Having a fireplace is a real asset to a living room.
Such a blazing fire offers the feeling of pleasant warmth even on cool summer days, in autumn, winter and in spring anyway.
Very different from the dry air of the central heating.
Because the fire in the fireplace creates a special, natural warmth. In addition, many fireplace owners love the pleasant crackling of the fire in the fireplace.
From a practical point of view, a fireplace can of course also be a useful addition to heating and, under certain circumstances, helps to effectively reduce heating costs in winter.
But if you have a fireplace you also need firewood, which many prefer to call firewood or firewood – and not too short!
So if you rely on wood heating, partly or completely, you inevitably have the question of wood logistics on your neck. And also how you can best cut the wood down. Say you have to consider two questions and then organize and handle:
- The storage of the wood
2. Get the firewood in chimney-friendly pieces
Storing firewood – but how?
First of all, the tip that it is best to create two different stores for your firewood.
One store consists of a smaller supply of wood – as close as possible to the fireplace, where you can stack the already combustible, i.e. the small, chopped logs the size of your hand or keep them in boxes.
The second, larger warehouse consists of a larger supply of wood, which should last for a whole winter if possible. Because buying more in between is a lot more expensive than buying in large quantities and storing the wood yourself.
Firewood must always be stored in a dry place, because damp or even wet wood will clog your chimney. Above all, it should stay dry, so it is important to ensure that it is stored correctly outside !
Depending on the circumstances, it is advisable to store the firewood in a dry cellar, in a specially prepared gazebo or even in the house, for example if you have a room that is suitable for it.
In any case, you have to make sure that the wood stays dry or even better: it can dry out nicely.
If you have a garden, you might resort to crates or containers in which the wood is stored. Of course, make sure, especially with wooden crates, to orient the open side to the south as much as possible. In our latitudes, the wind rarely comes from the south.
In addition, thanks to the sun, the wood can dry out the fastest. And then a few raindrops don’t bother him anymore.
If the firewood has to be stored under the open sky (partially), it should at least be protected from moisture with a tarpaulin.
Getting the wood the right size
In addition to the right storage solution, another challenge is how to get larger logs into pieces that fit the fireplace. A handy ax is of course a solution, but in the long run it can be quite exhausting.
When you consider the amount of wood that is burned in winter, it may not be the most pleasant idea to stand outside during the cold season and spend hours splitting the logs.
A professional log splitter is more elegant. There are models that work with pure muscle power, as well as those that are operated electrically or by means of a gasoline engine. Such devices can split a lot more wood in less time than the experienced gardener with his ax.
In addition, log splitters represent a safety plus, because accidents with axes are not exactly rare (especially when exhaustion sets in over time and one is therefore less careful or less careful).
Therefore, owners of chimneys, stoves and other stoves that are suitable for firewood are only advised to use a good log splitter.
Conclusion
Anyone who has a fireplace or another fireplace (pizza oven, place for a campfire, etc.) can in most cases not avoid worrying about logistics and the chopping of their firewood stacks.
