Cheap wood chunks & free sawdust

[SmokinAl]

I have been buying wood splits in bags here for years. They are all hardwood. This bag is a mixture of red oak, hickory, and pecan. They sell these at the grocery stores & big box stores around here in the winter for $5.49 per bag. In the spring if they have any left it goes for $2-$3 per bag. I usually buy a few bags in the spring & I have wood all year. Here's the bag I buy.

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• SmokinAl
• Feb 23, 2016

I'm going to cut up these 2 red oak splits today.

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• SmokinAl
• Feb 23, 2016

Get out the chop saw.

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• SmokinAl
• Feb 23, 2016

These are the different sizes I cut them into. Thin for the Smoke Vault, thicker for the 14.5 WSM, and the large one will be used in the 18.5 & 22.5 WSM's.

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• SmokinAl
• Feb 23, 2016

This is what I cut today from those 2 splits.

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• SmokinAl
• Feb 23, 2016

These larger ones are in my shed for storage.

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• SmokinAl
• Feb 23, 2016

Here's where I store the splits.

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• SmokinAl
• Feb 23, 2016

The best part is when I empty out the dust bag, I have free sawdust for the Amazen.

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• SmokinAl
• Feb 23, 2016

Cool huh?

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• SmokinAl
• Feb 23, 2016

Thanks for looking, hope you can take advantage of this.

Al

 

[worktogthr]

Thats a great idea Al! I should start doing this because I'm always unhappy with the size and lack of consistency when I buy bags of chunks from lowes or home depot.  Quick question?  In the WSM 18 would you use just one of the splits?  Does it affect the cooking temp much with that big piece of wood sitting on the coals?

 

[SmokinAl]

 
Thats a great idea Al! I should start doing this because I'm always unhappy with the size and lack of consistency when I buy bags of chunks from lowes or home depot.  Quick question?  In the WSM 18 would you use just one of the splits?  Does it affect the cooking temp much with that big piece of wood sitting on the coals?

I usually put 2 of them in the ring, 1 on each side.

Then fill the middle with charcoal, leaving a hole at one end.

I put 12 -14 lit coals at the end in the hole & it will burn down the middle from one end to the other.

The fire is always in contact with the wood, so you get nice TBS, but not any real burning wood to raise the temp.

Hope this helps, I was trying to find a photo of this but I couldn't.

Next time I use the WSM I'll take some photo's of how I set it up.

Al

 

[gnappi]

 
I have been buying wood splits in bags here for years. They are all hardwood. This bag is a mixture of red oak, hickory, and pecan. They sell these at the grocery stores & big box stores around here in the winter for $5.49 per bag. In the spring if they have any left it goes for $2-$3 per bag. I usually buy a few bags in the spring & I have wood all year. Here's the bag I buy.

2-23-16 1.JPG

• SmokinAl
• Feb 23, 2016

I'm going to cut up these 2 red oak splits today.

Get out the chop saw.

2-23-16 3.JPG

• SmokinAl
• Feb 23, 2016

Cool huh?
Thanks for looking, hope you can take advantage of this.

Al

I was going to make a similar post, you beat me to it... good on ya.

Gads, you make BIG chunks, I've only ever made mine 1/2 of that. They smoke fast and stay smoldering long enough. Is there a reason for such large chunks?

I've been buying that type of wood for years at Home Depot for my fire pit, and am just getting back into smoking and I plan on using it also, but it does have some issues... sometimes.

Some pieces are way too wide for my (smaller than yours) chop saw, and they have to be split vertically so a nice axe with a handy wood splitting wedge /maul nearby is nice because some of the pieces come from the base of the tree where it tapers out really wide.and get gnarly grain that's tough to split.

Since it's mixed species wood, you never know what wood you're using. I'm not a Forrester or Arborist so I'm at the mercy of chance.

Wood in some bundles has begun to rot, for a fire pit fireplace or chiminea it's no problem, you can use that up there, but it pays to peer into the bag and see if there's any wood turning moldy or black.

Here's a pic of the stuff regularly available in the cooler months in south Florida.

firewood.jpg

• gnappi
• Feb 23, 2016

 

[SmokinAl]

 
I was going to make a similar post, you beat me to it... good on ya.

Hey Gary,

Gads, you make BIG chunks, I've only ever made mine 1/2 of that. They smoke fast and stay smoldering long enough. Is there a reason for such large chunks?

The reason I use big chunks is they burn longer & tend to smolder and don't catch fire & cause a temp spike.

I've been buying that type of wood for years at Home Depot for my fire pit, and am just getting back into smoking and I plan on using it also, but it does have some issues... sometimes.

