I've been doing round stacks for the last 3 or 4 years now, thanks to Steve Maxwell's informative videos. Mine have stood (literally) the test of time without collapsing, and without the addition of the 8' stabilizer poles through the stack (I didn't have any, and wasn't about to BUY 8' 2x4s!), because I make SURE the outer wall (usually made of TWO rings of stacked wood) all tilts INWARD, not level. Gravity would have those outer pieces fall into the center of the stack, but of course they can't because there's other wood inside. My first-ever stack was made with plumb sides and fairly-level outer-wall pieces. Before it got more than about 5' high, one side bulged outward and collapsed. I re-stacked it all tilted inward, and with the sides slightly sloped into more of a cone/dome shape. I added the tarp over the top and the pile stood through that winter; we only used about half of it, as our wood-stove is used more for comfort in addition to our forced-air gas furnace. (Our dachshunds love to sleep under it.) The following summer was brutally hot and humid, but I persevered and rebuilt the stack and re-covered it, then started a second stack, 10' in diameter. I completed that one and started a third last year, finishing it just before winter. Now I'm starting #4 - I will say with all confidence, I WILL NEVER MAKE ANOTHER LINEAR WOODPILE!!! My brother helped me cut up and split some wood two years ago, and some - just for convenience and speed - I stuck in a linear pile on pallets next to a shed. I tried to tarp it, but the tarp kept blowing off, the perpetually wet pile fell over, and it was a DISMAL failure! There was nothing to anchor either the wood or the tarp to, so it was quite the waste of time and space. Our kayaks now rest on those pallets, and the wood is round-stacked in #3! I must go tackle #4 today, getting it well started. BTW, I open up my 50-lb Purina Dog Chow sacks and birdseed bags, spread them flat on the ground to the size of my circle, then build on top of them to keep the wood from rotting in contact with the earth, or freezing to it. If I didn't have the feed sacks, I would lay a tarp on the ground, tucking it into a round shape so I can mow around the stack without shredding the plastic. I also spread any bark chips around the base as a mulch - I'm using mostly black walnut wood, so those chips do NOT go to mulch plants. It keeps the grass and weeds down, in proximity to the stacks, and those that do come up are easier to pull out. Thanks, Steve, for the motivation to make ROUND wood stacks!
I remember doing this in the Boy Scouts (Eagle Scout here) many many years ago. The designed lasted for a long time over at Summer camps. This truly works. Thanks again Steve for your awesome tips and advice.
I built my first one this year. If you consistently angle the wood inward as you go up the wood thrown in the middle will actually hold up the outer wall and won't have to worry about the outer wall collapsing outward and you won't need a tarp on top because the wood angled inward will run the water off. As the pile gets higher, the wood tends to level off - this is when you add another circular foundation to the pile keeping everything angled in. It actually should get more narrow the higher you go. Most Germans (the originators) will stand the inside pieces straight up and down, but that's not a big deal. All my oddball pieces end up in the middle.
Thank you! Loved the video, after watching it I made a compass with a 6 inch stake nail and some Para cord I had laying around and I made a pile. I'm still surprised how easy and nice these piles look, I wont be stacking wood the linear way again!
i like stacking like this to hide my odd ball size and shape splits. I personally have noticed it to dry the wood a little slower then a more traditional style of stack though. (using moister meter to test) Great video!
Hello Mr. Maxwell. Very interesting tips. Especially with the stakes thru the heart of the pile. I am going to try this. I am a little concerned about the tarp on top. This keeps the rain from above but keeps the water from escaping from below too. Have you not experienced mould under the tarp? Is there a hole in the middle? I am covering mine with tiles made from bark and it works well in my clime which is Northern Europe - Denmark. I am considering steel wire around the piles because they want to walk sometimes. But the stakes are more elegant. Best regards, Jacek S.
Tried this a couple of years ago and they fell apart. I hadn't used the poles tho. I think I'll give it another try next year. They take up less space and look sharp as hell.
