Freshly chopped firewood has up to 50% water content and won't burn in your fireplace. First, you must let the firewood season, which allows the moisture to escape. When the wood gets down below 20% water content, it's ready to burn.
Do not burn unseasoned (green) or even partially seasoned wood in your stove or fireplace as this will cause creosote build-up in your chimney which could lead to a chimney fire.
Step 1
Chop the wood. It's best to get the pieces down to no more than 6-8 inches in diameter. 18" long is a common size. Store the wood outdoors.
Step 2
Stack the wood so it isn't sitting directly on the ground or right up against a wall. If you don't have a wood shed, cut two saplings to use as a the base to keep the firewood from contact with the ground as shown in the image above. Pallets are also a great alternative.
Step 3
If you don't have or don't want to make side supports as shown here, you can stack the ends by turning the direction of wood 90 degrees with each layer and the end stacks will be self supporting.
Step 4
Allow space between your stack and a wall to allow air to move. Ideally you would have a moisture barrier such as a tarp below the wood, and/or have it spaced up off the ground to allow air flow.
Step 5
Ensure that the top of the wood is covered to allow rain to run off without soaking the wood, but the ends of the stack are uncovered to allow air to circulate and moisture to escape.
Step 6
Bark acts like a lid on firewood. On split wood, stack the wood with the bark side on the bottom to allow the wood to dry faster. If you are storing the wood without cover, stacking with the bark side on top will prevent some of the rain from soaking into the wood.
Tips
- The duration of seasoning depends on the wood and for deciduous trees, when the tree was felled. The sap of deciduous trees moves to the roots in the winter, so trees felled in winter have a much lower moisture content to begin with, and so will be seasoned more quickly. In general, pine and other soft woods require around 6 months to season, while hardwoods such as oak require a year.
- Place the stack of wood where it will get the most sun all day long.
- There are two theories on the covering of wood during the seasoning process. You must decide for yourself which theory you wish to follow. One theory is stated above--cover the wood to prevent the rain and snow from entering the center of the stack and gathering there. However, within the firewood community, another theory holds that you do not have to cover your wood at all--ever. Just leave it out there in the weather and it will season just as well as if you covered it. This theory has its supporters and they are quite sure it works just as well as covering your pile.
- Ash can not be burned immediately as most people seem to think. It does need to be seasoned like any other wood. Most people think Ash can be burned immediately because it has a lower moisture content than any other fresh cut woods. Ash can have as little as 30% moisture content compared to 50% of other species of wood. Most wood is seasoned enough after 8 months if proper steps are taken, but longer is better obviously. Ideally you want only 20% moisture content in your wood
- In general, pines and evergreens should never be burned in a fireplace or woodstove as they deposit much more creosote in the chimney. Stick to burning hardwoods. Use pine in outdoor firepits or only in true emergencies.
- Over-dried wood will have less energy as volatile esters in the wood evaporate. These waxy substances have a great deal of heat energy, so it is a mistake to think that longer is necessarily better.
Warnings
- Do not burn unseasoned (green) or even partially seasoned wood in your stove or fireplace as this will cause creosote build-up in your chimney which could lead to a chimney fire.
- Be careful chopping wood. It's easier than you think to injure yourself with that axe. (Actually, accidents with axes are one of the leading causes of injuries in homes where homeowners provide their own wood.)
- It is not a good idea to burn pine products in your home. Pine products, due to the resin in them, burn very hot, crackle and spit a lot throwing burning particles around, and the pine tar in the combustion products coats the inside of the flue, leading to a potential fire hazard.
- Be wary of snakes, spiders and/or other potentially dangerous creatures taking up residence in your wood pile.
- Wood should not be stored closer than twenty feet away from your home. In addition, the ground should be prepared with anti termite protection and should be treated regularly to prevent termites and carpenter ants from forming a home in your wood pile.
- When chopping wood, wear goggles and baseball catcher's shin guards to protect yourself from the axe entering your shins on a missed swing.
- Never completely cover the wood with a tarp. It will serve to trap the moisture that is escaping from the wood and will rot the wood rather than dry it. The moisture must be allowed to escape the pile.
- Do not stack wood higher than your own height. Being hit on the head by a log falling can cause serious injury.
