What Is Slab Wood? (Characteristics and Usages)

You might be confused about what slab wood means. A lot of times when customers want slab wood from a wood mill, there seems to be some confusion. So in this article, we describe what slab wood is for your convenience.

So what is slab wood? 

Traditionally it refers to a piece of freshly cut wood when someone sawed a log. Nowadays customers mean thick flitch pieces of wood by slab wood. It has many uses. You can use it to ignite a hot and quick fire in winter times.

So, slab woods have some distinguishing traits. And you can use them in your favor if you know the process. To know all this information let’s read this article-

What Is a Slab Wood?

what is slab wood

A slab was exclusively referred to as the piece of wood created when a log face was first sawed. As a result, there would be one sawn face and one rounded face. 

Especially where the bark had been connected. It didn’t have any edge and no potential value. But you can also make slab wood after cutting down trees

Any lumber from a sawmill required two sawn parallel sides, the major value was for fuel. Slab wood is not lumber. 

Advantages of Slab Wood

The slab is not as useless as you may think. There are many advantages of slab wood. You may be able to use it for various purposes.

Used as Timber

You can turn your slab wood into timber. You can use timber in many ways such as construction material and fuel source.

Hot and Quick Fire

The major criticism of burning slabs is that they produce a great deal of heat in a short amount of time.

If you simply use the slab pieces, you find it quite easy to make the wood burner to become far too hot, which makes sense. The majority of them are slim when compared to actual firewood.

Here are some wood burners we recommend- 

Disadvantages of Slab Wood

Before you buy slab wood to use as firewood, know the disadvantages too. That way, you’ll make a smart buying choice. 

Expensive

Slab woods can be very expensive. Because wide slabs that are fully dried are very rare. So because of the rule of supply and demand, they are expensive.

Also since slab woods are very large, it gets tough handling them. So it can be costly. 

Not High-Quality Firewood

People believe that by utilizing it as their primary fuel source. That’s why they want slab wood in the first place. But the problem with slab wood is that it isn’t real, high-quality firewood.

It’s merely scrapped bits of what was left over from the sawmill’s processing.

QuickFire

If you end up placing just enough slab wood that you believe it’ll last for hours, reconsider. That load will quickly burn through, and you’ll have to feed the fireplace again.

Time Consuming

Slab wood needs to be put in the fireplace, again and again, to last for hours. This means spending more time tinkering with the wood and keeping track of the entire process. It is a complete waste of time.

More Bark Than Wood

You’ll obtain worse results if the pieces have more bark than wood. The flames won’t be able to create enough heat to keep your home at a comfortable temperature.

I’m sure there are a lot of individuals that use this sort of wood as their major source of heat for their houses, but this isn’t one of the better choices in my view.

How to Use Slab Wood to Create Fire?

Even though slab wood isn’t the ideal wood to keep your house warm, lots of people use it. Well, here are the ways you can use slab woods- 

Process Slab Wood 

There is no easy way to process this. You must find out how to maintain the entire bundle in place while sawing it into the required lengths. Here are the saw we recommend to process the wood: 

Sometimes you’ll get lucky and obtain 16-inch chunks straight from the sawmill. But this isn’t usually the case. You’ll most likely receive length parts once you’ve purchased them. And it’ll be up to you to find out how to deal with them all.

To top it off, you may need to wait for everything to dry. Just because the items aren’t particularly thick doesn’t imply they can be thrown into the burner straight away.

Those pieces may need the same amount of time to season as conventional firewood. Always check the moisture content first.

Burning Slab Wood to Create Fire

Slab wood is fantastic for starting fires. All that bark to wood ratio quickly ignites a pile; put a piece or two of well-seasoned oak on top. And you’ve got yourself some fire! You can get some oak to make the fire last long- 

Putting a few slab pieces in the firebox before loading it up with solid fuel. It can also yield excellent results. This will maintain everything burning at a beautiful, even temperature, reducing the need to use up so much of your fuel stack.

Frequently Asked Questions

Question: What do you use slab wood for? 

Answer: People use slab wood for benches, stools, stair treads, handrails, bowl blanks, fence rails, deer stands, fireplace mantels, pen blanks, ax handles, compost, and firewood.

Question: Why is slab wood really expensive?

Answer: They’re pricey because it takes a lot of wood to produce one. It requires a very large tree to make one. It needs to be aged and kept correctly. It takes up a lot of space for a long period for example years. And they don’t make very many of them. Those slabs aren’t very common; they require a really large tree to produce.

Question: How do you stack slab wood?

Answer: Stack wood in a single row, out of the sun, with enough space between the pieces for air to circulate. This exposes the wood to more sunshine and wind, allowing it to dry out more quickly. When stacking, building pillars at either end with a crossing design for added support.

Conclusion

So, We hope you understand what is slab wood and what you can do with it. So, make your decision whether you want to spend your money on it. 

Let us know the experience. Take care and stay warm!

Kevin Smith

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