Heating bills can get expensive during winters in Connecticut, but you probably already know that. Why not warm up your home with seasoned firewood?
We sell a mix of hardwoods year-round in Weston, CT, including oak, maple, cherry and white birch. You don’t have to worry about getting stuck with damp wood that leads to excessive smoke and creosote buildup. Our firewood has been stacked and seasoned for 1-2 years.
We neatly cut our firewood with our log splitter, leaving the firewood a convenient 18-20” long. Any longer than that and you risk the firewood not fitting in your fireplace or fire pit.
Cost of firewood
Full cord (4’ wide x 4’ high x 8’ long and 128 cubic feet): $380
Half cord (4’ wide x 4’ high x 4’ long and 64 cubic feet): $190
You can expect to pay two to three times that when buying that same amount of firewood in bundles at a store.
Delivery
Because not everyone owns a pickup truck or trailer that can transport the firewood to their homes, T&J Landscaping and Masonry offers firewood delivery and stacking, if need be, for an extra charge. We service Weston, Wilton, Westport, Darien, Norwalk, Fairfield, New Canaan, and the surrounding area.
The delivery charge is based on distance (the firewood is located in Weston, CT) and whether you want the firewood simply dropped off or carried to a specific point on your property and stacked.
Contact us
Call/text 203-451-8877 or email us at info@tjlandscapemasonry.com to schedule your pickup or delivery. You can also reach us on our Contact Us page on the website.
We want to make sure you feel confident with your purchase and welcome you to bring a moisture meter to test the firewood’s moisture level beforehand, if you’d like. You can also take home a sample of our firewood to test it out and see how well it burns. Our firewood constantly gets rave reviews and we’re more than willing to put it to the test.
Want to learn more about firewood before purchasing from us or other vendors? See below for general information.
What is seasoned firewood?
When buying produce and flowers, you want to find something that looks fresh and avoid anything that looks like it’s been around a while. The opposite is true for firewood. Seasoned firewood that has been split, stacked and dried for at least 6-12 months will give you the best results. The less moisture, the better.
You can usually tell if the wood is seasoned by its weight. Seasoned wood tends to weigh less than unseasoned wood because it contains less water. It also has a more faded color than the fresher looking unseasoned wood and features looser bark and visible darkened ends with cracks.
What is the best type of firewood?
Not all firewood is created equally. Hardwoods are considered superior to softwoods because they’re denser and drier and will burn hotter and longer (there’s a reason they’re usually more expensive). The Old Farmer’s Almanac placed firewood into three categories based on its heat value:
BEST FIREWOOD: HIGH HEAT VALUE (1 cord = 200 to 250 gallons of fuel oil)
American beech
Apple
Ironwood
Mesquite
Red oak
Shagbark hickory
Sugar maple
White ash
White oak
Yellow birch
MEDIUM HEAT VALUE (1 cord = 150 to 200 gallons of fuel oil)
American elm
Black cherry
Douglas fir
Red maple
Silver maple
Tamarack
White birch
LOW HEAT VALUE (1 cord = 100 to 150 gallons of fuel oil)
Aspen
Cottonwood
Hemlock
Lodgepole pine
Red alder
Redwood
Sitka spruce
Western red cedar
White pine
How much firewood do I need?
It’s hard to find a simple answer to this question because it depends on a couple factors. You need to take into account if your fireplace will serve as your main heat source or compliment your main heat source. And if it’s the former, then you also need to factor in the size of your home and the insulation.
Those who only plan on using their fireplace once or twice a week will only need a half cord or full cord to get them through the winter. Plan on keeping the fireplace burning throughout the week? Consider purchasing 2-4 cords.
Our customers all live in Weston, Wilton, Westport, Redding, Norwalk, Darien, and Fairfield and typically buy 1-3 cords. The great thing about firewood is that your leftover supply can be used the following winter (and the winter after that).
Where should I stack my firewood?
Before purchasing your seasoned firewood, you need to figure out where you’re going to place it. Your best bet is to stack it in a place where the sides are exposed to allow airflow and the top layer is covered to protect it against the elements.
A barn or shed would work well for firewood storage. And if that’s not an option, stack the firewood outside and cover it with a tarp or commercial firewood cover. You’ll want to weigh down the cover with stones or bricks so it doesn’t blow away in the wind.
If you’re determined to keep some firewood in your home, opt for the garage or basement. Make sure to inspect the firewood beforehand for bugs and ideally try to use it within a few days.
And whatever you do, don’t treat the firewood with pesticides. That could lead to poisonous vapors when you’re burning the wood.
How do I safely light a fireplace?
For a safe wood burning experience, open the fireplace damper (the vent that controls the airflow in your chimney) to avoid filing the room with smoke. Then place your logs in the fireplace using the triangle or log cabin approach and start your fire with newspaper or dry kindling — that is unless you have a gas log lighter that does the work for you with the turn of a valve.
Do not attempt to use lighter fluid, cardboard, magazines, boxes, plywood, plastic or foam to light a fireplace. They can release harmful toxins into the air and increase your chances of a chimney fire. And make sure you keep flammable items such as books and furniture away from the fireplace. When you’re done using the fireplace, close the damper to stop cold air from coming down the chimney.
How do I repair my chimney?
If you’re interested in repairing or building a chimney or fire pit, T&J Landscaping and Masonry can help. Check out the Masonry page on our website to see photos of chimneys and fire pits that we’ve built and then visit our Contact Us page to schedule an estimate.