Power Washing Smoke Wood?

Jeepster47

Today's task was to clean the electronic furnace filters.  Step two is to use the power washer on them.  Since the washer was out, I decided to use it to clean some of the mud off the Sugar Maple wood that was collected last Friday.  It cleaned the caked on mud right off, but also cleaned the lichen off clean as can be.  Hmmmm.

I'm allergic to molds and I store my smoke wood in the basement. .  Think it's worth the effort?

lousubcap

Well, if you are having fun and you aren't overly obsessed with getting every last bit off, then why not?  But I have no plans to follow you down this slippery slope

Carolina Q

I think Ron has met his match.  

blasting

Vac sealing each piece might be a good idea as well...

just messing with ya Jeepster.  I guess if it helps you health wise, go for it, but that's way to much messing around for me.

theyolksonyou

blasting said:

Vac sealing each piece might be a good idea as well...

just messing with ya Jeepster.  I guess if it helps you health wise, go for it, but that's way to much messing around for me.

You're gonna want to invest in a chamber sealer for that kind of volume. 

Ozzie_Isaac

I recommend charring it in your egg.  I get better smoke by cutting it in to fist size pieces first.

I find power washing it with a pressure washer removes all the smoke.

DoubleEgger

Oh to be retired....

Jeepster47

@DoubleEgger ... great gig if you can get it!

Okay, so I don't have to read between the lines tonight ... you all think I'm crazy.  At least I didn't have to stand in line at the car wash to get my turn.

JohnnyTarheel

Carolina Q said:

I think Ron has met his match.  

I hope Ron let him use his special shorts!!

HeavyG

I think he is just one step away from going this far:

https://youtu.be/TBb9O-aW4zI

DoubleEgger

HeavyG said:

I think he is just one step away from going this far:

https://youtu.be/TBb9O-aW4zI

I was thinking this was a SNL skit the whole time. Who in the hell would pay $1200 for a piece of firewood? 

Ozzie_Isaac

@DoubleEgger you just need to try it!  That is all Aaron Franklin uses!

DoubleEgger

Ozzie_Isaac said:

@DoubleEgger you just need to try it!  That is all Aaron Franklin uses!

Yeah right I don't make Cat money 

Jeepster47

JohnnyTarheel said:

Carolina Q said:

I think Ron has met his match.  

I hope Ron let him use his special shorts!!

@JohnnyTarheel ... actually, Ron had a couple of teeth pulled this afternoon, so I am filling in for him a little!

YukonRon

This moves to the top of the list named: "Thought I had seen it all until....."
Just kidding.
Allergies are a bummer, do whatever you need to do.
I am cautious about keeping or stocking wood in my home due to the potential for insect infestation. Had a pest control guy tell me firewood kept inside with access to moisture tends to be the most expensive jobs to clean out. He said keep wood away from the house as much as possible, including hardwood mulch. 

nolaegghead

I put my smoke wood on the lathe and remove the bark.

Little Steven

Do you do that before or after the steam genny?

NPHuskerFL

Where's the Thai girls that polish the wood between each process. Don't take shortcuts. 

Jeepster47

Go ahead guys ... have fun ... picking on an old man ... geez!

We have a local timber company that debarks their non-lumber mill logs.  Bark is sold for ground cover and the logs are cut and stacked to cure for firewood.  Call ahead and they will cut and split those logs (pecan, oak, cherry, and hickory) into smoke wood chunks for a very reasonable price.  Cheap enough that it doesn't pay to do the work yourself.  Ozzie and I thought about buying a face cord and cutting and splitting it ourselves ... until the spread sheets came out and it was demonstrated to be a dumb idea.

My orange wood has bark, but with the absence of moisture in Arizona it doesn't have any moss/mold/lichen.  The sugar maple from Funks Grove is the first smoke wood I've collected that had any "crap" on it.  Took about 10 minutes to clean up five logs.  And, as you can see from the top vs bottom of the log in the picture in the first post, the power washer really does clean up the bark.  From now on I'll clean the sugar maple undercover of darkness so as to not embarrass you sensitive types.

gdenby

If you store anything in my cracked foundation basement, washed, steamed, or baked, it will end up molded.

But this makes me realize, I need to hold my smoke wood dangling from my garage rafters. Just like curing fine country ham. Maybe pre-smoke the wood too, just for good measure.

And, well, I hate to say this, but my own ludicrous suggestion makes me wonder. What if the wood was rubbed, too? I was just at an Indian market that had little bottles of nutmeg essence. So much for the Jack aging barrel chips. I'll only do my chicken breasts with 5 year old mulberry wood infused w. nutmeg and a soupçon of absinthe.

Ragtop99

gdenby said:

And, well, I hate to say this, but my own ludicrous suggestion makes me wonder. What if the wood was rubbed, too?

My wife rubs my wood.  I think it helps a lot.  However I'm somewhat jealous if @NPHuskerFL can get Thai girls to polish his wood.  Not an option in my house.

gdenby

I, I, !! I sir am aghast.That you "wood" even consider Thai polish. Everyone knows the best place to get polished is Tierra del Fuego.

Earshots

blind99

When you power wash your wood you aerosolize the mold and inhale it. You should do this with scuba gear on. In a laminar flow hood. Please post pictures!