Make Some Ash - Burn Some Wood

It's getting to be "that time of year" - evening temperatures are dropping down, cicadas are humming and mist was rising from the lake up north in the early morning this past week, signaling water warmer than air. We find ourselves getting ready to dip into the woodshed as fall and winter approach.

  I must admit, the cleanliness and ease of having a gas fireplace is tempting, but I am glad we made the decision 15 years ago to stick with old-fashioned wood.

 Not only am I a sucker for the cozy smell of wood smoke and appearance of real flames through the glass, I am also blessed with knowing our furnace runs a little less.

 If you are contemplating adding a wood burning stove or fireplace to your home or have one already, knowing the right kind of wood to use in it is the key to happy burning!

 Some people have said you should never burn “soft woods”, only “hardwoods.”In actuality, you can burn both, but hardwood will make hotter coals, throw off more sustained heat and burn longer and cleaner than softwoods.

 You can list woods from hardest to softest, starting with ironwood and hickory, then oak, sugar maple, yellow birch, ash, white birch, poplar and basswood.

 Most of the evergreens, such as pine, fir, balsam and spruce slide in at the softer end near poplar and basswood.

 The next thing you always hear in reference to firewood is it should be “seasoned.”What does that mean?

 When wood is just cut, it can contain up to 45% water.When wood is properly seasoned, the amount of moisture should be in the 15-25% range.

 Generally if you use wood cut one-half to one full year before burning, it should reach that lower level.

 You can speed up the drying process by cutting and splitting it into smaller pieces; the more surface exposed to air, the faster it can dry out.This also means stacking it in a way the air can move through it.

 Can you burn “green” wood (cut and stored for less time)?

 Yes, but keep in mind if you burn unseasoned wood, much of the energy of burning it is used up drying the wood which means less heat for your home.

 Burning green wood can also create a hazard - the water burning off the wet wood becomes creosote that can clog your chimney and start a fire where you don’t want it.

 There are a couple of tell-tale signs of seasoned wood you can look for when buying it: darkened log ends with splits and cracks are a good sign, seasoned wood will be lighter than green and make a solid “cracking” noise when hitting two pieces against each other.

 The fool proof way to know your wood is seasoned is to purchase and store it 6 months to one year before you plan on using it!

 If you opt to purchase your firewood, there’s a few vocabulary terms you’ll want to know in relation to sizing.

 It is generally sold in cords, half-cords or face-cords, with a cord being the biggest at 128 cubic feet.

 If you stacked a full cord, it should measure about 8 feet long by 4 feet high by 4 feet deep (two 16-24” logs).

 Obviously, a half-cord is half the size of a full one and a face-cord is about 1/3 of a full cord, measuring 8 feet long by 4 feet high, but only one 16-24” log deep (instead of two).

 As it can be hard to tell when the truck dumps it on your driveway, it’s usually wise (at least the first time) to build racks of appropriate size and pay the firewood company to stack it.

 If it fits the rack, you know you’re getting what you’re paying for!

 I highly recommend going to see what you are buying before delivery; you will then know the sizing of the pieces, how it’s been stored and whether it appears seasoned.

 Check your local paper to compare prices and find a fair deal.