Great videos. I learned a lot. I have a small 485 sq ft house I am redoing. Great ideas. BTW I have total wood envy. Getting had to find good wood anymore around here. I will try my first round pile this year. Thanks.
Shouldn't the wood be off the ground for proper drying and to keep the bottom from rotting ? I've used the long stick method to tie together parallel wood piles. Does make a nice looking pile !
This is a great way to stack wood. However, I would not recommend using aspen/poplar in this style of wood stacking. This wood has a slippery, waxy coating and the pile will fall over. I learned the hard way.
Been looking forward to getting these started for a couple of months. I had also found "Holzhausen" online, but today is the first time I've seen your video - appreciate the guidance. Had logging done on my land, and part of the payment was having a lot of wood (40 cords?!?) delivered for me. I'll be stacking for awhile! How do you place the 8' poles? Do you have a couple of them side by side, or are they at angles? Thanks!
Wood on the ground = no good. It ruins the bottom layers and allows the wood to absorb moisture from the ground. Wood is hygroscopic big time. Elevate the wood at least 4" off the ground...minimum. Also, good idea about the tarp, but there needs to be a hole in the center so the pile can naturally ventilate out the center.
My stacks, as stated above, are placed on opened-out dog food and birdseed sacks, spread on the ground so my wood doesn't get muddy. The tarp on top does NOT cause mold in the wood beneath it - the whole stack stays surprisingly dry, even in windy, rainy or snowy weather. What does get damp on the outsides also dries quickly because the ends are exposed on all sides. Wet your hands and hold them with the fingers together. See how long it takes for them to dry. Then wet the fingers and spread them apart - they dry a lot faster, don't they?!
If you stack directly on the ground you can toss out the bottom rows of wood or at least it will never dry. Try laying short pieces of 2x4 or such in a circle and stacking on them. I like the posts across the pile but I use circular rings around the OD to keep the pieces from getting too steep.
Hi Mike, Yes, the bottom layer of wood does pick up moisture and we have put some boards down to stop that. But for most of our piles, we just leave the bottom layer of wood in place from one year to the next. This means we don't have to mark another circle, either. We just lay the new wood on the bottom layer of the old one. Piling in the round like this is faster than anything other way (we've tried them all over the last 25+ years). The wood dries fast in the pile and it's easy to keep it dry during use. Thanks for watching! Steve
DruidessME Good Morning! You bet these round pile work in cold, snowy climates. It's -8ºF where I am right now (gets down to -30ºF sometimes) and my round woodpiles work great. I was just out feeding my outdoor boiler a few minutes ago. I hope this helps. Please let me know. Drop by for a visit at stevemaxwell.ca and www.realrurallife.com. I've got lots of interesting videos, tool giveaways and articles there. Bye for now, and thanks for watching! Steve
Hello Steve Thanks for the tips :-) What a nice video Good idea with long logs for holding the stack together, i am gonna use that when im making my next wood pile. Greetings from Denmark Claus Buch
Good Morning Bruce! That's a great question. In practice, I never remove the bottom layer of wood from the ground. There are two reasons why. First, the remaining circle of wood marks where I need to start stacking a new pile. And second, that bottom layer of wood does pick up a lot of moisture, so it's not great for burning. As this bottom layer slowly rots down (after maybe 3 or 4 years), it's automatically replaced by another new layer of bottom pieces. In practice is all works really well, and the wood I burn is nice and dry. Drop by my website baileylineroad.com for a visit sometime. You'll find lots of stuff there, including tool giveaways, articles and lots of other stuff of interest to hands-on, how-to people. Bye for now and thanks for watching! Steve
Bark side down dries faster than bark up , scandanavian studies shows this , just like wet hair with a hat , hair will be wet a long time compared to open hair .
I did not say total , when was the last time you seen my pile or a scandanavian pile fall over . A small round piece is bark up down and all around , it is not rocket science , just a proven suggestion.
