Firewood Quality

American Persimmon Tree

I am not the original author of the national firewood quality data you will see below. I archived it for myself several years ago, long before the idea of this website. My apologies for not providing the proper credit.

Whether it’s your fireplace, woodstove, or campfire, having some knowledge of wood properties and how a particular species will burn is a good thing, and in some cases a necessity. If you are interested in firewood quality for your specific area, in addition to the chart here, do an online search using “your state firewood quality.” You may be surprised what you will find.

primitive survival skills

Personally, my favorite firewood is common persimmon. It smells really good, sparks less, and coals better than any other wood in my opinion. Even older semi-rotten persimmon burns good. Now I need to get to work on my woodpile…

Here are some other campfire articles you may like too:

 

Firewood Quality

Hard Woods

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Alder

Medium-Low

2506

Easy

Fair

Good

Moderate

Slight

Apple

High-Medium

4132

Difficult

Difficult

Excellent

Few

Excellent

Ash , Black

Medium

4132

Easy-Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Good-Excellent

Few

Slight

Ash, Green

High

3590

Easy-Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Good-Excellent

Few

Slight

Ash, White

High

3,689

Easy-Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Good-Excellent

Few

Slight

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Aspen, Bigtooth

Low

2439

Easy

Easy

Good

Few

Slight

Aspen, Quaking

Low

2373

Easy

Easy

Good

Few

Slight

Basswood

Low

2174

Easy

Easy

Poor

Few

Good

Beech

High

3757

Difficult

Difficult

Excellent

Few

Good

Beech, American

High

3793

Difficult

Difficult

Excellent

Few

Good

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Beech, Blue

High

3890

Difficult

Difficult

Excellent

Few

Good

Birch, White

Medium

3179

Easy

Easy

Good

Moderate

Slight

Birch, Sweet

Medium

4065

Easy

Easy

Good

Moderate

Slight

Birch, Gray

Medium

3179

Easy

Easy

Good

Moderate

Slight

Birch, Paper

Medium

3260

Easy

Easy

Good

Moderate

Slight

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Birch, Yellow

High-Medium

3723

Moderate

Easy

Good

Moderate

Slight

Birch, Black

High-Medium

3890

Moderate

Easy

Good

Moderate

Slight

Buckeye, Horsechestnut

Low

2235

Moderate

Poor

Few

Slight

Boxelder

Low

2797

Easy

Poor

Many

Slight

Butternut (white walnut)

Low

2440

Easy

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Catalpa

Low

2360

Difficult

Good

Few

Fair

Cherry, Black

Medium

2880

Easy

Difficult

Excellent

Few

Excellent

Cherry

Medium

3184

Easy

Difficult

Excellent

Few

Excellent

Chestnut

Low

2708

Easy

Many

Good

Coffeetree, Kentucky

High

3112

Moderate

Good

Few

Good

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Cottonwood

Low

2102

Easy

Easy

Good

Moderate

Slight

Dogwood

High

4331

Difficult

Good

Fair

Few

Elm, American

Medium

3116

Very Difficult

Fair

Good

Very Few

Fair

Elm, Rock

Medium

3860

Very Difficult

Fair

Good

Very Few

Fair

Elm, Siberian

Medium

3020

Very Difficult

Fair

Good

Very Few

Fair

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Elm, Slippery

Medium

3251

Very Difficult

Fair

Good

Very Few

Fair

Eucalyptus

Very High

4560

  -Swamp yate

Difficult

Poor

Excellent

Few

Good

  -Sugar gum

Difficult

Poor

Excellent

Few

Good

  -Tasmanian blue gum

Fair

Fair

Good

Few

Good

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

  -River red gum

Difficult

Poor

Excellent

Moderate

Good

  -SA blue gum

Difficult

Poor

Excellent

Few

Good

Hackberry

High

3319

Easy

Good

Few

Slight

Hazel

High

Moderate

Moderate

Hawthorn

High

Moderate

Moderate

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Hickory, True

Very High

4,327

Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Excellent

Moderate

Excellent

Hickory, Mockernut

Very High

4332

Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Excellent

Moderate

Excellent

Hickory, Pignut

Very High

4332

Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Excellent

Moderate

Excellent

Hickory, Shagbark

Very High

4333

Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Excellent

Moderate

Excellent

Hickory, Shellbark

Very High

4195

Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Excellent

Moderate

Excellent

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Holly, American

3387

Difficult

Honeylocust

High

3832

Easy

Excellent

Few

Slight

Hophornbeam, Eastern

4266

Ironwood (Hornbeam)

