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[coolidge]

I have been burning some two year old ash, white maple and the birches and it seems just as wet as when cut, I would think those species would dry the fastest.

[schoppy]

Did you split it and keep it covered since cut? Do you own a moisture meter? I got one from harbor freight which is pretty accurate and inexpensive. Split a piece of your wood and check the moisture content following the directions for the meter. If you did these things it should be good and dry.

[coolidge]

Had it top covered, have a moisture meter but no battery for it right now.  Wood is split quite small also.
Will stop and get a battery today, and a different stack of wood.

[schoppy]

Don't forget to split which ever pieces you test as this will be the accurate reading on the inside of the wood.

[coolidge]

37 percent on a piece of split white birch , guess I had better check on my 2.5 yr old oak, might take 5 yrs to get that under 20

[schoppy]

Wow, 2 years old and still at 37%. My 2 year old red oak is below 20% but it was dead when I cut it. Don't know that you need it below 20% but below 30% is what most gassers want and is best for highest efficiency. 

[mlappin]

Wow, 2 years old and still at 37%. My 2 year old red oak is below 20% but it was dead when I cut it. Don't know that you need it below 20% but below 30% is what most gassers want and is best for highest efficiency.

Dryer the better, more BTU’s from the wood can actually goto heat instead of boiling water out.

[Pointblank]

We had a very wet summer this year and noticed a lot of my wood didnt dry down very well either. Most of what i cut split and stacked last winter was still pretty green this fall. Oak can take 2 years, but i usually dont have problems getting ash and elm ready in a year.  Even the pine and popple i cut which should be tinder dry by now was close to 30%.  But it seemed to rain every other day this summer and it continued well into fall. 
Also, is your wood stacked in rows?  Sunlight and air movement helps a lot. I've noticed if I just leave it in a big pile the outer stuff dries up nice, but the wood in the middle takes a long time to dry down.

[coolidge]

I stack in these racks, two rows deep trying to make the wood burning a little easier.

[Pointblank]

Hey, that's a great idea using the pallets.  I have a set of forks for the tractor and have been thinking for some time about devising  a way to get the wood on a pallet.

[Cabo]

Exactly how I do it.  Stack it once and let the tractor do the rest of the work.

[coolidge]

Checked on my oak yesterday, split the biggest piece I could get out without the stack falling over.17 percent, now I need it to freeze so I can get too it.

[schoppy]

That's right where my oak is, 17 to 18%, dead when cut and dried one year-kept covered and open to the air. Always have stacked it on pallets and other than an occasional wood chuck has worked out very well.