Wood chip drying questions

[DonyaQuick]

I'm getting a chipper soon and have a bunch of larger wood chunks that have been drying for months - some of them around a year. I've read that wood chips need to be dried for a bit before becoming run bedding. However, if the wood has already sat for a long time like it would to become firewood, does it still need to be left to sit again after going through the chipper or can I use it right away?

I wouldn't be adding a ton of chips in all at once; a bit would go in my run in small amounts over time and get mixed in with a lot of other stuff (straw, hay, pine shavings, etc.) and I also want to put it down in a thin layer over predator skirts to stop them from being slippy in the rain. I've used pine mulch in both places in the past but it needs replacing about twice per year as it breaks down.

Also, how well protected do chips from fresh wood need to be while aging/drying? I have plenty of tarps that could keep rain off of a pile, but tarps would stop air flow so I'm not sure about those. Eventually I should have a space freed up that is mostly protected from rain, but it won't stay 100% dry in really bad storms with high wind. Would that be good enough for the drying process?

 

[Sally PB]

If you cover your wood chip pile, it could end up with lots of mold. The chips don't need to be crispy dry to be great run material. I had a pile of chips in November that sat uncovered over the winter. (We get lots of snow here.) In the spring, I raked off layers for the chicken run. Then in the summer, I scooped up shovelfuls and dumped them in.

I have heard that fresh cut wood goes through chippers better. I have a chipper, and I can't really tell if that's true or not. It's amazing, though, what a small pile of chips you get out of a big pile of brush!

 

[rosemarythyme]

If the wood is old you probably don't need to age them, and if you do, it wouldn't take long. You age them to let sap dry out, let aromatic oils dissipate in the air, and to let the wood itself dry so that it doesn't form harmful molds. Putting it down in thin layers would be the recommendation for fresher chips, so wouldn't hurt to take that precaution here as well.

Once you have the chip pile, you don't tarp it. It needs to air out. It's fine if it gets rained on, snowed on, etc. Everyone here leaves their chip piles sitting out all year round and there's no issue. Just take chips from the surface layers and those will be driest.

 

[aart]

It's the moisture in freshly chipped green wood, and leaves, that can create toxic levels of molds that were growing on the bark when said chips are piled deep.

 

[NatJ]

I wouldn't be adding a ton of chips in all at once; a bit would go in my run in small amounts over time and get mixed in with a lot of other stuff (straw, hay, pine shavings, etc.) and I also want to put it down in a thin layer over predator skirts to stop them from being slippy in the rain.

If you are adding them in thin layers and small amounts, it should be fine to just use the chips at whatever point is convenient for you, without worrying about whether they are fresh, dry, or aged.