Many in the San Lorenzo Valley and Scotts Valley rely on wood-burning stoves and fireplaces to heat their homes through the cold, damp winter months in Santa Cruz County.
As summer turns to fall, it’s time to make sure every household has an ample supply of firewood and residents know how to get the most bang for their buck. The Press-Banner enlisted the help of several wood sellers to educate readers about wood buying in the local area.
What type of wood?
Harder wood burns longer and gives off more heat. The best wood in the area is live oak, a gnarly-looking wood with thick bark, says Dan Corry, a wood seller for the past 35 years. Tan oak is second, followed by madrone, a hardwood that burns hot and clean and leaves little ash.
Dry sycamore, maple and laurel follow madrone in wood quality. Fir, pine, cypress and redwood logs burn fastest and are the least valuable; they also can leave pitch buildup in the chimney that could catch fire. These last several should be sold for no more than 60 percent of the value of oak and madrone.
Bob Bailes is known in the San Lorenzo Valley by his A-frame storefront, Bob’s Stop and Get it, on Highway 9 at the entrance of Ben Lomond. He sells small bundles of wood to campers during the summer and larger quantities of almond wood to anyone who needs it. He contracts with almond farmers to take the firewood to his shop.
Is it dry enough to burn?
For madrone, a solid year to a year-and-a half while covered is long enough to ensure the wood has dried to the core.
Oak or madrone that is very heavy is usually still “green.” For madrone, the wood is still usually a pink color when it’s green. For oak, the ends usually start to split once the wood has dried, Corry says.
If you can’t tell whether the wood is wet, ask for a couple of pieces to burn as a trial. If the wood is good, the seller should have no problem with the request.
How much is a cord?
The County of Santa Cruz Department of Weights and Measures requires that firewood be sold by the cord or a percentage of a cord (half cord, quarter cord, and so on). A cord is 128 cubic feet. To be sure you have an entire cord, stack the wood neatly with as few gaps as possible, measure it and multiply the width by the height by the length. Two common measurements of a cord of wood are 8 feet by 4 feet by 4 feet and 16 by 2 by 4 feet.
Wood sellers must provide a receipt stating their name and address, the amount of wood delivered and the date.
Get your money’s worth
Many wood sellers deliver wood in the bed of a truck.
“Avoid guys in a pickup truck in the parking lot,” Corry said. “A mound of wood (in the back of a pickup) is not going to be a cord. You need side racks.”
A true unstacked cord will reach roughly 4 feet above the walls of a full-size pickup, Corry said; hence the need for racks that extend the height of the bed.
Corry also noted that some wood sellers will put spare tires and other junk in the truck bed to shortchange the customer. Buyers should look in the the truck to make sure they receive what they pay for.
There are different lengths of firewood: 16 inches for smaller wood stoves, or 20-inch and 24-inch cuts for fireplaces and larger stoves. The larger the cut, the higher the unstacked wood must be piled to make a full cord.
Beware of rotten wood
Wood has a shelf life. Small holes eaten away by bugs will not make much of a difference, but if the wood is rotted by moisture or has many larger holes, it will burn less efficiently, if at all.
“You really want to look at the quality,” Corry said. “When it’s really light, you’re getting rot wood.”
Check the delivery truck before the wood is unloaded, and make sure the wood is up to your standards.
“Don’t be afraid to say ‘I don’t want it,’” Bailes said.
Consider cost
Price is negotiable with many wood sellers. Spring, around tax season, and summer are the best times to buy firewood for the coming winter. Not only will it have a chance to dry, but it is a slow time for the sellers, Corry said.
Bailes said the supply of dry wood decreases as the winter drags on, so the price increases. It’s also important to make sure you pay the price that was quoted over the phone. Buying wood by the bundle or box at the grocery store is inefficient and can cost two to three times what the wood is worth, Corry said.
Finally, make calls and compare prices early in the year. It’s possible to find a trusted wood source in the San Lorenzo Valley or Scotts Valley areas that will deliver to your home.
“We have a lot of people who do wood up here and a lot of people who want to do a customer right,” Bailes said.
