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Almost every rural resident was faced with the problem of storing firewood prepared for the winter. The same question sometimes affects summer residents who like to warm themselves by the fireplace on cold evenings. In order to always have dry firewood at home, they need to arrange the optimal storage location. Now we will look at how to build woodcutter for a do-it-yourself dacha, so that it is not only comfortable, but also beautiful.
Basic requirements for a woodcutter
In order for prepared logs to burn well in a fireplace or stove, they must be properly stored. This can be done in a woodshed. The design resembles a canopy installed on a summer cottage in a remote corner. There are several basic requirements for a firewood storage building:
- The location of the woodshed on the summer cottage and its design should provide easy access to firewood.
- It is not advisable to build a firewood storage area from blank walls. It would be better if they were lattice boards.Good ventilation ensures that firewood is stored longer and always remains dry and ready for kindling.
- The sun's rays are not a good friend to stored firewood. The logs, of course, will dry faster, but the wood loses its energy properties when exposed to UV rays. It is good if the roof of the woodshed provides complete shading of the firewood.
- Atmospheric precipitation is the worst enemy of firewood. The roof and floor of the woodshed must 100% protect the logs from the penetration of dampness and water. However, along with strong gusts of wind, drops of rainwater or snow will be carried into the firewood through the lattice side walls of the storage facility. For such cases, removable curtains made of film or tarpaulin are provided.
- To prevent the woodshed from spoiling the appearance of the yard, it is built away from view. If this is impossible to do due to the small area of the summer cottage, the building is decorated with decorative trim.
There is no need to build a firewood storage structure at random. The size of the woodshed is calculated at the design stage. The building must accommodate exactly as much firewood as is required for seasonal use.
Types of wood burners
You shouldn’t look for the exact diagram of a firewood shed anywhere, since this structure is not limited to certain shapes and sizes. Every summer resident is able to build a storage facility, guided by his imagination and the availability of building materials. All firewood sheds can only be conditionally divided into free-standing structures and those adjacent to the building.
Extension to the building for storing firewood
A firewood shed adjacent to the building is an economically beneficial solution, but unsuccessful. The advantage of the structure is the saving of building materials. The house serves as one of the walls of the woodshed. The owner can only equip the roof of the building and the remaining three walls.It is best to attach the firewood storage structure to the north side of the building. In this case, the logs will act as additional insulation for the house.
This is where all the advantages of the building adjacent to the house end:
- It should be noted right away that storing firewood near the house is dangerous due to fire hazard considerations.
- Wood harbors a lot of borer beetles, mites and other harmful insects. If the walls of the house are built of wood, they will have to be carefully insulated from firewood with sheets of iron.
- The joint between the adjacent firewood storage roof and the wall of the house must be carefully sealed. Mold will grow from penetrating rainwater, and the logs will begin to rot along with the woodshed and the wooden wall of the house.
A self-made firewood logger does not always look beautiful. A clumsy building can spoil the appearance of even the most beautiful building.
Shed for storing firewood at the dacha
The simplest woodshed is a canopy. It can be made either as a separate structure or adjacent to the house. Most often, at the dacha, a canopy is made of four supports. Why metal pipes are dug into the ground, a frame is made of timber on top and the roofing covering is nailed to it. If you approach the construction of a canopy creatively, you can build a pretty decent storage for firewood. The disadvantage of this structure is the lack of walls. Firewood will have to be covered with film or tarpaulin from rain and snow.
Free-standing woodshed
Freestanding firewood storage is most often a large structure with wooden walls supported by a foundation. It makes sense to build such structures for winter harvesting of logs in case of year-round living in the country. To build a free-standing firewood shed you will need to make a drawing. Dimensions are calculated based on the amount of firewood needed to heat the house all winter.
Mobile woodcutter
A portable firewood shed is not intended for storing logs outdoors. The design is a beautiful stand with legs made of metal, wooden slats or forged blanks. A mobile woodshed serves as a storage place for firewood near the stove or fireplace. Since the structure stands in a prominent place and is often moved, it must be light and fit harmoniously into the interior of the room.
What can you use to build a firewood shed at your dacha?
If there are no aesthetic requirements for the building, at the dacha it is assembled from any available material and hidden out of sight.
