Got Firewood? Know how to use it? This article is the first in a 3 part series on how to Burn it Smart, brought to you by the Quesnel Air Quality Roundtable. The second article in this series will discuss new woodstove technology and the final article will outline proper fire-burning techniques.
Did you know that residential wood burning contributes to the poor air quality in Quesnel? Most of us blame industry and automobiles for “bad air”, but wood smoke is a major contributor to the particulate matter in the air we breathe.
Particulate matter (PM 10 and PM 2.5) is commonly known as “pollution”. PM 10 and PM 2.5 are tiny particles 200 times smaller than raindrops. Once inhaled, these particles can affect the heart and lungs and cause serious health effects. One of the causes of PM 10 and PM 2.5 in the air we breathe is improperly seasoned firewood. This is why it is important to season (or dry) and burn firewood in the most efficient way to minimize health risks
The 3 necessary ingredients for efficient and environmentally friendly wood heating are: 1) well-seasoned firewood, 2) a certified woodstove, and 3) good fire-burning techniques. This article will explain the importance of burning properly seasoned wood to minimise PM 2.5 and PM 10 in the air.
Remember, wood dries slowly. Use the following tips to season your firewood:
- Cut wood in the spring and pile it outside so the wind and sun can dry it.
- Well seasoned firewood should have moisture content between 15% and 20%. It takes 6 months or more for newly processed wood to dry to that level. The efficiency losses resulting from burning wet wood can be as much as 30%!
- Dry firewood prevents waste and produces less smoke and more heat.
- The wood starts to dry when the seal is split. When purchasing firewood, ask, “When was it split?” The answer should be at least 6 months ago.
How can you tell if your wood is properly seasoned? For a high tech option, you can purchase a hand-help moisture reader. The Nature Education and Resource Centre here in Quesnel has one of these units if you want to see how it works. For more low-tech options, you can use the indictors below. Use as many indicators as possible to judge the dryness of firewood.
Indicators to test the dryness of firewood include:
- Two dry pieces banged together sound hollow. If wet, the sound will be solid and dull.
- Wood tends to darken from white or cream colour to grey or yellow as it dries.
- Look for checks or cracks in the end grain. Be sure to combine this indicator with others as some wet wood has checks and some dry wood has no checks.
- Dry wood weighs much less than wet wood.
- Split a piece of wood, if the exposed surface feels wet, the wood is too wet to burn.
- When in doubt, spark it up! Firewood that isn’t well seasoned is slow to ignite.
If we all commit to using properly seasoned firewood, we will minimise the particulate matter in the air we breathe.