To burn brightly and for a long time!
A bright flame and a minimum of smoke occurs only from dry wood
If you adhere to the tips for using aspen firewood given in this article, you can enjoy natural, bright fire all year round, which will warm, decorate the space around you. For owners of natural fireplaces or stoves, choosing firewood is a long and responsible process, because the comfort and convenience of all household members depends on it.
The right choice will help you enjoy smoke free of soot and unpleasant smell "scorched", which is often the case when using synthetic or chemical fuel for fireplaces. Natural firewood will help not only to keep warm, but also to maintain health, because it is not for nothing that our ancestors loved to heat the bathhouse "in black" so that the smoke was saturated so that it could be inhaled, which is very useful.
Folk tales
Superstitions and beliefs circulate among the people. For example, it is believed that the preparation of firewood for a bath is best done on a waning moon. Moreover, the thinner the sickle is, the stronger the logs are endowed with healing power. Once upon a time, the Slavs believed that people who had left the world turned into maple in their lives. The appearance of its leaves is akin to open palms, and the branches personify hands raised to heaven. For this reason, they never fired maple stoves.
In the old days, residents of the Tambov province heated their stoves exclusively with apple trees in order to keep the house warm throughout the winter, including especially frosty days. Believe it all or not, everyone's business, but what happened was what happened. And what do you, dear readers, think: what kind of firewood is better for a stove, bath or fireplace?
Softwood firewood: pine, spruce, larch
By the characteristic crackling of logs, which literally caresses the ear, and bright flying sparks, one can determine the burning of coniferous logs. They give a lot of heat, but they burn out rather quickly. But many of the shortcomings are quickly forgotten thanks to the unique resinous aroma that comes from burning pine or spruce firewood.
It is worth noting that pine logs give more heat than spruce ones. Largely due to the high content of resinous substances, due to which the aforementioned aroma is released. Pine and spruce, it has an equally invigorating effect. In addition, it can have a tonic effect on the upper respiratory tract.
Of course, no one will specially grow fruit trees for the sole purpose of using them later for firewood. However, there is still an apple, pear, plum or cherry on the site. Over time, you can collect a lot of branches and twigs, which you can put into the furnace. Some people start fires right away, but it would be much more correct to carefully saw them and put them in a woodpile.
It costs nothing to saw and chop wood, the apple tree is the leader in terms of heat generation, and there is practically no smoke. But this choice is more of an aesthetic nature.
Hardwood is more often used for heating a sauna than coniferous wood. Ash, alder, birch, fruit trees are suitable for these purposes.
- Alder, numbering more than a dozen species, was used in Russia for heating baths for the nobility. Such firewood is easy to dry without even creating special conditions for it. The main thing is that the logs are prepared from a tree that grew on not very wet soil. Alder firewood does not lose its natural aroma for a long time. The advantages of alder wood are quick combustion, a large amount of heat, no smoke due to the low resin content. The scent of alder has a beneficial effect on health, helping to overcome colds, depression and fatigue. Like aspen, alder firewood is used to clean the chimney from soot. Alder firewood is considered an excellent option for making barbecue. You can read more about this in the article "Peculiarities of choosing firewood for barbecue".
- Linden firewood is slow to catch fire but emits an effective lasting heat. The steam from linden is considered healing, especially if honey is added to the oven, and it is also smeared with the patient's body. These firewood are considered the best for a bath, but they have one drawback - they can be stored for no more than two years.
- Quality oak firewood, selected from middle-aged trees, is considered a prestigious fuel. Steam from oak logs is tart, smells like a forest and helps with some chronic diseases, it is recommended to preserve the health of children. Oak wood is ideal for heating fireplaces.
- Birch firewood has antibacterial properties. The steam in the sauna, melted with birch wood no more than two years old, is light, fragrant, good for the respiratory system, helps to fight colds.
The wood of birch is solid, in terms of heat transfer it is second only to oak, significantly surpassing aspen and pine. To get rid of the soot clogging the pipe, at the end of the furnace with birch firewood, aspen logs are added to the stove.
- Willow is an affordable, renewable wood. It burns hot, burns out quickly, does not smoke, requires significant reserves.
- The wood of fruit trees - cherries, pears, apple trees, plums - is a fairly common option for heating a bath. Such firewood is fragrant, it burns hot and smokeless, especially apple wood. Essential oils are used to enhance and change the aroma. If you can use old fruit trees with a rotten core for a house fire, then this option is suitable for a bath.
