Species Weight (lbs./ Cord) Green Weight (lbs./ Cord) Dry Heat per Cord (Million BTUs) % of Green Ash Ease of Splitting Smoke Sparks Coals Fragrance Overall Quality
Easy Moderate Good Slight
Apple 4850 3888 Species Weight (lbs./ Cord) Green Weight (lbs./ Cord) Dry Heat per Cord (Million BTUs) % of Green Ash Ease of Splitting Smoke Sparks Coals Fragrance Overall Quality Alder 2540 17.5 Easy Moderate Good Slight
BTUs. Apple 4850 3888 27.0 135 Medium Low Few Good Excellent Excellent Ash, Green 4184 2880 20.0 100 Easy Low Few Good Slight Excellent Ash, White 3952 3472 24.2 121 Medium Low Few Good Slight Excellent Aspen, Quaking 2160 18.2 Easy Few Good Slight Basswood (Linden) 4404 13.8 69 Easy Medium Few Poor Good Fair Beech 3760 27.5 Difficult Few Excellent Good Birch 4312 2992 20.8 104 Medium Medium Few Good Slight Fair Boxelder 3589 2632 18.3 92 Difficult Medium Few Poor Slight Fair Buckeye, Horsechestnut 13.8 69 Medium Low Few Poor Slight Fair Catalpa 4560 2360 16.4 82 Difficult Medium Few Good Bad Fair Cherry 3696 2928 20.4 102 Easy Low Few Excellent Excellent Good Chestnut 18.0 Good Good Coffeetree, Kentucky 3872 21.6 108 Medium Low Few Good Good Good Cottonwood 4640 2272 15.8 79 Easy Medium Few Good Slight Fair Dogwood 4230 High Difficult Few Fair Douglas-fir 3319 2970 20.7 103 Easy High Few Fair Slight Good Elm, American 4456 20.0
100 Difficult Medium Few Excellent Good Fair
BTUs Elm, Siberian 3800 3020 20.9 105 Difficult Medium Few Good Fair Fair Fir, White 3585 2104 14.6 73 Easy Medium Few Poor Slight Fair Hackberry 3984 3048 21.2 106 Easy Low Few Good Slight Good Hemlock 2700 19.3 Easy Many Poor Good Honeylocust 4640 3832 26.7 133 Easy Low Few Excellent Slight Excellent Juniper, Rocky Mountain 21.8 109 Medium Medium Many Poor Excellent Fair Larch (Tamarack) 3330 21.8 Easy-med Many fair Slight Fair Locust, Black 4616 4016 27.9 140 Difficult Low Few Excellent Slight Excellent Maple, Other 4685 3680 25.5 128 Easy Low Few Excellent Good Excellent Maple, Silver 3904 2752 19.0 95 Medium Low Few Excellent Good Fair Mulberry 4712 3712 25.8 129 Easy Medium Many Excellent Good Excellent Oak, Bur 4960 3768 26.2 131 Easy Low Few Excellent Good Excellent Oak, Gambel 30.7 Oak, Red 4888 3528 24.6 123 Medium Low Few Excellent Good Excellent Oak, White 5573 4200 29.1 146 Medium Low Few Excellent Good Excellent Osage-orange 5120 32.9 165 Easy Low Many Excellent Excellent Excellent Pine, Lodgepole 21.1 2610 Easy Many Fair Good Fair Pine, Ponderosa 3600 16.2 81 Easy Medium Many Fair Good Fair Pine, White 2250 15
Easy Moderate BTUs. Good Pinyon 3000 27.1 Easy Many Poplar 2080 Low Easy Many Fair Bitter Redcedar, Eastern 2060 13.0 Easy Low Many Poor Slight Fair Redcedar, Western 2950 18.2 91 Medium Medium Many Poor Excellent Fair Spruce 2800 2240 15.5 78 Easy Medium Many Poor Slight Fair Spruce, Engelmann 15.0 78 Easy Few Poor Slight Sycamore 5096 2808 19.5 98 Difficult Medium Few Good Slight Good Walnut, Black 4584 3192 22.2. 111 Easy Low Few Good Good Excellent Willow 4320 2540 17.6 88 Easy Low Few Poor Slight Poor Green weight is the weight of a cord of freshly cut wood before drying. Dry weight is the weight of a cord after air drying. Green firewood may contain 50% or more water by weight. Green wood produces less heat because heat must be used to boil off water before combustion can occur. Green wood also produces more smoke and creosote (material that deposits on inside walls of chimneys and may cause chimney fires) than dry wood. Firewood should therefore always be purchased dry or allowed to dry before burning. Dry wood may cost more than green wood because it produces more heat and is easier to handle.
A wood's dry weight per volume, or density, is important because denser or heavier wood contains more heat per volume. Osage-orange is a very dense firewood with limited availability in Utah. It's included here to show what a very dense wood is like. It contains almost twice the heat by volume of cottonwood, one of our lightest woods. In general it is best to buy or gather dense woods such as oak, hard maple, or ash. Hardwoods, or woods from broadleaved trees, tend to be denser than softwoods or woods from conifers. Some firewood dealers sell "mixed hardwood" firewood. This may or may not be desirable, depending on the proportion of low- density hardwoods such as cottonwood that are included.
