Prep work for wood

[bame]

i just got some timber from a guy i found on craigslist. I test burned a couple chips and its mostly hickory. I'm doing a big smoke on friday and wanted to know what prep work if any i need to do to the logs (if any). I assume that i need to take off the bark and get them into small enough logs to fit my smoke box (i have a char-griller smokin pro). Any help would be great since this if my first time going "natural" opposed buying chunks from a store.

 

[blzafour]

It wont hurt a thing to leave the bark on . I never take the bark off of hickory and I have had no problems.

 

[sumosmoke]

Do you happen to know how recently the wood has been cut? Or, how long it's been sitting out, or seasoning? If it's just been cut it's green wood and won't provide the true smoke flavor you're looking for. If it's been sitting out for some time and is really dry, then smokes away!

 

[slanted88]

Exactly what Sister said!......

 

[richoso1]

What she said.

 

[rio_grande]

Can wood be too dry??

i have access to a bunch of oak,, but it has been stored in the building for 15 years..

 

[rickw]

If not rotten I can't see why you couldn't use it.

 

[smokewood]

It depends where and how the wood has been kept.  Wood is hydroscopic so it will either loose or gain moisture depending on the environment it is stored or kept in. If you live somewhere hot & dry it will dry out. 

 

[joe black]

Yeah....move some outside for a couple of weeks and check the moisture content if you can. If not, just start a small fire with several slits of it and see how it does.

For Bame, I'd make sure that my splits were pretty small until you have a good handle on how it's gonna work. If it has a lot of minus true still in it, the smaller splits will dry much faster.

 

[phatbac]

If you are looking for flavoring chunks try 4-6" long half to whole coke can thickness. If i was using splits i would go whole coke can thickness or so with 10-12" long. I would make sure it has been dried (kiln) or seasoned for a year minimum.

Happy smoking,
phatbac (Aaron)