Will Firewood Dry In a Pile?

As if all that cutting, bucking and splitting wasn’t time consuming enough, now you also have to stack all that wood.

For those who time is more important (or they are just tired of doing so), the thought of not stacking the pieces at all comes to mind often, and why not?

We all have seen those piles used by, perhaps, our close neighbors or other people. If the firewood wasn’t properly dried, there’s no way people would be leaving them in piles like that, right?

Slower, but possible

Yes, firewood can indeed dry, season or in short, get ready for burning even if you throw it all randomly in a pile.

BUT… there are some issues and things you have to keep in mind when going for this solution.

To start with, it is going to take a lot longer for the wood to season this way. This is because the firewood isn’t actually stacked.

There’s no way for the sun, wind and all of the actual drying elements to reach the wood nicely. Sure, the pieces that are actually exposed will dry the soonest, but forget about the same for the ones that are buried deep.

That buried firewood can even start to rot, develop fungus or dry very little at all. With this in mind, you should always try placing some kind of platform underneath, like pallets, to prevent the wood from going in contact with the ground.

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At the end of the day, how well can a pile of wood dry in your instance has most to do with where you live. That’s why it is such a controversial topic – you can ask the same question two different folks living in separate locations, and they’re definitely going to give you a different answer.

If it’s one of them drier and hotter climates, leaving the wood to season in a pile shouldn’t be an issue, but if you live in, for example, the Northeastern parts of the U.S., i suggest sticking to the classic stacks (even if your neighbor says the opposite).

*If you will indeed go for the piling technique, try to make a longer row instead of a big fat one. This will help speed up the seasoning process.

What is my personal take on this

I always stack, and probably will the firewood i prepare for as long as i can. Seriously, it just breaks my heart to see a pile of unorganized, ugly looking pile of wood; i can’t leave it like that.

I try to stick to the common two row stack, if possible, for the best drying properties. The holzhausen may also come up, but i don’t find it working as well, when it comes to seasoning, that is.

I can see how someone would simply get tired, or find little to no benefit in neatly stacking all the wood they process, especially so if they have a business to run. But if we’re talking about what is more important for the common homeowner, i don’t see how not stacking can be any better.