Burning Ask Wood -- Heavy Soot

[DrRod]

Greetings,

I had a dozen dead ash trees brought down in July. They had been standing dead at least two years and after cutting into firewood lengths they showed cracks within a month. So I figure they are seasoned enough to burn. So after a few fires this month I notice that the firebox is covered in black soot. We have burned big logs of all types of hardwood for years and could still see the white of the brick lining but suddenly its all fuzzy black. Does this mean the wood is still green or is it a characteristic of ash wood. Don't want to make an ash of myself.

 

[DrRod]

Ehhhh -- The thread should read "Ash" not "Ask" -- sorry for any confusion.

 

[Garycw]

Not sure about the soot. From what i understand ash will burn green? I use primarily locust & elm.

 

[mbohuntr]

Some wood will leave soot on a surface until it burns hot enough. I would cover it with just a roof to finish drying it out.

 

[rswyan]

Green (unseasoned), ash has a very low moisture content as compared to many other woods - and it will burn readily even unseasoned ... but it's better if it's been seasoned.

 

[murphy1244]

Are they split at all? They will dry faster being split. I think your burning wet wood.

 

[4570Man]

Wood regardless of species burns better seasoned and split. I find one year drying time minimum, two years or longer is best. I still have some wood that was cut and split in 2006 that burns like dry newspaper. My stove gets a lot of soot if the damper is set low. If I am burning wide open with dry wood there is very minimal buildup.

 

[CobyRupert]

It didn't burn hot enough could either be because it's too wet or not enough/bad draft. Did you have stove draft turned down?
And like Murphy asked: is it split?

 

[Coyote machine]

Greetings,

I had a dozen dead ash trees brought down in July. They had been standing dead at least two years and after cutting into firewood lengths they showed cracks within a month. So I figure they are seasoned enough to burn. So after a few fires this month I notice that the firebox is covered in black soot. We have burned big logs of all types of hardwood for years and could still see the white of the brick lining but suddenly its all fuzzy black. Does this mean the wood is still green or is it a characteristic of ash wood. Don't want to make an ash of myself.

The wood is still wet. Either mix it with properly seasoned wood or burn other wood until it's seasoned. Get a moisture meter from a box store and test it. And it's still too warm outside to burn your fires hot enough to get the fullest BTU output from the ash wood.
Put a stack thermometer on your wood stove too, to be able to know when your stove is burning at closest to ideal temps.
Most people burn wood at way to low temps, creating creosote and loosing valuable BTUs. Then the creosote catches fire and the real issues start.

 

[/pine]

FWIW...there is a significant difference between "white" and "black" ash trees when it comes to firewood quality...
here is a BTU/chord chart with density data...there are plenty of other charts available that offer more info. like ash (residue), cracking/popping etc...
Firewood BTU Ratings Chart Best Firewood Heat Energy Content