How to Store Firewood for Winter

We have been working with timber at The Sawmills in Walford, just outside Ross-on-Wye, since 1945. As a local timber merchant and firewood supplier serving Ross-on-Wye, Hereford and the surrounding towns and villages, we hear the same questions every autumn. This guide answers them, from choosing the right logs to storing them properly through the winter.

Why dry firewood matters

Freshly felled wood can be more than half water by weight. When you burn it, much of the energy goes into boiling that water away rather than heating your home. The result is less warmth, more smoke and tar deposits building up in your flue and chimney.

For a clean, efficient burn, firewood should have a moisture content of 20% or less. In England, that is also the level set by the government’s Ready to Burn rules for wood sold in smaller quantities. Our customers across the border in Monmouthshire are not covered by the same law, but 20% is still the figure to aim for.

A simple moisture meter costs very little and tells you exactly where your logs stand. Split a log and test the freshly exposed face rather than the outside, which can read drier than the wood really is.

Kiln dried logs or seasoned logs?

Seasoned logs are left to air dry, usually for a year or more. How dry they become depends on the wood, how it was stacked and the weather, and a wet Herefordshire winter can leave them damper than you would like.

Kiln dried logs are dried in a kiln, which brings the moisture down quickly and consistently. They light easily, burn hotter and produce less smoke and ash. That is why we sell kiln dried firewood: you know what you are getting, and the logs are ready to burn the day they arrive.

Hardwood or softwood?

Hardwood such as oak, ash and beech is dense, burns slowly and gives out a steady heat, which makes it ideal for a long evening in front of the fire. Softwood catches quickly and burns fast, so it is best used as kindling to get a fire going. Most people start with softwood kindling and keep the fire going with hardwood logs.

Buying firewood in Ross-on-Wye, Hereford and the Forest of Dean

From our timber yard in Walford we supply:

• Kiln dried firewood crates, from £242.12, for regular burners who want a full winter’s supply in one delivery
• Bagged hardwood firewood, from £11.81, for topping up or occasional fires
• Kiln dried kindling, in handy bags

You can collect from the yard or order online for delivery. We deliver within 40 miles of our Walford branch, which covers Hereford, Ledbury, Leominster and the Golden Valley, the Forest of Dean towns of Coleford, Cinderford and Lydney, and Monmouth, Abergavenny, Chepstow and Pontypool across the Welsh border. Delivery costs are shown at checkout.