When storing firewood, you want to keep it in an area free from elements that might damage the stored wood.
You also want to ensure that they remain dry and ready for use whenever the need arises.
For these reasons, one needs to ensure that you select the best storage space for firewood.
With several firewood storage ideas that might ring in your mind, one question you can ask is
Should You Store Firewood In Your Detached Garage?
Well, the answer to this question is not straightforward but depends on the firewood’s condition and your detached garage. There are times when keeping firewood in a detached garage may be an excellent idea, and sometimes it may not be. Analyzing the exact situation can help you determine when and not to store firewood in a detached garage. All the same, it is not weird to store firewood in a detached garage.
Five Tips For Storing Firewood In A Detached Garage
A detached garage can be an ideal storage space for well-seasoned firewood.
However, there are a few tips to enable you to store the firewood in good condition over a long time and avoid damage to your garage.
1. Inspect The Firewood First
It is imperative to thoroughly inspect the pieces of wood before you bring them inside.
This way, you will eliminate wood with signs of bugs or rot to avoid bug infestation or damage to other wood pieces.
When picking up the wood, it is good to start with the older ones to deal with bugs that might have escaped when arranging the wood.
Also, keep rot firewood away from the dry ones before you store them.
Sorting firewood is a key tip to ensure that they remain in a good state throughout the storage period in the garage.
2. Dry The Wood Before Storing It
Wet firewood does not burn out well, and if you keep it in the garage before it dries, it will stay damp for the longest time unless you opt to heat the garage.
Usually, firewood dries well when left outside in the sun.
When you plan to keep the wood in a detached garage, ensure you properly insulate the garage to prevent the accumulation of damp air that can damage your firewood.
3. Arrange The Firewood In Rows
On one side of the garage, clear out items along and near the wall to create enough space to hold your dried firewood.
Ensure the floor is level, so the rows of wood remain upright when stacking up the firewood. Arrange the wood in evenly spaced rows that reach four feet.
Any higher level can be a cause of alarm and a safety concern.
Obviously, you want to avoid stacks of firewood toppling in the garage and damaging some of your stored valuables.
Also, keep some space from the firewood stacks to the garage wall to enhance frequent and constant airflow.
For more safety tips, keep your children aware of the dangers that may arise from playing with stacked firewood, and also ensure pets are away.
You can also build a garage storage space for firewood, like cabinets or shelves, but first, ensure that the detached garage is strong enough to support the firewood while allowing air to circulate through it.
4. Keep The Firewood Pieces Away From Potential Fire Hazards
Dry and we’ll split firewood can catch fire very fast, and the worst thing you can do is store it near fire hazard points in your garage.
Keep firewood away from your working space, where welding and torch spark easily escape and get in contact with the firewood.
Also, keep firewood away from exhaust pipes, engines, and other ignition sources.
5. Be Cautious When Using Pesticides
If you opt to spray the firewood pieces with pesticides to get rid of the possibly hiding peats, be very cautious with the type of pesticide you choose to use.
Keep in mind that you will burn the wood, and the pesticide you had used will vaporize as you burn.
You want to ensure you avoid using harmful chemicals that will burn and add toxins to the air.
Always use environmentally friendly pesticides to treat firewood before keeping it in the garage.
Four Advantages Of Storing Firewood In The Garage
To most homeowners, a garage is considered an ideal space for keeping seasoned firewood. Here are some basic advantages of keeping wood in a detached garage.
1. The Garage Is Dry
Most detached garages are well-sealed and insulated to provide ideal indoor conditions.
If there are no drainage issues in your detached garage, you are sure to have your firewood stay dry through the storage period.
2. Protects Wood From The Elements
Another reason for keeping firewood in a garage is that it will stay safe and protected from winter snow, rain and elements.
You will surely pick up dry wood from the garage during the rainy season.
3. Easily Accessible
Even if the garage is detached, it is most likely to be near your house than all other sheds in the compound.
Firewood stored in a garage is more easily accessible than that kept in an open firewood shed.
Accessibility gets more realizable if you have organized the wood in drawers and cabinets in the garage.
4. Clean Firewood
Keeping firewood in the garage also ensures that they remain clean and free from debris that might have otherwise gathered on the wood pieces.
Three Disadvantages Of Storing Firewood In The Garage
1. Potential Fire Hazard
When you store dry firewood in the detached garage, it poses a risk.
If you do most of your workshop work or keep engines in the garage, make sure to store firewood away from these spaces. Reduce the possibility of fire sparks flying and settling on the dry wood.
If not, you may end up burning your precious items just from a garage fire.
When heating a garage during the cold weather, ensure you attend to the heat source if there are any ignitable items like firewood inside the garage.
Also, when lighting a furnace or when grilling inside the garage, avoid doing it near a firewood storage space.
2. Animal Infestation
Most insects love to live in wood, and when winter approaches, most of them create a habitat in the wood and stay dormant as they wait for the warm spring season.
When wood with such insects is brought inside a warm garage, they will get active and spread to other items inside the garage.
Small animals like that’s, mouse and chipmunks enjoy living in wood piles and will easily escape to your garage if you keep firewood there.
With time, the pests and rodents will escape to your house, which you may never want to experience.
3. Bug infestation
Small bugs create a habitat on wood, especially when it is wet. Bringing firewood in your garage creates a leeway for them to spread to other items inside the garage and later to your house.
Basically, the fear of bug infestation makes most people avoid storing firewood in the garage.
However, you can use pesticides to treat the wood and control bugs before bringing firewood to a garage for storage.
Conclusion
Firewood contributes significantly to warming up homes during the cold weather.
However, firewood needs to be prepared and stored earlier to reduce risks and increase efficiency before it gets ready for use.
There are several storage options for firewood, but a garage is ideal for storing dry firewood.
While it comes with a few disadvantages, all the drawbacks of keeping firewood in a garage can be easily controlled and managed.
Sources
https://www.bakerdoorcompany.com/blog/5-essential-tips-for-storing-firewood-in-your-garage
https://www.dalmansevergreens.com/blog/the-3-best-ways-to-store-firewood#
