Hi bill, you could rig up a 2’x4’ rack placed close to the stove with a small fan for circulation. All to try to keep a few days ahead and remove humidity from the fresh stuff. I find poplar responds better to fast drying then pine or birch and holds less moisture in winter… All opinion of course.
Keep warm, David Baillie
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Although I appreciate your solution ,real estate is of a prime value when 3 people live in a 12’x20’ castle. My wife wants the 5 gallon bucket of Birch bark removed to allow more room.
I did acquire a bunch of windows from Craigslist that I think I could make a good solar dryer this summer. Yep, another project added to the list.
The green wood is working out. I burned a creosote log in the stove last week my wife found at the thrift store. I’m not sure how well they work, but it can’t hurt to try?
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Never enough space, never enough time…
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Good report Bill. This could be part of a chapter in your book.
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A book…
I wonder if I could ever sit still long enough to write a book…oh look! A squirrel…
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As soon as it warms up a bit, I suggest removing the stove pipe and use one of the big wire brushes to clean it out, and then inspect it closely, looking for any pin holes or rust. My little stove burns absolutely smoke-free but I never put any green wood in it, because I think green wood makes acetic acid (especially from Oak) that would destroy my steel stove pipe. My pipe is over 40’ long, and I end up replacing most of it every two years. Lacking a real wood splitter, I’ve been cutting rounds that I can lift, which means they are only six inches long. (My grandma called that kitchen stove wood.) These little pieces work really well in my little stove. I was given a monster stove made by Atlanta Stove Works, Atlanta, Georgia that accepts wood 24" long. (Stove is called a Huntsman.) Big chunks smoulder and smoke, and it tarred up my chimney pipe, so I stopped using it. For a while, I had the two stoves feeding into the same pipe, but eventually just disconnected the Huntsman because I never want to see any smoke out of the chimney. We also have a cast iron Kacheloven, imported from Germany, that is covered with tile and was supposed to burn coal or wood. We burnt/wore it out with Mesquite wood, and spent over a thousand bucks to fix it the first time. Second time, I spent about $500 for parts, and third time I disconnected it. Very pretty six foot high ceramic stove surrounded by wooden benches… Guess I could weld up some adapters to go from European stove pipe to my six inch steel pipe, and perhaps build some stainless heat exchanger boxes, etc.
Maybe go up on the roof, remove the chimney cap, and see how much creosote build up you have, and while you are there, run the wire brush down the pipe. Thanks for keeping us posted. Very interesting stuff, especially to someone who hails from Anoka, MN. (Actually Andover, before the roads were paved.)
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As always Ray, I appreciate your input. You and a few others know what cold really is and advise me accordingly. Day in and day out at -20° weeks at a time, one should be ready. I didn’t know that about stove pipe wearing out every couple of years. It’s important to me to take care of that during the off season.
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A great read Bill, you are winning the battle! Green wood split small standing in the corner will add humidity to the air, and dry at the same time. It may smell some, but the interior of a pine sawmill is a great smell to me.
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Hi Bill. I just read your thread, really good stuff. Living the dream. I’m on a similar path, but not as far along as you are. I’m also impressed with the site generally, there’s a very practical mindset going on here, and literally hundreds of man years of experience to draw on.
I would first like to add my vote of encouragement - don’t be too hard on yourself if you haven’t always hit on the best solution to a problem, or foreseen everything, there are many ways to skin a cat, the bottom line is coming up with something practical for you, and that works. Even multi generation country dwellers will take different approaches to the same challenges.
I have my 2 cents to add on some issues, having grown up in the country, and living in even colder Manitoba:
If you have green or black ash, it’s your best bet for green burning, pretty dry wood even green, splits great, especially when frozen, and heats much like oak.
I would upgrade the stove to a modern air tight. 3 cords of oak should have been enough for your heating needs with an efficient stove. I would aim for a long firebox to avoid having to get up in the night, more heat capacity. Poplar for daytime, hardwood on a bed of coals for over night.
Birch is one of the poorest woods to try to burn green, full of moisture. If you don’t split it, even cut in short lengths it will rot / spalt over the summer, it has no decay resistance, or pores to dry through. Once dry, it’s amongst the best woods, great heating value.
This is prime wood cutting time, days getting appreciably longer, frozen ground gives excellent access, clean wood, less sweat and no bugs, enough frost that wood splits better than any other season.
