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O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects.......

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RoNofohio

11-20-2006 07:58:29

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Having a wood burning fireplace is relatively new to me. I Just wanted to know if any of you carry insects into your homes as I appearantly do. My woods are full of wood roaches and inchworms and many times, during milder days, I see these insects hiding under some pretty tight bark. I don't use rotting wood. But some of the wood has been allowed to 'season' in a pile next to the garage. This year, I put up a plastic tent to stack and store green wood on pallets, but last week when I went to pick some up, roaches scattered everywhere. Maybe it's the cherry wood that I use. We have lots of trees to use, but mostly cherry and poplar. Neither is very good as firewood I've been told. I tell my wife (as she screams) that they will not live in the house, but I have seen an occasional roach wondering around aimlessly in my home. I see quite a few of you use wood for heat. Do you have a problem with insects? Any suggestions as to what I can do to protect my home. We don't need the fireplace for heat, but it is nice to have it in the winter. Sorry for the long post and Thanks in advance for any responds..Ron

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Dunk

11-20-2006 16:27:41

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to RoNofohio, 11-20-2006 07:58:29

Those outside critters don"t seem to take up inside, we have been bringing wood in and burning it for many, many years, our primary heat source.

Now if you are too paranoid about them, go git yerself a pair of cowboy boots with pointy toes, that way you can still stomp em, even if they git in the corner.

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DON TX

11-20-2006 15:35:30

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to RoNofohio, 11-20-2006 07:58:29

I have wood roachs in my shop/office and I don't keep wood in my shop til the day before a coooold front is comin'. I can kill one a day. They get in our house occasionaly to terrify the wife. No fireplace there, at all. That's the price of living in the country and the house is only 6 yrs old, concrete slab. HTH
DON TX

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AM-Seb

11-20-2006 13:14:33

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to RoNofohio, 11-20-2006 07:58:29

Also keep logs outside, uncovered on blocks and 4X4s. We get plenty of rain (Sebastopol, CA) but snow is a rarity. I cross stack logs, branch pieces so air space between, and am a "wood banger" which gets most bugs off. If run into ants I use Raid House & Garden aerosol without saturating the log and leave it for next time. I wait a couple of days after rain, then lean a supply against our long, south facing brick planter box. and /or on concrete patio. After a day or two I bang them again and stack closely in a rack in our adjoining garage. Works well for me, though very occasionally I'll have a "weeper" log in the fireplace--water frothing at log ends. Well-stacked seasoned logs don't seem to take too long to get dry again. Angelo

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TheOldHokie

11-20-2006 11:18:44

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to RoNofohio, 11-20-2006 07:58:29

I don't stockpile anything inside the house for this very reason. What comes in off the wood pile goes immediately into the fireplace. I don't have a documented case of any insect surviving ;-) An occasional quick thinker will abandon ship before the load docks but if I don't spot it the dog will. And I don't discard firewood because it has a bug in it any more than I discard an ear of corn if I find a worm in it.

Poplar's a quick burner but my place is loaded with it and the price ($0) is right so I burn a good bit of it. A good wrap-around firescreen seems to handle the popping quite reliably. I don't cut standing timber for firewood - it's all deadfall - so it's whatever species Mother Nature delivers.

YMMV,

TOH

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RoNofohio

11-20-2006 11:35:50

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to TheOldHokie, 11-20-2006 11:18:44

I need to get a dog. I don't keep more inside by the fireplace than a small hopper will tote. Which is a couple of arm loads, but as I watch the blazing logs, I am also keenly aware of those few pieces that are still in the hopper and I'm on the lookout for bugs. Life has to be more than that. I said to my wife that I just might wait until it really gets cold outside. Maybe by then they'll be frozen stiff and will make that snapping and popping sound we all love....thanks for the info..Ron

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Carl S in NH

11-20-2006 14:33:37

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Firewood keeper in reply to RoNofohio, 11-20-2006 11:35:50

Perhaps you could make a decorative firewood box with a hinged lid to keep your firewood near the fireplace. Then there'd be less chance of any little critters getting out into the house. Carry in a load from outside, empty it into the box, put the lid down and quit worrying about it. The box would also contain the little bits of bark debris that always seem to fall off whenever two logs are stacked together. How're your carpentry skills? lol Then maybe your wife will relax about the bug invasions and you can warm your toes by the fire in peace!

Carl

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TheOldHokie

11-20-2006 11:49:56

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to RoNofohio, 11-20-2006 11:35:50

Maybe by then they'll be frozen stiff

Yep. It's not at all uncommon for me to find a big wad of comotose ants inside an otherwise solid looking piece when I'm splitting wood. If I'm splitting stuff to carry in I just bang the piece against something solid to dislodge as many as possible and toss the rest into the fire. The heat revives any that remain just long enough to meet their maker fully awake.