Hi Dreemwever! That's a very good and reasonable question. We don't have termites where I live, but moisture and other insects are a potential problem. In practice with these round piles, I just leave the bottom layer of wood on the ground. It lasts for years before it rots, and it keeps the burning wood up and off the soil.. Leaving the bottom layer also means that I don't have to layout a new circle each year. I just start stacking on the bottom layer. Drop by for a visit sometime at my online destinations: stevemaxwell.ca and realrurallife.com. You’ll find lots of new videos, articles and product giveaways, plus a chance to see what we’re up to on our island homestead. Take care, Dreemwever, and thanks for watching. Steve
Did NOT find this method faster to build than a linear stack. Found that it was much slower. You have to measure the diameter, place ropes, and put concrete or something to prevent rot on the bottom layer. Then you must sort wood based on size and length, have 8ft poles, and do not forget a stable center pole that must be deep enough in the ground. So from planning and measuring, preparing and sorting, it is quite a bit slower in my experience.
Hi seudy111, If I told you that riding a bicycle was easier than walking, and you tried a bicycle a couple of times with no previous experience, you'd probably conclude that walking is easier than riding a bike. The benefits of many things in life only happen when you're good at the skills involved. How many round piles have you built? Perhaps you simply need more practice stacking round. It also sounds like you might be going about things with more trouble than necessary. The rope exercise is a one-time thing only. You never lift the bottom layer of wood, so you only need to use the rope once. The old wood shows you where to stack the new wood. Also, there's no center pole and there's certainly no need for a concrete base. You simply leave the bottom layer of wood in place from year to year. Bark and bits of wood build up and form a very nice base that lifts the wood off the ground. I've been heating my northern house exclusively with wood since 1991, and I've cut and stacked more than a thousand cords of firewood during that time. Stacking in round piles is roughy twice as fast as stacking in linear piles. It's especially fast when you use a loader tractor to dump the wood into the pile after the outer walls have risen a bit. I could stack round or straight. Since I don't have time to waste I do the job the fastest way possible, with round piles. Just some thoughts. Thanks for watching! Steve
Do you stack it that way with "green" unseasoned wood? Seems to me that there would be a lot of moldy wood on the inside od the pile. I love the concept and want to try this, but I am splitting green wood now for next winter and don't want the mold. I am stacking in single rows now, but running out of room.
As long as you stack in full sun, not shade, there will be no mold. I have did both shade and sun. The sun is fine. After two years, the shaded pile has what I call dead mold. The wood is 13 % moisture which is perfect for burning, but has a dust on it which was once mold. I moved it all into my metal building which hoovers around 105 degrees in the summer sun, and it cleans up well. But again the sun Holz is clean and no mold, or mold dust.
if you stack wood properly in squares it wont fall over and you can also place a tarp over the top as well ... i am sorry but i just dont see the point
Good Morning grizz270. One of the big advantages of stacking round is speed. You only stack the outer wood. All the wood inside the circles are just thrown in. These days when we cut wood we split right into the bucket of a loader tractor, drive over to the round pile, then dump the loose wood inside the circle as it goes up. We save the best wood for the round walls, and put all the wonky bits and short blocks inside (along with whatever full blocks we don't use for the wall). This approach speeds stacking so it's 2 or 3 times as fast. We've stacked in straight piles for years, but we find this method is less work. The wood dries well, too. Bye for now, Steve
I've been doing round stacks for the last 3 or 4 years now, thanks to Steve Maxwell's informative videos. Mine have stood (literally) the test of time without collapsing, and without the addition of the 8' stabilizer poles through the stack (I didn't have any, and wasn't about to BUY 8' 2x4s!), because I make SURE the outer wall (usually made of TWO rings of stacked wood) all tilts INWARD, not level. Gravity would have those outer pieces fall into the center of the stack, but of course they can't because there's other wood inside. My first-ever stack was made with plumb sides and fairly-level outer-wall pieces. Before it got more than about 5' high, one side bulged outward and collapsed. I re-stacked it all tilted inward, and with the sides slightly sloped into more of a cone/dome shape. I added the tarp