Company Blog

All About Seasoned Firewood

Cooler weather is starting to arrive in the Hudson Valley! That means it is time to make sure that your firewood supply is ready for winter. Did you realize that when you burn the right type of wood, you can increase the energy efficiency of your masonry fireplace? If you try to burn freshly cut wood, your chimney and fireplace will not work as well. This is because burning wet wood can cause problems, including smoke blowing back into your home. The Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) and All Seasons Chimney recommend only burning firewood that has been properly seasoned, or dried. We would like to tell you more about seasoned firewood. In addition, why it is so important for you to burn this type of fuel this fireplace season!

Seasoned Firewood Image - Poughkeepsie NY - All Seasons ChimneyWhat exactly is seasoned firewood?

Wood contains about 40 percent water. Therefore, a fire that is built with freshly cut firewood wastes a lot of its energy burning off that moisture. The majority of the heat produced by this fire escapes out of the chimney. This can lead to you having to turn up the thermostat just to stay comfortable. Seasoned firewood has been allowed to dry for at least six months after being cut. Due to this, it allows this type of wood to provide more heat for less money!

How can I tell if the firewood has been properly seasoned when buying wood?

With dark ends and visible splits and cracks, seasoned firewood is much more lightweight than freshly cut (or green) wood. You can also tell by banging two pieces of wood together. If you hear a clunking sound, it is most likely seasoned. When you bang pieces of green wood together, you will hear a dull thudding sound. Do you really want to be sure the wood is seasoned? If so, you can buy a moisture meter for about $20 at your local hardware store. You will want to only buy wood with a moisture content of 20 to 25 percent.

How should I store seasoned firewood?

It is crucial that you store your seasoned firewood off the ground to keep it from absorbing moisture. Don’t have a storage shed? No worries! You can stack the wood on top of pallets, concrete blocks, or gravel. Cover the top of your wood stacks with a tarp, and make sure the sides are open to allow air to circulate freely. This helps to keep your seasoned firewood dry.

If you want warmer fires that last longer, you should only burn seasoned firewood. Contact us at All Seasons Chimney to find out more tips on how to increase the energy efficiency of your chimney and fireplace!

All About Stainless Steel Chimney Liners

Chimney liners are a vital piece of your chimney’s anatomy, and they play an essential role in keeping your system running efficiently and safely with every burning season.

What do they do exactly? The Chimney Safety Institute of America (CSIA) highlights three major roles that your liner plays:

  • It protects your masonry. The acidic fumes and water vapors that your fires produce will eat away at your brick and mortar if given the chance. A liner helps prevent this, thus protecting your household from gas leaks, smoke, and carbon monoxide.
  • It protects adjacent woodwork. The more the woodwork in your home is exposed to high heat, the lower its ignition point becomes.  And if left unprotected long enough, it will eventually catch on fire and spread flames through your home. In fact, a study performed by the National Bureau of Standards found that heat traveled so rapidly in unlined chimneys that adjacent woodwork ignited within only a few hours!
  • It enhances efficiency. Proper draft and good airflow are essential to running an efficient fireplace, and without a well-fitted liner that’s properly sized to your fireplace this will be hard to achieve. If you want the most from your appliance, having a liner professional installed is a must!

Long story short, chimney liners are a vital piece of chimney anatomy, and operating your fireplace with a liner that is deteriorated, decayed, incorrectly installed, or simply missing altogether can put your home and family in serious danger. In fact, liners are so essential that modern building codes now require that every chimney must be lined at the time of construction!

Here at All Seasons, we know about all the local safety codes and standards when it comes to lining a chimney, and we’d be happy to set you up with a reliable, long-lasting stainless steel liner. Give us a call today to get started!

How Do I Know if I Need Relining Services?

