Top Tips to Choose and Store Firewood for Your Stove

Always go for good quality and well-seasoned firewood. It is so because they will burn efficiently at your wood stove or fireplace. In case, you choose green or wet wood, you will face the problem of smoking, odor, and rapid creosote build-up. Sometimes, it also leads to dangerous chimney fires.

 

1.Seasoned Wood

All kinds of firewood contain water. The fresh firewood contains a huge amount of water i.e., approximately 45%. On the other hand, the well-seasoned firewood consists of 20-25% of moisture content. The well-seasoned firewood can burn easily, generates more heat, and burns cleaner.

One important thing that you should always keep in mind that water should be gone before burning wood. You should cut the firewood 6 months -1 years ago and store it under the sun. Let the sun's rays and wind do their job. You should never try to burn green wood because it will create a lot of smoke.

Therefore, you should leave green wood to dry completely. If you want to get good heat value, then always use dry wood for burning. The greenwood will not deliver the required amount of heat and also produce gallons of acidic water. This acidic water will get deposited on the wall of the chimney. You can contact the local tree professionals to get free firewood such as free firewood Sydney.

2.Store Firewood

It is very important to store the wood properly. Sometimes, bad storage techniques can ruin your well-seasoned firewood. When your firewood is exposed to snow and rain, wood will start absorbing a huge amount of water. Thus, the seasoned wood will become unfit to burn. Also, it starts rotting of wood and completely damages it.

Wood should be stored higher from the ground so that it does not absorb moisture from the ground. The best place to store the firewood is a woodshed. The wooden shed is a place with a roof but no walls or loose sides so that air can easily circulate inside. Air circulation will help in the wood drying process.

Another good idea to store firewood is to place your woodpile in a sunny location and cover the piles of wood on a rainy day. Also, you should not forget that wooden piles also attract termites. Therefore, you should store them away from your house. The proper storage system can easily turn the greenest wood into perfect firewood.  

3.Buying Firewood

Usually, firewood is sold by volume. One of the most common measures used is the cord. Various other terms are often used known as face cord, rick, or truckload. The standard firewood cord is approximately 128 cubic feet of wood. Usually, it is measured as a pile that is 8 feet long and 4 feet deep. But the depth is dependent on the cut made on wood. Thus, the face cord of 16” is just one-third of a cord. 24” wood produces half of a cord.

Rick is simply defined as a pile and truck size by Webster. The size of the truck varies tremendously. Therefore, it is very important to talk straight with the wood seller before signing an agreement. It is very important to have a detailed discussion and understand everything properly so that there would be no misunderstanding.

It is a good idea to extend the wood storage by 4 to 8 feet. You may have to pay extra to the sellers, but it will be worth it later on. You can also take the help of wood sellers to stack the firewood properly. Make sure that you pay the agreed amount so that there should be no dispute.

Another important thing that you need to consider is that the firewood is sold by volume, but the heat produced is based on weight.

Pound for pound, all kinds of firewood have similar BTU content. But, the core of a seasoned hardwood cost you twice that of the same volume of softwood. Ultimately, it can produce two times of heat. If the firewood that you are going to purchase is not hardwood, you should offer less money for the firewood.

Important Things to Know About Firewood

 

• It is very important to ensure that fuel is dry as compared to species.
• Never burn the construction scraps of wood that are painted. Wood obtained from decks or landscaping tiles should never be used for burning purposes. The chemical used in these kinds of wood can produce a huge amount of arsenic and various other toxic substances.
• In case, the seasoned wood that you have purchased turned out as green wood, then you should check your chimney often. The burning of greenwood may result in the building up of creosote. It is not necessary to burn only premium quality hardwood. You can opt for less dense wood such as elm and soft maple.