our choice of firewood can influence
how your wood burning experience will turn out. HOTSTICKS Premium
kiln-dried FIREWOOD will help your wood stove, fireplace or campfire
burn more efficiently, while green or wet wood can cause smoke
problems, odor problems, rapid creosote buildup and possibly chimney
fires.
All FIREWOOD contains water. Fresh cut
FIREWOOD can contain as much as 50% water! Seasoned FIREWOOD has a
20-25% moisture content, while HOTSTICKS Kiln-Dried FIREWOOD has
8-12% moisture content. HOTSTICKS Premium Kiln-Dried FIREWOOD will
start easier, produce more heat and burn cleaner. When you burn green
wood the heat produced by combustion must dry the wood before it can
burn, using a large percentage of the energy available in the
process. Burning green wood results in less heat available for
heating or cooking.
Burning FIREWOOD is no more harmful to
the environment than the wood simply rotting in the mountains. The
process does not contribute to greenhouse gases. A growing tree
absorbs carbon dioxide from the air and into the molecules of the
wood. When the tree dies and decays, it releases carbon back into the
atmosphere. Burning firewood is a fast reversal of the natural cycle
which Mother Nature already does. Burning wood is unlike burning
fossil fuels such as oil and gas which releases greenhouse gases into
the air that has been buried in the earth for thousands of years.
Hotsticks Premium Kiln-Dried firewood
uses a proprietary kiln drying process that eliminates insect
infestations. Hotsticks has been certified by the United States
Department of Agriculture to be bug-free and spore free. This is
something that we do not take lightly; we inspect our processes
daily. Insects inhabit FIREWOOD to use as a shelter and a source of
food. Hundreds of different species of insects such as Emerald Ash
Bore, Beetles, termites and ants, can reside in green and seasoned
FIREWOOD. At Gish Logging we dry “HOT†killing all insects, larva
and spores, resulting in FIREWOOD that is dried to a moisture content
of 8-12%. The high temperature we operate our kilns far exceeds USDA
requirements on both heat and time the FIREWOOD needs to be in the
kilns. Therefore, we surpass the “T134-a†requirement of USDA to
sell Hotsticks in most quarantined areas of the United States and
also surpass the requirements under 6NRCRR section 192.5 for selling
Hotsticks in the state of New York.
Do not burn any construction scraps of
treated or painted wood, especially treated wood from decks or
landscaping ties. The chemical used can release dangerous amounts of
arsenic and other very toxic compounds into your house or outdoor
area.
Many people also have questions about
burning artificial logs. Convenience is their strong suit. Usually
they should be burnt only one at a time and only in an open
fireplace. One should be careful about poking and moving them around
once they are burning as they could break up and the fire may get a
bit out of control. Always be sure to read the manufactures
directions on the package carefully before using.