Wood Gathering

gamston

try doulbe glazing companies they have to take old wooden window frames to dump, and pay
m8 used to get them to drop of all they old frames, but he had a big garden to store them
builders skips are good too.
in most places wood pallets boxes etc is sent to dump (has to be paid for if u dump it) so you picking it up for free is a godsent

Firefly

This always helps me to remember what type of wood is best for the fire. We've got a copy above the fireplace. (of course I didn't write it and I don't know who did, sorry)

Beechwood fires burn bright and clear
If the logs are kept a year
Store your beech for Christmastide
With new holly laid beside
Chestnuts only good they say
If for years tis stayed away
Birch and firwood burn too fast
Blaze too bright and do not last
Flames from larch will shoot up high
Dangerously the sparks will fly
But Ashwood green and Ashwood brown
Are fit for a Queen with a golden crown

Oaken logs, if dry and old
Keep away the winters cold
Poplar gives a bitter smoke
Fills your eyes and makes you choke
Elmwood burns like churchyard mould
Even the very flames burn cold
Hawthorn bakes the sweetest bread
So it is in Ireland said
Applewood will scent the room
Pears wood smells like a flower in bloom
But Ashwood wet and Ashwood dry
A King may warm his slippers by.

Poppycat

But many old window frames are painted so they will be unsuitable to burn and will give off poisoness fumes

gamston wrote: »

try doulbe glazing companies they have to take old wooden window frames to dump, and pay
m8 used to get them to drop of all they old frames, but he had a big garden to store them
builders skips are good too.
in most places wood pallets boxes etc is sent to dump (has to be paid for if u dump it) so you picking it up for free is a godsent

Lotus-eater

Poppycat wrote: »

But many old window frames are painted so they will be unsuitable to burn and will give off poisoness fumes

Don't forget, don't burn any treated wood, not only painted wood. No fence panels, old sheds, basically any wood you think has been treated, it can contain amongst other things arsenic. Not very nice for you or the neighbours.

Lotus-eater

Debt_Free_Chick wrote: »

Also, fallen branches aren't great for burning. If they're dead or seasoned, they might be OK for kindling, but not much else.

Never quite understood this answer, who said the OP wasn't going to store and season the wood they collect. As the starter of the thread on Itsnoteasybeinggreen that was pointed out, thats what I had in mind.

Btw The same thread on itsnoteasy, has a post on driftwood, why it shouldn't be used, there are other threads/posts on there as well on the same subject, but I can't find them atm.

For a good guide to firewood.
http://www.itsnoteasybeinggreen.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=10249

littlewolf75

the only thing that is removed by seasoning is water! So the only problem that is likely is that it will resist burning if it hasnt been thoroughly dried. If you want to use timber for making furniture etc. the seasoning time depends on several factors;
the thickness of the timber planks,
the relative ambient humidity
and how the timber is stored (to season effectively air needs to be able to flow between each plank, so timber is placed "in stick" with spacers between each piece.
so it wont hurt to burn "unseasoned" timber, in fact it will burn far slower and will keep the fire going for longer if it isnt completely "seasoned"

soscakes

Hello all who were asking about picking up wood,
My brother and his wife had their chimney opened up just before crimbo.
Whilst out walking on a public footpath managed by the local council, his wife noticed the tree fellers had been out early autumn and cut down a load of willow (to sell off for cricket bats). A small piece of branch had fallen into the canal, so they fished it out and took it home for the fire (i am sure he would have let it "season").
Before he had chance to chop it up, the police came a knocking.
They wanted the wood back that had been "stolen" from the canal.
They had to attend the police station and make a statement and also received a "council caution". Whilst the police were with my brother at his home they took the opportunity to snoop around. Their interest was sparked by his "dangerous weapon" he was keeeping in his garden......"Did he know his axe was a deadly weapon?":mad:
We grew up within a family who fed us when times were short by fishing and shooting. We had a wood burning rayburn and open fires.
We bred rabbits to eat -much to my dismay!
Times have changed and not for the better. It seems our wildlife have more rights than us humans do.
They too were cited the fact of leaving wood to decay naturally to provide homes for insects etc.......but they had just chopped a beautiful avenue of white willow down to sell for profit to make cricket bats!!! Seems there is still one rule for them and another for us! They manage the country side for us the people...who pay them to do so. Council's manage the common land and country parks yet we are not really free to use them. They would rather see insects multiply exponentially than allow a family to pick up a piece of wood and take it home to help heat their home! Their heating bill is paid on card as he cannot work due to his spine bending out of shape from being hit by a lorry when he worked in a road tarmac gang when he was just 18. He has had mulitiple operations but none have worked. His wife is his carer so they have a limited income. Yet an insects habitat is more important than heating a family home! Things need to be put into perspective. We all know that the countryside has to be managed, but we cannot allow families to suffer extreme hardship in this climate. If you want to penalise people look to those who have gained from causing the situation and still are! Large wealthy land owning families- the government for expanding airports, those who use the airports on a frequent basis. Not those who have no wealth, no chance of getting a job and have not used an aeroplane in their life. If people NEED to live of the land to in order to live should not be penalised in this way.
(Sorry) but since biblical times land /crops/ wood has always had a portion set aside for the poor. When did this get repealed?? There are too many petty stupid laws that nobody knows where they stand anymore.
Lets return to some common sense laws. If you cannot pick up dead wood to put on your fire then what has this country come too? So sorry if this had sounded like a sermon but i was so shocked by Essex County Councils treatment of my brother and his wife. I would not want to hear of anybody else being treated in the same manner and hope this will alert people to what some people are being inflicted too.

Gloomendoom

Hmmmm... sounds a bit harsh but it was somebody else's wood. If it's any consolation, willow makes lousy firewood anyway. It's about 90% water. I had a load of it given to me and I had to let it season for about four years before it was ready to burn.