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When we get new customers calling us from Cranleigh, Guildford, Godalming, Dorking, Horsham and across Surrey, or coming to our yard to stock up on fuel for their fireplaces, wood-burning stoves or log burners, many of them ask if there’s any difference between kiln-dried logs and seasoned logs. In all honesty, there isn’t much to separate these two types of firewood, since the moisture content of both should be below 20% for them to burn properly.
The major difference, naturally, is the drying process. Instead of using specialist equipment to forcefully remove water contained within the wood, as we do with kiln-dried firewood, seasoned logs stay out in the air to dry naturally.
While this takes much longer than the kiln-drying process, some of our customers prefer to use logs seasoned the traditional way. This explains why we stock the highest-quality seasoned logs, sourced from trusted local suppliers.
Please contact LJN Firewood to arrange deliveries to your doorstep, made locally from our own yard in Ewhurst.
Any freshly cut firewood contains a high percentage of moisture, which means it struggles to burn and creates too much smoke. The drying process is crucial for producing high-quality logs, as it enables a clean, reliable burn. The difficulty with air-drying wood rather than using a kiln drier is that the type of wood determines the duration of the seasoning process.
While softwoods like Pine take around 6 to 12 months to season, hardwoods like Oak need at least 1 to 2 years. The time of year a deciduous tree drops its leaves is also a factor to consider. This is because, during the winter months, sap moves towards the roots. This means that chopping down a deciduous tree in winter will leave you with wood containing a lower moisture level than chopping down the same tree during the summer months.
Unless you want to season deciduous wood, it is best to gather wood in the summer because warm weather dries it out immediately. This reduces the overall seasoning time.
We tell customers to chop wood to around 15cm to 20cm in diameter and to between 40cm and 45cm in length for easier storage of wood and logs.
We recommend using a woodshed with a roof and open sides to maximise air circulation. It isn’t too difficult to build a suitable shed for temporary storage with a few basic skills.
Additionally, we can cut and dry special-sized wood and make it to order, with an approximate lead time of 1 to 3 weeks. Please contact us for prices on our special size services in Cranleigh, Guildford, Dorking, Godalming, Horsham and the surrounding Surrey areas.
Use a wood moisture test meter to determine the percentage of water contained in logs. We stock quality seasoned logs, but we find that kiln-dried logs offer greater consistency.
