In Brevard the wood is easy to find — Transylvania County sheds plenty of storm-fall and land-clearing hardwood — but seasoning it is the real work. With 80-plus inches of rain a year, cordwood dries slowly and moldy, wet wood is the local trap. Buy local and seasoned, give it longer than you'd think, and check it with a moisture meter before it goes in.
Sourcing is the easy half
Surrounded by Pisgah, Brevard is not short on responsibly sourced firewood — dead-standing timber, arborist trimmings, and wood off cleared lots are all around, and a Transylvania County producer working that material is a far better environmental choice than anything hauled in. Ask where it was cut and favor hardwood. Keeping it local also keeps borers and other pests from riding cordwood into new stands of forest, which matters more in a county this heavily wooded.
Rain is what beats you
Eighty-plus inches of annual rain, with the wet season stretching March into June, means firewood here needs longer to season than the six-to-twelve months you'd give it in a drier place — and it needs real protection. Split it, stack it up off wet ground, cover only the top, and leave the sides open to the wind. A cheap moisture meter is worth it; you want reads below 20% before you burn, or you're making smoke and creosote instead of heat. Don't stack green wood tight against the house — Brevard's crawl spaces and chimney chases already fight moisture.
Burn it where the damp can't win
All that seasoning effort only pays off in a tight appliance. A sealed insert or EPA stove burns hot and clean enough to keep creosote down, which is the whole point in a wet climate. If your chimney's been sitting through a few Pisgah winters, have it inspected before the season — we permit and inspect hearth work with Transylvania County.
Fireplace help in Brevard
We install and service fireplaces throughout Brevard and the rest of Transylvania County — just 40 minutes southwest from our Asheville-area showroom.