After choosing the type of wood and cutting the logs, you need to take care of their proper drying and subsequent storage. To do this, arrange a woodpile in the open air or in a barn near the bath. Firewood is stacked upside down and not directly on the ground, but on a stand made of beams and poles. You can read more about the methods and features of drying lumber and firewood in the article "How to properly dry wood".
Softwoods
The softer the wood, the more ash remains after it burns out. This imposes certain obligations on the stoker. First, you need to clean the firebox more often. Secondly, periodically turn the wood over with a poker in order to clean the ash from the firewood, freeing up the access of oxygen for even burning. But this does not mean that all soft breeds are bad and should not be used. For example:
- spruce - prickles easily, great for melting, but can spark when burning;
- pine - has the same properties as spruce, while it burns well even freshly sawn and damp;
- alder - hard to prick, but easily sawn across the fibers, burns very well.
Another important property of alder is that when it burns, it practically does not form soot. Larch, despite its softness, is considered one of the best types of fuel for stoves and fireplaces, and in terms of heat transfer it is equal to oak and apple
Aspen firewood is often specially looked for for a fireplace. It crackles pleasantly and heats up even a large room quickly. Conifers are also often used for baths, since the phytoncides released by them during combustion significantly increase the benefits of this procedure, are an excellent prevention of colds and respiratory diseases.
Calorific value of wood table for all species
The calorific value of wood depends on the species, age of the tree, growing conditions, place in the trunk, etc. Distinguish between the highest, or absolute, calorific value, which expresses the amount of heat released during the complete combustion of 1 kg of wood, the working calorific value of wood, taking into account humidity and ash content of wood and specific calorific value, representing the ratio of the working calorific value to the volumetric weight of wood. Specific calorific value gives a practical description of the calorific value of wood.
The gross calorific value of wood is defined as the sum of the calorific values of individual chemical elements obtained by their free combustion. For wood, it can be approximately determined by the formula of D.I.Mendeleev:
Q = 81C + 300H -26O,
where C, H and O are the percentage of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen in wood.
The exact determination of the gross calorific value of wood is carried out in the laboratory by calorimetry. home furniture repair
Table 3 - Working and specific calorific value of various tree species (according to Arnold)
Wood species | Air dry wood (20% moisture content) | Comparative calorific value of wood of different species in relation to the calorific value of hornbeam wood | ||
working calorific value, cal | volume weight | specific calorific value, Kcal | ||
Birch | 2240 | 0,622 | 1389 | 0,89 |
Beech | 2133 | 0,591 | 1258 | 0,80 |
Elm | 2341 | 0,547 | 1282 | 0,84 |
Hornbeam | 2148 | 0,769 | 1654 | 1,00 |
Oak | 2229 | 0,693 | 1538 | 0,99 |
Spruce | 2274 | 0,472 | 1068 | 0,66 |
Willow | 2316 | 0,487 | 1128 | 0,71 |
Horse chestnut | 2309 | 0,575 | 1317 | 0,80 |
Maple | 2277 | 0,659 | 1503 | 0,91 |
Linden | 2382 | 0,439 | 1046 | 0,57 |
Larch | 2307 | 0,474 | 1084 | 0,66 |
Alder | 2244 | 0,500 | 1122 | 0,67 |
Aspen | 2329 | 0,430 | 1002 | 0,65 |
Fir | 2364 | 0,555 | 1312 | 0,70 |
Pine | 2330 | 0,550 | 1282 | 0,67 |
Poplar | 2268 | 0,366 | 839 | 0,50 |
Ash | 2191 | 0,644 | 1403 | 0,92 |
The average: | 2276 | 0,551 | 1248 | 0,76 |
The calorific value of wood is largely dependent on moisture. With increasing (moisture content of wood, its calorific value decreases.
Working calorific value in Kcal can be determined by the empirical formula of prof. Nadezhdina:
QPc = 4370—50 W for air-dry wood
and
QPB = 3870-45 W for driftwood,
where W is the relative moisture content of wood in percent, or can be determined from the diagram (Fig. 10).
Rice. 10. Nomogram for determining the calorific value of wood with different moisture content.
Rice. 10. Nomogram for determining the calorific value of wood of different moisture content.
Wood with a moisture content of 70% practically does not burn.
