How to Chop Firewood for Heating
Burning firewood is a relatively easy and ecologically friendly way to heat your house during the winter months. Chopping your own firewood is a good form of exercise as well as a great way to save money while heating your home. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Examine your wood-burning stove or fireplace. Look at the size and shape of your burning apparatus, because this will determine how large the wood blocks or circles you will want to buy or cut. Do not buy or cut wood that is longer than your stove or fireplace.
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Cut with a chainsaw or buy hardwood like Oak, Poplar or Hickory. These types of wood will burn evenly and produce abundant heat. Buy or cut wood that is in circular shapes, like a cylinder. The wood should be flat on both side so that it can stand up on the ground while chopping.
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Designate a flat section of ground for chopping the wood. If you do not want to destroy a landscaped area, put a square piece of plywood on the ground to chop on. The area should be at least 2 feet wide and long.
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Stand the cylinder-shaped pieces of wood upright on the flat ground. Place the sharpened end of the axe on the top of the wood. Bring the axe up 2 to 3 feet, then bring it down on the wood. The goal is to cut the wood into rectangular pieces.
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Save the smaller sections of wood that may not seem like quality firewood. These pieces will serve as kindling for the fire.
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Tips & Warnings
If the cylinders of wood have any straight lines appearing on the top, chop down directly on those lines. It will be easier to cut on lines that are already in the wood. Accuracy is more important than brute strength.
Oak and Poplar are usually found in abundance and therefore are the most common types of wood used for building a fire. Once you have plenty of chopped hardwood, chop a few pieces of pine or evergreen. This wood will burn slower but will secrete a sap that can collect in chimneys. The sap can catch fire and burn inside a chimney, so only burn two or three sections of evergreen wood at a time.
