Often times people buy their firewood during the burning season which is risky at best. There may be an abundance of seasoned firewood pre-seaon but that supply is quickly diminished becuase word spreads quickly who has the best firewood. It seems around mid-season the firewood delivered is freshly cut and very wet.

Wet firewood is terribly inefficient. It takes most of the fire’s energy to cook out the moisture from the firewood. This causes poor combustion efficiency, dirty glass on even the best of stoves and worst of all, very low temperatures. Your stove just can’t heat as it was designed to do with poor fuel.

Whether you buy firewood or harvest your own, try to plan a year ahead for the best performance. Stack your firewood so air can pass through it and keep it under shelter but NOT tightly covered. Remember, you want air to carry away the moisture so your firewood can properly season.

Having good sesoned firewood on hand will help you heat your home more efficiently as well as help your chimney stay cleaner. A little forward planning will return a warm toasty environment in your home when temperatures drop.