firewood

[carla]

was wondering if anyone can give me advice on hazel wood before i go out and spend loads of energy collecting it.
i know its not as good as ash, beech or oak. how good for heat is it??
thanks
carla

 

[Spark]

Birch is a good all round firewood which will burn hot. Like you say its not quite so good as others but nonetheless still worth the effort. Hazel does burn a bit quicker than most of the other hardwoods though.

 

[Matt Weir]

It's not regarded as a top firewood, in fact a lot of hazel has traditionally been coppiced* so doesn't usually produce a thick bole resulting in a lack of substantial firewood.

That said it will burn when seasoned but there are better uses and better woods for use as fuel

* Just a random link that explains coppicing

 

[British Red]

Now for me coppicing is the perfect way to make forewood - coppicing for nice "wrist thick" stems and sectioning on a clamped chainsaw on a proper purpose built horse is the easiest way to produce stove wood I know - much easier than messing about with mauls.

Coppiced ash is the way to go for that but its a declining art.

If the hazel has been left beyond a normal cycle (7 years or so) and is free, you will be doing both the habitat and your stove a favour by restoring the stool

Red

 

[Matt Weir]

Now for me coppicing is the perfect way to make forewood - coppicing for nice "wrist thick" stems and sectioning on a clamped chainsaw on a proper purpose built horse is the easiest way to produce stove wood I know - much easier than messing about with mauls.

Coppiced ash is the way to go for that but its a declining art.

If the hazel has been left beyond a normal cycle (7 years or so) and is free, you will be doing both the habitat and your stove a favour by restoring the stool

Red

True Red

 

[mr dazzler]

I myself did get some thick wild old coppice hazel, some was near 4 inch diameter.
I'd say it was average as fuel, it makes good kinderling with the draw knife shavings, burns hot and cleanly and creates a burst of fast heat to get the bigger logs going. As with any fire wood it needs to be dry, 20% moisture content or less. I'd say get some its not like felling standard oaks or ash trees, the poles are light enough to carry about without a skidder or horse, I once carried a ton or so on my astra roof rack NOT recomended 35mph up the a140 . Do you have a trailer? Or borrow one? Pile it full up heaped right up sling a tarp sheet and straps over it. You can get the poles just with a sandvik bow saw, minimal mess and noise low impact no need for a chain saw crosscut them into 8 foot lengths or to suit your trailer etc. When you cut the poles make the cut close to the ground and sloping away from the centre of the stool clump so water runs off. AND the most important thing, the stools will recover and next season (sproingtime) they will have a cluster of new shoots that will deveopl into new pole's real fast. I wouldnt be cutting hazel right now though, I'd wait until next autmun/winter. If the poles are thin I wouldnt get them for fuel, theyd be better used for making hurdles or something

 

[carla]

thanks for all the input. its really helpful. its worth getting hazel then. i also have my eye on oak which has been lyeing in a field for years (5? or more ) not a twig of ash lyeing around. i am amazed how much fallen wood there is almost everywhere i go walking. not all is rotton by a long shot.
when i i was in france very briefly a few months ago there was no fallen wood to be seen. i heard the govt. pays farmers to coppice and tidy trees. the difference was noticable.
carla

 

[mr dazzler]

There is subsidy available, but also a lot comes down to the fact that in France they have been less enthusiastic about rejecting traditional ways than we have here. The agriculture industry is well respected and a powerful lobby there. I dont know if they use chippers and shredders there very much? I've been there in autumn/winter cutting season and every little part of hedgrow and woodland is carefully managed and assessed the logs are cut and stacked carefully. They actually respect wood much more there. If you can get oak that has been stood 5 year it will make good fuel definately. But if its large diameter dont be surprised if its still wet deep inside, it takes yonks for oak to dry out. That process is vastly speeded up by cutting to length and splitting into usable stick's. In France they cut split and stack oak and leave it outside for four years minimum.

 

[Intertidal]

Carla'
Last year I had the offer of a load of hazel - a building plot was felled prior to development and the owner gave me a weekend to collect all I could before the groundworkers moved in. I managed to completely fill the back of my Landrover 110 with logs with another load of poles on the roof. It was all green and I cut the lot by hand with a bowsaw. Most was 2-5 inches dia, but there was also some lovely ash about 8 inches.
The hazel has seasoned well - covered but exposed to the breeze - and burns beautifully in our little Stovax Cube woodburner. This is a small stove, but has really good air flow control so that you can make the most of 'poor' fuels like hazel.
Effectively I got half a winters worth of wood for the cost of a saw blade and some elbow grease.
cheers
Nick

 

[carla]

cheers very much for all the good advice....waiting to find out if the fallen oak has a TPO, if so you cant touch even dead wood.......
carla