firewood question..

[RadarTech]

Ok-- I gotta ask--
We have 30 logs or so of POPLAR out in the yard...
All are nicely stacked and vary in length from 8 to 15 feet with a diameter of 10-20 inches..I would estimate at least 2 or 3 cords of wood is out there.....

We have burnt most of the oak we cut down when we built the house...
and with all this poplar sitting out there for over a year..
It the labor of cutting and splitting it worth it?

I have heard many say it is no good for firewood... But why?

Will it burn fast, leave lots of ash?
not burn very warmly?

thanks,
J

 

[wv cabin]

the only really good thing about poplar is that is splits very easy. it burns very quickly, pops alot and puts out low heat on its own. i burn quite a bit of poplar but i usually just mix it in with my oak and hickory so my good wood lasts longer

 

[/pine]

Popular burns very fast and has a low BTU/Cord ratio...ash is nominal...

I'ts not worth splitting for burning in fireplaces or wood stoves except for kindling...

I always split a little up for a mix of tinder (size) wood...

I also use it to get a good bed of hot coals that I add oak to before cooking steaks over an open fire (ala Boy Scout style with potatos and corn on the cob done in the coals too)

 

[RadarTech]

Well.
I have so stinking much of it and don't have any plans for it....
But I guess I can cut some of it and see how it goes....

J

 

[jayste]

Well.
I have so stinking much of it and don't have any plans for it....
But I guess I can cut some of it and see how it goes....

J

That's what I'd do. Like said before mix it with your hardwood. Can't hurt and you've got so much of it. Seems like a waste to let it rot.

Jay

 

[LD1]

It does burn fast and pop. Due to popping it is not good in an open fireplace.

However it does burn hot.

One thing thing to keep in mind is that all wood, when dry, has the same BTU's per pound. So oak, being about twice as heavy as poplar, has about twice the BTU's per given volume than poplar. The poplar will burn about twices as fast but give off about the same BTU's per hour as oak, you just go through twice as much wood.

 

[RadarTech]

I need to go back up update the thread I had posted about a chainsaw..

Picked up a husqavarna 445 18inch for a song... Well... it was one of those promotion things at work..
and I am so itching to use it...JUST it is cold and Still got snow covering the wood....

J

 

[RadarTech]

It does burn fast and pop. Due to popping it is not good in an open fireplace.

However it does burn hot.

One thing thing to keep in mind is that all wood, when dry, has the same BTU's per pound. So oak, being about twice as heavy as poplar, has about twice the BTU's per given volume than poplar. The poplar will burn about twices as fast but give off about the same BTU's per hour as oak, you just go through twice as much wood.

Cool-- then since I have 4 times as much poplar as I have oak... then it should outlast the oak...

Wait-- is that a good thing? now I am confused..

J

 

[wv cabin]

.if you have that much you may as well use it, just realize that it will burn much quicker. make sure you keep the door on your stove closed so it doesnt pop out.

 

[RadarTech]

.if you have that much you may as well use it, just realize that it will burn much quicker. make sure you keep the door on your stove closed so it doesnt pop out.

That is the bad thing...
I have a fireplace with a screen...

42" wide...
18" deep x 52" wide by 12" high hearth

I'll take a pic when I get the next fire going...

 

[studor]

I have a bunch of poplar from a big one that fell over in a windstorm a couple of years back-- burns fine when dry and "pops" far less than true soft woods Since it is already close and cut, why not try it

 

[Egon]

In some places there is not much else except poplar for firewood. Nothing wrong with it. If you live in a moist climate it may rot if the bark is left on for too long.

 

[escavader]

Ikeep a cord around each year .Iburn it when i want a quick fire,when its not super cold out.It burns hot ,but doesnt leave a bed of coals around to drive you out of the houseThat being said i keep an armfull next to my wood rack,and when my coals are built up excessively in the middle of the winter,the poplar will keep the fire going ,and will allow for the other coals to burn down
Another thing most dont know about poplar it doesnt run creasote ,even if you burn it green.Why i dont know,but it burns real clean
ALAN

 

[turnkey4099]

Cool-- then since I have 4 times as much poplar as I have oak... then it should outlast the oak...

Wait-- is that a good thing? now I am confused..

J

Fact. It is wood and any wood burns. You have it, you might as welluse it. I have heated my house with Willow for over 30 years and that is about the same as Poplar. Yes, you will be feeding the fire twice as often and dumping more ash but that is not a big deal.

Harry K

 

[radioman]

I have burned popular in my stove. I learned that if you use the wood within a year after cutting, it will be fine- just plan on using it in the fall or spring due to low BTU and plan on adding more wood often to stove. Try not to use it in a open fire like fireplace as it can be dangerous and smokey. I also learned that if popular has been sitting outside for more then a year and if the saw cuts it like cardboard- stop and throw it away. not worth the mess and hassle. Popular has a short life span after being cut and left outside. IF I ever run into popular that is too soft but got lots of logs, I ended up using them for another purpose. I take the crappy popular logs and lay them down in a swampy area to create a path for cross country skiing in the winter through the wet, swampy areas. There is nothing like skiing across the swamp with swamp on both sides but you have snow beneath you to walk on due to the logs placed there.

My father refuses to use poplar in his stove, but I am fine with it. to each his own. I find cutting and splitting popular is super easy and fast and easy to stack.

 

[tugboat-2]

....."popular"?..... popular what? ....I think you'd say "most" hard woods are popular for burning.



HEE, hee, heee!!,...I know you meant "poplar", I just had tooo much turkey and wine the last few days and it caused me to "try" and be a smarty-pants,.... sorry radioman. Prolly somethin to do with our locations eh? Both in "Ontario",...you south of the border and me north of it but only connected by TBN Friendship,...which is a "good" thing I'd say, eh ?

Happy New Year !
. . tug

 

[Taylortractornut]

I use it when its green to help hold a coal. Its a shame they satthat long here right now they are brining 18 dollars a ton for pulp and 23.50 ton for saw logs. The landfill I run gets some poplar strips from the cabinetshop. I cutthem up for kindling and fish baskets. Id use it ot keep it from rotting down.. I had some at work that a logger left cut. I drug them down the road with our tractor and wooled aff the roted out side and cut for wood, I didnt split them though.

 

[jimmyj]

Fact. It is wood and any wood burns. You have it, you might as welluse it.

Harry K

I agree with Harry. We use poplar in spring and fall for quick short fires, for kindling and then hardwood the rest of the time.

I have two firewood sayings

Soft wood for the soft times and hard wood for the hard times
and
If it's wood, it's good.

 

[LD1]

Since you brought up firewood sayings I'll give you one of my favorites, since I sell a lot of wood

"Good wood ain't cheap
and cheap wood ain't good"

 

[Tig]

Free wood is free heat. Nothing wrong with that. I burned a cord of poplar this fall. Split it small and seasoned it six months in a breezy spot out of the rain.