As a Florida native, I can’t offer much personal insight into how to best setup your wood-burning stove or fireplace. Luckily, the Environmental Protection Agency can tell you how to burn the right wood, the right way. By following these guidelines, your fires will burn cleaner, hotter, and more efficiently.
Before you even start, it’s a good idea to check your local air quality forecast and regulations. Even during the winter, wood burning is prohibited on certain days to curb air pollution. The next thing to do is check over your wood-burning appliance. Ashes should be removed into a covered, metal container kept outside of the house. The EPA also recommends that your chimney be inspected once a year. If you’re looking to upgrade, there are EPA certified wood stoves and fireplaces, as well as a $300 federal tax credit for certain items.
Now, it’s time to check your firewood. It should be split and seasoned outdoors through the summer for at least six months. The main purpose of the aging process is to dry out the firewood, which will allow it to burn hotter and reduce the amount of smoke produced. Seasoned firewood is easy to spot, as it will darken and develop cracks in the end grain. If you want to be positive, you can always purchase a moisture meter and wait until the moisture content in the firewood is below 20 percent. EPA money-saving tip: contact your local tree cutters since they often will deliver wood at a discount.
Besides firewood, the only other things that should go in your appliance are kindling or dry newspaper. Practically everything else will emit additional harmful chemicals. Though it might be fun, this means you shouldn’t burn your torn up wrapping paper, boxes, garbage, cardboard, plastics, or old magazines. The EPA also recommends keeping the doors of your fireplace closed to prevent carbon monoxide from entering your home.
At the end of the night when your fire begins to smolder, the EPA recommends to just put it out. A smoldering fire produces little heat and increases air pollution. Plus, Santa will really appreciate it.