If you are experiencing problems getting your fires to start, the first thing I’ll ask is: “Is your firewood seasoned?”. Many times people will say yes.
But one thing you have to think about is the way your firewood is stored. Many people will have their wood outside and that’s ok, but … you should have it covered to prevent rain water and snow from getting the wood wet again. Here is an example of seasoned firewood that is too wet from being stored outside and uncovered.
If you notice, the water in the wood is literally boiling out of the wood at the cut ends. The longer it takes the heat to dry the wood, the longer the wood is going to take to start, and subsequently, the more creosote that will be produced.