Very High

4267

Very Difficult

Very Difficult

Excellent

Few

Laurel, California

3456

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Locust, Black

Very High

4470

Very Difficult

Difficult

Excellent

Very Few

Slight

Madrone

High

3925

Difficult

Difficult

Excellent

Very Few

Slight

Maple, Bigleaf

High-Medium

2980

Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Excellent

Few

Excellent

Maple, Silver

High-Medium

2981

Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Excellent

Few

Fair

Maple, Black

High-Medium

3523

Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Excellent

Few

Excellent

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Maple, Soft

High-Medium

2924

Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Excellent

Few

Excellent

Maple, Red

High-Medium

3318

Moderate

Fair-Difficult

Excellent

Few

Excellent

Maple, Sugar

High

3793

Moderate

Difficult

Excellent

Few

 Excellent

Mesquite

Very High

Very Difficult

Very Difficult

Excellent

Few

Mulberry

Medium

3712

Easy

Excellent

Good

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Oak, Bur

High

3928

Easy

Difficult

Excellent

Few

Fair

Oak, Red

High

3680

Moderate

Difficult

Excellent

Few

Fair

Oak, White

Very High

4200

Moderate

Difficult

Excellent

Few

Excellent

Osage Orange

High

 4728

 Moderate

Excellent

 Many

Excellent

Pecan

High

Moderate

Good

Few

Good

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Persimmon

4332

Moderate

Pine, Lodgepole

Low

2610

Easy

Easy

Fair

Moderate

Good

Poplar, Yellow (Tuliptree)

Low

2708

Easy

Easy

Fair

Moderate

Bitter

Sweet Gum

Medium

3115

Difficult

Fair

Fair

Few

Sycamore

Medium

3115

Difficult

Very Difficult

Good

Few

Good

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Walnut

High-Medium

3454

Moderate

Fair

Good

Few

Fair

Willow

Low

2438

Easy

Fair

Poor

Moderate

Slight

Soft Woods

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Cedar, White

Medium-Low

2100

Easy

Easy

Poor

Moderate

Excellent

Cedar, Eastern

Medium-Low

2981

Easy

Easy

Poor

Many

Excellent

Cedar, W. Red

Medium-Low

2100

Easy

Easy

Poor

Many

Excellent

Cypress

Medium

2844

Easy

Moderate

Few

Fir, Douglas

Medium

3049

Easy

Easy

Fair

Moderate

Slight

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Fir, Balsam

Low

2236

Easy

Easy

Fair

Moderate

Slight

Fir, Grand

Low

2371

Easy

Easy

Fair

Moderate

Slight

Fir, White

Low

2104

Easy

Easy

Fair

Moderate

Slight

Hemlock, Eastern

Medium-Low

2573

Easy

Easy

Poor

Many

Good

Hemlock, Western

Medium-Low

2847

Easy

Easy

Poor

Many

Good

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Juniper

Medium

3150

Medium

Poor

Many

Excellent

Larch, Western (Tamarack)

High-Medium

3318

Easy-Moderate

Easy-Fair

Fair

Many

Slight

Pine, Lodgepole

Low

2576

Easy

Easy

Fair

Moderate

Good

Pine, Ponderosa

Medium-Low

2573

Easy

Easy

Fair

Moderate

Good

Pine, E&W White

Medium-Low

2303

Easy

Easy

Fair

Moderate

Good

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Pine, Sugar

Low

2302

Easy

Easy

Fair

Moderate

Good

Pine, Yellow

High-Medium

2610

Easy

Easy

Fair

Moderate

Good

Pinon

High

3000

Easy

Many

Redwood, Old Growth

Medium

2573

Easy

Easy-Fair

Poor

Many

Slight

Redwood, Second Growth

Medium

2302

Easy

Easy-Fair

Poor

Many

Slight

Species

Heat

Weight*

Ease Of Splitting

Ease Of Starting

Coaling Qualities

Sparks

Fragrance

Spruce, Black

Low

2575

Easy

Easy

Poor

Few

Slight

Spruce, Engeiman

Low

2234

Easy

Easy

Poor

Few

Slight

Spruce, Norway

Low

2240

Moderate

Easy

Poor

Many

Slight

Spruce, Sitka

Low

2506

Easy

Poor

Slight

Yew

High

Difficult

Difficult

Good

*Weight – pound /cord – seasoned wood.
Cord – stack 4′ x 4′ x 8′ feet high (~85 ft3 with air space removed)
Face cords – 4′ x 8′ x <4′ (usually about 16″ deep)

 

Alder:  Poor heat output and short lasting.  A low quality firewood.  Produces nice charcoal that burn steady and is useful for homemade gunpowder.

Apple:  Great fuel that bums slow and steady when dry, with little flame, sparking or spitting. It has a pleasing scent.  It is easier to cut green.  Great for cooking.

