Oak tree, you're in my way

[AACJ]

About a month ago, a tree came down across our back deck. It was an oak tree. I gave some of it to friends with wood burning fireplaces and saved some for camping, but would like to keep some for my smoker.

Does anyone know how long you have to season wood that will be used in a smoker? Or do you need to season the wood at all? I googled it but could not get a good answer.

 

[jag613]

i haven't heard of using oak as smoker wood, is it commin?

 

[luvmysuper]

From what I can see they say season from 6 months to 2 years. Apparently, wood seasoned for more than that is too dry and is basically "fuel wood".
I guess the moisture content has to be at 20% or higher for good smoking.

The article says that Oak is an excellent smoking wood.

http://www.eaglequest.com/~bbq/faq2/8.html

Betcha Jim can answer this question off the top of his head!

 

[_JP_]

About a year or two. Easy to use if you quarter the logs after seasoning. Many pit masters use wood as fuel and not just something thrown on hot coals

 

[Jim]

Oak and beef are best of friends!

The key is it must be dry enough to burn cleanly.

If you cut, split and stack it loosly where the wind can blow through it and you can keep the rain and snow off, 6-10 months could do it. One thing to look for is - if you can break the bark away without a great deal of effort then you should be good to go. I would much prefer too dry than too wet.