Is it OK to burn storm-fall or dead trees from my own property?
In Marshall, draft is the thing to watch. Homes wedged onto steep hillsides above the French Broad gorge deal with downdrafts and tricky chimney routing, and marginal draft plus green wood is a smoky, creosote-prone combination. Season your storm-fall well and it burns clean; burn it wet on a bad-draft flue and you'll know it fast.
Terrain works against the flue
The gorge's cool, damp air and Marshall's tight mountainside lots make for cold, sluggish chimneys that don't pull well, and a cold flue sits like a plug until a fire warms it. Dry wood lights fast and establishes draft quickly, while green wood smolders, backs smoke into the room, and coats the liner. If a chimney chronically downdrafts, a sealed appliance and the right wind-directional cap can fix what an open hearth can't. Madison County permits inserts and stoves, and we handle the routing and the inspection on these steep, access-limited lots.
Dry it on what flat space you have
Hillside lots are short on room, but the wood still needs sun and moving air to season. Get it up on pallets, cap the top, and leave the sides open, in whatever spot catches the most breeze. Green oak in this damp gorge air wants six to twelve months, and a moisture meter reading under 20 percent is your proof — don't trust the look of the bark on wood that's been sitting in the humidity down by the river.
Untreated wood only
Stick to natural, untreated wood — never painted, stained, or pressure-treated. Keep softwood for kindling. And keep up the annual sweep, since a poor-drafting flue collects creosote faster than a strong one. Call (828) 545-0525.
Fireplace help in Marshall
We install and service fireplaces throughout Marshall and the rest of Madison County — just 25 minutes north from our Asheville-area showroom.