How to Artfully Stack Your Firewood

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How to Artfully Stack Your Firewood
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• Keeping a cord of firewood handy in case of a
  storm, or just to get your hygge on through the
  long winter months makes sense. In addition to
  getting the right wood, and setting up an
  appropriate space to store it in, you can take
  your game one step beyond and stack your wood in
  such a way that it becomes a part of your
  landscaping decor!

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• Heres another thought if you have someone on
  your Christmas shopping list who is IMPOSSIBLE to
  shop for and has a wood burning stove, consider
  buying them firewood and then stack it for them.
  Once its been delivered, you want to get it off
  the ground and stacked nicely, so thats a gift
  and a half that even Santa would love.

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3 Steps To Start You Out Right

• Step 1 Set up the perfect dry spot to store
  your firewood, near enough to the house to be
  retrievable even in the worst storm but far
  enough so that any mice that decide to take up
  residence are not right next to your house.

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• Ideally, that will be a spot that has a way to
  keep the wood off the ground, with a partial
  roof, large overhang and / or a tarp, to keep it
  dry. If you burn a lot of wood every winter, a
  woodshed with a raised floor is a great idea. You
  can always store a weeks worth at a time, closer
  to the house, on a porch for example.

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• Step 2 Get a perfectly seasoned, dry face cord
  of firewood delivered to your home (If youre in
  the Mississauga area? We can help you with that!)
  Properly dried wood has been stacked for at least
  six months to two years.

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• Most firewood delivered by reputable companies
  will arrive in 12 pieces but cut down any that
  you feel are too long or too wide in
  circumference before you stack. Always stack with
  the cut ends facing out (west winds) and bark
  facing up (which acts as additional protection
  against moisture), with airflow around and
  between the pieces.

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• Step 3 Bring the wood in youre going to need
  for any given day, 24-48 hours before you burn
  it. Room temperature works best for a fine merlot
  and excellent firewood.

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What You Need To Know About Firewood

• Freshly cut wood contains 50 moisture, which
  is too green to burn effectively or safely.
  Burning wood that is too green contributes to
  creosote build up in chimneys, which can result
  in a chimney fire.

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• Wood that has been stacked and seasoned for at
  least two years is your best bet. Avoid buying
  your firewood from a place that just has it in a
  pile, instead of properly stacked. Odds are, it
  will be wet. Well seasoned firewood will have
  darker ends, with visible cracks or splits.

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How Do You Know If Your Wood Is Too Wet To Burn?

• If you see steam, bubbles and / or can hear a
  hissing sound as the firewood heats up, its too
  wet to burn. Make sure you pull your firewood
  from the most seasoned part of your stack, even
  if it means that your artful design will be a
  little off kilter! Better that than wet wood in
  your stove.

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Whats The Best Type Firewood To Have?

• You want wood that burns hot and long, rather
  than woods that burn hot and fast. Smoldering
  fires arent safe either.
• Maple, beech, cherry and oak are all varieties
  that give long duration burns, instead of a short
  burst of high heat and then embers.

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On To The Artful Outdoor Stacking

• A standard stack of wood is utilitarian but not
  necessarily very attractive. Now that you know
  the basic details you need about firewood, here
  are five examples of artfully stacked wood that
  would make your neighbours stop and take notice!

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• Garys Owls Gary Tallman from Montana has
  taken artful stacking to a new level, sorting by
  colour in the spring so he can create mosaic art!

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Alastair Heseltine, an artist from BC, called
this one Meta Tree.
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A new take on tiny houses!
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By Olle Hagman of Sweden
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And finally, the most impressive of all, if not a
little impractical, created by Michael Buck
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And Indoors?

• To stack some wood inside, and let it warm up to
  room temperature for a day or two, you need a
  good, safe place to put it. While some will use a
  rack or a large bucket, these designs from
  Decoist.com might inspire you to be more
  ambitious with your indoor wood storage.

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• Left Old crates in the corner add elegance to
  the setting.
• Right A shelving unit keeps things tidy.
• However you stack it, follow our few rules and
  youre investment in dry, seasoned firewood will
  carry you through the winter in style and comfort.