping the row sideways, a simple solution is simply two rows, side by side with the odd long stick joining the stacks.
tim

post script
an advantage of solar drying is that there is a greatly reduced risk of "case hardening" the wood which traps moister wood in the centre of the log which is subsequently very difficult to remove (i suspect this is a problem with many water heated boiler based diy firewood kiln setups).

Hello timfromtang

Many thanks for your input. I had watched a few videos on timber drying and had picked up the idea of leaving a few lengths in the pile for stability. Its a very good idea, thank you.

Very interesting info re: the case hardening in the Kiln which I assume may happen with accellerated heating.

I think i'll start sawing into lengths at the weekend

recedite

HW100S wrote: »

I have a fairly large shed with plenty of space for timber storage. However, the shed is pretty well sealed and not much air circulates around inside.

Leave the door/windows open?

wayoutwest

Hi HW 100S.
This is my bulk firewood/turf seasoning shelter I made last Autumn to dry a load of turf that wasn't dry enough to put in the store.Opened it up yesterday and the turf is fully dry. Something like this might suit you, as it holds about 7 or 8 cubic metres -so you might get most of your 5 tonne of Ash in it.
20160228_130832.jpg
Two rows of pallets on the ground-crappy ones first, then the stronger, more close-boarded ones ontop.The sides are made from (4)8 foot pallets ( sheet materials like plasterboard are transported on these), and are braced with a heavy wall plate that overhangs, providing a drip as well as a fixing point for the cover batons.The angled sides help shed any rainwater .The axis is East-West so the prevailing S.W wind penetrates through the width, rather than the length.The cover is two sheets of 1200 gauge plastic -an old bit undereath protects the new one on top.Top tip is to use quality screws like Spax (5mm diameter)-they can be used a few times without destroying the crosshead-which is handy if you want to move or reconfigure th shelter.

HW100S

wayoutwest wrote: »

Hi HW 100S.
This is my bulk firewood/turf seasoning shelter I made last Autumn to dry a load of turf that wasn't dry enough to put in the store.Opened it up yesterday and the turf is fully dry. Something like this might suit you, as it holds about 7 or 8 cubic metres -so you might get most of your 5 tonne of Ash in it.
Attachment not found.Attachment not found.20160228_130832.jpg
Two rows of pallets on the ground-crappy ones first, then the stronger, more close-boarded ones ontop.The sides are made from (4)8 foot pallets ( sheet materials like plasterboard are transported on these), and are braced with a heavy wall plate that overhangs, providing a drip as well as a fixing point for the cover batons.The angled sides help shed any rainwater .The axis is East-West so the prevailing S.W wind penetrates through the width, rather than the length.The cover is two sheets of 1200 gauge plastic -an old bit undereath protects the new one on top.Top tip is to use quality screws like Spax (5mm diameter)-they can be used a few times without destroying the crosshead-which is handy if you want to move or reconfigure th shelter.

Thats a fine job. Good load of turf also.....:)

recedite

I like the splayed sides idea. Good for keeping out wind blown rain, and drips from the top sheet.