Firewood For Your Fireplace
(See also: Firewood: Get the Best Burn for Your Money)
A fireplace supplies radiant energy that can bring quick comfort to a cold room. In spring
and fall, a fire will dispel early morning and evening chills more economically than large
heating systems. Fuel is consumed, and a large volume of heat is quickly produced. If a
storm should cause a power failure, a reliable means of heating and cooking is
reassuring to have.
First, it needs to be pointed out that, a fireplace is not an efficient, overall, means of
producing heat for the home. An open fireplace draws large quantities of warm air from
the home, which is replaced by cold outside air. Modern wood burning stoves that are
airtight and have automatic draft controls are more efficient. Tests show a
well-constructed fireplace, using all the modern innovations, such as double wall
recirculating systems and glass doors, produces 10 to 20 percent efficiency from the
wood consumed.
A well designed, airtight wood stove, or wood stove fireplace insert, can easily achieve
an efficiency of 50 percent or better, while also consuming more of the pollutants
normally going into the air. The ability of an airtight stove to control the amount of air
used for combustion is the key to this higher output.
Using firewood in your fireplace
Some fuels are pollution and health hazards, but wood is much lower in irritating
pollutants than most fuels. Wood has a low ash content. It burns cleanly, leaving only a
minimum amount of waste ash. The ash that remains can be useful for gardening;
applied to soil, it's a valuable fertilizer.
Also, in using wood, you are utilizing a renewable fuel resource. Coal, oil, and gas are
limited resources. Once used, they cannot be replaced. But new trees are constantly
growing. Wood has the advantage of being readily available, easily cut and transported,
and relatively inexpensive. Trees and other green plants are our most efficient means of
capturing the sun's energy. Fossil fuels, by contrast, require expensive equipment, and
increasing amounts of manpower and energy, to locate, extract, and process.
By comparison, a standard cord of air-dry, dense wood weighs approximately 2 tons and
provides as much heat as 1 ton of coal, or 150 to 175 gallons of No. 2 fuel oil, or 24,000
cubic feet of natural gas.
Where to get firewood
The best way to start is to contact your local National Forest Ranger District or State
Forestry office for assistance in identifying areas open for cutting and removal of
firewood.
Firewood is also available as industrial wood scraps. Sawmills accumulate scrap material
such as slabs, trim, and edging in their millyards. Lumber companies often offer these
materials as firewood at minimal cost, since this will alleviate hauling and burning
problems for them. Power companies might also offer the logs, limbs, and tree tops that
result from their powerline maintenance efforts.
Check with your nearest Forest Service District Ranger Office for more detailed
information. State Forestry, county Extension Agents, and county and city foresters can
also provide information on local sources of firewood.
How to buy firewood
The most common measure of firewood volume is the "cord." A standard cord can be
described as a well-stacked pile of wood, 4 by 4 by 8 feet. Since few people burn wood in
4-foot length, most sales are a "face cord" or a "tier." That is a 4 by 8 foot face, cut into
desired lengths. A face cord of 16 inch-long pieces is really one-third of a standard cord.
To determine the volume of firewood in cords, the wood must first be properly stacked,
then measure the dimensions of the stack in feet. Multiply the width by the height by
length to obtain the total cubic feet. Then divide this figure by 128 (the number of cubic
feet in a cord).
In some parts of the country, firewood is more commonly sold by the ton. A ton of air-dry
dense wood is equal to approximately one-half of a cord. If you buy your wood by weight
instead of volume, look for the driest wood. Don't pay for extra water.
Firewood for your fireplace is sold in different lengths and thicknesses. Don't buy wood
that will not fit into your fireplace. A variety of sizes will make it easier to get your fire
going. Wood that is too large to burn readily may be split. Short lengths are generally
easier to split than longer ones; straight-grain wood without knots is easier than
crooked grain with knots. Green or wet wood is generally easier to split than seasoned
wood, and softwoods usually split more readily than hardwoods.
When kindling is needed, short lengths of straight-grained wood is best. Small twigs and
branches found in the yard, and wood wastes found around sawmills are also good for
kindling, as they often don't need to be split and dried. When buying wood, request a
mixture of wood species and diameter sizes. Although the wood should be generally
sound, don't worry about small pockets of rotten wood you may find in the logs.
Most wood species will burn poorly when freshly cut, so the wood you purchase should
be reasonably dry, or "seasoned." The surest way of having dry wood is to purchase it
several months prior to using it. Splitting logs hastens drying. Split logs or small round
logs should be stacked outside under a roof at least 6 months before burning.
Best wood for burning
Softwoods, like pine, spruce, and fir, are easy to ignite because they are resinous.
However, since a fire built entirely of softwoods burns out quickly, it requires frequent
attention and replenishment. This characteristic of softwoods can be a boon if you want
a quick warming fire or a short fire that will burn out before you go to bed.
