# hickory



## lamoncha lover (Mar 1, 2009)

I was wondering why we were told that hickory is a bad wood to burn in a new efficient wood stove?


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## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Who the devil told you that........?????


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## Harry Chickpea (Dec 19, 2008)

My guess would be that the "efficient" stove is made of cheap sheet metal that can't stand the heat. Hickory coals can burn hot, almost like mined coal.


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## Jim S. (Apr 22, 2004)

Yep, if hickory is bad to burn in there, I would not want that stove because that means well-seasoned oak and a lot of other hardwoods will be bad for it, too. I used to burn hickory all the time, it is my favorite wood, but lately the oaks on my place have been falling, so oak it is! I takes what I gets.


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## artificer (Feb 26, 2007)

Hickory is in the top 5 for btu/cord. If you're heating with wood, the higher the btu/cord, the less wood you have to buy/cut and split.

I bought some cherry a few years ago in an emergency. The seller was saying that there was some hickory, but it burned too hot. He liked the cherry because of its smell. The wood ended up being 30% moisture, even though it had been cut 2 years before. I didn't find out until it was unloaded that it hadn't been split until the day before he loaded it. That's the type of wood he burned. Obviously in a fireplace, not as main source of heat. Boutique wood is what I've started calling it.

The only problem with hickory is that its sometimes hard to split. The weight of the pieces is right up there as well.

Michael


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## lamoncha lover (Mar 1, 2009)

well heck//this doesnt sound good...
guess I will have to ask her to explain
i think we have a ton of hickory and some oal. It best be burnable


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## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Before you listen to her-- suggest you google up a chart on firewood: good better best

One of my books around here has that info...........

There be many a folk who just don't know............

Hard to imagine a *stove* being built that could not handle the *good* wood........


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## lamoncha lover (Mar 1, 2009)

after checking online I see hickory has a high BTU and is rated as one of the best woods for burns. I may have been mistaken and can't imagine a stove for the price we paid not being able to burn it. If it is a fact..They will be getting the dirtiest nastiest letter they ever saw. Everyday for the next 10 years or so....


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## agmantoo (May 23, 2003)

Harry Chickpea's guess is right on in the above post. You will have issues, warpage and cracks, if you burn the high btu varieties of wood in real hot fires.


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## Ky-Jeeper (Sep 5, 2010)

I love Hickory the best. I built my stove out of a 75 gal diesel tank. Metal is not much thicker than metal barrels. No issues at all. If it can not handle hickory it does not need to be in your house. A true fire hazard may be in the works. Just my two cents.


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## lamoncha lover (Mar 1, 2009)

Good question! Hickory is great fireplace wood, but when used in a high efficiency stove without much air, it become almost explosive when first given air (like when you add firewood to the stove first thing in the morning). You would think 50 - 4th of July sparkers were lit all at once! It also tends to fall apart and turn into &#8220;coals&#8221; way too fast, which gets buried by its own ash, and these piece just about quit burning for lack of air. If they fall against the glass and pile up, they (the hot coals) can permanently etch the glass. And all those extra coals buried in the ash die out and make the ash accumulate very quickly, very bulky. Yes, it does smell good, and it is wonderful for barbequing. A piece here & there&#8230; no problem, but I would not wish a steady diet of hickory on any of my customers.


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## Esteban29304 (Apr 29, 2003)

Burns HOT,,, but just keep a smaller fire in the stove.


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## Harry Chickpea (Dec 19, 2008)

lamoncha, that response you got is highly questionable. I'd go into it more, but am late for a meeting.


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## artificer (Feb 26, 2007)

I can see a possible reason why people MIGHT say hickory burns too hot. If you burn softwoods, cherry, wetter, or similar lower btu/cord wood, you will not be able to overheat your stove/heater. If you burn any high btu/cord wood that is very dry, split small, stacked with good ventilation, and then let your stove/heater run full out, you could get it too hot. Glowing red is defiantly not a good thing.

So... burn low btu wood, and no matter how you abuse the stove, it will be safe. Burn high btu dry wood, and you have to exercise some restraint and control the fire.

There are several ways to control the heat production. The air damper is the first control. Cut off most of the air, and it will not burn as fast. Don't let the fire smolder, but you also don't want it roaring away. Actually, less wood at one time is the first control. You can also split wood into larger pieces. One large piece of wood will burn slower than an equivalent amount of wood split into smaller pieces. If you have wood thats been split very small, then you can stack it tighter to control the air flow through the stack. Less air means less heat.

I wouldn't be afraid to burn hickory, as long as you monitor the temperature the stove gets to.

Michael

Michael


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## Jim S. (Apr 22, 2004)

My stove is homemade out of 1/4" thick steel plate and lined with firebrick. I have found over the years that the people who say they have trouble with wood ruining their stoves either have the flimsy thin steel ones or the cheapo China cast iron ones.

You need precise airflow control and a good stove, and you can burn anything in it. I have burned osage orange in mine, none the worse for wear. Been using this stove for 22 years and it was here when we bought.


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