Can You Burn Wet Logs? How to Dry Them Out

What happens if you burn wet logs?

Defra's wood guide says unseasoned or wet wood can:

• Be difficult to light or keep alight.
• Tar the inside of your stove and blacken the glass.
• Let more tar and soot build up in your chimney, raising the risk of a chimney fire.
• Create a lot of smoke.
• Produce less heat.

HETAS says burning wet wood is much less efficient and much smokier, and that the creosote it leaves acts as a highly flammable fuel. In a smoke control area, Bradford Council says burning wet wood, even in an approved stove, can still produce smoke and result in a fine.

How can I tell if logs are too wet?

• Test them. The GOV.UK customer notice says to measure a freshly split surface with a moisture meter, and not to burn wood until it's 20% or less.
• Warm them first. Woodsure says logs should be close to room temperature when you measure.
• Check the signs. Defra says wet logs are heavier, and dry ones sound hollow, have cracked ends and loose bark.

My logs got rained on. What should I do?

1. Get them under cover. Somewhere with a roof and open sides, off the ground.
2. Let the air get to them. Spread or restack them with gaps, rather than leaving them in a sodden heap or a sealed bag.
3. Bring in a few at a time. Forest Research says bringing logs indoors for a few days before you burn them helps them dry.
4. Test before you burn. Split a log and test the fresh face. If it's 20% or less inside, it's fine to burn.

A short shower often wets the outside of a dry log more than the inside, but we found no official figure for how long logs take to dry out again. It depends on the wood and the weather, so test rather than guess.

Can I dry logs next to the stove?

No. Burnright says storing logs round the fire is really unsafe, and Staffordshire Fire and Rescue has reported a fire caused by damp timber stored on a log burner. Keep logs away from the stove and dry them in the open air.

What if my logs are green, not just wet?

Freshly felled wood is much wetter: the Biomass Energy Centre says green logs are typically 50 to 60% moisture. That needs proper seasoning, which Defra says is likely to take two summers or more. See how to season firewood.