200oak, ash and aspen. Bolting two
old car tires together makes a
great log holder, keeping the
wood upright while splitting.
Too many people struggle
unnecessarily at this stage
because the axe they use for
splitting is far too light and far
too thin. A 2.75 kg (6 pound) or,
better yet, a 3.5 kg (8 pound)
splitting axe is a far more
effective choice. Just don’t be
fooled by the weight. The extra
inertia is enormously more
effective at splitting wood apart
than what’s generated by a
lighter axe.
STEP 4: STACK YOUR FIREWOOD
After 20 years of stacking wood
in the usual straight piles, I
switched to something better.
I lay out round wood piles with
a 1.5-metre (5 foot) length of
rope that has a loop in one end.
Push a 0.3-metre (12 inch) long
metal spike into the ground
where the centre of the pile will
be, then pull the rope tight and
use the end to guide placement
of the outside ends of the logs
making up the bottom layer
of wood. Keep stacking and
checking several layers around
the perimeter of the circle, using
the end of the rope as a guide,
then remove the stake and rope
and continue stacking by eye.
Fill the centre of the circle with
randomly thrown-in pieces
of wood after you’re a few feet
up, then build more wall when
you’ve filled the centre portion,
tilting the wall inward slightly
for stability as you go up. Add
a couple of 3-metre (10 foot)
long wooden poles across the
diameter of the circle when
you’re about 1 metre (4 feet) up, to
bind the sides of the pile together,
then dome the top and place a
tarp under the last layer of woodHOME & DESIGN: TREE CUTTING
STEP 3