The amount of heat per cord of dry wood is presented in Table 1. Heat content is shown as a percent of dry green ash, a fairly common, dense firewood. Values above 100 signify a higher heat content than green ash and below 100 a lower heat content.
Table 1 also contains 27.0 135 Medium Low Few Good Excellent Excellent Ash, Green 4184 2880 20.0. 100 Easy Low Few Good Slight Excellent Ash, White 3952 3472 24.2 121 Medium Low Few Good Slight Excellent Aspen, Quaking 2160 18.2 Easy Few Good Slight Basswood (Linden) 4404 13.8 69 Easy Medium Few Poor Good Fair Beech 3760 27.5 Difficult Few Excellent Good Birch 4312 2992 20.8 104 Medium Medium Few Good Slight Fair Boxelder 3589 2632 18.3 92 Difficult Medium Few Poor Slight Fair Buckeye, Horsechestnut 13.8 69 Medium Low Few Poor Slight Fair Catalpa 4560 2360 16.4 82 Difficult Medium Few Good Bad Fair Cherry 3696 2928 20.4 102 Easy Low Few Excellent Excellent Good Chestnut 18.0 Good Good Coffeetree, Kentucky 21.6 108 Medium Low Few Good Good Good Cottonwood 4640 2272 15.8 79 Easy Medium Few Good Slight Fair Dogwood 4230 High Difficult Few Fair Douglas-fir 3319 2970 20.7 Easy High Few Fair Slight Good Elm, American 445. 20.0 100 Difficult Medium Few Excellent Good Fair Elm, Siberian 3800 3020 20.9 105 Difficult Medium Few Good Fair Fair Fir, White 3585 2104 14.6 73 Easy Medium Few Poor Slight Fair Hackberry 3984 3048 21.2
106 Easy Low Few Good Slight Good Hemlock 2700 19.3 Easy Many Poor Good Honeylocust 4640 3832 26.7 133 Easy Low Few Excellent Slight Excellent Juniper, Rocky Mountain 21.8 109 Medium Medium Many Poor Excellent Fair Larch (Tamarack) 3330 21.8 Easy-med Many fair Slight Fair Locust, Black 4616 4016 27.9 140 Difficult Low Few Excellent Slight Excellent Maple, Other 4685 3680 25.5 128 Easy Low Few Excellent Good Excellent Maple, Silver 3904 2752 19.0 95 Medium Low Few Excellent Good Fair Mulberry 4712 3712 25.8 129 Easy Medium Many Excellent Good Excellent Oak, Bur 4960 3768 26.2 131 Easy Low Few Excellent Good Excellent Oak, Gambel 30.7 Oak, Red 4888 3528 24.6 123 Medium Low Few Excellent Good Excellent Oak, White 5573 4200 29.1
146 Medium Low Few Excellent Good Excellent Osage-orange 32.9 165 Easy Low Many Excellent Excellent Excellent Pine, Lodgepole 2610 21.1 Easy Many Fair Good Fair Pine, Ponderosa 3600. 16.2 81 Easy Medium Many Fair Good Fair Pine, White 2250 15.9
Easy Moderate poor Good Pinyon 3000 27.1 Easy Many Poplar 2080 Low Easy Many Fair Bitter Redcedar, Eastern 2060 13.0 Easy Low Many Poor Slight Fair Redcedar, Western 2950 18.2 91 Medium Medium Many Poor Excellent Fair Spruce 2800 2240 15.5 78 Easy Medium Many Poor Slight Fair Spruce, Engelmann 15.0 78 Easy Few Poor Slight Sycamore 5096 2808 19.5 98 Difficult Medium Few Good Slight Good Walnut, Black 4584 3192 22.2 111 Easy Low Few Good Good Excellent Willow 4320 2540 17.6 88 Easy Low Few Poor Slight Poor Green weight is the weight of a cord of freshly cut wood before drying. Dry weight is the weight of a cord after air drying. Green firewood may contain 50% or more water by weight. Green wood produces less heat because heat must be used to boil off water before combustion can occur. Green wood also produces more smoke and creosote (material that deposits on inside walls of chimneys and may cause chimney fires) than dry wood. Firewood should therefore always be purchased dry or allowed to dry before burning. Dry wood may cost more than green wood because it produces more heat and is easier to handle.
A wood's dry weight per volume, or density, is important because denser or heavier wood contains more heat per volume. Osage-orange is a very dense firewood with limited availability in Utah. It's included here to show what a very dense wood is like. It contains almost twice the heat by volume of cottonwood, one of our lightest woods. In general it is best to buy or gather dense woods such as oak, hard maple, or ash. Hardwoods, or woods from broadleaved trees, tend to be denser than softwoods or woods from conifers. Some firewood dealers sell "mixed hardwood" firewood. This may or may not be desirable, depending on the proportion of low- density hardwoods such as cottonwood that are included.
The amount of heat per cord of dry wood is presented in Table 1. Heat content is shown as a percent of dry green ash, a fairly common, dense firewood. Values above 100 signify a higher heat content than green ash and below 100 a lower heat content.