Choosing the best trees for firewood is an important decision to ponder . ( For more on saving time and effort splitting Natalie Wood , see ourBeginning Farmer ’s templet to Log Splitters . ) Just as some case of Sir Henry Wood are n’t worthy for making some intersection ( it ’s not a beneficial idea to make a cutting control board , for example , from deal such as true pine or fir ) , some type of wood are n’t desirable for use as firewood . However , with so many different character of Mrs. Henry Wood , learning which tree make good firewood can be a clip - deplete and labor - intensive process . To help you stave off this , here are some tips to help with your firewood selection . ( And to aid you forfend the risk of lamp chimney fires , read how tomanage and minimise creosote buildup in your chimney . )
The Best Firewood
I ’ll precede this by saying that wood from many trees can make timber firewood , and highlighting only the very best excludes some very operational trees . Also , what constitutes the “ just ” firewood depart depending on its plan use . If you use firewood as the primary heat source for your house , you ’ll want a high - lineament Grant Wood that produces a lot of passion . If , on the other hand , your primary interest is creating a fire to add ambiance and atmosphere to a winter evening , you might be fine with a lower - character wood . With that constitute , here are a handful of tree that brook above all others when it comes to raise quality firewood .
Oak for Firewood
The well - live firewood are white-hot and red oak tree trees . The wood from these oak tree is prized for its military posture and density , and that density constitute it one of the best at bring out heat .
Hickory
The Mrs. Henry Wood from the hickory family of trees , which let in pecan tree diagram , is also very dense and prized for use as firewood , being of similar quality to oak .
Black Locust
One lesser - known tree that arrive at great firewood is pitch-dark locust . The species has a fairly special kitchen stove , develop in just a smattering of states through the Appalachian Mountains and into Missouri and Arkansas , but it produces a hard , dense Grant Wood famous formaking fencing posts . Not surprisingly , the same density and lastingness that have mordant locust honorable for fence posts also reach it among the good firewood tree .
Other Good Wood to Burn
White ash , sugar maple and birch tree diagram also produce excellent firewood , albeit not quite as skilful as oak and hickory . But all three have their advantage :
The Worst Trees for Firewood
Coniferous Trees in General
As a general rule , most coniferous or “ softwood ” Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree — the type of trees that have needle rather than leaves — are not well - suited for use as firewood . As their “ deal ” soubriquet implies , coniferous trees usually have soft , less dense wood than deciduous trees , which have leaves , mean softwoods provide less fuel for the fire and commonly develop less heat . you’re able to certainly bite it , but the wood from cone-bearing trees also contains pitch and is ill-famed for creating creosote buildup when it burns . Creosote can stick to the walls of yourchimneyand become a fervour endangerment . These Sir Henry Joseph Wood also tend to produce more sparks and sess , which can foul up the mood that you want to generate by start a nice , cozy woodwind instrument firing .
Hemlocks in Particular
One coniferous tree diagram you belike do n’t want to cut at all is hemlock , as it ’s close to akin to burning a tilt . The wood of winter fern trees ( not to be confused with the venomous plant of the same name ) features extremely grueling knots that make the trees unmanageable to split into burnable logs . Even if you get hemlock Mrs. Henry Wood to the point where it can be burn , it produces spark off sure to warn you from ever burn that eccentric of wood again .
Deciduous Trees
Some deciduous trees also do n’t make dependable firewood . Aspen , linden tree and willow tree trees all have very soft woods of generally poor tone for burn and producing heat energy . That tell , this woodwind instrument is a little better than that of most coniferous trees because it does n’t spark as much .
As you’re able to see , there ’s stack to consider when judge the best and worst eccentric of firewood . ( Once you ’ve discover trees you want to utilise , memorise how tocut and store the Sir Henry Joseph Wood . ) Which tree you prefer depends at least in part on their availability in your arena , but if you secure a winter stockpile of oak , hickory , maple , ash or grim locust firewood , you ’ll be rewarded with many affectionate , smoke- and spark - free flaming on insensate winter evenings .
Horia Varlan/Flickr
Horia Varlan/Flickr