The heat output, or the temperature developed by the wood during combustion (combustion temperature), is theoretically 1547 °. In practice, taking into account losses (cooling of the flame with excess air, heat loss, etc.), the heat output lies in the range from 700 to 1200 ° and is taken on average in 1000-1025 °.
The steam-generating capacity of wood, that is, the amount of water in kg converted into steam during the combustion of 1 kg of wood, is small and on average equal to 3.8 kg (see Table 4).
Subtleties and nuances
- Worst of all, if you have raw aspen firewood available. This type of wood generates a small amount of heat, so aspen firewood will be very difficult to ignite. The logs will smolder slowly when exposed to temperature, giving off very little heat.
- A good option for quick kindling of raw logs is birch or spruce. Despite the fact that these types of trees emit a lot of soot and soot during combustion, they are optimal for quick kindling. Fire is caught on the chips and bark of birch in just a matter of seconds.
- The original way of quickly drying wood was invented by our ancestors. Salt should be sprinkled on damp firewood in large quantities. The salt will draw out some of the moisture and the wood will become usable.
- If we kindle a fire in nature and there are flammable liquids in our arsenal, for example, diesel fuel, gasoline, kerosene, then it is quite possible to water the chips with these compounds. If you want to use flammable liquids in the oven, you can moisten a rag with them and put it between the logs. The characteristic smell from such liquids will disappear quickly enough after lighting a fire.
- Some experts recommend putting an empty vegetable oil bottle in the firebox. With its help, it will be possible to quickly obtain the required amount of fire.
Note that firewood is always bought raw. It is best to do this in winter, stocking up for the next season, when equipment easily enters the forest. In this case, before use, the firewood will lie with you for a whole year. They must be stored in a woodpile, protected from precipitation and blown by the wind.
As you can see, there are no special difficulties with kindling raw firewood, the main thing is to approach this issue thoughtfully, to carry out the preparatory work with high quality. With a little patience, you will have a nice intense fire that gives you warmth.
Chopping and preparing firewood
Pile of firewood
Wood basket
Firewood transportation
Most of the firewood is in the shape of a field. The technology for making logs is simple: tree trunks and thick branches are sawn into pieces 40-60 cm long () and then split with an ax in the longitudinal direction into smaller pieces with an end area of up to 100 cm². For splitting, it is more convenient to use a special splitting ax, the blade of which has the shape of a wedge with an angle of about 30 °. The cleaver can split even the thickest lumps with less impact force. When splitting with an ax, especially thick chocks, there is a high probability that the blade will get stuck in the resulting crack in the chocks. Then, in order to add or free the ax, they turn the ax upside down with the stuck chock and hit another chock with its butt.
Correct stance when chopping wood - legs are wider than shoulders. This will prevent injury in the event of a miss, unsuccessful hit, or ax breakage. Also, for convenience, the chock is best placed at the height of a person's waist, most often a very thick and dumpy piece of a round tree is used as a stand.
The most "hot" are birch firewood, the "coldest" - from aspen.
To transfer firewood, use a wood basket.
Calorific value of firewood: a comparative table of different species
Wood is a rather complex material in terms of its chemical composition.
calorific value of firewood
Why are we interested in chemical composition? But combustion (including burning wood in a stove) is a chemical reaction of wood materials with oxygen from the surrounding air. It is from the chemical composition of a particular type of wood that the calorific value of firewood depends.
The main chemical binders in wood are lignin and cellulose. They form cells - a kind of containers, inside which there is moisture and air. The wood also contains resin, proteins, tannins and other chemical ingredients.
What is wood moisture, what does it affect?
The physical quantity that describes the relative amount of water contained in wood is called moisture. The moisture content of the wood is measured as a percentage.
When measuring, two types of moisture can be taken into account:
- Absolute moisture is the amount of moisture that is present in the wood in relation to a completely dried tree. Such measurements are usually carried out for construction purposes.
- Relative humidity is the amount of moisture present in the wood in relation to its own weight. These calculations are made for wood used as fuel.
So, if it is written that wood has a relative humidity of 60%, then its absolute humidity will be expressed in an indicator of 150%.
To calculate the calorific value of firewood at a known moisture content, you can use the following formula:
Analyzing this formula, it can be established that firewood harvested from coniferous wood with a relative humidity of 12 percent will release 3940 kilocalories when burning 1 kilogram, and firewood harvested from deciduous trees with a comparable moisture content will release 3852 kilocalories.
