OT - DIY Firewood Drying Facility

[MikeT49]

For those that do your own firewood here's an idea for a wood drying facility. The frame is from SG their guide gear wall tent frame only. Wait til it's on sale. The translucent tarp material comes in a 12' x 50' roll. Standard tarp material is from stuff I had laying around. Ebay has the grommet kits, you're gonna need a bunch. T-poles protect the wall frame legs and provide wind protection when secured to the legs w/duct tape. The t-poles also provide support for the field fence. The Field fence provides containment as you toss the wood in. The facility will easily dry and store 4 full cords. Cuts seasoning time by 50% or more. Hopefully you can see the temp gage. It's nearing 100 degrees. The air temp at the time was 56 degrees. It's early here yet, this time of year it will get up to 120 degrees ar so by afternoon. In the summer I have seen 165 degrees. If you were to put green fir in now it will be approaching 20% moisture content by October. Note the vent hole in the peak. Very important, you need to let the moisture out or if conditions are right it could start raining inside. Ask me how I know. Also pallets for the floor allow air circulation. Eventually I will have to replace panels due to uv damage. Choose uv resistant material if you can find it. For those in snow country, might be a problem. I can tell you it will support 8 inches of our heavy wet snow and not collapse. You will need to keep ahead of the snow by knocking it off when it gets deep. Maybe add extra rafters in snow country? I know I'm a weinie for using a splitter, but after doing 6 plus cords of wood a year for 25 years with mall, sledge and wedges, my back can't take anymore. I actually get a hoot out of pulling the lever and watching the wood split. Mike

Note: You can also use PVC pipe for the frame w/PVC fittings. The shape you make is up to you. My bud did one with PVC. Bent the rafters for a "domed" roof.

 

[joshb]

You’re no weenie! I used to have a firewood business. Used a maul for years, in my 20’s. The girls loved the results! Hardest way to make money I know! A splitter=production!

 

[MikeT49]

Here in the Pacific Northwest we have a myriad of ways to use tarps, not just covering fire wood. Pictured is what's known as "The Blue Tarp of Neglect" Acts like a Klingon cloaking device. Actually can be deployed anywhere in the country.

 

[riflewoman]

Camping in The Pacific Northwet!

 

[MikeT49]

Camping in The Pacific Northwet!

LMAO, thank you, Where did you get that video of us?. Truth be known, if you live here and are an outdoor person, you better know tarp deployment.

 

[riflewoman]

Either that or you head over to the dry side to do your camping.

 

[MikeT49]

I hunt whitetails and turkeys about 5 miles from Mt Spokane. Stark contrast to the wet side. A smidge too warm in September. But, as the locals say "ya but it's a dry heat". OK, whatever that means. Old habits die hard so we still use a blue tarp, but it's for shade.

 

[dolek]

I really need to try this . I burn 40 or more face cord a year , and our drying time is short before I have to get it in the shed . Most of my wood is sugar maple,beech and oak...they take a long time to dry enough to get max BTUs from them . I am amazed at some of the temps you are getting. Thanks for tip.

 

[Intheshop]

The "firewood" may be off topic but drying hardwood seems to be pretty durn "on topic" to some of the gorgeous,slackjaw stocks being presented on this site.

This was 40+ years ago;

Me and the "ole man" were knee deep running a small,but well established cabinet biz. Every once in awhile we'd end up over at this..... banjo in the background,pretty deep in the hills,sawyer's mill. Looking for some figured hardwood for some $$$ customer. It was an absolute hoot. E.D.(mentor/bizz partner) and this guy were honest to goodness,VERY successful moonshiners back during the depression. Both having "moved on" but still,dang the stories they would tell. E.D. still had his triple lock 44 special. Anyway,the guy(I'll think of his name later today....doh) kept a lot of the "important" billets in the adjoining auto junkyard next to the mill,in the cars with station wagons being especially prized.

