EASIEST Way to Know if Firewood is Seasoned

When using your moisture meter the reading should be below 20 percent, ideally between 10 and 20 percent.

Here are some other ways to tell if your firewood is seasoned.

1. Color. Color fades over time. Seasoned wood is less vibrant than green wood.

2. Shape. Splitting wood speeds up the drying process. If you need wood to burn in the near future, you better your odds by purchasing wood that’s been split. Split wood will also dry out faster than logs in a stack. Logs and unspilt firewood pieces that are touching the ground or near the center of the firewood pile will dry out very little.

3. Weight. As wood dries, it loses its moisture content and becomes lighter. Softwoods have a very high moisture content when they are green, so the weight difference will be more noticeable than hardwood varieties.

4. Hardness. Drying wood becomes harder, making it more difficult to split or dent. Dry wood is more compressed and stronger than green wood.

5. Bark. The bark on dry wood is loose. You may notice bare spots on dry logs. Any existing bark can be removed easily.

6. Cracking. You may notice cracks on dry pieces of wood, extending from the center of the log and reaching out towards the edges. However, you don’t want to use this as your only determining factor. Some dry logs may not crack and some cracked logs may still be too green to burn.

7. Sound. Wet wood produces a dull thud when struck against another piece. However, dry wood will make a hollow sound when two pieces are hit together.

8. Smell. Green wood has a stronger aroma. The smell will depend on the type of tree. As the wood dries, the sappy scent will fade to a light woody smell.

9. Split test. Aside from being hard to split, dry pieces of wood will be dry on the inside. You can check the moisture level of a piece of wood by splitting it open to see if it feels dry to the touch.

10. Flammability. You can also test moisture level by burning test pieces of wood outside. Green wood will be hard to light. It will smolder and create a lot of smoke, alerting you before burning it in your house.

[GirdHerd]

Excellent advice. I'm a retired home performance inspector and I used a moisture meter to verify the moisture content of framing material at the rough inspection. Walls must not be closed up with drywall, paneling, etc, if the moisture content of studs, joists & beams is greater than 19%.

[davidshort]

Wow. This is awesome. I did not know such a device existed. This would be a must have when buying firewood. It would be good for sellers too as they can check how seasoned their wood is before selling it.

[alwanibrahim]

My dad also uses that moisture meter thing, it works everytime!

[danielcourtney]

Great advice moisture meters do have many uses in various building projects too.

[henryrodgers]

What a great video . Very good information about buying firewood . If the guy claims that it's seasoned and it's not .... sorry buddy you can take it back . Always check before it gets dumped . Seller won't want to bring back the wood so you very well get a better deal and use that wood for next year . I like how you pointed out that the wood got wet . Never put a tarp over green wood . Moisture gets trapped by the plastic and goes back on the wood . A shed that you have is perfect for storing seasoned wood . You can open both ends for circulation if needed . That moisture meter is a must . Thanks

[SurvivalLiving]

Very cool. I've got to get one of those for sure 👍

[lindacrnll]

yippy i ordered one its coming in the mail...thank u

[michaelparkin]

Get posting Martin 😉 the other cabin build / homestead / offgrid channels are bearing your content in the search. Good video like always

[ac.]

Thanks very much for this advice. I'm going to get one of those meters. Some of the wood I have been buying is dark and wet inside when I split it open. It is oak I think. I was thinking about putting some smaller pieces in the microwave to dry them out? Or the oven. But my friend said I was a fool, and I would burn my house down LOL.

[TheUserid]

Know you are at least a few months from thinking about the final solar system but how useful would a DIY test panel be to press a button per battery to check each ones voltage along with being able to check groups if you are going for higher voltages. They make a panel indicator of voltage and with a button that breaks both positive and negative you would be able to wire up each button to a battery/s and the shared display so no needing to probe each battery every time you want to check them.

[PaullaWells]

Interesting tool.
Was this sponsored or are you just really excited about this tool?

[mayssm]

I just bought a pickup truck full that doesn't seem to be seasoned much at all. I've never had a wood stove, so didn't know much about it. Just won't burn well and smokes a lot. Think we are going to have to wait a year or so for it.

[sammaxwell]

xcuseme sir have you ever heard that people can make briquettes from leaves or twigs or branches

[dlm]

If the outside is wet but the inside is seasoned, like yours, will it still burn fine?

[yngvgzc]

I have one of those meters, it will work ok on soft wood, but on hard wood the points bend and does not work well.
Would not waste my money.

[bobcochrane]

Not sure I'd want to bother with that gadget. What you are really interested in is the sap in the wood. That is what will cause creosote build-up. Best way to tell is paying attention to end checks. If the log is dry, it will check.

[thegrimreaper]

Buy it, store it separately until next winter, this way your guaranteed it will be seasoned. Most firewood dealers will sell you what they believe is seasoned wood and although it may burn ok, it isnt. Store it and youll see the difference and know then what im talking about. Good luck

[mcdouche]

You made a video saying use a tool designed to do what the tool does. Ridiculous.