Birch is a good firewood to burn because it burns well and produces a moderate amount of heat. It splits fairly easy and dries fast once split. Birch bark makes great fire starter because of its similarity to paper.
Keep reading to learn more about Birch and what makes it a great choice for firewood.
Common Characteristics of Birch Trees
Birch is a deciduous hardwood with somewhere around 30 to 60 different species. They have shallow roots and typically grow in cool, moist woodland soil.
They only live for around 60 to 80 years and don’t grow to be very large trees. Most Birch trees only grow to be around 80 feet tall, which
From a distance Aspen trees are commonly mistaken for Birch trees. They both have white bark and look very similar. One of the easiest ways to tell the difference is by looking at the bark up close. Birch bark is chalky feeling and peels off in thin wispy layers. Aspen leaves are heart-shaped, whereas Birch leaves are long and oval with coarsely toothed edges.
Common varieties of Birch trees used for firewood
There are many different species of Birch, but the White Birch, Grey Birch, Yellow Birch, and Black Birch are the most common species used for firewood.
White Birch, also known as Paper Birch, is named due to its thin white bark that often peels in paper-like layers from the trunk. It doesn’t burn as hot as other types of Birch, making it one of the less desirable types of Birch firewood. You will find White Birch primarily in the far northern states and Canada.
Grey Birch is most commonly found in the north eastern states in America. It lives only around 30 years and is commonly planted as a landscaping tree.
Yellow Birch is much harder to split than the others and dries slower due to its high sap content. Also known as Swamp Birch, it is identified by it silver-yellow smooth bark. It grows in the Appalachian Mountains.
Black Birch is probably the most desirable firewood within the Birch family because it produces the highest heat because of its dense fibers. It is also known as Mountain Mahogany, Sweet Birch and Cherry Birch. Black Birch is most often found in the eastern states in America.
Working with Birch Firewood
What does Birch smell like?
All types of wood can be used as firewood but some are better than others. Besides investigating how much heat is produced you also need to consider the aroma of the wood. Most woods produce fruity, nutty, or piney fragrances.
Birch firewood has a unique smell. Yellow Birch gives off a wintergreen aroma when its burning. Some people say Grey Birch smells like incense when it burns. Most types of Birch have a slightly sweet smell which most people find pleasant.
Is Birch sap messy?
Birch sap is not messy, particularly compared to working with Pine trees which get sap everywhere!
Birch sap is more known for its sweet flavor. In the spring, a Birch tree can be tapped for syrup just like maple!
How hard is Birch to split?
Birch should be split and stacked shortly after it’s down because it tends to rot faster than most species. If you don’t have the time to split and stack it right away, at least get it bucked into smaller pieces and put up off the ground till you can get back to it.
The bark on a Birch tree is so tight that it tends to hold the moisture in and rot from the inside out. You may consider scoring/slicing the bark when bucking if you need to store it before splitting it.
The older the Birch tree is the more difficult you will find it is to split because older Birch trees tend to be more stringy. In addition to that, Birch trees grown in a yard and exposed to the wind will have a stronger grain, but you will have a more difficult time splitting it as opposed to a Birch tree grown in a wooded area.
How long does Birch take to season?
Birch can season in 1 year or less if split and stacked right away. Black Birch can season even faster. Yellow Birch takes a little longer.
To get the most energy out of your firewood, the wood should be seasoned. Seasoned firewood is described as having 20% moisture content. A good rule of thumb is to cut firewood this year so you can use it next year.
Burning green wood decreases the amount of heat generated by the fire. As the green wood burns, the energy created from the fire is used to evaporate the moisture resulting in wasted heat.
Buy an inexpensive easy to use moisture meter like this one, to ensure your split wood is ready for the fire.
Does Birch burn clean?
Birch is good firewood and it will burn similarly to Cherry, which has a BTU of 20 million per cord. When seasoned well Birch doesn’t have a lot of smoke and won’t throw a lot of sparks.
Save the bark because it makes a great fire starter! Remember Birch bark peals like paper!
Heat Output and Efficiency of Birch
Depending on the species, Birch produces anywhere from 20.3 to 26.8 million BTUs per cord.
On average a cord of Birch is equal approximately to the following common heat sources:
- 22,710 cubic feet of natural gas.
- 258 gallons of propane.
- 170 gallons of heating oil.
- 6,902 kilowatt hours of electricity.
BTU stands for British Thermal Unit. One BTU the amount of energy required to heat one pound of liquid water by one degree Fahrenheit.
A cord of firewood is equal to 128 cubic feet of wood. Typically firewood is cut into 16 inch lengths and is tightly stacked in three rows, 4 feet high and 8 feet long, totaling 128 cubic feet.
How does Birch compare to other types of firewood?
Birch falls somewhere in the middle in terms of BTUs per cord. At the high end would be Eucalyptus at 34.5 million BTUs per cord and Osage-Orange at 32.9 million. On the low end you have Ohio Buckeye at 12.1 million BTUs per cord and Linden Basswood burning at 13.8 million.
Fire quality, amount of smoke and creosote.
Green wood tends to smoke and smolder creating the possibility for creosote to form in the chimney. Creosote is nothing more than a condensation of small, unburned particles contained in the smoke that coats the chimney surface as it exits. The creosote will stick to the sides of the chimney and can ignite, causing a chimney fire.
All wood creates creosote. Hardwoods, like Birch, burn slower and lower, so the smoke lingers longer inside the chimney, creating more opportunity for creosote build up. You can reduce the amount of creosote by properly seasoning your firewood.
The Pros and Cons of Burning Birch as Firewood
Pros
- Splits fairly easy and dries fast once split.
- Birch bark make great fire starter because of its similarity to paper.
Cons
- Susceptible to rot if left unspilt for very long.
Other Common Uses
Native Americans used Birch bark canoes for hundreds of years because it is waterproof and rot resistant.
Birch is used to make ice-cream sticks, toothpicks, and toys.
Another use for Birch bark is to make tea. Specifically, Black Birch, it’s twigs and young bak have a rich wintergreen aroma.
There are many different firewood species to choose from. However, not all of the options will be available to you since some trees only grow in certain parts of the country. In my opinion, if Birch is available to me, I wouldn’t pass up the opportunity to use it for firewood.
Tell me what your favorite type of firewood is in the comments below.
Sickamore burns good and leaves very little ash
Seriously? Sycamore?
I thought I had gems when I hauled the load of Sycamore home years ago when I was young and burned wood.
After all the work of cutting, splitting, and stacking – I couldnt even FORCE a load to ignite muchless burn – after surrounding it with dried pine and oak! I had a full truck bed loaded with it and it was near impossible to split as well.
In my area its Red/White Oaks, Locust, Beech, that are the best burners.