Just got delivered wet wood, need to smoke tomorrow - ideas?

[theTastyCat]

Hey all - I'm smoking meatloaves for the family Christmas tomorrow and just got delivered half a rick of wet hickory. It's from a guy I've used a lot before and he's great - he promised that it's well-seasoned but it's been sitting outside and it's just very wet to the touch. I recently left some cherry in the rain for a few hours and then tried to smoke with it - man, that was horrible!! Watched moisture constantly dripping out the end of each split while they were in the firebox.

I'd be smoking on a Pecos offset, but I've also got an MES 40 that I could use worst-case. BUT, now I'm thinking maybe I could fill the MES with wood tonight and just use it as an oven tonight to dry out enough wood to smoke tomorrow?? What do you all think is the best play here?

Sure appreciate all the help - truly this forum is the friendliest place on the net!!!!

 

[WilliamKY]

My best advice is the biggest fan you have. Put the wood in front of it and let it go on high all night. Overnight might not be enough but it's worth a shot. I've done this with soaked wood over several days an it worked. I'd buy a bag of chunk wood just in case. Good luck.

 

[SmokeOCD]

The oven idea is great. Beyond that, a more labor intensive way to do it is start the wood in another pile (elsewhere) and when it gets going and dries out a little - transfer it to your cooking smoker.

 

[Nuco59]

Maybe run it off good charcoal and wood chunks? Just this once? Meatloaves are not long cooks. Or swing by a local grocery store or Academy...get a couple of bags of wood. The Academy stuff will be kiln dried which is not great- burns too fast - not much flavor. Grocery store stuff my not be super dry depending on where it's stored and the weather.

But: Lemons -> lemonade.

 

[sudsandswine]

Leaving wood in the rain is not going to cause it to get water logged and drip out the end of each split. If that was happening it’s because it is green wood.

https://beardedbutchers.com/blogs/news/should-you-soak-wood-chips/

The easy answer to why soaking wood chips or chunks doesn't accomplish anything is right there in front of us, even if we don't notice. You see, the only woods you use for smoking are hardwoods like hickory or fruit wood like cherry and nut woods including pecan. These types have, by definition, a tight grain that doesn't absorb water. That's why boats are made of oak and teak, not pine. The test was to soak pieces of wood in blue-dyed water for 24 hours. After the wood soaked, it was cut and examined for penetration. The results show that even after a 24 hour soak, the only places water penetrated the surface of the wood were cracks. It didn't matter if it was planks of wood, chunks of wood, or chips, the water simply doesn't penetrate.

 

[orangeblood]

Maybe run it off good charcoal and wood chunks? Just this once? Meatloaves are not long cooks...

+1 Nuco

 

[Callahan-que]

I just want to add to what others have suggested. Once you get the Pecos going whether it be by wood or charcoal be sure to preheat your splits on top of the firebox.

 

[Lynn Dollar]

Get a moisture meter and split one of the splits. Take a reading inside the split and I bet its acceptable and not green.

IF ..... you wood supplier is as honest as you say he is.

And ditto on preheating the splits on top of the firebox, or even in the firebox if there's room.

 

[SmoothBoarBBQ]

@SudandSwine nailed it...I left a whole cord out in the rain for the last week...not to mention it got to -12F here in Texas. I used that same wood on my offset yesterday and it was fine.

So is the wood actually green or was it just wet to the touch due to the recent weather?

As others have stated you can always run to Academy or a similar place and grab some kiln-dried wood logs. I've done thsi many times and it's expensive but I've always had good results.

 

[Charny]

Leaving wood in the rain is not going to cause it to get water logged and drip out the end of each split. If that was happening it’s because it is green wood.

That, exactly.

I had a guy stick me with unseasoned wet hickory that hissed - even months after delivery. If it is coming out of the ends, it never dried or let alone seasoned (even for a fireplace, making that steam causes a great deal of energy loss). Well seasoned wood will ring when struck together, anything less - dull sound - means it isn't. It takes a year or more to season hard wood when properly split and stacked, and people don't want to wait to sell it.

Now I'm a few hours further north and we can't get cords of hickory. I sure miss it.

 

[SirPorkaLot]

Build a hot base fire with briquettes and use it!

Nothing wrong with wood on the green side.

If it ain’t hissing moisture, it’s too dry for smoking in my book.

 

[Robwhatever]

I would pre-heat the logs in the cooking chamber of your smoker. I do that when it's colder out and the pre-heated logs always light up faster.

Rob

 

[Speeed]

Run to Home Depot

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Kingsford-1-cu-ft-BBQ-Hickory-Wood-Logs-100524120/206442494

 

[sudsandswine]

oof that'd be a pricey meatloaf @ $30/1cuft, if you go the store bought route and have an Academy Sports nearby, they usually have wood for about half that price.

 

[Dustin Dorsey]

If it's just slightly too green just cut the splits thinner so they'll burn easier. Give the wood a lot of oxygen.

 

[theTastyCat]

Hello good people - WELL IT WAS A SAGA! Thank you so much for all the great replies.

I thought about putting a fan on it overnight, but it was unusually windy here and I knew my box fan would blow over, so I just let it ride. First thing in the morning I went out to the pile and was pleasantly surprised to find that it was basically dry to the touch.
I split the splits a bit smaller like the Pecos likes but found that the inside still felt a little damp, so I loaded up the MES (we affectionately call it the Easy Bake Oven) with the splits and let it run at 275. Steam ran out of that thing ALL day. Then I read where someone very helpfully suggested using a moisture meter - I'd forgotten that I had one! I was very disappointed to find that the "seasoned" hickory I'd just bought was all over 20%. Looks like I got had - behold the unfortunate side effect of trusting people!

Fortunately, I had more of that cherry left over than I thought, and it was more than enough to fuel the Pecos. I did two naked fatties of Tennessee Pride Hot sausage (absolutely otherworldly) and two beautiful meatloaves - here's a bad pic of one!

Meanwhile, the hickory I had running in the MES all day was down to 8-10% moisture by the end of the day - so great news on that too. I guess while I'm waiting for the rest of this to season, I can dry the next smoke's wood while smoking. It's not ideal by a long shot, but I will get to smoke at least!!

Sure appreciate all the great help - you all made a Christmas feast possible!

 

[Stingerhook]

Glad to hear it worked out. Meatloaf is killer.