To understand what a relative humidity of 12 percent is - let us explain that such humidity is acquired by firewood, which is dried outside for a long time.
What tree species should not be used to heat the fireplace?
It is not in vain that there are a large number of different trees on Earth. All this for you, friends! For your hot fires! Each type of wood has its own unique properties.
For example, beech and oak are considered "elite firewood". The flame burns brightly and evenly. During burning, the crackle is smooth and pleasant to the ear.The heat dissipation of beech wood is the best among other types of wood. Oak firewood is similar in parameters. Their only drawback is that the cost of the logs is relatively high and there are difficulties in splitting them. But oak firewood burns for a long time and practically does not emit smoke.
Apple, pear and other fruit species. Their advantage is a pleasant smell. They heat living rooms, the fruity aroma of which becomes stable over time.
Linden and Poplar. Poplar is used exclusively for decorative purposes. Firewood gives off little heat and burns quickly. To heat the room, you will have to put firewood at intervals of 1.5 hours. Linden logs are the same. The flame is dim, the wood practically does not emit heat and smoke.
Alder and Aspen. The firewood of these trees has a unique property. When burning, they do not emit smoke and soot. In addition to this, their fire burns out the soot inside the chimney. It is recommended, at least once every few weeks, to heat the stove with alder or aspen wood so as not to
to prevent contamination of the inner cavity of the chimney with soot.
Firewood from coniferous trees: spruce, pine. They contain a lot of resin, which gives off a lot of soot. During combustion, in addition to tar, there is also a lot of soot in the flue gases, which leads to overgrowing of the inner cavity of the chimney. Spontaneous combustion of soot inside the chimney is often observed, which can render the chimney unusable. So, if you still want to see your home intact when you come home, do not heat it with coniferous wood.
Firewood
These are sawn or chopped pieces of wood, which, when burned in furnaces, boilers and other devices, generate heat energy.
For the convenience of loading into the firebox, the wood material is cut into separate elements up to 30 cm long. To increase the efficiency of their use, the wood should be as dry as possible, and the combustion process should be relatively slow. In many respects, firewood from hardwoods such as oak and birch, hazel and ash, hawthorn are suitable for heating premises. Due to the high resin content, increased burning rate and low calorific value, conifers are significantly inferior in this regard.
It should be understood that the density of the wood affects the value of the calorific value.
Firewood (natural drying) | Calorific value kWh / kg | Calorific value mega J / kg |
Hornbeam | 4,2 | 15 |
Beech | 4,2 | 15 |
Ash | 4,2 | 15 |
Oak | 4,2 | 15 |
Birch | 4,2 | 15 |
Larch | 4,3 | 15,5 |
Pine | 4,3 | 15,5 |
Spruce | 4,3 | 15,5 |
SPECIES OF WOOD FOR BOILER STEAMING
The main characteristics of firewood for heaters are their calorific value and burning time. It is good for heating if the wood burns slowly but for a long time. The firewood from deciduous trees is best suited for these purposes. In general, all conifers are characterized by a reduced calorific value, increased smoke production and resinousness. Medium hard rocks are easiest to split.
The specificity of combustion of various types of wood:
- Birch - quickly catch fire, can burn even wet. Disadvantage - they contain a lot of tar that settles in the form of tar on the chimney.
- Aspen, alder - burn out without the release of soot, and besides, they help to cleanse the chimney from burning. Aspen ones flare up slowly, give little heat, and also burn quickly. Alder trees flare up quickly, giving off a lot of heat.
- Poplar - burn well, but burn quickly.
- Pine - burns more strongly than spruce due to the higher amount of resin. Easy to prick. The disadvantage is resinousness. Beech, ash - difficult to melt, but they can burn raw. Easily split (excluding beech).
- Linden - burn well and for a long time, but it is difficult to kindle them.
- Apple, pear - malleable for splitting and burn well.
- Cedar - smolder for a long time.
- Cherry and elm - smoke.
- Plane - burn well, but difficult to prick.
- Oak - one of the leaders in terms of calorific value and duration of burning. The calorific value of middle aged oak trees is better than that of old and young ones. A significant drawback is that it is very difficult to prick.
It is necessary to take into account the fact that the calorific characteristics of different types of wood differ significantly. Therefore, you can observe fluctuations in the density of different tree species and fluctuations in the calculated coefficients
Calorific value table for different types of wood
Coal
It is a natural plant material extracted from sedimentary rock.
