White Oak as Firewood

[Duck Nitz]

Had a big white oak tree fall after Helene, and just now getting around to getting it removed and turned into firewood. Man, this is a dense species of Oak isn't it? Does anyone have any experience cutting/splitting this type of tree? Going to be a lot of chain sharpening going on...

[smitch320]

Take a while to fully season. Burns great.

[Duck Nitz]

Take a while to fully season. Burns great.

Much obliged, Sir.

[Palmetto Bug]

White Oak as in Live Oak? I find myself cutting and splitting a lot of live oak and I don't think it's possible, or at least feasible, to mess with it without a good log splitter. The grain is twisty and stubborn and the wood is hard. A big log will test a 20 ton splitter. I wouldn't even try it with a splitting maul. It does burn long and slow but it needs to season a few months after it's split and stacked or it will be hard to light and smokey. If you let it season too long before splitting, it can be even harder to split. I've drawn sparks off a stump when hitting it what an ax.

If it's been sitting too long, especially if it's on the ground, the beetles will get into it and it will get pithy, punky and spalted.


They make carbide chain saw blades and they're worth it. Dirt is the worst enemy of a sharp saw blade.

[Duck Nitz]

White Oak as in Live Oak? I find myself cutting and splitting a lot of live oak and I don't think it's possible, or at least feasible, to mess with it without a good log splitter. The grain is twisty and stubborn and the wood is hard. A big log will test a 20 ton splitter. I wouldn't even try it with a splitting maul. It does burn long and slow but it needs to season a few months after it's split and stacked or it will be hard to light and smokey. If you let it season too long before splitting, it can be even harder to split. I've drawn sparks off a stump when hitting it what an ax.

If it's been sitting too long, especially if it's on the ground, the beetles will get into it and it will get pithy, punky and spalted.


They make carbide chain saw blades and they're worth it. Dirt is the worst enemy of a sharp saw blade.

Makes me glad I asked. I know of Red Oaks and White Oaks, so forgive me if I don't know if a white oak is also called a 'live oak'. I'm in the Greer area, and have only heard live oaks when referred to at the coast. Thanks..I got a sawbuck being built as we speak and will tackle this next weekend and see how far I get. Never have split white oak pieces before. I have not cut the big pieces, but the 10"- 15" branches I cut yesterday dulled a fresh chain right quick.

[DRDUCK]

The older it gets the harder to split. I heated with wood for 38 years and a white oak has good btu's

[duckcrazed]

Both white oak and red oak are great firewood but need 6-12 months split to dry prior to burning. If it's a true white oak it shouldn't be too bad to split unless there are a lot of knots.

[Saltydog235]

Live oak is not a white oak. Two completely different trees. Live oak is twisted junk wood. Its only value is to tree huggers that love shade trees and Spanish moss, other than that, like water oak it’s an overgrown weed. Terrible wood to try to mill and use. White oak is all the rage with white yuppie women to use as floors, cabinets, mantles etc, high priced as hell too. Burns great, just get a log splitter. IMO as lumber goes, it’s fit for trailer decking as long as you keep it coated with diesel. When I get asked to make something with it, they’re getting charged extra.

[Saltydog235]

Both white oak and red oak are great firewood but need 6-12 months split to dry prior to burning. If it's a true white oak it shouldn't be too bad to split unless there are a lot of knots.

You get a good bed of coals and they’ll both burn hot and long green. Same with cherry and hickory.

[Palmetto Duck]

White oak is great but makes a mess around your fireplace with that flakey bark. Have burnt a ton of it.

[mello_collins]

White oak makes great firewood.

[charlie horse]

Plenty of it on the ground since Helene. Hows that for privilege.

[smitch320]

Plenty of it on the ground since Helene. Hows that for privilege.

Haha

[centurian]

good cooking wood too.

[Duck Nitz]

Plenty of it on the ground since Helene. Hows that for privilege.

Ain't it great to be livin in the USA?

[trash2]

White oak is easy to split w axe

[Palmetto Bug]

I admit I don't know my oaks but I thought oaks all fell into two categories, either white or red, and the technical differences were lobed leaves, acorn style, maybe wood color, etc. Further, I assumed a live oak was in the white category. Is that not true?

One of my friends very much prefers live oak for firewood. But as mentioned earlier, it's really a pain to split (without a hydraulic splitter). When you pick up a different type that splits readily with one hit with an axe, that's called "jokey oak".

Live oak makes good chopping blocks. Once they've aged a bit, an ax will bounce off.

[centurian]

I admit I don't know my oaks but I thought oaks all fell into two categories, either white or red, and the technical differences were lobed leaves, acorn style, maybe wood color, etc. Further, I assumed a live oak was in the white category. Is that not true?

One of my friends very much prefers live oak for firewood. But as mentioned earlier, it's really a pain to split (without a hydraulic splitter). When you pick up a different type that splits readily with one hit with an axe, that's called "jokey oak".

Live oak makes good chopping blocks. Once they've aged a bit, an ax will bounce off.

I know either white or red it what they are classified but i think live oaks are really in a class of their own. It is classified as a white oak.