Firewood Guide for Victoria & Vancouver Island Homes

Good firewood comes down to three things: it is dry, it is natural wood, and you know how much you are getting. This guide covers each one for homes in Victoria, the Saanich Peninsula and the rest of the wet coast, along with the questions we hear most often.

What "seasoned" firewood means

Freshly cut wood can be half water by weight. "Seasoned" means the wood has been split and left to air-dry until most of that water is gone. The usual target is a moisture content under 20%. Below that level, wood lights easily, burns hot and makes little smoke. Above it, a lot of the fire's energy goes into boiling off water instead of heating your room.

Splitting matters as much as time. Wood dries mainly through its cut ends and split faces, so whole rounds can stay wet inside for a very long time, even under cover.

How long should firewood be seasoned before burning?

It depends on the species, how the wood was split and stacked, and the weather. As a rough guide, split softwoods such as Douglas fir and hemlock often need 6 to 12 months of air drying, and denser woods such as maple can take a year or more. On the wet coast, wood stacked in shade or left unsplit dries more slowly. The real test is moisture: aim for under 20% before you burn it.

How to test firewood moisture

You don't need a lab. A few simple checks tell you most of what you need to know:

• Moisture meter. Inexpensive pin meters are sold at most hardware stores. Split a piece and test the fresh inside face, not the outside, which dries first. Under 20% is ready to burn.
• Cracks and colour. Seasoned wood usually shows cracks (checks) running out from the centre on the ends, and it fades toward grey or dull brown. Bark often loosens or falls off.
• Weight and sound. Dry wood feels lighter than it looks. Knock two pieces together: dry wood gives a sharp, hollow crack, while wet wood gives a dull thud.
• How it burns. Hissing, sizzling or water bubbling out of the ends means the wood is still wet.

Why does my firewood turn black but not burn?

Almost always, the wood is too wet. The fire spends its heat boiling water out of the log, so the surface chars black but never gets hot enough to catch properly. You may hear hissing or see bubbling at the ends. Other causes are too little air, a cold stove, or logs that are too large for a small fire. Dry wood, a good kindling bed and the air control open at the start usually fix it.

Common firewood species on Vancouver Island

The coast is softwood country, and that is not a problem. Well-seasoned local wood heats a home well. These are the species you are most likely to see:

• Douglas fir. The workhorse of coastal firewood. Dense for a softwood, it splits cleanly, lights easily, burns hot and leaves good coals.
• Western hemlock. Lighter than fir and quick to catch. It holds a lot of water when green, so proper drying is key. Good for shoulder-season fires.
• Red alder. A local hardwood that burns cleanly with little sparking and a pleasant smell. Moderate heat, and it dries fairly quickly once split.
• Bigleaf maple. The densest of the common local hardwoods. It gives a steady, long burn but needs more drying time.
• Western red cedar. Light, aromatic and very easy to light. It is ideal for kindling, but a poor main fuel because it burns fast and pops.

Does maple make good firewood?

Yes. Bigleaf maple, the common maple on the coast, is a good firewood: it burns steadily, leaves decent coals and is not too hard to split. It is a little lighter than eastern sugar maple, and it usually takes longer to dry than fir, so make sure it is properly seasoned.

Heat, burn time and clean burning

Which firewood gives off the most heat?

Pound for pound, all dry wood releases roughly the same heat. What changes is density: a cord of dense wood weighs more, so it holds more heat. Among the common local species, Douglas fir and bigleaf maple sit at the top, hemlock and alder are a step lower, and red cedar is lowest. Dryness matters as much as species, because wet wood spends its energy boiling off water.

What type of firewood lasts the longest?

Denser wood burns longer per piece. Across North America, hardwoods such as oak and hickory are the usual examples, but they are rare on Vancouver Island. Locally, well-seasoned Douglas fir and maple give the longest, steadiest burns and the best coal beds. Bigger splits and a fire that is damped down once it is hot also stretch the burn time.

What is the cleanest firewood to burn?

The cleanest firewood is any natural, untreated wood that is properly dry. Dry wood burned hot, with enough air, makes far less smoke and creosote than wet wood of any species. Seasoned Douglas fir, maple and alder all burn cleanly when they are under 20% moisture.

A hot, clean fire is also a safer one. Creosote builds up fastest from smouldering, low-air fires and wet wood, so have your chimney inspected and swept regularly. How often depends on how much you burn.

What not to burn

What is the worst firewood to burn?

