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How to store firewood in the UK

Updated: 22 October 2026

The usual mistake is to wrap the stack until it looks tidy and then wonder why the stove smokes. How to store firewood in the UK comes down to four checks: moisture at or under 20% on a fresh split, the stack off the ground, rain off the top, and the sides left open. This page is the method. It does not rank the ten racks. If you still need a product, the [log store comparison](/hub/fireplaces-and-stoves/log-store) is the table, and the [log store buying guide](/hub/fireplaces-and-stoves/log-store/sub/log-store-buying-guide) is the order of decisions. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

The usual mistake is to wrap the stack until it looks tidy and then wonder why the stove smokes.

Our top picks

VOUNOT VOUNOT adjustable log rack

Best overall

VOUNOT VOUNOT adjustable log rack
8.6/10about £30.39
View offer
VOUNOT VOUNOT vertical rack, 112 cm

Rank 2

VOUNOT VOUNOT vertical rack, 112 cm
8.4/10about £25.99
View offer
NALONE NALONE 4 ft firewood rack

Best value

NALONE NALONE 4 ft firewood rack
8.0/10about £39.99
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.What dry means
  2. 2.Stack and cover
  3. 3.Indoors for two days
  4. 4.Check the wood, not the rack

What dry means

Dry, for the wood you burn at home, means a moisture content of 20% or lower on a wet basis. That is the figure HETAS and the Ready to Burn scheme use, and it is the figure in the English rules for selling wood as firewood. Seasoned on a bag does not name a single method. You can buy a bag that says seasoned and still find the centre wet. You can also buy kiln-dried wood and let a bad stack push it back over 25%, which is the failure HETAS describes when storage is poor. Ready to Burn applies to wood sold in England.

Stack and cover

Put the main stack outside, on bearers, pallets or the floor of a store that keeps timber off the soil. Stack loosely enough that air can move. A waterproof sheet belongs on the top, weighted so it does not become a sail, with the sides left open. Defra's public note describes that pattern and talks about seasoning across roughly two summers in UK conditions. A tarpaulin wrapped all the way round, or a rack cover zipped to the ground, traps the moisture you are trying to lose. If you use one of those covers, gather it so the sides stay open. When the method says you need a bay with a roof and slats, the material choice is on metal or wooden log store.
VOUNOT VOUNOT adjustable log rack

Testsieger

VOUNOT VOUNOT adjustable log rack
8.6/10about £30.39
View offer

Indoors for two days

Bring in only a small amount of wood that is already dry. HETAS log-storage advice is to keep fuel off the hearth and to limit what sits in the room to about what you will burn in a couple of days. A vertical metal holder can take that two-day pile if the footprint fits and the logs stay in the frame. It does not replace the outdoor store. Open sides on the VOUNOT vertical racks have dropped logs against a wall in at least one UK review. If the room is small, use narrow log store for a small garden.

Check the wood, not the rack

A moisture meter is the check that the rack cannot do for you. HETAS says to split a log and test the fresh face, and to be wary of a meter that is not on a wet basis. Woodsure's method is practical: pick three logs, wipe surface water off, and press the pins across the grain, not into a knot or along the grain where the reading lies. If the fresh face is over 20%, leave that log outside. Ready to Burn wood will not stay at 20% if you stand the bags on soil in the rain. Raise them, keep direct rain off, and let air underneath.

Common questions

Should I wrap logs in a tarpaulin?
Cover the top and leave the sides open. A tarpaulin that goes all the way to the ground holds damp in the stack, which is how seasoned wood climbs back above 20% moisture. Weight the sheet so wind cannot turn it into a sail, and keep the wood on bearers so the bottom row is not in soil.
How do I use a moisture meter on a log?
Split the log and test the fresh face, not the weathered outside. Press the pins across the grain, avoid knots, and check three logs rather than one convenient dry end. HETAS warns that the meter should be read on a wet basis, because a dry-basis figure will not match the 20% line people quote.
How long does seasoning take in the UK?
Defra's public seasoning note talks about roughly two summers for wood stacked properly, with a cover on top and the sides open. Time is not a substitute for a meter reading on a fresh split.
Can I keep the winter's wood in the living room?
No. Keep the winter stack outside and bring in about two days of dry logs. HETAS is explicit that fuel should not live on the hearth, and a room full of wood is a store in the wrong place.
Does a waterproof cover on a rack replace a roof?
It replaces rain on the top only if you leave the sides open and the cover actually fits. A zipped sock that seals the stack is closer to a bag than to a roof.
What moisture should I burn at?
Burn at 20% moisture or lower, measured on a fresh split. That is the HETAS line and the Ready to Burn line for wood sold in England. Poor storage can take wood that started at 20% back above 25%.
Where should the open side face?
Face it toward the air that moves, and give it sun if you have a choice. There is no UK statute that fixes the open side to the south. Do not close the open side with a second sheet because the prevailing weather is wet.

Related pages

Best log stores

Log store

Log store buying guide: match job, length and cover

Metal or wooden log store: steel rack or timber bay

Narrow log store for a small garden or side return

Sources

Public UK sources used for this comparison. amazon.co.uk prices, stars and review counts were taken from the listings on 19 October 2026.

  1. GOV.UK, selling wood for domestic use in England (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. Air Quality (Domestic Solid Fuels Standards) (England) Regulations 2020, Schedule 2 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. Woodsure, storing firewood indoors and outdoors (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. HETAS, log storage (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. HETAS, how much wood for winter (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. GOV.UK, smoke control area rules (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. Planning Portal, outbuildings (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. Rowlinson, Narrow log store (retrieved 19 October 2026)