Big Pine Down

[beenthere]

Eddie might have his experience with the southern yellow pines, and they do behave differently than the NE white pines. They stay put better when drying than the SYP.

 

[20 20]

I did a little research before on the internet about creosote and hardwoods vs. softwoods. Creosote is condensation of unburned flammable particulates present in exhaust gases that go up the flue and chminney. The depositing of creosote is more dependent on the flue temperature than the wood type. If the flue is hot due to a hot burning fire the creosote will not deposit on the hot metal (or chimmney brick). If you burn a well dried softwood like pine it should not lead to any more creosote build-up than a hardwood. In fact, apparently burning very wet hardwoods could cause more build-up due to a "colder" fire. With this all being said, in my area people still want hardwoods to burn. We have lots of hickory and oak in southeastern PA so supply is not a problem. - Mike

:thumbsup: That is correct, some folks are affraid to burn soft woods because of the old wifes tails about them being bad for the chimney, stove etc.. I understand if folks don't want to burn them, but atleast use an educated reason. IMO heat is heat and if it's free then that's even better :laughing:

 

[20 20]

Eddie might have his experience with the southern yellow pines, and they do behave differently than the NE white pines. They stay put better when drying than the SYP.

I was wondering the same thing. Different woods and even the same type wood in different locations will react differently. I can cut logs out of a swamp and it's characteristics will be different then the same type wood cut off a dry hill top.

I ment no ill towards Eddies post either, just wanted to show that there is more then one way to skin a cat{so to speak}

 

[arrow]

:thumbsup: That is correct, some folks are affraid to burn soft woods because of the old wifes tails about them being bad for the chimney, stove etc.. I understand if folks don't want to burn them, but atleast use an educated reason. IMO heat is heat and if it's free then that's even better :laughing:

I would think it depends on the type of stove. I have a friend who used pine in his Garn outdoor boiler and gummed up the heck out of it. This type of boiler uses a hot fire to heat up 2000 gallons of stored water. I have no experience with pine being burned in a catalytic stove or the type that uses stainless steel tubing with small air inlet tubes allowing for smoke combustion. Might cause similar problems as with the Garn.

 

[JDGreenGrass]

Sorry EddieWalker, I do respect your opinions, but have to disagree with this one completely.

I own a small mill and have milled many board feet for myself and others over the years. I have seen issues with some boards but not worth complaining about. I have kept lumber stacked over winter up here{snow and rain country} with just a simple tarp thrown over, no binding or weight. The lumber is fine and had no problems/issues. I will gladly compare my lumber to ANY store bought garbage any day. I do occassionally need treated lumber and have a fit when I go to lowes or Home depot to pick it out. I unloaded a complete stack at lowes not so long ago just to find 3or 4 pieces of decent lumber.

Of course I am not there looking at this log, BUT from the pictures this log would definately be worth turning into lumber. At the very least he could offer it up for free{I'm sure someone would nab it}. It would be nice to see something like this go to good use. I also believe he stated he had 101 uses for the lumber

In all due respect Eddie, I agree with this post.

I have hardwood to burn to keep me warm....I won't use it for heat. Period, whatever.

I do have uses for the lumber...kitchen pantry, shelfing, possible wood platform to keep firewood off the ground, I need interior closets....on and on. I should add that the entire interior of my house is done in Knotty Pine and Cedar.

And, I too have sifted through Home Depots wood stacks searching for good straight lengths. Now, I buy my pine local and let the yardmen sift through thier piles and put in my truck for me.:thumbsup:

I am convinced it isn't junk. I know junk when I see it. I originally said that at worst it is a grade #3 log. I'll stick with that. I think the first 25 to 30 feet of the log is most likely all that I will have sawed.

I do agree that I need to know the cost so that I don't rip myself off but, a 12" inch board is not cheap, even at the big box stores.

I'll keep you all posted.

 

[arrow]

Hello all.

This past winter I had a big Maine pine tree blow down (up-rooted) in my back yard. It is the sort of about 60 to 70 feet and the trunk at it's widest point is roughly 24to 30 inches. It's a big tree. Questions.....

I have limbed it out. The slash is laying along the down tree. Can I pile it up and burn it.?? It's pine...will it burn or smolder.?? Or, how can I use my tractor to clean up the slash.(get it into the woods).?? I don't have a grapple. I have a bucket, a 6' rake and a 6' rear blade and a carry all......any use at all.??

What is the best way to use the pine.?? I am thinking of having a portable saw mill come and cut it into 2x4's and boards....maybe 1x6's or 1x10's. It's one tree...Is it worth it and how much lumber would I get (roughly).??

Well, let's start with this.....

Suggestions please.