over the top and the pile stood through that winter; we only used about half of it, as our wood-stove is used more for comfort in addition to our forced-air gas furnace. (Our dachshunds love to sleep under it.) The following summer was brutally hot and humid, but I persevered and rebuilt the stack and re-covered it, then started a second stack, 10' in diameter. I completed that one and started a third last year, finishing it just before winter. Now I'm starting #4 - I will say with all confidence, I WILL NEVER MAKE ANOTHER LINEAR WOODPILE!!! My brother helped me cut up and split some wood two years ago, and some - just for convenience and speed - I stuck in a linear pile on pallets next to a shed. I tried to tarp it, but the tarp kept blowing off, the perpetually wet pile fell over, and it was a DISMAL failure! There was nothing to anchor either the wood or the tarp to, so it was quite the waste of time and space. Our kayaks now rest on those pallets, and the wood is round-stacked in #3! I must go tackle #4 today, getting it well started. BTW, I open up my 50-lb Purina Dog Chow sacks and birdseed bags, spread them flat on the ground to the size of my circle, then build on top of them to keep the wood from rotting in contact with the earth, or freezing to it. If I didn't have the feed sacks, I would lay a tarp on the ground, tucking it into a round shape so I can mow around the stack without shredding the plastic. I also spread any bark chips around the base as a mulch - I'm using mostly black walnut wood, so those chips do NOT go to mulch plants. It keeps the grass and weeds down, in proximity to the stacks, and those that do come up are easier to pull out. Thanks, Steve, for the motivation to make ROUND wood stacks!
Hmm and where are these videos?
OK somebody needs to get away from the house and the yard a little bit, once in a while…I suggest a jazz club, maybe a movie theater?
I remember doing this in the Boy Scouts (Eagle Scout here) many many years ago. The designed lasted for a long time over at Summer camps. This truly works. Thanks again Steve for your awesome tips and advice.
Thanks Steve ... the cross bracing with a branch is something I haven't seen before ...will get onto it.
I love this...simple direct and clear...
I built my first one this year. If you consistently angle the wood inward as you go up the wood thrown in the middle will actually hold up the outer wall and won't have to worry about the outer wall collapsing outward and you won't need a tarp on top because the wood angled inward will run the water off. As the pile gets higher, the wood tends to level off - this is when you add another circular foundation to the pile keeping everything angled in. It actually should get more narrow the higher you go.
Most Germans (the originators) will stand the inside pieces straight up and down, but that's not a big deal. All my oddball pieces end up in the middle.
Thank you! Loved the video, after watching it I made a compass with a 6 inch stake nail and some Para cord I had laying around and I made a pile. I'm still surprised how easy and nice these piles look, I wont be stacking wood the linear way again!
i like stacking like this to hide my odd ball size and shape splits. I personally have noticed it to dry the wood a little slower then a more traditional style of stack though. (using moister meter to test) Great video!
Now that was worth watching! I've learned enough to go ahead and try it, myself, I think.
Hello Mr. Maxwell. Very interesting tips. Especially with the stakes thru the heart of the pile. I am going to try this. I am a little concerned about the tarp on top. This keeps the rain from above but keeps the water from escaping from below too. Have you not experienced mould under the tarp? Is there a hole in the middle? I am covering mine with tiles made from bark and it works well in my clime which is Northern Europe - Denmark. I am considering steel wire around the piles because they want to walk sometimes. But the stakes are more elegant. Best regards, Jacek S.
I have to try this! Tired of my big long stacks.
Thank you for the great instructions. Going to build my first one.
Tried this a couple of years ago and they fell apart. I hadn't used the poles tho. I think I'll give it another try next year. They take up less space and look sharp as hell.
Great videos. I learned a lot. I have a small 485 sq ft house I am redoing. Great ideas. BTW I have total wood envy. Getting had to find good wood anymore around here. I will try my first round pile this year. Thanks.
Great video! Great explanations! Thank you for the ideas with the plastic and those eight feet long pieces. Awesome!
Very good..... Well thought out for your area. Thanks, might give it a try...
Shouldn't the wood be off the ground for proper drying and to keep the bottom from rotting ? I've used the long stick method to tie together parallel wood piles. Does make a nice looking pile !
Always wondered how they did those!