Capital buildings are most often made of wood. Sometimes, for reliability, the firewood stands are installed from a metal pipe, and the walls of the frame are sheathed with boards. The roof is made of light but rigid material. Corrugated sheeting or galvanized iron will do. A budget option is asbestos-cement slate, but it is very heavy.
The floor of the woodshed must be raised above the ground so that the logs do not attract moisture.Any board is suitable for these purposes, but not thinner than 25 mm, otherwise the weight of the firewood may cause the floors to collapse.
We are drawing up a woodshed project
When building a separate firewood shed at your dacha to store a large number of logs, you will need to develop a project. First, a drawing of the future structure is drawn on a sheet of paper, then its dimensions are calculated. The simplest diagram with dimensions can be seen in the photo. The structure is a canopy with a gable roof.
If firewood preparation occurs throughout the winter for heating, then at the dacha it is better to build a barn with a gable roof. A good option would be a utility block, where the woodshed is combined with summer shower and a toilet under one roof. Each room has entrance doors located on different sides of the building. An example of such a project is shown in the photo.
Construction of different models of woodsheds with your own hands
Now we will look at how to make a firewood shed at your summer cottage on your own. As an example, we will cover a detached structure and one adjacent to the house.
Building a free-standing woodshed
It is optimal to install a free-standing firewood rack on a hill where there is no threat of flooding with rainwater. As an example, we provide a drawing of the structure. The dimensions can be changed based on the expected amount of firewood. The door is hung on the condition that the firewood storage will be made in the form of a permanent shed.
The process of constructing a free-standing firewood shed at the dacha looks like this:
- Holes with a depth of at least 800 mm are dug along the perimeter of the future building. A layer of crushed stone 100 mm thick is poured into each, after which the pillars are installed. It is better to make the supports metal. When using wooden beams, the lower part is treated with bitumen to protect against dampness.
- Each pillar in the pit is filled with concrete. After it has hardened, the timber is used to make the top frame of the firewood shed.
- Logs are fixed to the racks at a height of 100 mm from the ground. For reliability, you need to place a brick or cinder block under each one. The floor is laid on top of the board joists.
- The frame is sheathed with boards, leaving small gaps for ventilation. If this is a permanent shed, the lining can be made solid, but a ventilation hatch can be provided on each wall. In this case, the door is also secured with hinges to the pillars of the opening.
- For pitched roof rafters are assembled. It is important that on each side of the woodshed the roof protrudes beyond the walls by at least 300 mm.
The finished structure can be painted or treated with an antiseptic.
Making a storage room for firewood attached to the house
A firewood shed attached to a house can be built using the same technology that was used to build a free-standing structure. However, it is not always possible to concrete the posts near the house. There are many reasons: it’s a pity to chisel asphalt or remove tiles, you need a structure that can be moved if necessary, etc. The do-it-yourself firewood rack shown in the photo resembles a box with a roof attached to the wall.
To make an attached firewood logger, you will need a beam with a cross section of 50x50 mm. The blanks are used to assemble a frame consisting of four posts and two frames. Moreover, the rear pillars of the structure are made 200 mm higher to create a slope for the roof. Four legs are attached to the lower frame of the frame made from pieces of timber. They will raise the frame above the asphalt and create a ventilation gap under the floor.
The floor, two side walls and the back wall of the frame are covered with boards. The roof is made from any roofing material, but the softer it is, the thicker the sheathing pitch is needed.For structural rigidity on the front side, the upper part of the frame is reinforced with bevels. The finished structure is opened with varnish with a coloring pigment to match the color of the wood, and installed against the wall of the house.
The video shows an option for budget firewood storage:
How to quickly build a firewood shed
In some situations, there is simply no time to build a normal firewood shed at the dacha. If you just need temporary shelter for the winter, then the firewood itself, or rather, not sawn round timber, will serve as it. Supports are made from cinder blocks, long wooden lintels are laid on top, and then meter-long logs are stored. The firewood is covered with slate sheets or tin.
Temporarily, rabbit hutches, an empty utility room, or any poultry fence with a roof can be used for firewood. You can quickly build a firewood shed from warehouse pallets. It is enough to knock them down with jumpers to form a large box, and lay a roof made of slate on top.
It doesn’t matter what the woodshed at the dacha will be assembled from. The main thing is that it ensures high-quality preservation of firewood.