(See also: Firewood: Get the Best Burn for Your Money)
A fireplace supplies radiant energy that can bring quick comfort to a cold room. In spring
and fall, a fire will dispel early morning and evening chills more economically than large
heating systems. Fuel is consumed, and a large volume of heat is quickly produced. If a
storm should cause a power failure, a reliable means of heating and cooking is
reassuring to have.
First, it needs to be pointed out that, a fireplace is not an efficient, overall, means of
producing heat for the home. An open fireplace draws large quantities of warm air from
the home, which is replaced by cold outside air. Modern wood burning stoves that are
airtight and have automatic draft controls are more efficient. Tests show a
well-constructed fireplace, using all the modern innovations, such as double wall
recirculating systems and glass doors, produces 10 to 20 percent efficiency from the
wood consumed.
A well designed, airtight wood stove, or wood stove fireplace insert, can easily achieve
an efficiency of 50 percent or better, while also consuming more of the pollutants
normally going into the air. The ability of an airtight stove to control the amount of air
used for combustion is the key to this higher output.
Using firewood in your fireplace
Some fuels are pollution and health hazards, but wood is much lower in irritating
pollutants than most fuels. Wood has a low ash content. It burns cleanly, leaving only a
minimum amount of waste ash. The ash that remains can be useful for gardening;
applied to soil, it's a valuable fertilizer.
Also, in using wood, you are utilizing a renewable fuel resource. Coal, oil, and gas are
limited resources. Once used, they cannot be replaced. But new trees are constantly
growing. Wood has the advantage of being readily available, easily cut and transported,
and relatively inexpensive. Trees and other green plants are our most efficient means of
capturing the sun's energy. Fossil fuels, by contrast, require expensive equipment, and
increasing amounts of manpower and energy, to locate, extract, and process.
By comparison, a standard cord of air-dry, dense wood weighs approximately 2 tons and
provides as much heat as 1 ton of coal, or 150 to 175 gallons of No. 2 fuel oil, or 24,000
cubic feet of natural gas.
Where to get firewood
The best way to start is to contact your local National Forest Ranger District or State
Forestry office for assistance in identifying areas open for cutting and removal of
firewood.
Firewood is also available as industrial wood scraps. Sawmills accumulate scrap material
such as slabs, trim, and edging in their millyards. Lumber companies often offer these
materials as firewood at minimal cost, since this will alleviate hauling and burning
problems for them. Power companies might also offer the logs, limbs, and tree tops that
result from their powerline maintenance efforts.
Check with your nearest Forest Service District Ranger Office for more detailed
information. State Forestry, county Extension Agents, and county and city foresters can
also provide information on local sources of firewood.
How to buy firewood
The most common measure of firewood volume is the "cord." A standard cord can be
described as a well-stacked pile of wood, 4 by 4 by 8 feet. Since few people burn wood in
4-foot length, most sales are a "face cord" or a "tier." That is a 4 by 8 foot face, cut into
desired lengths. A face cord of 16 inch-long pieces is really one-third of a standard cord.
To determine the volume of firewood in cords, the wood must first be properly stacked,
then measure the dimensions of the stack in feet. Multiply the width by the height by
length to obtain the total cubic feet. Then divide this figure by 128 (the number of cubic
feet in a cord).
In some parts of the country, firewood is more commonly sold by the ton. A ton of air-dry
dense wood is equal to approximately one-half of a cord. If you buy your wood by weight
instead of volume, look for the driest wood. Don't pay for extra water.
Firewood for your fireplace is sold in different lengths and thicknesses. Don't buy wood
that will not fit into your fireplace. A variety of sizes will make it easier to get your fire
going. Wood that is too large to burn readily may be split. Short lengths are generally
easier to split than longer ones; straight-grain wood without knots is easier than
crooked grain with knots. Green or wet wood is generally easier to split than seasoned
wood, and softwoods usually split more readily than hardwoods.
When kindling is needed, short lengths of straight-grained wood is best. Small twigs and
branches found in the yard, and wood wastes found around sawmills are also good for
kindling, as they often don't need to be split and dried. When buying wood, request a
mixture of wood species and diameter sizes. Although the wood should be generally
sound, don't worry about small pockets of rotten wood you may find in the logs.
Most wood species will burn poorly when freshly cut, so the wood you purchase should
be reasonably dry, or "seasoned." The surest way of having dry wood is to purchase it
several months prior to using it. Splitting logs hastens drying. Split logs or small round
logs should be stacked outside under a roof at least 6 months before burning.
Best wood for burning
Softwoods, like pine, spruce, and fir, are easy to ignite because they are resinous.
However, since a fire built entirely of softwoods burns out quickly, it requires frequent
attention and replenishment. This characteristic of softwoods can be a boon if you want
a quick warming fire or a short fire that will burn out before you go to bed.
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