When comparing softwood and hardwood, it is important to consider that all firewood is different. Each firewood serves its purpose and has its benefits. With the great outdoors coming back into fashion, it is crucial to consider our effect on the environment and choose ethical and sustainable sources for our firewood. 

Hardwood

One of the easiest ways to determine whether the wood is hardwood is by its leaves. Hardwood trees tend to have a broader leaf, and they will usually lose their leaves in the Autumn. The hardwood group consists of a variety of different species of trees. The most common are oak, beech, birch, elm and ash. 

Hardwoods are best known for being considered the superior firewood when comparing them to softwoods because they are much denser. The density of the wood creates a long-lasting and hot fire without smoke or sparks. Our premium oak firewood logs are perfect for keeping your fire going. The wood is also best for creating coals that radiate heat. Due to the density of hardwood, they do take longer to dry due to their density however we kiln dry all our woods to below 20% moisture. 

Green Olive Softwood

You can identify softwood by its distinctive needles and pine aroma. Popular species of softwood trees are cedar, fir and red pine. They grow faster in comparison to most hardwoods, meaning that they are lighter and less dense. Thanks to the lightness of the wood it allows for a hot, quick and easy to burn firewood. Fires that are built from softwoods have large flames that crackle and sparkle, use our kiln-dried softwood logs to get your fire started right. 

Softwoods also season faster than hardwoods, which makes them a popular choice all year round. The main disadvantage to softwood is the amount of smoke they produce, and they also tend to leave fine ash with nearly no coals. 

Hardwood Vs Softwood

The biggest difference between softwood and hardwood is the density of the wood. The main thing to consider when purchasing is the fact that due to the density of softwood being much lighter you will most likely need double the volume compared to what you would need of hardwood. Many people choose to spend a little more on hardwood because of this reason. 

Softwoods are better for getting your fire started, whereas hardwood is great for maintaining a fire. A combination of the two make for the perfect fire to keep you warm all night long. 

Why Choose The Green Olive Firewood Company?

Here at The Green Olive Firewood Company, we work from Ridge Farm in West Sussex, offering a wide variety of wood products. We have kept the same ethics we have had from the very beginning. We aim to use natural, ethical and sustainable materials. We only farm wood from a managed and sustainable source, to ensure we are doing our part to protect the environment & maintaining the renewable cycle

Firewood is where it all started for us, during a trip to the Mediterranean we noticed stockpiles of waste wood by olive farms. We decided that we could utilise this waste wood for fuel back in the UK, making them carbon neutral and a perfectly renewable and natural fuel source. Everytime a renewable woodfuel is used for heating or cooking it is offsetting the use of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas. To this day we still bring in the olive wood from those farms but we also process and dry our UK logs from managed woodlands here at Ridge Farm. 

For more information, why not check out our previous blogs.

We pride ourselves on ensuring high quality and responsibility across our entire supply chain, to make sure our customers receive the best possible firewood. You can find our full range of softwood and hardwood here. To stay up to date with everything we do, follow us on Instagram and Twitter!