Some pieces are way too wide for my (smaller than yours) chop saw, and they have to be split vertically so a nice axe with a handy wood splitting wedge /maul nearby is nice because some of the pieces come from the base of the tree where it tapers out really wide.and get gnarly grain that's tough to split.

I just bought that 12" saw from a friend, because I had the same problem with a 10" one, sometimes the splits were too thick & I  had to split them again.

Since it's mixed species wood, you never know what wood you're using. I'm not a Forrester or Arborist so I'm at the mercy of chance.

It's pretty easy to tell the different woods once they are cut into disks. I've been doing this for years & I'm no arborist either.

Wood in some bundles has begun to rot, for a fire pit fireplace or chiminea it's no problem, you can use that up there, but it pays to peer into the bag and see if there's any wood turning moldy or black.

Haven't had a problem with mold on the wood yet, maybe it's not a humid here as it is where you are at. I lived in Ft. Lauderdale for 35 years & the humidity there was much higher than here.

Here's a pic of the stuff regularly available in the cooler months in south Florida.

They were selling the same bags here last season. I think I bought 4 or 5 last spring.

firewood.jpg

• gnappi
• Feb 23, 2016

 

[Bearcarver]

Great Tutorial, Al. !!!

I'm sure since you've been doing this for a long time, you know what you're doing.
However for those who never cut rough, odd shaped wood pieces, like logs & limbs, I would like to add here that extra care should be taken.
When you don't have a straight side on a piece of wood, you should be sure to position the wood so it is against the back fence nearest the blade , and hold tight. If the wood is away from the fence while cutting, it could easily move, causing it to bind the blade, and Kick, jump, or do anything else that you may not be expecting, and are not ready for.
Be careful to not allow any small pieces or chips get in between the piece being cut & the back fence. That chip could hold the piece away from the fence at the beginning of the cut, and then jump over the chip during the cut, causing that same kind of jamming & unwanted movement.
It only takes a Split Second to cause a Lifetime of Misery.

PS: I just noticed how old this thread is, but my comment is no less important (IMHO).

Bear

 

[SmokinAl]

Great Tutorial, Al. !!!

I'm sure since you've been doing this for a long time, you know what you're doing.
However for those who never cut rough, odd shaped wood pieces, like logs & limbs, I would like to add here that extra care should be taken.
When you don't have a straight side on a piece of wood, you should be sure to position the wood so it is against the back fence nearest the blade , and hold tight. If the wood is away from the fence while cutting, it could easily move, causing it to bind the blade, and Kick, jump, or do anything else that you may not be expecting, and are not ready for.
Be careful to not allow any small pieces or chips get in between the piece being cut & the back fence. That chip could hold the piece away from the fence at the beginning of the cut, and then jump over the chip during the cut, causing that same kind of jamming & unwanted movement.
It only takes a Split Second to cause a Lifetime of Misery.

PS: I just noticed how old this thread is, but my comment is no less important (IMHO).

Bear

Your exactly right John!
I wear gloves & safety glasses, and go really slow. Even with all the precautions I still have one kick back once in a while. So yes be careful, but it sure saves a lot of money, so I continue to just keep cutting my own wood discs. And I sharpen the blade quite often, because if it’s not really sharp it will either burn the wood or get stuck & kick back.
Al

 

[BrianGSDTexoma]

Think this saw would work?

 

[Bearcarver]

Think this saw would work?

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View attachment 519504

Sure that would work.
Just be extra careful with it until you get comfortable with it, and then keep being careful. Don't be afraid of it, just respect it.

Bear

 

[BrianGSDTexoma]

Sure that would work.
Just be extra careful with it until you get comfortable with it, and then keep being careful. Don't be afraid of it, just respect it.

Bear

IThanks Bear. I was getting ready to order a blade for bow saw that I use to cut pecan but try to get this. Not sure if it the blade, think I bought one last year, or me getting older but wearing me out!

 

[forktender]

If the splits are too big for the chop saw, you can always use a splitting maul or a steel wedge and a sledgehammer to split them to make them smaller. Heck, I've split a truckload of Oak with a wedge and hammer by hand, it's not that hard. It's best to have two wedges in case one gets stuck.

 

[forktender]

Think this saw would work?

View attachment 519503
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For that price you can't go wrong, as long as it works....I bet someone is missing their chop saw, though.

 

[BrianGSDTexoma]

For that price you can't go wrong, as long as it works....I bet someone is missing their chop saw, though.

Did not notice ad over 2 months old. Will keep looking.

 

[SmokinAl]

That will work just fine Brian, I used a 10” saw for years, before getting a 12” model.
Al