A vertically integrated firewood supplier
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At the Log Club, we are confident that we provide the best value, British sourced, sustainably processed, kiln dried firewood logs in the UK. Key to this is our vertical integration.
The log club family secures timber in standing log form, harvests this timber in accordance with sustainable forestry guidelines, transports this timber to our nearby processing facility, processes the timber and dries the logs in our unique high-tech environmentally friendly kilns, all before bagging and delivering to our customers.
Our vertical integration has many advantages.
- Firstly, we can guarantee our supply of timber ensuring we can meet the needs of our customers throughout the winter.
- Secondly, our vertical integration removes the margin on margin throughout the supply chain. We pass these savings on to our customers with great value firewood.
- Thirdly, whilst many firewood suppliers ship logs from Baltic countries, we reduce the carbon footprint of our operations by transporting our timber only a short distance from only British forests.
- Finally, we are supporting the UK forestry sector which directly employs 40,000 people.
Read more to learn about our vertically integrated operations and the benefits.
Logging Contracts
The log club purchases logs in either in the harvested state or in the standing log format. The standing log contracts provide us and our clients with the most secure supply.
Logging licenses are used to ensure UK forests are harvested sustainably and are granted when specific criteria are met. Woodlands are frequently thinned and in some cases a license to clear fell is granted. This can occur if the area is high and subject to trees falling if thinning were to take place. It is usual for trees to be felled and the root structure left in place. It is in the root structure that long term carbon is retained. New trees are then typically planted between the stumps of the felled trees for the next cycle of growth.
Read our article to understand more about sustainable forestry in the UK https://log.club/blogs/articles/why-buying-british-kiln-dried-firewood-benefits-the-environment-and-your-home
Harvesting and Forwarding
The harvesters and forwarding machines need a path into the woodland. Loose brash is placed on a path to minimise the mud and pooling and create a biodegradable road into the forest.
We operate a range of harvesting machines from dedicated harvesters to modified diggers weighing up to 20 tonnes. A tree can be felled and stripped into lengths in as quickly as 70 seconds. The machine grabs the tree and saws the base. The tree is moved back and forth as the diameter is measured and branches are stripped off. The optimum lengths are calculated from the onboard software to match our requirements.
Storage
We aim to leave the logs in the 'roadside format' at one of our processing hubs for around 6 months to start the drying process. The time required depends on the tree species, the moisture level of the wood and the general environmental conditions, such as time of year, temperature, humidity, direct sunlight etc.
Processing
Processing is done by specialised log processing machines, that cut the log spars (tree trunks) into the perfect length for both drying and burning (25 cm) using their integrated chainsaw or circular saw. The internal hydraulic ram then pushes the cut log onto a laser guided blade that splits the logs into the 'wedges' of logs that you are familiar with in your stoves. As the logs are processed, the saw dust and brash is removed from the logs and stored for other purposes. Moving forwards this 'waste' will also increasingly form part of the fuel stock for our onsite 100% renewable energy generation.
First Stage Drying
There are two types of moisture in the logs. The first is free moisture on the surface and internal moisture that can readily pass to the outside. Once the logs have been processed and placed into cages, they are stored in covered areas for up to a week, these poly tunnels are open to the sun and the wind, but sheltered from the rain and snow. This storage helps remove 70-80% of this free moisture. This type of drying is similar to drying clothes on a washing line. Wood dries best when it is windy, dry and warm. The time to dry can be derived through mathematics based on the start moisture content, the air speed and the humidity of the air. Most people will know that a pile of wet clothes does not dry quickly. The same applies to wood. It needs lots of air movement. Stacking logs in a barn is not a quick way to dry wood.
Second Stage Drying
The second type of moisture in wood is “bound moisture”. This is moisture stored within the wood cell structure. To extract this, we warm the wood sufficiently and create a dry atmosphere within the kiln. This draws the moisture out of the logs. The section of the wood affects the drying rate as does the temperature in the kiln and the relative humidity achieved in the kiln. Each wood species has a different moisture diffusivity rate. If you try to extract the moisture too fast, then the wood is very dry on the outside but remains high moisture in the centre. In this respect it is like baking a cake, the temperature must be right and you cannot rush things.
We use advanced technology and mechanical engineering, managed by artificial intelligence to operate our unique Eco Kilns to maintain this ideal temperature, humidity, air flow and timing process. Providing a consistently dry product every time. Using only ~5% of the energy of other kiln processes used in the wider industry, all of which is 100% renewable generated by ourselves on site.
Bagging and delivery
When our firewood is dry it is removed from the kilns and tipped using our electric tippers into a variety of bags and formats ready for delivery to our customers and regular subscribers, in an ideal condition for burning hot and long in the latest eco-2022 stoves.