How might you know if you’re due for relining services? Here’s a few questions to consider:

  1. All About Stainless Steel Chimney Liners - Poughkeepsie NY - All Seasons linerIs your liner missing? If you live in a home that was built over 50 years ago, there’s a chance your chimney doesn’t have a liner at all. Today, modern building safety codes and standards mandate that every chimney be lined, but back in the 1940’s and before it wasn’t such a priority. If your chimney is unlined, our team can get your home up to code and set up right.
  2. Is your liner damaged? If a damaged liner is the issue at hand, no worries there either. We can remove your old one and replace it with a new, durable steel liner.
  3. Are you ready to upgrade? If your older fireplace doesn’t provide much heat, you may be ready to invest in something more efficient like a fireplace insert. That said, while many updates are much more energy-efficient, they are also often much smaller than masonry chimneys. This size difference can create problems when it comes to the liner, causing the system to not function properly or safely. In these cases, a stainless steel liner that’s customized to the size of your new insert or upgrade should solve any issues.

Is it time to reline your chimney? Contact us at All Seasons Chimney to find out more about your options!

The Benefits of Heavy Wall Stainless Steel Liners

Now, here at All Seasons, we sell and install three types of stainless steel liners: light wall, light-heavy wall, and heavy wall. That said, we typically recommend the heavy wall options because you’ll get more protection, heightened efficiency, and a better experience, overall.

All About Stainless Steel Chimney Liners - Poughkeepsie NY - All Seasons steelOne of the biggest benefits of these models is their smooth, seamless design. Bumps and ridges hinder airflow, but with one of our stainless steel liners, that won’t be a concern at all. What does a smooth surface mean for your fireplace? A 20% increase in draft! Your fires will burn hotter and you’ll use less fuel, too, saving you money in multiple ways. These products pay themselves off quickly in efficiency.

Another benefit is how easy they are to install. Alternative styles require a lot more work to fit to your chimney, and there’s going to be a higher risk of experiencing damage during installation because of this. Heavy wall styles automatically lay flat when you roll them out, allowing for a better fit and a quicker installation overall – that’s less labor costs for you!

In the end, heavy wall stainless steel liners are simply a better value. And remember that we offer a lifetime warranty on these products, so you won’t have to stress about relining again anytime soon.

What About Aluminum Liners?

Now, aluminum liners are attractive because of their low price point. By investing in one of these over a stainless steel option, you’d be saving hundreds of dollars in the here and now. So, why not take this route?

Well, this is one scenario where it’s best to look at things in the long term. Yes, aluminum liners are far less expensive, but if your home is older, then at some point the previous homeowners burned oil in that house. This means that leftover residue will still be lingering (even if this was done 80 years ago), and your liner will get eaten away because of it.

And we’re not talking about slow deterioration over multiple years. Within about 6 months of installation your liner will be useless.

Aluminum liners are also not appropriate for wood-burning appliance or fireplaces because of the temperatures that the fires reach when burning wood. It’s simply to hot for the aluminum liners to withstand.

Because of all this, we don’t install aluminum liners. We want our customers to get the best value possible, and aluminum liners simply do not offer that.

Basically, if you get an aluminum liner now, you might as well schedule an installation job for a new one in a few months. It’s simply not worth the time, stress, or effort, and you’ll likely pay more overall. Not to mention, your structure won’t be as protected, so you’ll likely wind up with damages that need addressing, too.

By the end of it all, you’ll have spent a lot more than you anticipated. Reduce the stress and hassle by choosing stainless steel from the start.

Schedule an Appointment With Us Today

As you can tell, there’s a lot of physics that goes into operating an efficient fireplace. This is why it’s always best to trust the experts at All Seasons Chimney & Masonry with you chimney and fireplace needs! We’re certified with the CSIA, have earned a Master Chimney Technician certification, and we’re members of the NCSG (National Chimney Sweep Guild) and the NYSCSG (New York State Chimney Sweep Guild), so you can feel good hiring us for it all.

If you are at all concerned with the state of your chimney, don’t wait to give our qualified sweeps a call. We’ve been serving Poughkeepsie, New Paltz, Orangeburg, Otisville, Dover Plains, and more for over 25 years, and we would love the opportunity to prove ourselves to you, too.

Reach out to us through our website or by giving us a call today. We’re eager to speak with you soon!