Poplar (trembling aspen), will be decently dry by fall, ash the same. Birch and some woods may best wait another year, but that will depend on how it is stacked, air flow through sides of a wood shed is critical, stacked wood dries far better than random piled. Rain on the wood will defeat the drying, and rob much of the heat potential, good sheets of tin, or a proper shed is a must.
Garry Tait
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My brother has done some birch tapping - sap flow is dependent on weather, probably cool overnight temps. Some years they seem to hardly flow at all. I have tapped what we call Manitoba maples, or boxelder, they produce as good or better syrup than the sugar maple. The pic of the wood looked like our maple. I would give that a shot for sure.
Regarding batteries, I have a setup placed in the ground in a pressure treated plywood box with a water tight lid. If I had more batteries I would probably make a concrete bunker, similar to a root cellar. If water table is an issue, berm earth around set adequately above the water table. I prefer to have batteries outside, especially if they were big, where they can be lifted directly with a tractor. Apparently batteries perform better if not too hot, and as long as they are in the ground, like the potatoes, they should never freeze. Maybe an old deep freeze set in the ground?
Building code may require footings at 5’ to avoid frost, but you would only see frost at 5’ under a driveway (watch out with water lines)… On undisturbed snow covered ground the frost shouldn’t go down much more than a foot, maybe two, depending on snow.
Regards,
Garry Tait, Manitoba
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Thanks for the info Garry. I see you’re from ‘Friendly Manitoba’. We are neighbors.
I did a video of a tour of this property of which I think it’s on this thread. On there it shows my well outside. This is for a reason. The county believes if one is to have a well, they need to have a septic system. I choose not to have a septic system at this time. Maybe never if I can figure things out. I pump from the well into 2- 5 gallon jugs. After the jugs are filled, the well drains back. Hopefully in the spring I will have a bathroom and then will fill a 55 gallon stainless steel barrel. We make our own soaps and detergents. So I will use a waste tank from a RV and distribute the gray water throughout my property with my ATV. If this method becomes too difficult, I may then have a septic system.
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Excellent advice on the wood issues, Garry!
All of them so true.
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Thank you Jan. I am sure the settlers to this country had the same steep learning curve many years ago.
Bill: regarding the septic system, in Manitoba they are now outlawed. A holding tank is the only option, and septic truck services are becoming scarce and expensive. I opted instead for Jenkin’s Humanure Handbook system. In my opinion it is far superior to a flush toilet. If properly covered there really is no smell, which still amazes me. Grey water (used tap and wash water) has the same safety as treated municipal waste water, and can be disposed of into surface water, or drywells, preferably somewhere with a biofilter, marsh or artificial pond. The only issue is scrubbing of toilet pails, pretty basic for the benefits, never having to worry about disposal issues, never needing a plumber.
Yes, we basically are neighbours.
Garry Tait, Manitoba
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Bill, with the low value of the Canadian dollar presently, and being end of season, you might be able to get a pretty good deal on a wood stove across the border these days. At the same time you should be able to cut a deal on the double wall stainless flue if you need some.
Garry Tait, Manitoba
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It’s stacked. Hopefully it’ll be spaced enough to dry by fall. Either way it’ll be dryer than it is now and it’s all I have and is keeping us warm. After talking to Terry this AM, I will continue to put up wood this summer strategically placed for air flow throughout my property for future needs.
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That’s a beautiful thing you’ve created Bill. Good work!
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I agree with @Chris.
What sort of joinery did you use at the corners?
Also, did you find some sort of roofing material?
Brian, I’m a terrible videographer so you may have to pause the video to see. I just took a chainsaw and cut 90° corners for connecting logs. Then I just cut flat spots for the angled support logs.
Maybe @Chris can fix? ^
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I believe I saw a tamarack in one of your pics from earlier in the thread. (Also called larch). I consider them one of the more valuable species, usually straight as an arrow, excellent rot resistance, preferred for fence posts, and not too bad for firewood. It makes the best fence rails, and mills into lumber equivalent to pressure treated. And it smells nice. Generally where it grows can be best accessed in the winter, and the branches shatter off when felled.
If you have much tamarack, I’m envious. 
Garry Tait, Manitoba
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Yes Garry we have a lot of it in the lower lying areas. It’s scattered in the higher ground.