Quality Firewood Logs are essential for the succesful lighting of your fire, for any application - either wood fired ovens or log burners.
We have listed below some basic principles to follow about lighting a Firewood Log! fire. By using these principles you will be able to light any fire without the use of firelighters.
Firewood Logs should be seasoned, split & ready to burn. Wood cut should be approximately 12 to 16 inches in length and 2 to 4 inches in diameter - this does depend on where you will burn the firewood logs. For example, in a small outdoor oven, the firewood logs will choke the fire if they are over 7cm in diameter. In a larger open fire on a fire pit for example, it is not too critical assuming there is a good fire alrteady established.
A well seasoned firewood is less than 20% moisture content. A usefull moisture meter can be purchased to help you with this. By having well seasoned firewood logs, you will light the fire more effectively, burn with more heat output and the firewood logs will produce hardly any smoke. If you plan to cook in an outdoor ove, Chimenea or over a firepit style BBQ, Hardwood Firewood logs are essential.
Firewood Logs Recomendations:
- Avoid Soft Woods - Pines, Spruce.
- Oak - Brilliant all round firewood log.
- Fruit Woods such as Apple, Plum or Cherry are really nice to burn and produce great aromas.
- Beech, Ash, Maple, Ceder - these give off good heat.
Seek well seasoned wood, moisture content of 20% or less reduces the amount of smoke and will burn well.
Tools that you should consider having for regular burning of firewood:
- A good quality axe or log splitter
- A log Store
- A moisture meter
- A Log carrier or cradle
Preparing the fire
- Ensure you have a clean area to start the fire - no ash or water.
- Place several pieces of screwed up or tied paper (newspaper is fine) on the floor between two good-sized pieces of kindling (ensure it is dry!)
- Place more kindling lengthwise over the 1st row of kindling - similar to jengar if you are familiar with this!
- Complete 3 or 4 rows of kindling stacked at 90 degrees to each row.
- Light the paper with a match
- Once the kindling is well lit - place two split hardwood firewood logs (not too big - about 4 or 5 cm diameter) across the kindling pile and top with one or two more once established and lit.
Remember to maintain the crossing pattern so that the air can circulate through the wood - this is very important.
Let this fire burn for approximately 10 minutes, adding several more Firewood logs to keep a large rolling flame going.
If you want to cook with the firewood log fire, your goal is to allow the firewood logs to glow with no flames and establish some red-hot coals.