Wet or green wood is the worst for heating: it hisses, smokes, builds creosote in the chimney and gives little heat. Rotten, punky wood is also poor, because it burns fast and gives off little heat. Red cedar is excellent kindling but a weak main fuel, since it burns quickly and throws sparks. Anything treated, painted or salt-soaked should never be burned at all.

What wood is toxic to burn?

Never burn pressure-treated lumber (older treated wood can contain arsenic and chromium), painted or stained wood, plywood, particleboard, OSB or MDF (their glues and resins give off harmful fumes), or driftwood and other salt-soaked wood from the beach. Salt can form toxic compounds when burned and corrodes stoves and chimneys. Also skip pallets of unknown origin, wood with glossy coatings, and household garbage.

Beach wood is a special trap on the island. It looks dry and grey, but it has soaked in seawater, and the salt does not dry out. Leave it on the beach.

Is it okay to burn 2x4 lumber?

Clean, untreated, unpainted 2x4 offcuts are just dry softwood, so a few pieces as kindling are generally fine. They burn hot and fast, so they are a poor main fuel. Never burn treated lumber (often greenish or stamped), painted or glued pieces, and check your stove manual, since some makers allow only natural firewood.

Storing firewood in a wet coastal climate

Victoria's winters are mild but damp, so storage decides whether dry wood stays dry. The rule is simple: keep it off the ground, cover the top and leave the sides open.

• Off the ground. Stack on pallets, rails or a slatted rack so the bottom row isn't sitting in moisture and air can move underneath.
• Top covered. A woodshed roof, a lean-to or a tarp over the top only keeps rain off.
• Sides open. Wrapping a stack in a tarp traps moisture and can cause mould. Let wind and air move through the stack.
• Sun and spacing. A sunny, breezy spot dries wood fastest. Leave a gap between rows, and keep stacks a little away from house walls to discourage pests and let air circulate.
• A few days' supply indoors. Bringing in a small batch ahead of time lets surface moisture dry off before it goes in the stove.

Cords, face cords and "truckloads"

A full cord is a neatly stacked pile 4 feet high, 4 feet deep and 8 feet long: 128 cubic feet of wood and air space. It is the standard unit for buying firewood, and the only one that means the same thing everywhere.

A face cord (also called a rick or stove cord) is 4 feet high and 8 feet long but only one row deep. With common 16-inch pieces, that is about a third of a full cord. The depth depends on the piece length, so always ask how long the pieces are.

A "truckload" has no standard size. It depends on the truck, how high it is loaded and whether the wood is stacked or thrown in. If a seller quotes by the truckload, ask for the volume in cords or cubic feet.

Will a half cord of firewood fit in a truck bed?

Usually not in one trip. A full cord is 4 by 4 by 8 feet, or 128 cubic feet, so a half cord is about 64 cubic feet. A full-size pickup with a short bed, stacked neatly to the top of the box, holds very roughly a quarter to a third of a cord. A long bed stacked tight may get close to half a cord. Wood thrown in loose takes up much more space, so expect less. These are rough figures, and every truck is different.

To measure a stack you already have, multiply height by width by length in feet and divide by 128. Our firewood cord calculator can also help you estimate how many cords a season will take.

How much firewood do you need for a season?

There is no single answer. It depends on your home's size and insulation, how efficient your stove or insert is, how often you burn and how mild the winter turns out. As a very rough illustration for coastal homes:

• Occasional fires a few evenings a week: often around half a cord to one cord.
• Regular supplemental heat most cold evenings and weekends: often one to three cords.
• Wood as the main heat source: often three to five cords or more.

Treat these as starting points, not promises. Your own past use is the best guide. If you are not sure, it is usually easier to start the season with a little extra dry wood in the shed than to run short in February.

Ordering firewood from us

Our seasoned firewood delivery covers Victoria and the Saanich Peninsula. The wood is Douglas fir, western hemlock, alder and some maple, split and air-dried to under 20% moisture, and sold in full 128 cubic foot cords. Every load comes with our ready-to-burn guarantee.

• 1 cord: $475, plus a delivery fee.
• 2.5 cords: $1200, plus a delivery fee.
• Delivery: the fee depends on your zone and is quoted up front. Delivery is usually same-week.
• Payment: cash or e-transfer at delivery.

Need larger volumes? See our bulk and commercial firewood page. To check whether we reach your street, see our service areas. Questions about anything in this guide? Call or text us at (778) 404-0226.