Dry wood
If you are intending to chop up the wood yourself, you should do it early in the spring. You can then cut the wood up into short lengths before you split it and stack it outside over the summer. A lot of water will come out of the wood, so remember to store it in a place with plenty of ventilation.
To check whether the wood is dry enough, you can bang the logs together and listen out for a “singing” sound. If you put a wooden log in a tight plastic bag in a warm room, moisture will appear on the inside of the bag if the wood is too damp. In actual fact, the easiest way to identify whether the wood is dry is by the noticeable cracks in it. Your dealer can also check your dry wood with a moisture meter, please contact your nearest dealer for more information
Tips on types of wood
Rowan, beech, oak, ash, maple and birch are regarded as the best types of wood for an open fire. But many people also prefer conifers because of the crackling sound they make, but these types of tree produce sparks, which can cause a fire hazard.
Tips on lighting a fire
Be careful about what you put in your stove. Never use painted or pressure impregnated wood or plastics containing chlorine, such as PVC. This gives off highly poisonous gases. Don’t use driftwood from the sea as fuel. This contains salt which converts to chlorine when it is burned. You can wash the salt out of driftwood by leaving it outside in the elements for at least a couple of years.
When lighting a fire, it is a good idea to place two thick wooden logs at either side in the stove. Place some crumpled up paper between them and create a stack of thin split-up logs on top. You can then add more paper, if you need to.
Add fuel to the stove often, but only a little amount at a time. If the fire is too strong, the thermal stress in the chimney may be unnecessarily high. Make a moderate fire. Prevent the fire from smouldering as this produces the most pollution. The ideal is when the fire is burning well and the smoke from the chimney is almost invisible.