How wood heats twice

arranged woodpiles in the garden

            There is an old saying that wood heats twice: once when its cut and split and the second time when it’s burned.  I agree with that.  Christophe cuts and split the wood and I arrange it into piles.  It’s something to do on cool fall days because the work is too strenuous to do in summer’s heat.  There is something quite sensory about it. Split wood can be smooth, often has a slightly damp feeling, and there is always a lingering perfume from it that fills the air.  It epitomizes the smell, touch, and labor of autumn.

As I have learned, there is clearly defined method to putting together woodpiles.  The split logs must be placed in a certain pattern, straight lines need to be maintained, and it is imperative that 90 degree corners are established.  It looks easy, but it’s not; a well-made structure keeps the pressure balanced, no matter how tall the pile.  I know from experience what happens when these three elements are not respected: the piles crashes to the ground.  The fallen wood takes seems to take twice as long to pick up and reorganize, and while this is the annual work for heating the house, I hate doing the same work twice.

Pleasure of the Season: Lighting the poêle for first time of the season.

“Pleasures of the Season” is a series of posts which appear from time to time.  They focus on something special that occurs only seasonally, often fleeting, and something we anticipate.  The posts highlight moments of what I’ve learned about living with the seasons since moving to Southern France.

We turned the heat on for the first time last night.  For us, this is not adjusting a dial on the wall, but rather, filling the poêle with wood and putting a match to it.  We heat by wood, and that surprises a lot of people.  Our poêle is a Norwegian cast iron heater which is efficient enough to comfortable heat the house all winter long.  For many, this might be archaic, but the truth is it is growing in popularity.  Wood heat is efficient, eco-friendly, and cheap.  And for those like us, who cut their own wood, the price of heating the house is close to nothing.

We bought our poêle a few years ago and every autumn we look forward to lighting it.  It’s quiet, provides ambient lighting, and is more engaging than most television shows.

The lighting of the poêle signals an undisputable seasonal change.  Our evening chore of watering the garden is replaced by bringing in wood.  The nights fall early and day’s light dwindle.  Owls call not far from our window and the crisp night’s air unveils a magnitude of stars.  Wisps of smoke spiral up from distant chimneys and mixes with the smell of fallen leaves.  Autumn is here, our daily rhythm changes and life move to inside the house, around the poêle, light for the first time last night.