CHOOSING THE RIGHT FIREWOOD FOR FIREPLACE SAFETY

Selecting the best firewood for your fireplace may not seem like that important of a decision, but well seasoned, quality firewood can not only help your fireplace burn cleaner but more efficiently too! Green or wet wood can cause smoke problems, odor, creosote buildup and can even lead to dangerous chimney fires. So, next time you head out to stock up on wood, make sure you select clean, seasoned wood.

Now you may be asking, “what is seasoned wood?” Well, while freshly cut wood can contain up to 45% water, seasoned wood has been reduced to only 20-25% of the moisture content. If you cut your own wood 6 months to a year before using it, properly store it and allow the sun and wind to do the seasoning for you. If you try to use green wood, the heat it produces via combustion must dry the wood before it will catch fire and burn, using up a large percentage of its available energy. Less energy results in less heat to your home and gallons of acidic water being deposited into your chimney. Yikes!

Ideal wood storage would consist of a dry woodshed with a roof that allows for air circulation to perform the drying. The next best option would be to keep the wood piled in a sunny area, covering it during rain or snow (while still allowing airflow to avoid trapping the moisture inside).

If your chimney has fallen victim to moist wood burning, call Quality Fireplace today for a complete chimney inspection quote!

The post CHOOSING THE RIGHT FIREWOOD FOR FIREPLACE SAFETY appeared first on Quality Fireplace and Chimney Services.