How large is a cord of wood and what is the best wood to burn?
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A cord of wood is 128 cubic feet. When it is stacked, it would measure 4'
high, by 8' long, by 4' deep. It can also be 4' high, by 2' deep, by 16'
long. Whenever wood is dumped in your driveway, you cannot tell if it is
a full cord until it is stacked.
Hard wood,such as oak, ash, cherry apple, and walnut, are excellent
woods to burn. These woods give off more BTUs (heat) than softer
woods. The important thing to remember, is to season your wood before
it is burned. When you buy wood, it may already be seasoned.
How do you tell seasoned wood? It is often grey in color. It should not
look as if it has just been cut. The bark may fall off of the logs. The ends
should start to show cracks. A seasoned piece of wood should be
lighter than a fresh cut piece. This is due to the lower amount of water
and sap in the wood.
Hard wood should sit, already cut into the sizes needed for burning, for
a minimum of 6 months, but preferably a year before it is burned. Wood
that has been cut for a year, but not split, is not well seasoned wood.
Many people believe that soft wood cannot be burned. That isn't true.
Soft wood doesn't give off as much heat as hard wood, but it is still very
usable. The difference is that soft wood should sit, cut in the size for
burning, for 2 years before it is burned.
Remember that firewood should not be stacked up against the house.
You don't want insects to have a short route into your home. You also
want to keep the wood up off of the ground so that air can circulate
under it. This way the wood will not be absorbing water. Also, cover you
wood loosely to keep the rain and snow off of it. After all, you are
wanting it to be dry enough to burn. Covering is usually not necessary in
the summer, but fall and winter are important.
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