Stacking firewood question
 

Hi all,

We have three racks of firewood, about 12 feet long and 5 feet high.

We've been having winds gusting to over 40 mph from a rather unusual direction (SSE) for a couple days, and it's blown over the racks twice now. The wind is of course blowing perpendicular to the racks (E-W).

I am planning now to reorient parallel to the wind (N-S). Our strongest winds typically run straight SE to NW or they swap and run NW to SE.

We have some woods to the west and about 40 foot of the house on the east. Will these help shelter the wind enough if we run the racks N-S?

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

Forget the firewood.....get to work on a windmill.

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

I second that. I'm wind and sun poor 3/4 of the year. Drives me crazy.

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

3 stacks...form a triangle...

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

That's an interesting idea. Not sure if it would work in practice.

My first though is what not just make double rows? I usually do that anyway. They are a lot less likely to fall over just in general if they are in double rows. But you can still take wood from either side. If you go with a triple row, then you end up with a stack of wood in the middle that you can't reach until the outside goes down some.

You are reminding me that I need to start working on this stuff myself. We've had some weather in the lower 80's though so I'm trying to pretend it won't ever be cold enough to need firewood!

Gregg

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

Ya putting it in a wind tunnel? What's wrong with the leeward side of a structure? Cover, and even the freaky winds (I get 'em too) won't hurt anymore. No structures? Wider is better.

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

How 'bout stackin' it in a circle. That way it wouldn't matter which way the wind came from. The kids could use it as a fort.

sb

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

Maybe you should just forget about stacking it. Just throw it in a big heap. A giant round pyramid of wood. I only stack the perimeter of my pile. The rest I throw in the middle. It is loose enough to dry well and you just end up burning it anyway! I know, I'm a redneck.

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

Tn_Andy is a wise man, but I don't think we want to stick around in this state long enough to benefit from a wind turbine. Plus, I don't want to have to fight with the city over permits getting it built. We have 11 acres zoned "residential" believe it or not. There's flocks of sheep down the road (also zoned residential), light industrial closer to the city and across the street, and we're getting shit for having two horses because we "ain't from here."

Somebody on GIM please shake me. I'm so frustrated and exhausted I'm about beside myself.

Well, we re-stacked the rest of firewood today--with wind chill it was like 28 degrees. My back is nicely stiff and sore, and the wood stove feels marvelous tonight.

I think next year I'm gonna try a form of woodman's recommendation on the big heap for at least the smaller pieces. They're hell to stack in a neat pile. Just need to get a big grate under them for air circulation and a shelter over the top.

Thank you all for the great ideas. I very much appreciate this board and its members. :36_1_32v:

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

Put some simple guy wires/ropes on the racks and stake into ground....does not need much angle to be very secure. Quick, cheap, dirty...effective.

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

That is remarkably straightforward idea and a very attractive woodpile. We might not be able to try it this winter, but I think I know the perfect place where one or two rows can be positioned once we start restocking in spring.

Thank you very much for this very practical suggestion. I think we'll try this for the larger pieces and the heap for the smaller stuff that I insist on keeping though it's too small to justify orderly stacking.

Waste not, want not, eh? Winter's a comin' :36_1_63:

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

Dang! That's awesome, too! My four-year old always wants to make tents, and the pre-teen is always up for anything fun and different. We could construct some combination rammed earth structure with the wood around the perimeter, for fun AND firewood.

Thank you for all the great ideas! I can't wait to give this a try--we have undeveloped land in Kentucky and this might be a fun way of playing house on land without utilities! We can try it and try sleeping outside on some reasonably cold night--sans electricity and light bulbs. It'll be an adventure. The dog will love it. I'll hate it, but it'll be entertaining nontheless.

I haven't done that since I was a teenager. Man did my mom get mad at me when I lit a fire in my improvised chimney. Even though she beat me, she and the relatives were all quite impressed by the construction. :9536:

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

All -

Cross stack it.

Which means you lay down a bottom layer of parallel cordwood

Then lay up the next layer at a 90 degree offset

And so on and so forth.

Build this puppy two deep, side by side, and you are bombproof.

scyth

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

The only time I stack wood is when I put it in the shed. Outside I throw it in a circular pile and weight down a tarp over it. I've burned wood or grew up in a home that did for most of the 60 some years of my life. Don't waste a lot of time trying to make it neat, it'll just tire you out. I could show you how to stack it so it wouldn't blow over (the way my grandfather taught me), but I'd have to do it in person as I don't think I could describe how.

I'll try to give you some hints; when you stack it, always stack two together and always have them lean toward each other so they support each other. Never stack them too high, 4', outside, is high enough. Make sure the pieces you use on the ends fit tight crossing each successive layer, if they don't fit right they will fall over. If at all possible stack it against a back stop of some type, like a utility shed.

We have high winds here in Ohio. Sometimes it's hard to keep the tarp from blowing off my pile. I burn wood in one of those outdoor wood boilers and heat two houses with the same boiler. Most of the winter I pile my wood on a 10' utility trailer by the boiler, up off the ground to keep it from freezing down and keep it somewhat dry, (why the tarp).

In an outdoor boiler you don't have to worry about chimney fires, so you can use green or wet wood if that's all you have. I have trees that I cut in the spring and drew them into a pile out near the woods. This fall I'll cut it up and pitch it into the large pile, then move it with my trailer or bucket loader up next to the stove for easier firing.

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

I'm onboard with the pile idea. won't ever fall over.

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

I like this method!

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

Holy cordwood, Wulfenite! :553:

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

Not my cord(s) -- this took someone with way to much spare time to art stack....

Re: Stacking firewood question
 

I will bet that is Master Andy's work!!