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Solid fuel boilers, stoves or fireplaces installed in a private house require a certain supply of firewood. For this purpose, the owners build firewood sheds. The log storage should look compact, while at the same time containing the required amount of solid fuel, designed for the entire season. A large woodpile is built in the yard. Small decorative structures are installed near the fireplace or stove.
The optimal location for installing a woodpile
Woodpiles are needed for storing dry firewood. You can use a regular shed, or do the preparation outdoors. On the street, chopped firewood is stacked, covered on top with any material that does not allow water to pass through.
To avoid running far for fuel in inclement weather, it is advisable to place firewood in a woodpile closer to home. Moreover, they must be folded beautifully so that the structure does not spoil the appearance of the site. If firewood is needed only for cooking outside, then the woodpile for firewood is located directly next to the Russian stove or barbecue.
The proximity of the firewood shed to the house does not mean that it should be placed directly in the yard or front door. Stacked firewood should not be an eyesore. The optimal place for a woodpile is the back of the yard, but it should not be located far from your home. Chopped dry firewood can become an interesting target for intruders.
To prevent logs from scattering, they are stacked, supported on three sides by the walls of the building. If there is no such place for firewood, a frame with thrust posts is built. When laying out a woodpile for firewood with your own hands, be sure to lay any waterproofing material under the bottom row of firewood or make a raised flooring.
Options for stacking firewood in an outdoor woodpile
Firewood is not just thrown into the woodpile. They need to be folded correctly. This is the only way to ensure the stability of the storage, good ventilation of the wood and the beauty of the structure. Now we will look at several options for how to stack firewood in a woodpile on the street.
Stacking without supports
Stacking firewood is very easy. First you need to prepare an elevated area. This could be a concrete slab or long logs laid out on a cinder block. In the photo shown, the woodpile is raised from the ground on concrete blocks. At home, this is the simplest solution. If it is impossible to prepare the site, the ground is simply covered with waterproofing material.
So, our firewood rack has no supports or frame. The first three rows need to be stacked tightly against each other. On the fourth row, the stacked logs are placed perpendicular to the logs from the third row. This will help raise the edges of the woodpile, preventing the wood from moving away.From the fifth row, the usual dense laying of logs continues. After three rows, a perpendicular dressing is made again. In such a stacked woodpile, the firewood will never corrode, and a cover made of slate or other waterproof material will protect it from rain.
Firewood box with stake supports
Now we will look at how to make a woodpile with a more reliable support from stakes. Before stacking the firewood, the ground is covered with waterproofing or lined with stone. The woodpile will be quadrangular, and you will need to dig supports in the corners of long logs.
Inside the finished frame, the logs are laid not evenly, but in squares. This arrangement of firewood creates an excellent interconnection of rows, which gives stability to the firewood box. If failed prepare thick logs for stakes, another method of stacking firewood will help prevent the supports from collapsing. Blocks of wood are laid in a cage only in the corners of the firewood, forming additional support pillars from them. All other firewood in each row is stacked exactly towards each other. The top of the finished firewood is covered with waterproof material.
Beautiful round woodpile
Making a round woodpile is much more difficult than putting logs in a regular stack. However, guests will come to the owner at the dacha, who has built a round firewood storage from logs, and the structure will attract maximum attention.
Now we will try to figure out in detail how to fold a round woodpile in the shape of a house. This option is considered the most common. So, the round woodpile begins to build by laying waterproofing on the ground. It is important to lay the first row of firewood evenly to form the shape of the firewood box.The logs are laid in rows with one end towards the center of the circle and the other towards its outer borders.
When the wall reaches a height of 50 cm, they begin to fill the internal space. The logs in a round firewood box are installed vertically until the filled middle is equal to the height of the wall. Next, they again lay out the outer wall of a similar height, and then fill the inner space. Thus, they build the woodpile with their own hands to the required height, usually no more than 2 m. It is advisable to make the roof of the house attractive. You can try to make it out of straw, reeds or the logs themselves. However, tiles or other roofing material will protect you more reliably from precipitation.
Living in a dacha all year round requires the preparation of a large amount of firewood. You can often see round firewood stands more than four meters high. In order to take firewood from such a storage without disturbing the shape of the house, the inside is filled not with vertically installed logs, but horizontally laid in the form of rays extending from the central axis.
The video talks about making woodcutter with your own hands:
Decorative woodpiles for the fireplace
If you only need a woodpile for the fireplace in your dacha, you can make it yourself from wood or metal. It should be taken into account that it will have to be moved often, so it is advisable to make the structure not heavy.
An indoor decorative woodpile must first of all be beautiful so as not to spoil the interior of the room. If you lack talent and experience in making such structures, you can buy a firewood box in a specialized store.
Wooden woodpile
If you are making a woodpile for the fireplace with your own hands, then it is better to choose a wooden model.The wood is easy to process and, after being varnished, takes on a beautiful appearance. The easiest way to make a wooden structure is from a barrel. If the farm has such a container, it will have to be disassembled into separate planks. Each element is bolted to a metal hoop. But first you need to cut it to make a semicircle. Finally, a container for firewood should come out of the boards. A frame is cut out from a wide board or chipboard under it. The legs are made of wooden beams. The finished structure is opened with varnish with a coloring pigment to match the color of the wood.
Steel woodpile
The metal firewood box is quite heavy, but still has the right to exist. To make it you will need a steel sheet 1.5–2 mm thick and a rod with a cross-section of 8 mm. A semicircle is bent from a metal sheet. You can simplify the task if you have an old gas cylinder or metal barrel at your dacha. It is easy to cut a semicircular bathtub from them using a grinder. Next, all that remains is to weld the legs and handles from a rod for transportation to the container. The finished firewood is opened with paint, usually black or silver.
Wicker woodpile
If there are a lot of vines growing on your summer cottage and you have experience in weaving them, you can make a beautiful woodpile for the fireplace with your own hands. A rectangle is knocked down as a frame of four slats. Holes are drilled on the long sides exactly opposite each other. Copper wire is inserted into the holes in the center of the rivers, bending handles from it. A vine is inserted into all other holes, after which they begin to intertwine each twig. The finished firewood is opened with stain or varnish.
Wrought iron woodpile
If you like metal woodpiles, then it is better to pay attention to forged models.To make it yourself, you will have to order all the elements from the forge. At home, all that remains is to weld them and paint the finished structure. A forged firewood box will cost the owner a lot, but it looks very chic.
Let's sum it up
As you can see, the woodpile at the dacha serves not just as a storage area for firewood. This is a whole tradition of skillfully decorating your site and premises with benefit.
