Frequently Asked Questions About Firewood
Over two decades' worth of firewood knowledge. At your fingertips. This firewood FAQ page contains answers to the most popular questions our customer support team receives about choosing, buying, storing, and using firewood.
This FAQ page contains short answers to common firewood-related questions in plain English. If you are seeking in-depth knowledge about wood fuels that go beyond what you can find in this firewood FAQ, check out our Ultimate Guide series of articles:
- The Ultimate Guide to Firewood
- The Ultimate Guide to Wood Briquettes
- The Ultimate Guide to Hiring a Chimney Sweep
Firewood Basics
How To Start A Fire With Wood?
The best way to start a fire is using the top-down fire lighting method. Place your firewood at the bottom of your wood-burning stove, fire pit, or campfire site. Stack your kindling in a grid or pyramid shape on top of the firewood, leaving enough space for adequate airflow. Then place one or two firelighters on top of your kindling and use a match or lighter to set them on fire. Your firelighters will set the kindling on fire. The kindling, in turn, will set your firewood on fire.
How Dry Should Firewood Be?
In order to be safe to burn, firewood should be dried to moisture levels of under 20%. This is the dryness level recommended by Defra. Premium kiln dried logs are often dried to moisture levels below 10%, which helps them burn more efficiently.
What Moisture Content Should Firewood Be?
According to the requirements of Defra's Ready to Burn standard, firewood should be dried to moisture levels of under 20%.
What Fire Extinguisher for Wood?
Red is the right colour of fire extinguisher for paper and wood. The color signifies a water fire extinguisher that is suitable for use in extinguishing class A combustible materials (wood, paper, cotton, et cetera). Water has a cooling effect and can penetrate these materials, which helps prevent reignition.
Where to Buy Firewood Near Me?
Regardless of which part of the UK you live in, you can purchase firewood online through the lektowoodfuels.co.uk firewood supply store. Lekto sells both oak and birch kiln-dried logs. The products will be delivered to your doorstep in two to five days. Free UK delivery is available on orders over £50.
How Hot Is a Wood Fire?
There is no one answer to how hot does a wood fire get. The temperature of a wood fire varies greatly from species to species. The hottest burning type of firewood is beech, which burns at 950 °C. Oak firewood burns at 900 °C, which makes it perfect for pizza ovens and steak searing. The UK's most popular firewood tree species, birch, burns at around 820 °C.
How to Start a Fire With Wet Wood?
You shouldn't burn wet wood under any circumstances. When wet wood is burned, it releases hundreds of toxic compounds and fine particulate matter, which the World Health Organization considers the most damaging pollutant to human health.
How to Light a Wood Fire?
To start a wood fire using the top-down fire lighting method:
- Place a layer of firewood at the bottom of your wood-burning appliance or fire ring.
- Stack your kindling on top of the firewood in a grid or pyramid shape.
- Place one or two firelighters on top of your kindling and set fire to them using a lighter.
How to Tell Hardwood From Softwood Firewood?
Hardwood trees are slow-growing trees that have a seasonal life cycle and typically have broad and flat leaves, which they lose during the autumn. Softwoods, on the other hand, are usually fast-growing, evergreen trees that don't produce flowers, have needle-like leaves, and have their seeds enclosed in cones.
What Is the Best Firewood?
Being supremely energy-dense and hot-burning, oak is considered to be the best firewood for pizza ovens and outdoor cooking. Thanks to their beautiful flames and aesthetically pleasing look, birch logs are considered to be the best firewood for open fires, fire pits, and campfires.
Purchasing Firewood: Costs & Options
Where to Buy Firewood?
Regardless of which part of the UK you live in, you can buy high-quality firewood in the Lekto online store. We have over 11,000 positive Trustpilot reviews. Fast, free delivery is available on orders over £50.
How Much Firewood Do I Need UK?
If you have a single log burner that you use every single day of the average 168 day UK heating season, you will need about 96 boxes of firewood. If you buy your firewood online, then you will pay around £840 per year of wood heat.
How Much Firewood Do I Need For Winter UK?
If you have a single wood burner, then you will need about 48 boxes of firewood. If you buy your firewood from Lekto, you will have to pay around £420 to heat your home from December to February.
Drying & Seasoning Firewood
How to Season Firewood?
Here's how to dry firewood properly: split your logs and stack them for a period of between 6 and 36 months (depending on the tree species) in a place that is well-ventilated and open to sunlight.
How Long to Season Firewood?
The correct length of seasoning depends on the tree species. Apple, cherry, and pear trees can be dried in as little as 6 months. Beech takes about a year to 18 months to dry. Oak firewood needs at least 24 months to dry properly.
How Long to Season Ash Firewood
Ash is a dense hardwood and takes between 12 and 18 months to season.
How Long to Season Oak Firewood
To properly dry oak firewood, you will need to season it for at least 24 months.
Where to Buy Firewood London
Today, most people in London buy their firewood online. You can purchase kiln dried oak and kiln dried birch logs at lektowoodfuels.co.uk. Delivery takes 2-4 days and is free for orders over £50.
How to Speed Up Drying Firewood
Firewood dries best during hot, sunny, and windy weather. To speed up the drying process, move your firewood to the sunniest spot available and make sure to leave enough gaps between the logs to ensure proper airflow.
How to Kiln Dry Firewood
Place your firewood industrial kiln, set it to a temperature of between 60 °C and 80 °C, and set the industrial fan to a high setting. The drying process will take between 4 and 7 days, depending on the tree species.
Firewood Storage
How to Store Firewood
Firewood should be stored in a dry, well-ventilated place. Ideally, this would be a covered outdoor wood shed or a dry garage. Kiln-dried firewood can also be stored indoors as the oven drying process will kill off any insects or mould that it could be contaminated with it.
How Much Is Firewood?
If you live in an apartment with a single wood burner and use kiln dried logs, a single winter’s worth of firewood will cost you £420. A full UK heating season’s worth of fire wood will cost you £840.
How to Store Firewood Outside in Winter
If you have a single log burner that you use every single day of the average 168 day UK heating season and buy your firewood online, then you will pay around £840 per year of wood heat.
How Much Firewood Do I Need For Winter UK?
If you have a single wood burner and buy your firewood from Lekto, then you will have to pay around £410 to heat your home from December to February.