He'd drop everything when we'd show up,mainly to talk to his old bud but,maybe sell(or give) us the pieces we were looking for. The problem was he'd forget which junk car that the particular pieces were in. Combine that with laughing about "the good ole days" between bud's...... H*ll,it would sometimes take us two hours to find what we were looking for. Was that crotchy walnut in the Buick or old Pontiac? Geographic confusion aside,he had the junk car drying practice down to an art form.

We go through 3 1/2 cords a year. Still bust it with a maul.

 

[brokeasajoke]

I can still out run a splitter........... for a little while. I now have a tilt splitter and I set on a round and split everything I can reach then roll some more over or move the splitter. One of these days I'm going to invest in one of those metal carports to store my wood under.

 

[msinc]

View attachment 1175609 Here in the Pacific Northwest we have a myriad of ways to use tarps, not just covering fire wood. Pictured is what's known as "The Blue Tarp of Neglect" Acts like a Klingon cloaking device. Actually can be deployed anywhere in the country.

I don't give a GD who you are...that's funny right there!!!!!!!

 

[ronsatspokane]

I hunt whitetails and turkeys about 5 miles from Mt Spokane. Stark contrast to the wet side. A smidge too warm in September. But, as the locals say "ya but it's a dry heat". OK, whatever that means. Old habits die hard so we still use a blue tarp, but it's for shade.

So you're the one. That's my neighborhood and every year we are overrun with turkeys. In some years we have 50-75 of them roaming the property. Wife hates them. You get 10 or 15 20 pound turkeys roosting in an apple tree loaded with apples and the next thing you know your orchard is all busted up. She keeps threatening to strangle them. They are so close and so bold that it would be easy. I'd much rather have the game department releasing pheasant than those damn turkeys. Every year I get tired of them and right about the time I'm at the point of blasting them they disappear. All this time I thought one of my neighbors who had a freezer full of turkey. Thank you for cleaning them out. Please show up a month or so earlier this year if you would. No need for a blue tarp though.

 

[hogpatrol]

My wood piles had blue tarps, silver tarps and green tarps on them but the spouse wanted them changed over to camo ones. Said with various old tree stands, splitter, old yard equipment and scrap lumber, our back yard looks like a bunch of hillbillies live here. I said "THEY DO!"

 

[MikeT49]

Anybody out there know hydraulics? I think I have a problem with my splitter. It tends to run at 100 degrees or more above ambient. OK in the winter/spring when it's 40-50F but I have run it in the summer and it gets up to 185F in about an hour. That can't be good at the very least for the fluid, but probably not good for seals and such? The machine has paid for itself but I don't want it to puke. It starts on one, maybe two pulls every time (if the operator remembers to turn the off switch on) and runs like a top. Haven't found anything it won't split. Grunts once in a while but it don't take no for an answer. I like chit that runs good. I have a couple of questions. 1. First of all, do I have a problem running at 185F? 2. From what I know about fluid flow I'm thinking maybe the fittings on the hoses have orifices that are too restricting and therefore adding heat. Would replacing the hoses with ones that flow better help? 3. Any other ideas? Thanks, Mike

 

[riflewoman]

185 is warm but tolerable for the seals and fluids. Your car oil runs at that temperature. Nitrile seals are good to 250F. As for restrictions in the hoses and or fittings, they don’t add as much heat as the relief valve. The usual method of fixing hot hydraulics is a fluid radiator. The hillbilly method is partially submerging the reservoir in cold water.

 

[msinc]

Anybody out there know hydraulics? I think I have a problem with my splitter. It tends to run at 100 degrees or more above ambient. OK in the winter/spring when it's 40-50F but I have run it in the summer and it gets up to 185F in about an hour. That can't be good at the very least for the fluid, but probably not good for seals and such? The machine has paid for itself but I don't want it to puke. It starts on one, maybe two pulls every time (if the operator remembers to turn the off switch on) and runs like a top. Haven't found anything it won't split. Grunts once in a while but it don't take no for an answer. I like chit that runs good. I have a couple of questions. 1. First of all, do I have a problem running at 185F? 2. From what I know about fluid flow I'm thinking maybe the fittings on the hoses have orifices that are too restricting and therefore adding heat. Would replacing the hoses with ones that flow better help? 3. Any other ideas? Thanks, Mike

