Burning Wood: Pollution-Reducing Tips

This is written by Appalachian Mountain Club scientist and mom, Georgia Murray and MCAF’s Yvonne Nanasi:

I grew up in a New Hampshire home with a wood furnace and fireplace. Some of my fondest memories are of gathering in the front room by the open fire, a place to get warm, toast marshmallows, and be a family. Burning wood to stay warm and provide hot water, is still a big way of life in New Hampshire and other Northern states. Wood is a plentiful and renewable resource that can be a safe and efficient fuel when burned properly. But burning wood also emits tiny particles of soot and ash, now known to harm our lungs, especially of those of our children. In fact, particle pollution is linked with increased cardiovascular problems, irritate lungs and eyes, trigger headaches and allergic reactions, and worsen respiratory diseases such as asthma, emphysema, and bronchitis.

In winter-time, this type of air pollution can be significant when wood burning is combined with a cold winter night inversion in valley communities, like Keene, NH, resulting in pollution accumulating to levels that are unhealthy by EPA standards. The NH DES recommends that if you live in a valley area, you should watch weather conditions and pay attention to Air Quality Action Day notifications.

Outdated outdoor wood boilers (OWB) have been identified as a significant source of particle pollution. Older OWB can emit more than 70 grams of particle pollution per hour. That’s nearly 10 times the EPA standard for wood stoves and 100 times what the most efficient wood stoves emit. The problem with OWB is not about the wood, it’s about the stove design. In an effort to tackle this source, New Hampshire and other New England states have embraced standards for OWB design and installation–so newly bought boilers will be cleaner.

Unfortunately, the same problems with older OWB can be true for indoor furnaces; inefficiency and improper maintenance can yield more air pollution. Yet, replacing an older furnace with a high efficiency unit can be a significant financial burden. Whatever steps a homeowner decides they can take should start with understanding some basic facts. Identifying and correcting any inefficient heating systems will help in cost and reduce pollution.

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Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
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Joe R.

9:21AM PST on Mar 8, 2012

Interesting. Thanks.

March 8
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Kim C.

8:32AM PST on Feb 11, 2012

thank you

February 11
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paula e.

3:21AM PST on Feb 9, 2012

Thanks

February 9
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Nicole G.

12:02PM PST on Feb 8, 2012

Great tips. We just moved into a home with a wood burning fireplace and this is really good info.

February 8
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Ernie M.

7:30AM PST on Feb 6, 2012

THanks I was hoping for a little more info on how to possibly scrub the particals. Cindy B. there are things called moisture meters for checking the moisture in wood. it is mostly used by furnature builders and not wood burners. The moisture content will depend on so many factors. Split wood is drier than smaller round logs if they are cut at the same time. IN most places wood needs to season about a year to properly dry.

February 6
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Cindy B.

10:15PM PST on Feb 5, 2012

Actually I was hoping to find some tips on, like, how hot the fire should be, or whether or not a screen should be used.... (etc.) These tips are just kinda common sense, except the one about the 20% moisture in the wood... but how the heck are ya gonna know the moisture content?

I don't want to burn wood but I am very, very broke right now and simply cannot pay the heating bills... so, yes, I will burn wood. For now. I keep the house around 58 degrees anyway. I know wood-burning is a huge problem, causing significant pollution and respiratory problems in some communities; and I really don't want to be contributing to that if I don't have to.

February 5
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Debi C.

1:40PM PST on Feb 5, 2012

Here's a suggestion: unless you are forced to (i.e. freezing and have no other means of keeping warm) don't burn wood! People may not realize it, but you are not only putting your own health at risk, the smoke can cause your neighbors to have an asthma attack. So you could actually be endangering someone's life right now. Please, think carefully before you do things, because everything you do affects all the people and creatures around you, not just you.

William K.

12:08PM PST on Feb 5, 2012

Great information.

Dan and Tina P.

9:03AM PST on Feb 5, 2012

Thanks for the good info.

Duane B.

6:38AM PST on Feb 5, 2012

Good information. Thank you for sharing!!