It’s important to know how many logs are in a cord of firewood, how else are you going to properly stock up for the season? For those that have a fireplace or wood-burning stove in their home, the ambiance and the heat it provides can be a great way to weather winter chills. They can also go a long way to reduce your overall heating costs, especially if a cord of firewood is reasonably priced in your area.
But what exactly is a cord of firewood?
The short answer is a cord is a unit of measurement used to describe firewood. In essence, it is 128 cubic feet of wood with the wood stacked very tightly and the logs running parallel to each other. In general, a cord will be roughly eight feet long and four feet high and wide. Although, it is good to keep in mind that different areas can have different regulations about what exactly constitutes a cord.
How Many Logs in a Cord of Firewood?
If it is your first time buying firewood, it can be a little confusing understanding exactly how much wood you are getting with your purchase. Many sellers will use the traditional cord of wood as their price point, and you likely want to know exactly how many logs that entails, right?
First thing to know is that a cord doesn’t actually refer to a specific number of logs. It is a measurement that is based on volume (that 128 cubic feet mentioned above!) This means, the number of logs in your cord of firewood will depend on the size of the logs. It will take more small logs to make a cord than it will larger logs.
A solid estimate is that a cord of firewood made of small logs will include somewhere between 1000 and 1400 logs. A cord that contains larger logs will likely contain 300 to 400 logs.
What Does Half a Cord Look Like?
Now that you know how many logs are in a cord of firewood, you may think that is way too many logs for you to store at your home! So, how many logs in just a half cord of wood?
Again, this isn’t an exact science. A half cord of wood is 64 cubic feet. The same rules apply to the half cord, there will be more smaller logs than larger logs. So, you will be getting roughly 150 to 200 logs in your half cord if they are on the large side, and you can expect somewhere between 500 and 700 logs if they are on the smaller side.
How Many Logs in a Quarter Cord of Firewood?
If you want to take that down even further to just a quarter cord, you are looking at 32 cubic feet of wood. Considering the size of the logs again, you can expect to get 75 to 100 large logs in a quarter cord and 250 to 350 larger logs.
How Long Will a Half Cord of Wood Last for a Home Fireplace?
It is impossible to say exactly how long a half cord of wood will last you as it definitely depends on the frequency in which you use your fireplace (or wood-burning stove.) However, a good guess would be that a half cord would last somewhere between 3 and 5 weeks, assuming this is your main heat source.
If you solely rely on your fireplace or wood-burning stove to keep your home warm in the winter, you should always overestimate the amount of wood that you need to have on hand. You don’t want to be stuck in the middle of a blizzard and find yourself running low on firewood!
Best Way to Store Your Cord of Firewood
The best way to store your cord of firewood depends on how it comes to you. If you are getting wood that has already been dried and split for you, then all you need to do is stack it in your most convenient spot.
If the wood you are purchasing is wet, green, or not spit, then you will have a little bit of work cut out for you. Your cord of wood should be split before stacking, and you will want to make sure that when you do stack it, there is plenty of airflow to aid in drying.
You want to burn the driest wood first, so those logs should be put on the top of the pile. Also, if you are adding your newly purchased wood to the leftovers of the previous purchase, you want to rotate the older wood to the top. This will cut down on rotten logs (and wasted money!)
How Many Cords Does a Log Truck Hold?
A commercial size log truck can actually hold up to 7 cords of wood! Your standard pickup truck (8-foot bed) will hold a half cord if you stack it in nice and neat.