This type of solid fuel contains carbon and other chemical elements. There is a division of the material into types depending on its age. Brown coal is considered the youngest, followed by hard coal, and anthracite is older than all other types. The age of a combustible substance is also determined by its moisture content, which is more present in the young material.
In the process of burning coal, environmental pollution occurs, and slag forms on the grates of the boiler, which, to a certain extent, creates an obstacle to normal combustion. The presence of sulfur in the material is also an unfavorable factor for the atmosphere, since this element is converted into sulfuric acid in the air.
However, consumers should not be concerned about their health. Manufacturers of this material, taking care of private customers, strive to reduce the sulfur content in it. The heat of combustion of coal can differ even within the same type. The difference depends on the characteristics of the subspecies and the content of minerals in it, as well as the geography of extraction. Not only pure coal is found as a solid fuel, but also low-enriched coal slag, pressed into briquettes.
Coal type | Specific heat of combustion of material | |
kJ / kg | kcal / kg | |
Brown | 14 700 | 3 500 |
Stone | 29 300 | 7 000 |
Anthracite | 31 000 | 7 400 |
This is important to know!
Regardless of the type of trees that will be used for firewood, you need to know about some features:
- Timing. Of course, those logs that have already passed their "due" period will also burn (provided that they are dry and there is no mold on them). However, most trees retain their aroma only for two years. Alder and aspen are a pleasant exception in this regard - 3 years.
- Everything has its time. In winter, the moisture content of the trees is at a minimum. In this regard, the preparation of firewood must be dealt with during this period. It usually takes about 12 months to dry. However, the timing depends on the type of forest, harvesting time, storage conditions and a number of other factors. In this case, the duration can significantly increase or, conversely, decrease.
- Dimensions. What kind of firewood is more profitable? Of course, those that have the optimal size. And this is 40-50 cm in length and 8-10 cm in thickness. So it is convenient to store them and are suitable for any firebox.
- Rot. In no case should rotten wood be used. A long stay of logs on the ground ends with the accumulation of toxic substances released during combustion, which is not beneficial to humans. For this reason, when cutting branches, you should immediately take the correct measures for their storage. When choosing raw materials for a firebox among dead wood, you should not take into account long-fallen branches.
- Storage issues. The logs should be stacked with the bark facing up. This will protect the wood from accidentally ingested moisture, which evaporates faster from the surface of the bark. And if you show your imagination, you can build an original woodpile to the delight and surprise of the guests.
As you can see from this material, it is not enough to know which firewood is best for the stove.
It is equally important to observe the correct storage.
Firewood characteristics
In order to choose the right type of wood for the firebox, you need to know some of its characteristics. Firewood is distinguished by heat transfer, combustibility, ash content and the amount of smoke they produce when burning.
High-quality firewood is distinguished by good combustibility and heat transfer, the ability to produce a minimum amount of ash and avoid excessive smoke
To choose just such, you need to pay attention not only to the type of wood, but also to its dryness, since it must have a certain percentage of moisture. Everyone knows that logs cut from a freshly cut tree will burn badly due to excess moisture in them.
Therefore, usually the procurement of firewood, and wood for outbuildings, the manufacture of furniture and other needs, is engaged in the middle of the winter period. At this time, the trees "sleep", and their trunks do not experience such intensive sap flow, as, for example, in spring or summer.
USEFUL INFORMATION ON THE PROPERTIES OF WOOD
Accounting is carried out by the volume of firewood in stacks (woodpiles). The quality of the woodpile depends on the layout used, it is considered optimal if the weight of the wood is approximately 70% of the cubic capacity. The higher the proportion of firewood in the woodpile, the more profitable the purchase.
Below is the ratio of a cubic meter of birch firewood to competing wood:
- 1.5 cubic meters of aspen;
- 1.3 cubic meters of spruce.
- 1.2 cubic meters of pine;
- 1.1 cubic meters of alder;
- 0.75 cubic meters of oak;
Suppose the logs will occupy the entire volume of the woodpile, in which case the mass of a cubic meter of wood (we take the relative humidity as 20%) will be:
- oak - 725 kg;
- birch - 671 kg;
- pine - 530 kg;
- aspen - 505 kg;
- spruce - 475 kg.