TOH

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FarmerDawn

11-20-2006 09:44:48

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to RoNofohio, 11-20-2006 07:58:29

This will probably sound REALLY stupid, but ... when we lived in Texas I had bugs get in under the bark of fire wood that was stacked under pecan trees next to a goat pasture. What I learned was that if I banged the wood REAL HARD against the porch as I was bringing it up from there to stack close to the front door in a smaller pile, the bugs would run out of it. Mind you, I really smacked it around with sharp bangs. But it worked. I did it against the far outside edge of the high porch side and then threw the logs across the length of the porch against another wall closer to the front door. Only had one here and there ever make it into the house. It's a good way to take out a bad day, too!! :-) Hope this helps a little. --Dawn

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RoNofohio

11-20-2006 11:54:57

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to FarmerDawn, 11-20-2006 09:44:48

Thanks for the reply. I actually do bang each piece against each other to try to dislodge. But you never know if you got them all until you see the little varmits sashaying across the floor.

Last I heard about Arthur's engine, it had a couple of major cracks to repair. What is the status now? Ron

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FarmerDawn

11-20-2006 13:47:06

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to RoNofohio, 11-20-2006 11:54:57

Status is "still holding" but at least that's better than if he'd gotten burnt up. So I figure that's still ahead. :-) It looks like I'll be working on other things to go ahead and keep renovating him, and then getting that block fixed after I get some more funds in. We've been kind of crimped for cash since the fire (because of having to put all the animals on hay immediately, for one thing). But I am still looking forward to getting that block to that special shop in Detroit and maybe even taking it myself so I can see what those giant ovens look like! --Dawn

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Ken S.

11-20-2006 09:35:25

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to RoNofohio, 11-20-2006 07:58:29

Ron, Cherry is among the highest btu output of commonly used firewoods. I burn it and hickory almost exclusively. Poplar although easy to split, is among the lowest in btu's and "pops" alot (blowing hot coals out in the floor) is a poor choice. Poplar also degrades very quickly. As for the bugs, if they're under the bark of your firewood, it's to old.

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RoNofohio

11-20-2006 11:43:52

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to Ken S., 11-20-2006 09:35:25

All of this batch was cut green, split, and stacked in a portable garage (big plastic tent) on pallats, about 6" off the ground last spring. But it still got infested. I can, as Farmer Dawn said, bang them against each other and get rid of most of the bugs. But a few will make it to the warm house. Hopefully, they will stay under the bark until they meet their maker...thanks for the info...Ron

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Carl S in NH

11-20-2006 08:43:33

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to RoNofohio, 11-20-2006 07:58:29

I have been burning wood as my primary fuel source for over 25 years now. My usual procedure is to cut my wood in the fall for the next year's wood supply. In August I bring all 3 cords of it into my unfinished basement. I never have to go outside for wood all winter. Most of the insects that come in are spiders. Sometimes there are wood borers in the wood, but they stay there and get burned when the wood does. I am very careful not to bring in any wood that has had carpenter ants in the wood. I have no experience with what you describe as wood roaches. If your wood gets wet, then you can get some creepy crawlies like centipedes, millipedes & slugs on it, but my wood is covered with some old metal roofing sheets, and I bring it inside during the dryest month (August).
To help prevent insects entering the wood, try to store it up off the ground. You can use a few concrete patio blocks with some 4x4's strung across them to get the whole pile off the ground. Store it where it will get sun & wind to dry it and put some plywood or other covering on top to keep the rain off it.
To sum up, I haven't found insects to be more than a minor nusiance.

Carl

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RoNofohio

11-20-2006 11:48:57

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Re: O.T. Logs for fireplace and insects....... in reply to Carl S in NH, 11-20-2006 08:43:33

I'm thinking that you might be on the right track and maybe the plastic tent doesn't allow enough sunshine or air movement to thoroughly dry the wood. Next year, I'll create another system..Thanks for the reply...Ron

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gahorN

11-21-2006 07:22:32

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DON'T STORE WOOD NEXT TO THE BLDG! in reply to RoNofohio, 11-20-2006 11:48:57

Don't store wood next to your bldg unless you want termites to start eating your house. Keep wood piled away from the building, and stack it loosely to allow it to air dry. It's amazing how much damage those little guys can do in only a couple days time.

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RoNofohio

11-21-2006 08:31:42

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Re: DON'T STORE WOOD NEXT TO THE BLDG! in reply to gahorN, 11-21-2006 07:22:32

Good advice...Thanks..Ron

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