Ash:  Considered one of the burning wood with steady flame and good heat output.  It will bum when green, but not as well as when dry.  Easily to saw and split.

Beech:  Similar to ash, but only burns fair when green. If it has a fault, it may shoot embers out a long ways.  It is easy to chop.

Birch:  This has good heat output but burns quickly. The smell is also pleasant.  It will burn unseasoned.  Can cause gum deposits in chimney if used a lot.  Rolled up pitch from bark makes a good firestarter and can be peeled from trees without damaging them.

Blackthorn: Burns slowly, with lots of heat and little smoke.

Cedar:  This is a great wood that puts out a lot of lasting of heat.  It produces a small flame, a nice scent, and lots of crackle and pop.  Great splitting wood.  Best when dry but small pieces can be burned unseasoned.  Good for cooking.

Cherry:  A slow burning wood with good heat output.  Has a nice sent. Should be seasoned well.  Slow to start.

Chestnut:  A mediocre fuel that produces a small flame and weak heat output.  It also shoots out ambers.

Douglas Fir:  A poor fuel that produces little flame or heat.

Elder:   A mediocre fuel that burns quickly without much heat output and tends to have thick acrid smoke.  The Hag Goddess is know to reside in the Elder tree and burning it invites death.  Probably best avoided.

Elm:  A variable fuel (Dutch elm disease) with a high water content (140%) that may smoke violently and should be dried for two years for best results.  You may need faster burning wood to get elm going.  A large log set on the fire before bed will burn till morn.  Splitting can be difficult and should be done early on.

Eucalyptus:  A fast burning wood with a pleasant smell and no spitting.  It is full of sap and oils when fresh and can start a chimney fire if burned unseasoned.  The stringy wood fiber may be hard to split and one option is to slice it into rings and allow to season and self split.  The gum from the tree produces a fresh medicinal smell on burned which may not be the best for cooking with.

Hawthorn:  Good firewood. Burns hot and slow.

Hazel:  An excellent fast burning fuel but tends to burn up a bit faster than most other hard woods.  Allow to season.

Holly:  A good firewood that will burn when green, but best if dried a year.  It is fast burning with a bright flame but little heat.

Hornbeam:  Burns almost as good as beech with a hot slow burning fire.

Horse Chestnut:  A low quality firewood with a good flame and heating power but spits a lot.

Laburnum:  Completely poisonous tree with acrid smoke that taints food and is best never used.

Larch:  Crackly, scented, and fairly good for heat.  It needs to be seasoned well and forms an oily soot in chimneys.

Laurel:  Produces a brilliant flame.

Lime:  A poor quality fuel with dull flame.  Good for carving

Maple:  A good firewood.

Oak:  Oak has a sparse flame and the smoke is acrid if not seasoned for two years.  Dry old oak is excellent for heat, burning slowly and steadily until whole log collapses into cigar-like ash.

Pear:  Burns with good heat, good scent and no spitting.  Needs to be seasoned well.

Pine:  Bums with a splendid flame, but apt to spit. Needs to be seasoned well and is another oily soot in chimney wood.  Smells great and its resinous wood makes great kindling.

Plane:  Burns pleasantly, but is apt to throw sparks if very dry.

Plum:  Wood provides good heat with a nice aromatic sent.

Poplar:  A terrible fuel that doesn’t burn well and produces a black choking smoke even when seasoned.

Rowan:  A good firewood that burns hot and slow.

Rhododendron:  Old thick and tough stems burn well.

Robinia (Acacia):  Burns slowly, with good heat, but with acrid smoke.

Spruce:  A poor firewood that burns too quickly and with too many sparks.

Sycamore:  Burns with a good flame, with moderate heat. Useless green.

Sweet Chestnut:  Burns when seasoned but tends to spits continuously and excessively.

Thorn:  One of the best firewood. Burns slowly, with great heat and little smoke.

Walnut:  Low to good value to burning.  It a nice aromatic scent.

Wellingtonia:  Poor for use as a firewood.

Willow:  A poor fire wood that must be dry to use.  Even when seasoned, it burns slowly, with little flame. Apt to spark.

Yew:  This burns slowly, with fierce heat. The scent is pleasant.  Another carving favorite.

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About Christian Noble

Chris Noble is the founder of MasterWoodsman.com and Woodsmoke Camping Company. A Master Naturalist, he holds a Bachelor of Science in Forestry and has worked as a Registered Forester and Certified Burn Manager in several states. Chris is also a Wilderness First Responder and since the late 90’s has been “practicing primitive” skills and taking lessons from numerous Master Woodsmen throughout North America. An advocate for Conservation, teacher of Wilderness Living Skills, and happily married, he enjoys passing what he has learned thus far to others, especially his 2 children, Emerson and Duncan.

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