The chemical components of different species are similar, wood is approximately half carbon. Therefore, the heat of combustion of wood of different species (subject to the same moisture content) is close and amounts to approximately 18700 kJ (about 4500 kcal). Fluctuations between rocks do not exceed 3-5%. At the same time, the calorific properties of logs per cubic decimeter differ and on average show the following figures:
- birch - 11000 kJ (2700 kcal);
- alder - 8500 kJ (2100 kcal);
- aspen - 7200 kJ (1750 kcal);
- pine - 7600 kJ (1850 kcal);
- spruce - 7200 kJ (1750 kcal);
- oak - 13500 kJ (3100 kcal).
The heat of combustion of 100 kg of dry wood is approximately equal to:
- 31 kg of oil;
- 42 kg of hard coal;
- 54 kg of dry peat;
- 121 kg of semi-dry peat.
The main recommendation is to avoid wood that contains too much resin so as not to clog the boiler and chimney. Otherwise, the question of what kind of wood to heat the boiler with depends on the availability of this or that wood in the place of residence of the owner of the solid fuel boiler. published
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Rare types of firewood
Good oak firewood is obtained from middle-aged trees, and when burned, they give off a pleasant tart aroma. Oak firewood is ideal not only for stoves, but also for fireplaces.
Excellent, but also one of the most expensive - alder firewood. They burn hot, without smoke and soot, spreading a pleasant aroma.
Alder cannot be confused with any other firewood; on the cut it has a color from yellow to deep red. Perhaps these are the best firewood for a fireplace, they burn with a bewitching even flame of a beautiful shade. A big plus - alder firewood is stored for a long time, it can be harvested for future use for 5-6 years.
Linden trees can be considered rare firewood. Although linden is common, linden wood is not common. The wood is hot, however, it takes a long time to heat up, but then the stove heats up very quickly. The aroma that comes from the linden tree when burned has healing properties. The bath, heated with linden wood, is useful for colds, diseases of the bronchi and lungs, and has a beneficial effect on the condition of the skin.
Regardless of what types of firewood you purchase, make sure that the wood is not rotten. The benefits of rotten food are zero. In order for the wood to burn, giving off heat to the maximum, they must be dry. Undried wood burns poorly, produces a lot of smoke and little heat.
In the country or in the countryside, you cannot do without them. Wood from different trees can be used as fuel.They all have their own characteristics.
Calorific value of firewood
November 23, 2016 Volcano-Teploenergo LLC
Combustion of fuel Is the chemical destruction and oxidation of combustible fuel, accompanied by the release of heat and light. When the fuel burns, carbon dioxide and water vapor are formed, oxygen is part of both products, water evaporates, with complete combustion of the fuel, only one ash (non-hot mineral substances) remains.
The calorific value of firewood is the amount of heat energy that one weight unit of fuel can give during its combustion. The calorific value of firewood is measured in units of heat. A unit of heat is heat that is capable of heating 1 kilogram of water by 1 degree Celsius. The table shows the results of testing the calorific value of various types of firewood (firewood is artificially dried to a constant weight).
Breeds | Calorific value of firewood in calories |
---|---|
Birch | 4968 |
Pine | 4907 and 4952 |
Spruce | 4857 |
Alder | 5047 |
Aspen | 4953 |
Middle | 4947 |
The presence of moisture in the wood reduces the calorific value of the wood (calorific value). When burning wood with 15% moisture, their productivity is approximately 3633 calories. Thus, 1 kilogram of firewood, which theoretically delivers 3633 units of heat, can heat 36.3 liters of water from 0 to 100 degrees Celsius, or evaporate about 5.7 kilograms of water. In practice, however, the result is somewhat less.
For room heating, back in the 18th century, the Irish scientist Gayer proposed the following classification of firewood of different tree species when burning firewood in the same volume:
- The hottest firewood gives: hornbeam, beech, winter oak, birch, mountain pine, acacia, black pine.
- Hot firewood gives: maple, ash, red elm, resinous larch, pine, summer oak.
- Average - hot ones give: spruce, fir, noble chestnut, Siberian cedar.
- Few - hot firewood gives: linden, alder, aspen, poplar, willow.
Fuel combustion is distinguished between complete and incomplete combustion. Complete combustion - occurs with a sufficient amount of oxidizer and ends with complete oxidation of the combustible elements of the fuel. With an insufficient amount of oxidant, incomplete combustion of carbon occurs.
The absolute heat output of fuel is the amount of heat that is obtained with the complete combustion of firewood. The calorific value of firewood is highly dependent on the degree of dampness.