When you are splitting wood do you use it pretty quick or kinda slow?? That is to say, does it spend more time idling along waiting for you to get the next log up. or is the valve pretty active because you are running the ram back and forth?? The reason I ask is because when the machine just runs not really doing any work it is "bypassing" and that makes the heat go up. The numbers you are saying don't sound too bad, but if it's getting hot and you are using it pretty quick and the ram is most of the time moving then it could be the relief spring/valve needs adjusted or it could have a piece of trash in it keeping it from bypassing as easy as it should. "Easy" is a bad way to describe it, when it is bypassing the pump is putting out max pressure. Best of luck sir.

 

[MikeT49]

When you are splitting wood do you use it pretty quick or kinda slow?? That is to say, does it spend more time idling along waiting for you to get the next log up. or is the valve pretty active because you are running the ram back and forth?? The reason I ask is because when the machine just runs not really doing any work it is "bypassing" and that makes the heat go up. The numbers you are saying don't sound too bad, but if it's getting hot and you are using it pretty quick and the ram is most of the time moving then it could be the relief spring/valve needs adjusted or it could have a piece of trash in it keeping it from bypassing as easy as it should. "Easy" is a bad way to describe it, when it is bypassing the pump is putting out max pressure. Best of luck sir.

You don't have to call me bad names (sir) Dang, you and @riflewomen both say 185F is OK. I was hoping it was an excuse to quit splitting and go in the house and have a cold one. Oh well. Actually with the drying facility located in full sun most of the day, I've got about 2 maybe 3 hours of shade just before sundown. If the sun isn't out it's raining. So once I start splitting in the evening stand by race fans. Typically, I run it for 3 hours or so. Split, toss into facility, position more rounds near the splitter. Repeat....... Lately, I have started to idle the motor during during the toss & position phases. I've got temp monitoring strips stuck on the ram and the tank, looks like the idle thing seems to help temp wise. Maybe even better to shut it off during non splitting phases? Thanks

 

[Bill K]

You see more FEMA cover/tarps all over the country and for all sort of uses.

 

[msinc]

You don't have to call me bad names (sir) Dang, you and @riflewomen both say 185F is OK. I was hoping it was an excuse to quit splitting and go in the house and have a cold one. Oh well. Actually with the drying facility located in full sun most of the day, I've got about 2 maybe 3 hours of shade just before sundown. If the sun isn't out it's raining. So once I start splitting in the evening stand by race fans. Typically, I run it for 3 hours or so. Split, toss into facility, position more rounds near the splitter. Repeat....... Lately, I have started to idle the motor during during the toss & position phases. I've got temp monitoring strips stuck on the ram and the tank, looks like the idle thing seems to help temp wise. Maybe even better to shut it off during non splitting phases? Thanks

I would probably shut it down when not in use, but you really don't need to. Kind of a trade off...it's not like it just immediately starts to cool down, the engine goes thru a heat soak and actually goes up in temp initially.
If you have temp strips on the ram and tank and both go down in temp at idle then I don't know, it would seem like if the bypass was an issue {stuck or stiff spring, etc.} then the tank temp would go up. I understand the ram cooling off, it wouldn't have fluid cycling thru it, but the tank still does.

 

[MikeT49]

I would probably shut it down when not in use, but you really don't need to. Kind of a trade off...it's not like it just immediately starts to cool down, the engine goes thru a heat soak and actually goes up in temp initially.
If you have temp strips on the ram and tank and both go down in temp at idle then I don't know, it would seem like if the bypass was an issue {stuck or stiff spring, etc.} then the tank temp would go up. I understand the ram cooling off, it wouldn't have fluid cycling thru it, but the tank still does.

I just put those strips on. Have only run it twice since. To be honest I was only looking for high temp not where, I don't recall what cooled first or both. I will pay closer attention. Any other locations for strips? I ordered some barrel strips from McMaster Carr and while I was at it got some 140F to 194F range strips. I have more. Thanks