Acquiring firewood

How to make firewood yourself

There are many arguments in favour of making firewood from one’s own logs. Cutting logs and chopping firewood are a hobby that can provide meaningful things to do, free exercise and forest management benefits, all at the same time.

1. For making firewood, it is best to cut down the logs in winter or early spring, well before trees come into leaf. The trunks will then have the least amount of moisture due to the absence of fluid flow. The water content of newly cut wood is about half. The logs should be chopped soon after felling. Chopping reveals a lot of barkless surface for moisture to evaporate. Frozen unseasoned wood is also the easiest to chop.
   
   
2. Stack the firewood airily on an underlay or pallets, for example. Make the pile in a windy and sunny place so that air is able to circulate from all sides. Air humidity is on average at its lowest in the spring. Cover the top of the pile.
   
   
3. Store the firewood in a dry and airy place. Air should properly ventilate the wood through the walls, base and roof. The wood should be brought into the woodshed at the latest around Midsummer, when the average air humidity starts to increase. Due to the risk of fire, drying or storing wood under the eaves of a building is not allowed under any circumstances (Rescue Act, Section 9).
   
   
4. Bring the wood inside 1–2 days before use so that the outside of the wood has time to warm up. When firewood is brought in from the cold, moisture from the indoor air condenses on its surface. As the temperature stabilises, the condensed moisture also evens out. Firewood must be placed so that there is no risk of ignition.

Buying firewood

The majority of the approximately 5 million cubic metres of firewood used annually in Finland is made independently, usually from logs harvested from one’s own forest. However, the commercial production of firewood is rapidly becoming more common, and the business is developing and the market is diversifying at the same time. New ways of acquiring firewood are also being developed, as in the ‘Kuivaa asiaa’ project. Many firewood producers do it on the side, with agricultural entrepreneur as their main occupation.

Even though you can still find ads selling firewood in the classifieds sections of newspapers and on the bulletin boards of shops, for example, firewood sales have largely moved online. The best way to get started is to go to your internet browser and type, for example, “firewood Espoo” into a search engine. This allows you to compare the products, services and prices on firewood suppliers’ websites.

Things to consider when buying

The delivery method may be a loose batch delivered by trailer, in sacks or otherwise packed. Choose the one that suits you best.

The price is influenced by several factors: demand, the scale of the entrepreneur’s activities, the drying method and the wood species. Also pay attention to the differences in the pricing of transportation: the transport distance may affect the transportation price, but transportation may also be included in the price.

It is worth asking about mixed wood. Your firewood supplier may have it available at a bargain price.

You should order only the amount that you are able to store so that firewood delivered dry does not get wet in storage.

Feel free to ask your firewood supplier for tips on storing and using firewood! You should also inquire about services such as stacking of firewood, advice, felling of yard trees, log splitter rental, etc.; if your supplier does not offer the service in question, they may be able to direct you to someone who does or consider including the service you requested in their company’s offering.

The wood of professional suppliers has rarely been drying for over a year. The production of firewood takes up a lot of space and capital. Because of this, entrepreneurs usually try to operate in such a way that, with correctly timed actions, the wood is dry for the next heating season.

How much to buy?

Firewood quantities are indicated in cubic meters. When buying wood, it is good to know the difference between stacked and loose cubic meters. When you buy:

• a loose cubic meter (loose m3) of wood, you will receive a box the size of a cubic meter with the wood thrown in randomly
  
  
• a stacked cubic meter (stacked m3) of wood, you will receive a stack of wood the size of a cubic meter
  
  
• a solid cubic meter (m3) of wood, you will receive a wood cube whose sides measure one metre in length.

1 solid cubic meter = m3
1.5 x stacked cubic meter = stacked m3
2.5 x loose cubic meter = loose m3

What about firewood length?

The appropriate length of firewood depends on the size of the fireplace. Check the manufacturer’s instructions for the right size for your fireplace. Pieces measuring 20–33 centimetres are suitable for fireplaces and stoves. Longer firewood can be used for baking ovens and central heating furnaces.

Fungal spores in firewood can reduce indoor air quality

The outdoor air is rich in microbes, such as mould and fungal spores. Firewood is organic material on the surface of which microbes from the outdoor air can multiply. The adverse health effects caused by microbes are individual and are influenced by several factors.

The negative impacts of firewood on indoor air can be minimised by using only dry firewood and by bringing in only the wood needed for the next heating session, 1–2 days before use.