Artificial drying of wood increases the calorific value twice as much, depending on the amount of moisture contained in the wood before drying. The calorific value of different types of firewood is generally almost the same and for air-dry firewood with 10-12% moisture it is about 3850 calories, which means that one kilogram of such fuel can heat about 3850 kilograms of water per 1 degree Celsius.
In addition to assessing firewood in terms of its calorific value, it is often very important in practice to know the combustion temperature of firewood, heat output. The temperature that a tree can develop when burned
Some fuels develop thermal energy slowly when burned, while others burn quickly, with a strong flame, giving a high temperature of the combustion products.
In addition to the wood species, the combustion temperature of firewood also depends on other reasons.:
- on the completeness of combustion, i.e. the amount of air flowing to the fuel;
- from losses to the surrounding space.
The combustion temperature of firewood is measured using special devices called pyrometers. In practice, the pyrometric effect of firewood ranges from 770 to 1200 ° C. A comparative test of the heat-producing ability of firewood establishes the following order, taking the maximum combustion temperature of the combustion temperature of maple as (1200 degrees).
Breed | Heating capacity,% (100% - maximum) | Temperature ° С |
---|---|---|
Mountain maple | 100 | 1200 |
Beech | 87 | 1044 |
Ash | 87 | 1044 |
Hornbeam | 85 | 1020 |
Hawthorn | 82 | 984 |
Winter oak | 75 | 900 |
Larch | 72 | 864 |
Elm | 72 | 864 |
Summer oak | 70 | 840 |
Birch | 68 | 816 |
Fir | 63 | 756 |
Acacia | 59 | 708 |
Linden | 55 | 660 |
Pine | 52 | 624 |
Aspen | 51 | 612 |
Alder | 46 | 552 |
Willow | 40 | 480 |
Poplar | 39 | 468 |
In a practical way, the following relationship was established.With limited air access, incomplete combustion gives less heat, but a higher temperature; with complete combustion with the same volume of air, the amount of heat is greater at a lower temperature.
Birch - tradition should not be broken
Most people are inclined to believe that such wood is the best fuel for starting a fire in a fireplace, stove or bath. And all because of the invaluable advantages:
- easy to ignite;
- burn for a long time;
- the flame turns out to be beautiful and even;
- there are no sparks;
- copious generation of heat.
But the advantages do not end there. The healing properties of birch have been known since ancient times. The pleasant aroma has a beneficial effect on the human body, protecting it from colds and chronic diseases. In other words, birch firewood has a disinfecting effect, which attracts approval among lovers of steam baths.
When burning, logs emit a small amount of carbon dioxide, and this is certainly a plus. But there is also a minus - a high concentration of tar. And this combustion product no longer benefits health. In addition, soot and soot form on the walls of the stove and in the chimney. As a result, over time, not only is traction lost, but the risk of fire or carbon monoxide poisoning increases. Therefore, when choosing these firewood, it is still worth mastering the profession of a chimney sweep, as well as observing safety.
She is the queen of the Norwegian forests. Birch has a deservedly high rank in Norway, so high that other good varieties of trees are in the shade and many prefer only it.
Nevertheless, the status of a national wood tree has a good justification: there is a lot of birch (it makes up 74% of all deciduous trees), and it grows large and even. The exception is mountain birch, which can be twisty and difficult to fit into small ovens. But in a birch growing in valleys and lowlands, if the trees are dense, a long trunk without twigs is formed.
But birch also has its own requirements: it needs good drying and quickly deteriorates if it is attacked by fungus and mold. If you leave undried birch on the ground, it will quickly rot.
Birch grows most actively up to 50 years old and rarely lives more than 200 years. Downy birch can grow up to 20 meters, hanging birch - up to 30 meters. The average density of wood is 500 kilograms of dry raw materials per cubic meter.
Exotic
As you know, there are a lot of tree species, and to list all their types, you can write a thick book, or even more than one.
Therefore, in addition to the listed varieties, it is worth touching on at least a few more:
- Elm. It emits a lot of smoke, is difficult to split and takes a long time to ignite.
- Poplar. Like firewood for a stove - very much even nothing. They prick easily, only scatter sparks and quickly burn out.
- Beech. It is also difficult to ignite and split, but can be used raw.
- Fir. Like poplar, it is easy to prick and ignite, but you cannot do without a lot of smoke and sparks.
- Sycamore. The wood is easy to kindle, but difficult to split.