Choosing and finding wood

[Kiwi_in_canada]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

thanks Spunkoid, just wondering if i need to be super pickey about my wood, hard to be pickey when its free too!! mostly red oak and maple so with a few punky bits scattered in the mix i cant complain. all seasoned indoors for a winter with fans on it... think im golden.

[Archena]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

FYI: rotting wood makes wonderful compost! Bust it up and add it to the pile!

[Spunkoid]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

Punky or rotting wood is starting to decompose. It has a much higher moisture content than wood that has been split and seasoned, or at least it takes longer to dry than solid wood and once dry is usually much lighter in weight. It will not burn as hot as solid dry wood as it has less fiber hence lighter weight. As far as toxins or release of toxins, I have not seen any studies to indicate that is an issue.
If I had a choice, I usually stay away from punky wood unless it is just the odd piece and I have a hot fire already, even then I am just burning it to get rid of it.
As a Kiwi in Canada, especially Ontario, you readily have access to some pretty nice hardwoods, so much that I am jealous. Split them and let them season and you will have some very nice wood that burns hot and clean.

[Kiwi_in_canada]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

Have done a search on using punky or wood with fungus with no real luck.
Any insight into hazards or taste imparted by either heating the oven with? Or burning it with food in the oven?
Cheers

[teecee]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

Hi Dave.

Eucalyptus is grown for paper making and as a building material. It makes good straight poles of hardwood and my wife has used it for the structure of her Tiki style restaurant. You just have to watch for signs of the darned termites in cut wood.

The smell of wood smoke from country fires loses it's appeal after a few years! It's quite pleasant around the restaurant as she fires up the oven in the morning, though.

[cobblerdave]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

teecee
thanks for the reminder....havn't been to Thailand for 20 yrs. One thing I do remember is the smell of burning gum leaves. Aparently eucalupius there are grown as a fast growing hardwood but the leaves dont have the right types of bugs to eat them and the wrong type of bugs in the soil to break them down. So the leaves must be sweep up and burnt...... It was a nice homey smell when your so far from home.

Regards Dave

[teecee]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

The wood source issues here in Thailand are somewhat different from those in other climates but an exchange of information is always helpful to someone.

Some types of hardwood can't be cut except by special licence. However, we still have forest and jungle that supplies plenty of fallen or finished trees. My wife owns rice land and even that yields some suitable wood at times.

The main issue for us is to find kindling wood. It goes fast and we can't run off to the jungle with a machete every few days. This is what we do:

1. For lighting the fire we use coconut tree bark, eucalyptus offcuts and broken pallets.

2. To get the fire up to speed we add more eucalyptus and harder wood.

3. For the remainder of the day we use 3" to 6" hardwood logs for slow burning.

Some woods contain oils and we avoid those in case they contain toxins.

[JOSHUAFINANCIAL]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

hi all,
thanks for the great information and the laughs.
Craigslist seems a great resource to find free and for-a-fee supplies.
But in regard to types of wood and their properties, I found this table easy to read and helpful. I wouldn't have any way to know how accurate, but it looks pretty...
Burning Wood - Which is the Best to Burn?

[david s]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

You West Australians will smoke anything!

[heliman]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

I have been given some olive wood - is that any good for smoking?

[david s]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

A couple of years ago I was at a market and I was placed beside a lady who was selling hand knitted baby clothes. Not wanting to spoil her merchandise with my smoke, I used the top down method and built the fire slowly and gradually. By doing this I was able to fire the oven without it smoking at all. You also have to be vigilant ant keep a flam going all the time. The blowpipe is great for this.
On the subject of finding wood, I've found that getting wood is a most enjoyable experience.

[Archena]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

Just curious, have y'all tried starting a small fire, letting it get hot and building from there? I wonder if that wouldn't help with the smoke issues some of you are having.

[Forno Gator]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

I really like using fruit woods like apple and cherry... very little smoke and it gives off a very nice scent. Oak is also nice... reminds me of woodworking. Has anyone used vines from vineyards?

[Forno Gator]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

Sounds like a good idea for oak. I picked up 2 cords of apple wood/cherry wood from BC. Only problem is the ad said split and I get there and none of it is split after driving for 6 1/4 hours. I've tried splitting with an 8 lb maul and it requires 7 or 8 swings to split up an 10" diameter X 16" length piece.... and he told me to "make sure you get a 20 ton splitter because it'll wreck a 10 ton splitter". Good news is guys are selling cords of apple wood here for $1200 to $1500 and I bought it for $220 cord + tip + fuel (they loaded most of it into my cargo trailer + truck).

[Pompeii Nate]

Re: Choosing and finding wood

I am gonna second (or third) the idea of checking with a local cabinet or furniture maker. My neighbor works for a high-end furniture maker and he says they fill up 4 or 5 50 gallon trashcans every day with hardwood scraps. He told me to just get him a trashcan and he will gladly fill it up for me. I asked him if the wood is treated in any way and he told me it is not.

Now I just need to get a trashcan.