Buying logs online and wondering whether you should choose seasoned or kiln dried logs?

We say kiln dried every time, and here’s why…

What makes wood suitable for your stove or open fire is its low moisture content. This ensures the wood burns to its hottest potential. Many seasoned logs on the market contain a lot of moisture whereas our kiln dried logs boast a moisture content of less than 20%.

A tell-tale sign that your seasoned logs contain too much moisture will be the glass on your stove getting black quickly. When trees are alive they naturally draw moisture from the ground so once the wood has been chopped and prepared, it needs time to dry out. This is where the term ‘seasoned wood’ comes from. However, wood may be advertised as seasoned, but often it’s not been dried out for long enough. Hotter summer months are best for drying out wood, however hot months are limited (especially in the UK) and some wood types take longer than others to dry out. The ash wood species, for example, can take the almost two years to dry and oak up to twice as long.

Where seasoned firewood can be unreliable in terms of quality, the major benefit of kiln dried firewood is that it’s consistent. Modern kilns feature heat controls and timers (not too dissimilar to your oven at home).

Here’s how the process works:

• The moist/undried wood is put in the kiln.
• Temperature and time is set on the kiln in accordance with the wood species type.
• Wood is removed only once the moisture content is below a certain threshold

Now that you can see why kiln dried firewood is the firm favourite when it comes to your stove or open fire, stock up with a bulk order of kiln dried firewood.