How To Dry Firewood Fast Wood. The wood that is wet will not burn, and you should always make sure that you have dry firewood available before beginning a campfire.
If the wood has been freshly cut be sure to let it dry before using it or else it will smolder and won’t generate great heat.
Sun and wind are two of the best tools for getting firewood dry because they work together to evaporate moisture and speed up the drying process.
However, there are some ways to accelerate the process such as splitting thicker logs as well as stacking your firewood in an appropriate manner.
So that air can circulate and small-diameter logs can touch one another in a cross-hatch pattern at right angles.
How To Dry Firewood Fast
In this post, we’ll discuss how to dry wood quickly.
Splitting Wood
Compared to wood that is not surrounded by bark, wood that is cut along its grain will dry up to 15 times faster. If the wood is split, it will dry up to 15 times faster.
Regardless of the size of the wood, there are ways to speed up the drying process. Aim for 10cm/4inch pieces as these tend to be most efficient when burning.
If you plan on using wood rather than gas or firewood in order to keep your home warm and cozy then splitting the wood beforehand into smaller pieces helps it dry by allowing air to enter more easily.
While preventing water from getting any further into the piece of the log which in turn helps it burn more efficiently.
Leave Plenty Of Air Gaps
When you stack your firewood, it is best to leave a fair amount of room among the pieces for airflow to ensure that it can season properly.
A tightly stacked pile is pleasing to look at and may hold wood well as it tends not to shift during campfires and such, but for the most efficient seasoning on a budget in terms of time.
It’s generally best to leave air gaps between pieces when straddling the logs up vertically. This way, weathering effects can occur more gently after being cut off from nascent sunlight.
Keep Firewood Away From Walls
A piece of wood that has been left out in the open, free from walls and buildings, will dry the fastest.
You can also allow the wood to dry in a woodshed for the rest of the summer season or you can allow it to stack up in the shed when the seasoning process is done.
As far as storage is concerned, I believe that the most effective way to do both would be to pile the wood out in the open so that it can dry as quickly as possible, but then, later on, store what is left within a shed when that process is complete.
Providing A Roof To Cover
The sun and wind will certainly help your unseasoned wood dry faster, but once it has begun to dry, you’ll need a cover to keep the rain from getting to it.
The whole stack should not be completely covered with waterproofing since covering the whole stack in a tarp can double the drying time. When covering your firewood for a short rain shower or two, you can use a tarpaulin.
However, if you need to do this for a longer period of time, you should add some boards or pallets to allow for air movement and reduce condensation.
FAQs
Will firewood dry in a pile?
A stack of firewood has to be stacked correctly. All pieces of lumber should be placed one on top of each other horizontally, otherwise, it’ll fall apart and the whole thing will become a literal pile of kindling and it won’t burn for as long as you need either.
Within three months, the firewood will shrink from 10 feet to eight because the wood quickly dries up; this is why you have to make sure you stack your firewood tightly so that all pieces are touching each other where possible.
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