What type of wood is best for fireplaces and inserts?
For home heating, firewood should be compared by energy content per cord. This is usually expressed in BTU’s (British Thermal Units) per cord. A firewood type that is higher in BTU content will have more heat available per cord. It is important to note that all firewood has about the same energy content per pound. However, since the density (volume per pound) will vary greatly depending on the species, the energy content will also have a wide variation. In other words, if you have two sticks of wood of about the same size (equal in volume) and same moisture content and one is heavier than the other, the heavier stick will release more heat when burned. It’s as simple as that..
