Why does (fire)wood burn better when split?

[beppington]

Just wondering. Some of my lazy friends put un-split logs on the fire & wonder why the fire just smolders.

I hit the piece with my maul, put it back on the fire, & now you have a good fire.

But ... why?

 

[MoKelly]

Smaller pieces of wood get hotter faster and therefore burn faster and better. The smaller the fireplace area the smaller the wood needs to be to get to the ideal temperature to burn properly.

MoKelly

 

[CTPhil]

In a wood stove there seems to be a benefit from draft-like air movement created by multiple pieces of wood.

 

[valley]

Wood has to get to 450 degrees to release the gases that burn. There are more gas containing resin in the inner wood that is exposed when split.

I have read: Wood doesn't burn. Volatile gases burn and are released when wood is heated to 450 degrees. When all the gases are burned what is left is Charcoal. Charcoal is flamable.

 

[beppington]

Smaller pieces of wood get hotter faster and therefore burn faster and better. The smaller the fireplace area the smaller the wood needs to be to get to the ideal temperature to burn properly.

MoKelly

Makes sense (my scenario is a camp fire BTW)

I thought it could be that the splitting action exposes torn fibers that burn easier & help the surface of the wood heat up faster ... vs the round exterior of a tree just under the bark which is usually smooth(er).

 

[brin]

Just wondering. Some of my lazy friends put un-split logs on the fire & wonder why the fire just smolders.

I hit the piece with my maul, put it back on the fire, & now you have a good fire.

But ... why?

I have never been able to master this , but my sainted Dad used to toss a whole Pine or Oak log on the back of the fire...I mean a big one 16 " dia or more and it would burn and burn...not smoke..Now this was on a bed of hot coals and he banked it somehow and it always worked for him..he would get the fires so hot it would run you out of the house...I have never been able to master the art...be he did....It was a masonry fireplace...:thumbsup:

 

[sailorman]

probably a combination of all mentioned and some not . I recommend you remind your friends wondering doesn 't matter when one is doing a camp fire for heat and or enjoyment . Suggest they just do it the way you have shown them it works better and get another beverage .

I add, split wood is also easier to stack, but since you said they are lazy they probably do stack either . Also a split wood exposes more perpendicular surface area to rising flame than does a cylindrical log .

side note : be careful as they may be pullin ' A Tom Sawyer / Huck fin white wash the fence routine. Just gettin ' ya to split the wood .

 

[Craig Clayton]

Wood has to get to 450 degrees to release the gases that burn. There are more gas containing resin in the inner wood that is exposed when split.

I have read: Wood doesn't burn. Volatile gases burn and are released when wood is heated to 450 degrees. When all the gases are burned what is left is Charcoal. Charcoal is flamable.

I would also like to add this observation to valleys statements in that a single piece of wood does not like to burn easily. It needs a feed back of heat to convert the wood to a gas so it can burn. When you put in split wood the pieces are smaller and the spacing is close to each other so each piece heats the opposite piece. The Big Old Round will burn on a bed of coals because the coals supply the heat to turn the Round into gas to burn.
I have had a single piece of wood burn in an EPA stove but it must be within 3/4 in of the refactory brick to bounce the heat back to make more gas to burn.

Craig Clayton

 

[SandburRanch]

Maybe, just possibly, with split wood there is more surface area exposed to the air that's needed for wood to burn.

 

[beppington]

probably a combination of all mentioned and some not . I recommend you remind your friends wondering doesn 't matter when one is doing a camp fire for heat and or enjoyment . Suggest they just do it the way you have shown them it works better and get another beverage .

I add, split wood is also easier to stack, but since you said they are lazy they probably do stack either . Also a split wood exposes more perpendicular surface area to rising flame than does a cylindrical log .

side note : be careful as they may be pullin ' A Tom Sawyer / Huck fin white wash the fence routine. Just gettin ' ya to split the wood .

Haha! Now that's funny!! ... as long as that's not what's happening