Kiln dried firewood is firewood which has been seasoned by drying in a kiln. It is often available for sale in small packages designed for people who need firewood for a few days, as on a camping trip, although it is also possible to purchase larger loads of kiln dried firewood. There are a number of advantages to using firewood which has been seasoned in a kiln which make it a popular option for some people.
When a tree is first felled, it has a very high moisture content. The wood is known as “green,” a reference to the fact that it is fresh, recently living wood. Green wood does not burn well, because of the moisture. It may spit and sputter, and it commonly generates a great deal of smoke. It also produces a number of byproducts of combustion because it does not burn efficiently, and as a result it can clog chimneys and spark arrestors in addition to contributing to bad air quality.
For all these reasons, firewood must be seasoned before it is used. Seasoning allows the wood to fully dry, which means that it will burn much more cleanly. Classically, seasoning is done by allowing wood to sit out, allowing the moisture to evaporate, and it can take several months. Some people season their firewood in an enclosed or covered space to speed the process up by reducing ambient moisture absorption from the surrounding air.
With kiln drying, the firewood is placed in kilns and essentially baked to force the moisture out. Kiln dried firewood can be seasoned in a fraction of the time it takes to prepare firewood under normal conditions, which means that the time elapsed between felling a tree and selling burnable wood is very short. It also carries the advantage of being evenly seasoned; a common problem with wood left out to season is that wood in the core of the pile is still green when wood on the outer edges is seasoned.
Kiln dried firewood performs reliably and dependably, burns very efficiently, and is very easy for people to handle when they are not accustomed to building wood fires. Instead of having to guess about whether or not wood is fully seasoned, people can use kiln dried firewood with confidence. This wood product is available through many camping suppliers, some grocery stores, and directly from people who process and sell firewood.
