On the one hand, finding a place to store firewood – indoors or out – is pretty simple and straightforward. It fits pretty much anywhere. On the other hand, though, finding the RIGHT place to put firewood is a lot more challenging.
Some folks believe they can fill their deck boxes with firewood, but you should avoid doing so. That’s a quick way to generate a lot of difficulties – ranging from mold growth in your deck box to insects and vermin infestation as well as the possibility of ruin of the firewood itself.
Below we cover why you shouldn’t ever stick your firewood in a deck box.
Can You Put Firewood in a Deck Box?
While you certainly could physically put firewood in a deck box, and a lot of people that own deck boxes do put a little bit of firewood in them (not realizing how bad an idea this is), it isn’t at all recommended.
There are a lot of other methods of storage that are much better suited to safely and properly storing your firewood.
Use those other storage areas instead.
Should You Put Firewood in a Deck Box?
Why should you avoid sticking firewood inside of your deck box you ask?
Let’s run through the big reasons right now!
No Ventilation
Straight out of the gate you need to make sure that your firewood is stored as dry as possible or it isn’t going to light or burn as evenly as it would have otherwise.
Deck boxes are designed to be as watertight (and as airtight) as possible. That lack of ventilation allows firewood that hasn’t been properly seasoned, or firewood that is even a little bit “green”, to sort of stew in its own moisture.
That’s going to cause huge combustion problems later down the line.
Damp = Rot
All of that excess moisture is inevitably going to cause the conditions inside of your deck box to get pretty moist themselves, even downright damp.
Damp firewood might not be a problem in the short term, but if left unattended for extended amounts of time – like over the winter, for example – that damp can quickly turn into mold, mildew, and rot.
If your firewood starts to rot it’s going to be useless as a fuel source. But it’s also going to contaminate the rest of the things inside of your deck box as well.
It’s not a pretty sight.
Pests are Pesky
Deck boxes themselves are always a little prone to insect invasion and pest problems, but once you start to fill this valuable storage space with something like firewood you skyrocket the chances of tool infestation.
At the end of the day, it’s better if you keep your firewood somewhere else.
Tips for Smarter Firewood Storage
Just because you should be storing your firewood somewhere other than your deck box doesn’t mean that you have to stick it half a mile away or somewhere equally as inconvenient.
Here are a couple of tips for smart firewood storage to help you out!
Stack the Right Way
Honestly, stacking your firewood the right way – stacking your wood (split wood) in neat little rows that don’t get any higher than 4 feet – is probably the easiest way to make sure that your firewood is protected, getting plenty of ventilation, and ready to rock and roll when you need it most.
Stack the logs evenly and consistently. Try to keep the arrangement as organized as possible. This gives all of your wood plenty of air, allows it to dry out over time, and prevents rot and degradation from establishing themselves.
Keep Firewood Dry
Secondly, a little tarp over the top of the firewood is almost always enough to keep your firewood dry – or at least dry enough to light up when you need it most.
Some people go to the next level with firewood coverings and build these little “sheds” that only have a floor, one side (or maybe two) and then a slanted roof on top. Nothing wrong with that, either!
At the end of the day, all you need to do is keep standing water off of the firewood for extended amounts of time and you won’t have anything to worry about.
Close Enough to Reach, Far Enough Away for Pest Control
Lastly, you just need to make sure that your firewood is close enough to reach when you want to kick a fire off on your deck or in your backyard space but not so close to your deck or home that pest problems in the woodpile become pest problems indoors.
This might mean keeping your firewood a few extra feet away from where you would have stored it inside of your deck box.
That’s all right.
Taking a couple of extra steps to grab a chunk of fuel every now and again is well worth the extra protection you get from keeping pests away from your deck frame or structural components of your home.
You don’t necessarily have to stick your firewood pile in the next-door neighbor’s yard to get a little buffer of protection. But you do want to make it harder for those insects and pests to jump from your woodpile to the deck to your bedroom!
Closing Thoughts
It’s generally a bad idea to waste valuable space inside of a deck box on something like firewood.
Yes, some people choose to throw a couple of logs in there in the short term, guaranteeing that they have dry fuel to use in a couple of days.
That’s not a big issue.
Dedicating your entire deck box to firewood storage – long-term storage – would be a major mistake, though.
Use the tips and tricks we highlighted a moment ago to better store your firewood and you won’t have to worry about cluttering your deck box with chunks of fuel any longer.
You’ll get to use your deck box for more valuable stuff without sacrificing the utility of having a close at hand wood source to get those fires rolling!
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