Log Quantities Explained Many people tell us they’ve bought firewood in the past by “the load” or by “the ton”. So we’re often asked to explain how a cubic metre of logs compares. Why do you sell your logs by cubic metres rather than tons? The lower the moisture content of a log, the less it weighs and the better it burns. We take great care to make sure our seasoned and kiln-dried logs have a low moisture content and burn well. They therefore weigh a lot less than the same volume of unseasoned logs. So if you buy by weight, be careful to make sure you’re not paying for water rather than for wood! How big is a load? We have different size loads based on the number of cubic metres you order (our tipper trucks can deliver a maximum of 4 cubic metres in a single delivery). A typical pick-up “load” available from other suppliers will be a bit under or a bit over a cubic metre (depending on the make of the pick-up, how high the logs are piled etc). 1 & 2 cubic metre deliveries will cover up to half the flatbed truck 3 & 4 cubic metres will fill up to a whole truck. What’s the difference between quantities of “loose fill” logs and “stacked” logs? If you take a pile of jumbled, loose logs and stack them tightly and neatly in your log store (or pack them tightly in nets), the pile of stacked logs takes up less space than the jumbled pile. In fact it takes up considerably less space. Independent industry experts such as The Forestry Commission, The European Biomass Association and Woodfuel Wales state that one cubic metre of loose logs, when stacked, will take up a volume of approximately 60% to 70% of a cubic metre. Why do you measure and sell by a volume of loose logs? After we’ve cut and split the wood into logs, they then go into one of our drying boxes until they’re properly seasoned. Each drying box is designed to allow maximum ventilation and the gaps between the loose fill logs allow the air to circulate to aid the drying process. When we’ve tested the moisture content of a sample of the logs in each box and they’re ready to be delivered, we then tip them into the back of one of our trucks as a loose pile of logs which we then usually tip out of our trucks on delivery. The whole processing, drying and delivery process is therefore based on quantities of loose fill logs. Doesn’t a “builder’s bag” full of logs hold a cubic metre of logs and weigh a ton? No! These bags are usually designed to hold a ton of building material such as sand or gravel. Also called “dumpy bags” or “bulk bags”, the most common size can hold about 0.7 cubic metres of logs which, being less dense than sand or gravel, will weigh considerably less than a ton. These scale images show a 1 cubic metre pile of loose logs, the same quantity of logs neatly stacked taking up 2/3 cubic metre and a builder’s bag of loose logs containing 0.7 cubic metre of loose logs How many nets of logs in a cubic metre? We pack one cubic metre of logs into 20 good size nets (net size is 450mm x 700mm)