For those who heat their homes with wood heat, moving and storing firewood is a chore that some enjoy but others would rather do without.
While some enjoy the exercise and the idea of preparing wood for their fires, others find it to be a chore.
Either way, moving and storing firewood is a necessary chore.
With a few tips, you can get better results from storing your firewood the right way.
With firewood, it is important that it is dry when it is time to burn it.
When wood is dry it will burn more efficiently, put out more heat, and be less likely to clog your chimney and cover your stove class with creosote.
Plus wet wood can be very difficult to ignite.
Wood that is green, cut from a live tree, or wet from rain will need to be seasoned to allow the water or sap to evaporate.
In order for this to happen, the wood must have good air circulation.
It is important to store the wood so that it can get the proper air movement around it to carry the moisture away.
When you stack wood it gets the wood off the ground and up into the air where fresh air can get to all the pieces better than if it was heaped into a pile.
Just be sure you stack the rows with at least a few inches of space between rows or any other surface.
If you have your wood outside in the wind and sun it will dry much faster than if it is in the shade.
But once it is dry you will want to cover it so it does not get rained on.
A tarp or plastic sheeting can work fine but only cover the top of the pile.
If you cover the sides too air will not be able to flow as well and any moisture that gets in will likely stay in.
For storing dry wood, the best place is in a covered area under a roof.
A garage, covered patio, lean to or a firewood shed are some of the best places.