A recent survey on Facebook by Yours Truly (never stop learning!) revealed an overwhelming penchant for burning wood in our stoves over gas. 91% in favour of wood in fact!
There are lots of different types of wood though so what would should you burn in your stove or fireplace?
Well here is what NOT to burn: green wood. This won’t make you any friends as it produces a poor fire, lots of smoke, an unpleasant odour and dirty stove glass. Your fire is likely to go out fairly quickly too.
Here is what you SHOULD burn: Kiln dried hardwood.
Kiln dried- although logs that have been seasoned are great (ideally outside for 18-24 months), kiln dried logs are even better. They burn hotter than seasoned logs and, with less moisture than their seasoned counterparts they are more energy efficient as energy is converted to heat due to a decrease in the need to burn of moisture.
As an example, at Flameboyant we sell wood that has a moisture content of <18% and is CO2 efficient. (Of course, it is sourced from sustainable forests too!)
From Apple and Ash to Sycamore and Yew: there are plenty of hardwoods to choose from. Some are better than others. Avoid lime; it doesn’t produce a very impressive flame. Willow and Poplar are also best avoided.
If you get a change find some Eucalyptus. It burns quickly but produces a wonderfully fragrant smell. A nice wood for Christmas time is Cherry; it burns for a long time with a good heat and again, the aromatic scent is perfect for those Winter months.
We have plenty of kiln dried logs in stock at the moment so come and get yours now.