Wow, great information, Thank you,.
This is a great way to stack wood. However, I would not recommend using aspen/poplar in this style of wood stacking. This wood has a slippery, waxy coating and the pile will fall over. I learned the hard way.
Been looking forward to getting these started for a couple of months. I had also found "Holzhausen" online, but today is the first time I've seen your video - appreciate the guidance. Had logging done on my land, and part of the payment was having a lot of wood (40 cords?!?) delivered for me. I'll be stacking for awhile! How do you place the 8' poles? Do you have a couple of them side by side, or are they at angles? Thanks!
Wood on the ground = no good. It ruins the bottom layers and allows the wood to absorb moisture from the ground. Wood is hygroscopic big time. Elevate the wood at least 4" off the ground...minimum. Also, good idea about the tarp, but there needs to be a hole in the center so the pile can naturally ventilate out the center.
My stacks, as stated above, are placed on opened-out dog food and birdseed sacks, spread on the ground so my wood doesn't get muddy. The tarp on top does NOT cause mold in the wood beneath it - the whole stack stays surprisingly dry, even in windy, rainy or snowy weather. What does get damp on the outsides also dries quickly because the ends are exposed on all sides. Wet your hands and hold them with the fingers together. See how long it takes for them to dry. Then wet the fingers and spread them apart - they dry a lot faster, don't they?!
If you stack directly on the ground you can toss out the bottom rows of wood or at least it will never dry. Try laying short pieces of 2x4 or such in a circle and stacking on them. I like the posts across the pile but I use circular rings around the OD to keep the pieces from getting too steep.
Hi Mike,
Yes, the bottom layer of wood does pick up moisture and we have put some boards down to stop that. But for most of our piles, we just leave the bottom layer of wood in place from one year to the next. This means we don't have to mark another circle, either. We just lay the new wood on the bottom layer of the old one. Piling in the round like this is faster than anything other way (we've tried them all over the last 25+ years). The wood dries fast in the pile and it's easy to keep it dry during use.
Thanks for watching!
Steve
Will this work in cold, snowy climates? We want to build these to dry the wood for the cordwood home we are planning in Maine.
DruidessME Good Morning! You bet these round pile work in cold, snowy climates. It's -8ºF where I am right now (gets down to -30ºF sometimes) and my round woodpiles work great. I was just out feeding my outdoor boiler a few minutes ago. I hope this helps. Please let me know.
Drop by for a visit at stevemaxwell.ca and www.realrurallife.com. I've got lots of interesting videos, tool giveaways and articles there.
Bye for now, and thanks for watching!
Steve
Hello Steve
Thanks for the tips :-) What a nice video
Good idea with long logs for holding the stack together, i am gonna use that when im making my next wood pile.
Greetings from Denmark
Claus Buch
Awesome! Where did you learn this?
great video! im going to try it myself.
Hello Steve, I want to try this method. Can you tell me how much wood (in weigth) there is in a stack of this kind?
What condition are the bottom sticks in after a year on the wet grass ?
Good Morning Bruce! That's a great question. In practice, I never remove the bottom layer of wood from the ground. There are two reasons why. First, the remaining circle of wood marks where I need to start stacking a new pile. And second, that bottom layer of wood does pick up a lot of moisture, so it's not great for burning. As this bottom layer slowly rots down (after maybe 3 or 4 years), it's automatically replaced by another new layer of bottom pieces. In practice is all works really well, and the wood I burn is nice and dry.
Drop by my website baileylineroad.com for a visit sometime. You'll find lots of stuff there, including tool giveaways, articles and lots of other stuff of interest to hands-on, how-to people.
Bye for now and thanks for watching!
Steve
Thank you!
Bark side down dries faster than bark up , scandanavian studies shows this , just like wet hair with a hat , hair will be wet a long time compared to open hair .
I did not say total , when was the last time you seen my pile or a scandanavian pile fall over . A small round piece is bark up down and all around , it is not rocket science , just a proven suggestion.
This is great. I think I'll sit it on some pallets. Cheers.