For slash clearing, I'd reverse my rake and just back into the slash and push it to where I want to pile it. You can also push it onto a long length of chain(16' or so with a slip hook and perpendicular to the chain) and when you get a pile, wrap it with the chain, attach it to the tractor and drag it to where you want.

How much wood can be roughly computed by multiplying the length , width and thickness of the lumber divided by 144" . This will give you board ft and then you have to minus the 30-40% waste you get from cutting if you imagine a large beam cut from the tree. Times that what the standard cost for bd ft in your area and it will begin to give you a money worth.

I had a similar experience with an 80' blow down. I sold a 20' ft part of the tree to a horse farm that had a cross country layout. I carved out the name of the farm on the trunk, varnished it and got $750 for it.

 

[studor]

There are a lot of places in Northern Canada where softwoods are burnt because that is what is there. I regularly burn cedar, poplar and balsam fir in the spring and fall to warm up the house in a hurry -- the major problem as was pointed out previously is that you need to feed the fire twice as often
In terms of gumming up boilers etc, those things have a tendency to burn cool and smoky due to the size of the firepot and the amount of liquid you are trying to heat-- I would not want one upwind of me!
I too would try and salvage the wood and then burn the remnants. I use the slabs for evaporating maple sap
The slash will burn very quickly once you get it going with a propane torch -- and it does not have to be particularly dry -- the needles flare very quickly and a thirty foot flame is not uncommon. You will get a fair amount of smoke and steam if it is still green but it will burn. Be prepared to keep pushing stuff into the centre for a complete burn.

 

[JDGreenGrass]

For slash clearing, I'd reverse my rake and just back into the slash and push it to where I want to pile it. You can also push it onto a long length of chain(16' or so with a slip hook and perpendicular to the chain) and when you get a pile, wrap it with the chain, attach it to the tractor and drag it to where you want.

How much wood can be roughly computed by multiplying the length , width and thickness of the lumber divided by 144" . This will give you board ft and then you have to minus the 30-40% waste you get from cutting if you imagine a large beam cut from the tree. Times that what the standard cost for bd ft in your area and it will begin to give you a money worth.

I had a similar experience with an 80' blow down. I sold a 20' ft part of the tree to a horse farm that had a cross country layout. I carved out the name of the farm on the trunk, varnished it and got $750 for it.

Thank you for this post. It refers to my "other" question and I think this can be done....in regards to pileing it with the reversed rake.

I also thought about the chain....I've got 10' chain with a slip hook. Probably not long enough to get much done but, a good excuse to get out and buy a 20' length of chain.:thumbsup:

 

[boxygen]

JDGreenGrass, you are on the right track. If you have the time and interest in sawing this tree for lumber you definitely will come out ahead. Sawing will cost you around $200-250/1000 BF roughly. The cheapest rough sawn lumber you will be able to buy in your area would be around $.50/BF on a good day. You will get plenty of much higher grade boards that would easily fetch over 1.00/BF if you wanted to purchase it at the lumberyard, but you will also end up with a lot of stuff that isnt much good for anything but sheathing an outbuilding or something. Pine Generally shouldnt be used for anything structural as Im sure you are aware.
As you know, even for us frugal Mainers burning pine is not practical even when its free. I burn a small amount only when mixed with other hardwood. In a woodstove, even very dry white pine just doesnt hold a flame very well unless split up into pretty small pieces if it has bark on it. So much effort is used in cutting, splitting, stacking, and FEEDING the stove every 2 hours that not many people do it. I agree creosote isnt a species issue, is a flue temp issue and pine needs to be burned hot not to create creosote, it needs much more air to burn at the proper temp than most woods in my experience and this burns the low density wood even faster. I also respectfully agree with Eddie that you need much more than a few weeks to season wood in order burn it. Unseasoned wood wastes a significant chunk of BTU's converting water to steam instead of heating your house, which is in a lot of cases keeps flue temperatures low, not combusting the byproducts of the fire (smoke) in turn creating creosote.
The only obstacle that I see is finding a sawyer that will come to your lot for only one tree, but given the economy, that might not be as much of a challange these days. If you find one local enough, you probably wont have a problem with that. Also, I would get recommendations or references because I have seen some pretty crappy onsite sawyers that use dull blades, push their equipment too fast, or have too small of a rig which results in product that varies in thickness, is wavy and creates a lot more work for the end user to make it into usable lumber.
Goodluck:thumbsup:

 

[Egon]

[I agree creosote isn't a species issue, is a flue temp issue /QUOTE]


Oh no, you're dispelling a long known characteristic of burning deciduous softwoods!:laughing:

I like Pine in the fire place. Ex specially pine with lots of pitch. It's much more interesting to watch than most of the TV programs.:thumbsup: