What are you burning tonight?

[swanseajack]

Tonight we have a bit of nearly seasoned cherry and sycamore, the chimney is drawing nicely even though it's drizzling and miserable out.
We are warm and dry having a nice glass of rioja.

[gorilla]

the kids tea :)

[swanseajack]

Ha Ha Mine have had their Shepherds Pie.

[marcus2]

Fat hopefully

[topheronetwoo]

The midnight oil

[Sgian-Dubh]

The midnight oil

I was gonna say that

:D


how about .... the candle ..at both ends

[one_rod]

Old pallets and packing case timber.
Fierce, spitty, crackly softwood, mostly. With some random lumps of ungraded hardwood thrown in.

There's a mountain of the stuff at work and the boss doesn't mind how much of it I bring home. He has to pay to get rid of it.

I've got three one-tonne ballast bags full of cut pieces ready for the fire, and probably the same amount again waiting to be cut.

We live in a smoke-control zone, so we are not supposed to burn wood for heating.

If they can be bothered catching me and dragging me to court for it, I'll offset the cost of the fine against the fact that I haven't had a gas bill for fifteen years.....:pirate:




one_rod.

[swanseajack]

Yes, those smoke-control areas have become a farce now.
You can burn smokeless non renewable fossil fuel, but can't burn wood waste that would most likely be burried in a land fill site. If you do get caught, buy a DEFRA approved stove and carry on burning 8>)

I managed to increase the temp down stairs last night by over 4 degrees with the back door open for the hounds !! Come on winter .

[jerbal]

We live in a smoke-control zone, so we are not supposed to burn wood for heating.

If they can be bothered catching me and dragging me to court for it, I'll offset the cost of the fine against the fact that I haven't had a gas bill for fifteen years.....:pirate:




one_rod.

Seasoned wood is smokeless fuel so carry on burning Mick. Our fire only smokes when it's burning the paper I use to start the wood so I don't worry about it.

[lelykins]

What are you all doing with the fire on already? Those with water heaters i can understand but come on, i live oop north in Carlisle and there is no way that fire is going on yet. I lit it once last week in an experiment. I have cut a peice of steel plate to fit snugly over the grate, front to back side to side in the hope of modifying into a more purposeful woodburner. After the 1st attempt i was pleasantly suprised, abit of tinkering here and there and i think i will just about crack it. A question for the woodburner users (as opposed to multi-fuel like me) does your bottom plate have any holes in it? I know you dont need them for throughput of air but just wondered if a small amount of ventilation from the bottom helps.

[steveinthewoods]

-

[swanseajack]

We have lit the stove a little early I know. But I'm still learning how to run it well.
I'm glad a gent above has mentioned covering the grate when using wood. My Squirrel has a cast grate that is like a little hollow to keep coal tidy in it. I was wondering if I could get a square of fire-brick or whatever the other bricks are, and carve the bottom of it to fit into the coal grate so there is a nice flat bottom as found on dedicated wood burners?
Hiya Steve, Oak and Beech? Jammy so-and-so 8>)
I can't take my grate out as there is just a drop down to the ash pan below it.

[ANDYLASER]

Heretics. :]

:D:D

[sarj]

this morning swmbo is burning incense sticks,its making me feel quite nauseas,think i'll have a quick snort of wd40

[steveinthewoods]

-

[rapidboy]

Most likely burning the cat .... again.
She insists on warming her arse against the Vapalux M320, nothing like the smell of burning fur :rolleyes:

[HPFlashman]

Birchwood on for the night - and most likely the smell of burned fur, for the Wiry haired Dachshound finds it great to crawl under the stowe when it goes out...:D

[lelykins]

Birchwood on for the night - and most likely the smell of burned fur, for the Wiry haired Dachshound finds it great to crawl under the stowe when it goes out...:D

Yeh to that. We have a Border Terrier and he likes nothing better that curling up and cuddling round a great hunk of cast iron and steel at some ridiculously hot temperature.
My mix this year is made up mostly of what i could scrounge, namely birch, plum, sycamore, some kind of massive spruce and a small amount of hawthorn.

[swanseajack]

I'm on the hunt for some Hawthorne and Blackthorne for next year. A friend in work does sticks and carving, we intend helping each other out a bit. What he doesn't want for sticks I'm gonna burn 8>)
Has anyone tried these two species out? Tell us about the experience.
I have to give it to our Jack Russel, he's burned his nose once while supervising me tending the fire, but he keeps just enough distance between himself and the fire not to burst into flames - so far!

[steveinthewoods]

-

[one_rod]

As well as his engineering interests, where I work, my employer also owns a local golf club.
Between now and next spring they have to fell about eighty mature trees around the course.

"You can have as much of the wood as you want" he said. I was already working out how long that amount of timber would keep my fires burning for.

Turns out it's all Poplar. Useless for firewood. :C

Oh well, back to the pallets pile.



one_rod.

[swanseajack]

I believe poplar is used in matches 'cause it burns slow with no heat 8>(
See if you can convince him to replace them with something good and quick growing, at least you'll get something good one day.

[steveinthewoods]

-

[swanseajack]

Anyone tried bay? I know it grows at great rate of knot's! But, is it any good?

[steveinthewoods]

-

[swanseajack]

Oooh! Lots of troublesome bay trees around here 8>)

[steveinthewoods]

-

[swanseajack]

I'm sticking with the Bhaco bow saw for now. It doesn't take long to get through wood with it.
Where did you get those smiley things from?

[cave_dweller]

I'll be mostly burning last years prunings from the garden (and next doors garden, including chunks of a 30' leylandii I helped them fell), the old fence (I'm hoping whatever it was treated with doesn't contain too many nasties!), the old climbing frame, several old trellis thingies I removed in order to paint the house, and whatever else I can find to tide me over until my delivery of logs arrives in November!

I'm gonna be busy chopping all that softwood up into manageable chunks, but I don't know how else to get rid of it!

[swanseajack]

Hey Cave Dweller, I have seen loads of hawthorn and blackthorn around your way!!! The VOG is a veritable wood-burners wet dream!!

[steveinthewoods]

-

[Nice65]

Anyone tried bay? I know it grows at great rate of knot's! But, is it any good?

Brilliant firewood, burns long and hot, same as hawthorn, Holm Oak and most fruitwood.

[swanseajack]

On the list, click "go advanced", then "more" on the bottom right. If they're invasive, are you sure they're true bays, not cherry laurels?

Yeh! I pinch them and put them in my curries. Grew a cutting off them too.

[swanseajack]

Brilliant firewood, burns long and hot, same as hawthorn, Holm Oak and most fruitwood.

I love you ! 8>)
really?

[Nice65]

I love you ! 8>)
really?

Yes really. Love you too.

The denser the wood the better as a general rule. Poplar and Willow are wet woods with a pulpy texture and burn like toilet rolls.

[swanseajack]

Cheers. Bay trees look out 8>)

[steveinthewoods]

-

[swanseajack]

Mmm my Jack Russel has a fair heft to him. And he ate my dinner once!!

[Emrys]

We're fairly lucky here in Chester not being subject to any Smoke Control Legislation (http://smokecontrol.defra.gov.uk/locations.php?la_id=56).

Due to the duke* owning a number of properties in Chester occupied by pensioners, who are given free firewood from his estate, his dukeness decided that Chester would not be included in any Clean Air Act legislation.

So tonight I'm burning pallet wood on the range cos I can. :D


*Duke of Westminster (http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2008/03/12/2008-03-12_richest_man_in_england_also_a_regular_of.html), this is the bloke who has all those purple properties in Monopoly

[Nice65]

Mmm my Jack Russel has a fair heft to him. And he ate my dinner once!!

Lol! Not once he's seasoned. Jacks are worse than willow by far, they're much too hard to burn.

Coincidently, mine has also eaten my dinner on more than one occasion, barbecues are apparently a free for all, no rules apply.

[swanseajack]

Ha ha!

Now the evenings are getting colder, and I have to keep the back door open so our clown of a dog can kill my lawn, I'm starting to use our stove in anger. I pinched some felled Ash a few weeks ago, chopped it up straight away and it's been in a dry, airy sunny spot since. It burns really well !! It burns quicker than my cherry though? But by God is it flamable 8>)
Anyway tonight I'm burning ash, cherry and sycamore and the room is warm 8>) was 17.4 but gets up to 22.2 with a few logs.

[Nice65]

Ash for me too. Cut last Thursday, burning bright but quick. Wants mixing with some other woods really, but they all need more seasoning.

[swanseajack]

Lol! Not once he's seasoned. Jacks are worse than willow by far, they're much too hard to burn.

Coincidently, mine has also eaten my dinner on more than one occasion, barbecues are apparently a free for all, no rules apply.
yeh! Jacks are a bit like that, once they have convinced themselves that somethings theirs, they won't take no for an answer. His latest trick is that he thinks letters falling through the letterbox are his for the killing even after I've picked them up. He's a simple soul.....

[Basemetal]

Old dead rhododendron about 5" thick - I thought it would be rubbish but it burns really hot and long.
I had to cut down a couple of 40' pines and just cleared the rhodies that were in around them. Now I'm looking for other victims :)

[CaptainBeaky]

Some sycamore, bit of chestnut, and some cherry. Whatever is on the top of the woodpile I'm using at the moment. Got 2 cords of cypress drying out, courtesy of a friend removing a huge Leylandii. Yes it's crap firewood, but it was free!

[swanseajack]

I think as Lemmy once said "The chase is better than the catch", it's sometimes true with burning old fashioned stuff 8>)
Nice one BM. So the wood-burners motto should be "the tougher they are, the better they burn" !

[templogin]

Nothing as yet. It's just not cold enough yet. It will be peats, pine and house coal once the house gets down to the mid 50s. Until then i will wear a micro-fleece on top of my t-shirt.

[swanseajack]

Peat!! Now that's a rare-bird. Could tell us city dwellers about it?

[templogin]

Peat? Hideous stuff. There is a saying up here that the most heat generated by peat is when you are digging it out of the ground and stacking it to dry. I let some other poor sap dig it. I just buy it in 25kg bags. It's cheaper than wood or coal and give out little heat. I line the bottom of the fire with it, then put paper, wood and more peat on top, with a couple of firelighters in the mix. Once the fire is going I put cheap house coal on top. I suppose that if you were out in the woods you might be happy with a peat fire, bt it s fairly hopeless stuff!

[swanseajack]

I didn't know it was that poor.
Got the temp up in here by 3 degrees and now I'm off to bed..

[templogin]

It smells nice when it is burning, well distinct might be a better description. Good night - sleep well!

[swanseajack]

Thanks. Chimney is nice and warm 8>)

[Nice65]

It smells nice when it is burning, well distinct might be a better description. Good night - sleep well!

Does smell good, a bit like Laphroag whisky, like you say, a nice smell.

Needs some green ash mixed in and it'd be a winner.

[Basemetal]

Nothing as yet. It's just not cold enough yet. It will be peats, pine and house coal once the house gets down to the mid 50s. .
Lucky you.. 12C / 52F in Aberdeen this afternoon - chillier in the evenings :X

[swanseajack]

Morning. looks like winters comming fast in Aberdeenshire BM.
My stove book says I can burn peat ! Can I get it in south wales? I've never even seen it. Does it form here?

[Basemetal]

Mmmmm... colder today 9C 48F
Peat leaves a lot of ash... more than low grade coal. If I burn wood 6 hours a day I only have to empty the ashpan after about two weeks (its about the size of a small attache case), where coal ash needs emptied daily. Peat's the same.
If you want to burn peat and get heat, mix it with a little coal. Mind you, most of the smell goes outside if your stove's as air tight as it should be. Still...try it, with whisky ;)

[swanseajack]

Cheers BM. I'm sure there must be some peat around here. I used to like that super peaty Whiskey (Talisker or Laphroag ??) can't remember which..
I was worried neighbours nearby wouldn't like the smell of wood smoke, but Greg 'up the road' said he loves the smell ! "It reminds him that winter is comming" he said.
The lady directly next door to him has a stove too 8>)


We are amazed at how little ash the wood leaves too. After an evening firing the ash pan only has a tea-cup full of ash, and it's just like talc !
I fired the stove with some anthracite I found, good stuff too 8>) it produced alot more dirtier ash, but it made good heat and zero smoke.
The anthracite alone only produced tiny blue flames though, not much to look at really.

[Basemetal]

Lots of the 'solid fuels' are designed for a low flame burn, and as such are ideal for stoves without windows (like our solid fuel Rayburn) as they burn slower longer. The 'manufactured' ones can leave a lot of ash, as they are often made up with a non combustible element.
The ash from wood is minimimal when fully burned, as most of the celullosics and starches volatolise and theend result is steam and COn. The resulting wood ash is high mineral content residue with very little carbon left. Pure wood has its uses in the garden and it's ideal for cleaning the window of your stove. Just pick up a little on damp newspaper and polish away. Great for taking any soot marks off. Coal ash isn't so nice.

[swanseajack]

I've read conflicting info on wood ash for garden use. In the Morso book they say it is of no use, but then I read on the net it does have a use!?
I know the coal blenders don't sell the best anthracite on, as it is mixed with poor quality coal that couldn't be sold without mixing it with good stuff. I bet that's what they use in the manufactured stuff.
I remember my dad using ash for the path inbetween lines of plants in the garden.
I'll try that window cleaning trick when my Mr Muscle runs out 8>) . Thanks

[templogin]

Down to 56 degrees in the house last night. I just put a jumper on.

A hideously wet and windy day today and for the rest of the week. Might have to get the fire on soon!

[swanseajack]

Go on, you know you want to!
:cuttree::cold2:

[lelykins]

:cuttree::cuttree::cuttree:I must admit, even after my previous post, i have had the fire on about 3 or 4 times now. Must be getting soft in my old age:cuttree::cuttree:

[Basemetal]

:cuttree::cuttree::cuttree:I must admit, even after my previous post, i have had the fire on about 3 or 4 times now. Must be getting soft in my old age:cuttree::cuttree:
Comes to us all :lol:
Last few days, because of overwhelming wetness and high winds it has been colder in the house than outside.
But any excuse to get the stove on is a good one :D

[swanseajack]

I've had a bit of good news. A lady who's daughter is in school with mine had her hawthorn chopped down by her neighbour, he didn't even ask her!! Just as well she didn't want it there! She asked if I wanted the branches. Do bears s........ ? I thought.
Anyway, I offered to go and get it. She said "don't worry, I'll get Mike to drop it over, he's already chopped it up and bagged it"
I do, I do, I do believe in fairies :D

[Raikey]

gas! :(

[cave_dweller]

But any excuse to get the stove on is a good one :D

Heck yes :D . Our house takes on a completely different mood when the wood burner is roaring. Which reminds me, I promised to build a wood store... I've been putting that off for four years!

[cave_dweller]

Ever burned bamboo?

I dug up a plant outside the house recently to make way for painting the house. Long story short, I ended up chucking it on a bonfire and got the shock of my life! I swear I thought somebody was shooting. Nearly wet myself.

I assume that the air in the bamboo compartments heats up, expands and then ruptures the wood - very loudly! After the first "Bang" (about three feet from my ear - I was tending the fire) I had no idea what it was, but then there were 30 or 40 more bangs, and I slowly realised what was happening! I never was quick on the uptake!

So, I don't recommend bamboo for firewood, unless it's November 5th.

[swanseajack]

Maybe they were Bangboo 8>)

[AndyP]

Maybe they were Bangboo 8>)

Very good.

We have a Turnberry in the kitchen and can AGA in the lounge, we spend 90% of the time in the kitchen, so the Turnberry gets hammered, luckily I can get access to all types of wood due to the work I'm involved in with the Wildlife Trust. I've got one of those ECO fans which pushes warm air away from the stove, using the actual heat from the stove to power it, you wouldn't believe how many people ask where the plug is for it. If I leave the doors open, I can heat the whole ground floor.. Not had the gas on yet..!

[swanseajack]

I fancy one of those fan things, but I might have to start buying lots of oil of Ulay for the wifey if I got one. I love the dry heat that comes of it.

[ste]

The morso is on, burning wood felled in the local park (by my mate the tree surgeon). A mix of various hardwoods, but can't complain when it is next to free and has only travelled about a mile.

[Nice65]

Ever burned bamboo?

I dug up a plant outside the house recently to make way for painting the house. Long story short, I ended up chucking it on a bonfire and got the shock of my life! I swear I thought somebody was shooting. Nearly wet myself.

I assume that the air in the bamboo compartments heats up, expands and then ruptures the wood - very loudly! After the first "Bang" (about three feet from my ear - I was tending the fire) I had no idea what it was, but then there were 30 or 40 more bangs, and I slowly realised what was happening! I never was quick on the uptake!

So, I don't recommend bamboo for firewood, unless it's November 5th.

Burning bamboo is great fun! A few years ago I was working with a landscaper restoring a very overgrown formal garden and pond system. There was tons of bamboo to clear and burn. Some of the bigger species go off like bombs, blowing burning chunks everywhere. We used to quickly load the fire, then take cover.

[cave_dweller]

Burning bamboo is great fun! A few years ago I was working with a landscaper restoring a very overgrown formal garden and pond system. There was tons of bamboo to clear and burn. Some of the bigger species go off like bombs, blowing burning chunks everywhere. We used to quickly load the fire, then take cover.

How did I manage to get to my age without knowing this?? :C

Sometimes I am amazed at my own ignorance!

[lelykins]

Very good.

We have a Turnberry in the kitchen and can AGA in the lounge, we spend 90% of the time in the kitchen, so the Turnberry gets hammered, luckily I can get access to all types of wood due to the work I'm involved in with the Wildlife Trust. I've got one of those ECO fans which pushes warm air away from the stove, using the actual heat from the stove to power it, you wouldn't believe how many people ask where the plug is for it. If I leave the doors open, I can heat the whole ground floor.. Not had the gas on yet..!

Do these things really work? i like the idea but don't want to shell out £100 for an interesting talking point.

[swanseajack]

I saw one in the stove shop and it did indeed spin around fast when the bottom is heated. It blows the hot air from the top of the stove outwards into the room.

[rarms]

Fencing offcuts in the back garden in an open chimnea/brazier I normall take camping :)

[swanseajack]

Blazer Ovals 8>( They are OKish...

[Basemetal]

Do these things really work? i like the idea but don't want to shell out £100 for an interesting talking point.
I think there are non-stirling-engine versions considerably cheaper...I'll have a hunt :)

[EK5Matt]

I think there are non-stirling-engine versions considerably cheaper...I'll have a hunt :)

please do :) I'd love a sterling engine or similar, just, my pocket ain't deep enough :(

as for what I'm burning tonight, ash, ash and ash :) lovely fire.

regards
Mattias

[Noddy]

I've read conflicting info on wood ash for garden use.

It works so long as it doesn't rain

EDIT: Sorry, got dragged off and forgot what I was doing

It can compact the soil, but for as long as it doesn't get leached away, the nutrients are available

[HPFlashman]

Have lighted up the fireplace with some nice, dry birch...

This years take was 60 sacks of the stuff, so my front porch is rather loaded...:)

[swanseajack]

Hi HPF. I spent a little time in Norway, a little place called Svarstadt in Vestfold IIRC.
An old girlfriend of mine had a small farm there. She had a lovely Jotul log burner in the living room. I think thats the reason I took an interest in getting a stove.
Got a nice basket full of hawthorn, blackthorn and ash sticks drying ready for Christmas.

[HPFlashman]

Vestfold is a lovely county.

Logburners - wouldnt be without it, with an exepction for one and half year in downtown Oslo, every place I`ve lived has had some sort of woodburning fireplace... :)

[swanseajack]

Hi HPF, are you from near there? The old part of their farm had an open fire too!
I didn't notice the wood pile at the farm, but her dad must have had shares in a chainsaw company as he had a collection of chainsaws (and rifles 8>) ) He pulled out this huge chainsaw while I was there and proceeded to make a new doorway into his Elk larder. My job was to remove the cut logs!! The house, or at least the main part of it was a 300 year old log cabin originaly! I noticed that many of my taskes while in Norway, was to hump heavy stuff about after some viking looking fellow did the cutting. I've never felt so short in my life ! But, I do like those tall Norsk beauties 8>)

[HPFlashman]

In the southern parts of Norway, places are more or less near each other...;) I have family down there, but more on the coast than inland and have had the pleasure of travelling and working there..

Some splendid spots for seatrout as well (atleast my brother claims that...).

[swanseajack]

Her dad and stepdad have fishing rights on the river Lagen (??) Some chaps from that china factory (Porsgrunn??) bought them for a season the spring/summer I was there, they caught a huge salmon. I ate it 8>) I love fish.
Amazing country is Norway, and not in the bloody EU. I was tempted to move there, but I was promised a well paid job I wanted here in the UK.
I'm going to take the family there on holiday one year. I'll have to save up for the Rignes beer though, I wasn't keen on the spirits people bought in plastic containers
8>)