Choosing firewood can feel like a complex process, but it doesn’t have to be. Once you understand what it takes to produce good quality firewood, you’ll have no problem determining which type of firewood will burn fine and which will give you the best burn for your money. A few factors contribute to great firewood, including density, dryness, burn length, heat output, scent, and whether it burns clean. Here’s some information on each of these factors to help you make the right decision when you look for firewood in Flathead Valley, Montana.

What to Look for in Firewood

There are two key things you should look for when searching for firewood delivery: dryness and density. Ideally, your firewood ought to be as dry as possible and fairly dense. There’s a good reason for this. If your wood isn’t entirely dry, the fire will spend its energy burning off the water. This means that fire won’t burn as strongly or hot as it is capable of. As for density, the more wood a fire has to consume, the better.

We are Flathead Father N’ Son, firewood specialists with years of knowledge and experience under our belts. You can guarantee that our firewood ticks these boxes every single time. We supply exclusively seasoned firewood. It dries in natural conditions for at least 18 months, ensure the optimal water content of 10-15%.

Long Burn Firewood

Good firewood should burn for a long time. This saves you the effort of regularly topping the wood up, poking and prodding around to start the fire, then keeping it going. The key factor in how long your firewood will burn is whether you have opted for hardwood firewood or softwood firewood.

Hardwood

If you’re looking for a longer burn, hardwood is the way to go. Hardwood comes from trees that lose their leaves in the winter. Popular examples include oak, hickory, and ash. These trees take a lot longer to grow, and their wood is inherently denser. In the end, they provide fire with more matter to consume, thus helping it burn longer. Overall, hardwoods burn at a high temperature, produce a great deal of heat, and sustain flames for prolonged time.

At Flatheead Father N’ Son, we are happy to offer birch, one of the most popular local hardwoods. Unfortunately, Montana woods don’t give us the opportunity to supply more firewood options.

Softwoods

As we do not have these tree species in Northwest Montana, we use what is best locally – Douglas Fir, Larch, Tamarack, Lodgepole, Spruce, and other types of softwoods. Softwoods come from trees that maintain their leaves in the winter, also known as “evergreen trees”. These trees grow faster, producing less dense wood and providing the fire with less fuel. These are, therefore, faster burning woods. They are ideal for starting the fire and quickly reaching high temperature.

Different softwood species burn differently. Douglas fir, for instance, has a denser wood than its coniferous counterparts. Spruce and Fir, on the other hand, are among the softest species – they burn beautifully, with some nice crackling and fantastic aroma, but they don’t last long. To help you get the best experience based on your needs, we prepared two softwood mixes featuring dissimilar properties. Douglas Fir plus Tamarack is an optimal option for fireplaces and indoor use in general, as it burns longer, cleaner, and is not prone to crackling. Lodgepole, spruce, and pine mix is an excellent choice for firepits and bonfires, since it gives off pleasant smell and creates a nice roaring fire.

Ultimately, it’s good to have a stock of both softwood and hardwood. Please keep in mind that we have a limited supply of  hardwoods in Northwest Montana. First of all, these trees don’t grow in our area. Secondly, it is forbidden to bring firewood from other states to avoid the spread of diseases and pests. It also helps minimize OC2 emissions. Still, if you’d like to mix our premium firewoods with hardwoods, make sure to take a look at our birch supply.

Clean Burn Firewood

When burning wood, it’s important to ensure that it lets out as little smoke as possible. A clean burn will allow you to enjoy all the benefits of burning firewood without your home becoming filled with smoke. A clean burn is also essential for outdoor use in a firepit. Most people would prefer to avoid their clothes smelling smoky when they return indoors. The key to a clean burn is minimal dampness and no contaminants (moss, lichens, waste products of animals and insects, dirt, etc.).

As we have already pointed out, you should actively seek wood fuel with a moisture level below 20%. Anything more will produce excess smoke. To ensure that our firewood is good for burning, it undergoes prolonged seasoning. Usually, it takes 1.5 years to remove excessive water naturally. Some manufacturers kiln-dry their firewood to speed up seasoning. This involves loading logs in a kiln and letting them dry for 3-6 days at 120-200 F. However, we don’t use this method due to added carbon emissions. Sun-drying lets us obtain perfectly seasoned firewood without burning a single gram of fossil fuels.

Firewood Scent

For many of us, a key factor of choosing firewood is the scent. Some people burn firewood just to achieve a nice ambience in their homes, not necessarily for heating itself. Some woods smell great indeed, creating that traditional, cozy aroma we associate with open fires. Wood that hasn’t been properly treated, on the other hand, can smell awful. Again, dryness is a decisive factor here. If logs have a moisture content above 20%, chances are, they will smell pretty bad as soon as you try to start a fire. That’s because wet wood tends to feature mold or fungus of some sort responsible for musty smell.

Along with that, you should consider which tree species were used to produce firewood. The truth is that some wood types smell better than others. Popular options for a pleasant aroma include birch and softwoods, mainly pine, Douglas fir, larch,  tamarack, etc. The secret is resins and volatile extractives in their cells, which emit a stunning scent.

As you can see, there are a fair few elements that can impact the quality of firewood. If you’re still struggling to find quality firewood delivery in Flathead County, don’t hesitate to get in touch. A member of our team will be more than happy to listen to your needs and recommend suitable irewood to tick all of your boxes! We serve Kalispell, Bigfork, Whitefish, Columbia Falls, Kila, Eureka, Polson, etc.