Cool Never saw that kind of pile!
Very interesting, thanks
how many cord is in a round pile
Being that you place directly on the ground..... Any concern given with regard to 'Termites, Insects?
Hi Dreemwever!
That's a very good and reasonable question. We don't have termites where I live, but moisture and other insects are a potential problem. In practice with these round piles, I just leave the bottom layer of wood on the ground. It lasts for years before it rots, and it keeps the burning wood up and off the soil.. Leaving the bottom layer also means that I don't have to layout a new circle each year. I just start stacking on the bottom layer.
Drop by for a visit sometime at my online destinations: stevemaxwell.ca and realrurallife.com. You’ll find lots of new videos, articles and product giveaways, plus a chance to see what we’re up to on our island homestead.
Take care, Dreemwever, and thanks for watching.
Steve
Doesn’t the wood soak up moisture from the ground?
Yes it will, if you don't put it on a tarp or pallets, the bottom layer starts to rot. But the upper layers are fine.
@@rickoleum Thanks for your reply!
Did NOT find this method faster to build than a linear stack. Found that it was much slower. You have to measure the diameter, place ropes, and put concrete or something to prevent rot on the bottom layer. Then you must sort wood based on size and length, have 8ft poles, and do not forget a stable center pole that must be deep enough in the ground. So from planning and measuring, preparing and sorting, it is quite a bit slower in my experience.
Hi seudy111,
If I told you that riding a bicycle was easier than walking, and you tried a bicycle a couple of times with no previous experience, you'd probably conclude that walking is easier than riding a bike. The benefits of many things in life only happen when you're good at the skills involved. How many round piles have you built? Perhaps you simply need more practice stacking round.
It also sounds like you might be going about things with more trouble than necessary. The rope exercise is a one-time thing only. You never lift the bottom layer of wood, so you only need to use the rope once. The old wood shows you where to stack the new wood. Also, there's no center pole and there's certainly no need for a concrete base. You simply leave the bottom layer of wood in place from year to year. Bark and bits of wood build up and form a very nice base that lifts the wood off the ground.
I've been heating my northern house exclusively with wood since 1991, and I've cut and stacked more than a thousand cords of firewood during that time. Stacking in round piles is roughy twice as fast as stacking in linear piles. It's especially fast when you use a loader tractor to dump the wood into the pile after the outer walls have risen a bit.
I could stack round or straight. Since I don't have time to waste I do the job the fastest way possible, with round piles.
Just some thoughts. Thanks for watching!
Steve
Thank you.
Do you stack it that way with "green" unseasoned wood? Seems to me that there would be a lot of moldy wood on the inside od the pile. I love the concept and want to try this, but I am splitting green wood now for next winter and don't want the mold. I am stacking in single rows now, but running out of room.
As long as you stack in full sun, not shade, there will be no mold. I have did both shade and sun. The sun is fine. After two years, the shaded pile has what I call dead mold. The wood is 13 % moisture which is perfect for burning, but has a dust on it which was once mold. I moved it all into my metal building which hoovers around 105 degrees in the summer sun, and it cleans up well. But again the sun Holz is clean and no mold, or mold dust.
Did these for twenty years
agree !
The rats mice and copperheads will love that here
Cool!
Nice
How the U.S. Forest service stacks their wood
if you stack wood properly in squares it wont fall over and you can also place a tarp over the top as well ... i am sorry but i just dont see the point
Good Morning grizz270. One of the big advantages of stacking round is speed. You only stack the outer wood. All the wood inside the circles are just thrown in. These days when we cut wood we split right into the bucket of a loader tractor, drive over to the round pile, then dump the loose wood inside the circle as it goes up. We save the best wood for the round walls, and put all the wonky bits and short blocks inside (along with whatever full blocks we don't use for the wall). This approach speeds stacking so it's 2 or 3 times as fast. We've stacked in straight piles for years, but we find this method is less work. The wood dries well, too.
Bye for now,
Steve
Or you can just use electricity to heat up your house :)
These are garbage....I bought one. False alerts at 2am in the morning are annoying.