Unseasoned logs
What is seasoning?
Seasoning is the process wood goes through to extract its moisture content.
The less moisture, the better the wood will burn. The moisture content will need to be brought down to 25 to 20% from common values of 45 to 30%.
The best way to achieve the correct moisture content is to split your logs so they dry more quickly.
How long do logs take to season?
The time it takes to season firewood also depends on the type of wood.
Ideally, denser types of hardwood need to be seasoned for 1 to 2 years.
Lighter types of wood, particularly softwood, will season in around 6 to 12 months.
The key to seasoning wood quickly and successfully is to maximise the potential for the sun and wind to dry it out naturally. To do this, you need to make sure you choose the right spot for your store and stack it efficiently.
How do I set up my log store?
It’s important to find the right location to season your logs. It needs to be protected from rain, with plenty of room for air to circulate. Preferably, it should also get some sun to help the process, this isn’t as important as air circulation – without this, mould can form.
To keep the air circulating, don’t start stacking it straight on the ground. Instead, use a pallet or a couple of longer pieces of wood as a base. Start laying your logs out, placing one on top of the other until your pile is about waist high. Your stack should only be 1 log thick – if you create blocks of logs, the air won’t be able to get to them, which could lead to rot setting in and insects invading.
Top Tips,
- Stack with the bark upwards to protect it from rain
- Point the log ends outwards towards the wind
- Place your stack in the sunniest spot possible
- Pile your wood in a criss-cross to maximise airflow – though this does take up more room
How do I know when my logs are seasoned?
There are a number of factors to check to see if your logs are seasoned and ready to burn;
- Appearance – it should be pale in colour with some visible cracks, while the bark should easily come loose (which makes good kindling).
- Weight – without its moisture content, seasoned wood should feel lighter in weight.
- Sound – when you tap two of the logs together, it should make more of a clear knocking sound than the dull thud of green wood.
You can buy a moisture meter to test the water content of the wood for more certainty. To use one of these, take a couple of readings from a sample of logs and make sure they are ideally below 20% moisture content.
Kiln Dried logs
How big are the logs?
Our Kiln Dried Logs are cut and split between 8 and 10 inches in length – making them suitable for most conventional wood burning stoves, open fires, chimineas, fire pits and wood fired ovens.
Firewood is cut from a natural product with tree diameters varying greatly. This means getting log thicknesses to remain consistent across all supply is virtually impossible. Whilst log length should always remain consistently between 8 and 10 inches, you should expect the thickness to vary across deliveries; you’ll find some logs are thicker and chunkier than others. This is why you’ll find that no two log deliveries are ever exactly the same.
What's the difference between softwood and hardwood logs?
Hardwood logs are much denser than softwood logs – so you’ll find hardwood burns hotter and for longer than softwood does.
Hardwood trees have a different internal structure to softwoods, which gives them more inherent strength; however, there is actually a huge variation in the density of different softwoods and hardwoods, making some softwoods heavier than some hardwoods!
Generally, kiln-dried hardwood logs make for better firewood as they spit less and burn for a long time. The best time to add them is when your fire is established, as they will sustain the burn.
Our kiln-dried softwood is perfect for building a fire and getting it going quickly. If you have a multi-fuel or wood-burning stove, you can expect to get more burn time, as newer stoves are more energy-efficient. Softwood does offer cost savings compared to hardwood, and as it burns quicker, you get the novelty of adding logs frequently to your fire.
Is it normal to get small bits of wood debris in my order?
It’s perfectly normal to expect a reasonable amount of wood debris and thin bits of wood in our loads.
Rest assured, these small bits do not affect the volume of logs you receive, though! In a way, you could think of these bits as ‘free kindling’ because some will always find their way into the voids and cavities between your loose-filled logs.
As much as we try to minimise these small bits of wood debris making their way through, having none at all is unavoidable. This is because we’re working with raw material and automated firewood processing methods, which make our firewood production more efficient and productive.
What's the difference between loose loads and bulk bags?
Loose Loads
One of the primary reasons why loose loads are a better value is their cost efficiency.
When buying firewood logs in bulk bags, you are not only paying for the logs but also for the packaging. Bulk bags usually come with an additional cost to cover the manufacturing and transportation of the bags. On the other hand, loose transit loads are delivered directly to your location without any unnecessary packaging, resulting in lower costs per log.
Loose loads also require less handling and so reduce costs.
Bulk Bags
Benefits of buying bulk bags are that you will have no mess on your driveway especially where you have small pea shingle (bark, slithers).
The bags are semi–waterproof so no need to put under cover, or this can be done at your convenience.
Also if you have shortage of space, our logs are well contained within their bag.
Why are logs sold in cubic metres rather than weight?
We sell our firewood by the cubic metre rather than by weight for the simple reason that the drier the wood, the less it weighs (and the better it burns).
Our kiln-dried logs have a low moisture content, which means they weigh less than unseasoned or part-seasoned logs of the same volume.
If you were to buy firewood by weight, you would end up paying for water content rather than the actual wood!
Delivery
Where do you deliver to?
We deliver to the following postcodes,
Zone 1 — free delivery
DN15, DN16, DN17 1, DN17 2, DN17 3, DN18, DN19, DN20, DN21 3, DN21 4, DN38, DN39, LN7
Covering Scunthorpe, Brigg, Broughton, Scawby, Hibaldstow, Kirton-in-Lindsey, Messingham, Scotter, Winterton, Barton-upon-Humber, Barrow-upon-Humber, the Low Villages, Caistor and the villages around Gainsborough.
Zone 2 — £10, or free on orders over £200
DN9 1, DN17 4, DN31, DN32, DN33, DN34, DN35, DN36 4, DN37, DN40, DN41
Covering Grimsby, Cleethorpes, Immingham, North and South Killingholme, Humberston, Crowle, Belton and Epworth.
We’re happy to speak to customers outside these areas who may be interested in larger quantities. Just give us a call on 01652 658595 to have a chat with us.
What days do you deliver?
We deliver logs Monday to Friday,
When you place your order online you can always leave a message with preferred delivery days.
If your order is delayed for some reason, we will contact you to let you know.