A fire pit is only as good as the wood you put in it. The wrong firewood can mean smoke in everyone's faces, struggling to keep it lit, sparks flying onto your deck, or worst of all, a fire that will not start at all. Here is what to burn and what to avoid.
The Best: Kiln-Dried Hardwood
Kiln-dried hardwood is the gold standard for fire pits. Hardwoods like oak, hickory, maple, and ash are dense and produce long, steady burns with excellent heat output. When kiln-dried to under 15% moisture, they light easily and produce minimal smoke.
This is what Firewood Flex sells: mixed kiln-dried hardwood processed to under 15% moisture and USDA certified pest-free. It is the best fire pit experience you can have.
What to Avoid in Your Fire Pit
Softwood (pine, spruce, fir, cedar): Softwoods burn fast and hot initially, but they also produce excessive sparks, heavy smoke, and large amounts of sap and resin. Those sparks can land on your deck, outdoor furniture, or someone's clothing. And the thick smoke will drive everyone indoors. Softwoods are also not suitable for cooking over.
Wet or green wood: Any wood with moisture above 25% is going to smoke heavily. If you can see water bubbling from the end grain when it is burning, or if it hisses and sputters, it is too wet. The result is a smoky, frustrating evening.
Treated or painted wood: Never burn construction lumber, pallets, painted wood, or pressure-treated wood in a fire pit. These release toxic chemicals including arsenic, chromium, and formaldehyde. Seriously dangerous.
Random bundles from gas stations: These are usually the cheapest wood available, often softwood or poorly seasoned hardwood wrapped in plastic. Moisture content is a mystery. You might get lucky, but more often you will get smoke and frustration.
Driftwood: Wood that has been in salt water produces toxic smoke when burned. The salt releases chemicals that are harmful to breathe. Keep driftwood out of your fire pit.
Fire Pit Setup Tips
- Start with the right structure: Build a teepee with 3 to 4 pieces of kiln-dried hardwood leaning against each other. Place kindling and fire starters in the center underneath.
- Don't overload: Start with 3 to 4 pieces and add more as they burn down. Too much wood at once starves the fire of oxygen.
- Skip the lighter fluid: Kiln-dried wood lights easily without chemicals. Lighter fluid creates unpleasant fumes and can be dangerous near food.
- Keep it manageable: A moderate fire is more enjoyable than a bonfire. You want warmth and ambiance, not an inferno that drives everyone back.
- Wind direction: Even with kiln-dried wood producing minimal smoke, position seating upwind when possible.
How Much Wood for One Fire Pit Evening?
A typical 3 to 4 hour fire pit session uses about half a Mega Bag of kiln-dried hardwood on average. One bag ($49.50) gives you roughly two good evenings under typical use. For regular fire pit use, the 15 Mega Bag Bundle ($449.90) covers roughly 25 to 30 sessions, and the 30 Mega Bag Bundle ($749.80) covers a full season of weekend fires.
These are averages. Actual burn time depends on log size, wind, pit diameter, and how high you build the fire. A windy night or a 36 inch pit run hot can double the per-evening burn rate.
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Hardwood Heat Output Compared: Which Burns Hottest in a Fire Pit
The best firewood for a backyard fire pit is the one that throws the most usable heat for the longest time, with the least smoke at eye level. Here is the BTU data on the species most commonly available kiln-dried in the Northeast.
White oak tops the list at 24.6 million BTU per cord. A single piece burns for 90 to 120 minutes in an open pit on average, sending steady radiant heat outward. Coal bed lasts 60 minutes after the visible flame dies down, which is exactly what you want when conversation runs late.
Red oak sits at 24.0 million BTU per cord, burns slightly faster than white oak, and produces a marginally lighter coal bed. Both oaks are heavy at 4,000 to 4,200 pounds per cord, so a Mega Bag of oak feels noticeably denser than the same volume of softer wood.
Sugar maple delivers 24.0 million BTU per cord and is the smoothest burn of any common hardwood. Almost no spark, very low smoke, and consistent flame height. Sugar maple is the choice for fire pits located on patios or near string lights where flying embers are a problem.
Ash produces 23.6 million BTU per cord and lights faster than oak or maple. For a 3 hour fire pit evening that starts cold, ash typically gets you to full heat in about 12 minutes versus 20 minutes for oak. The tradeoff is a shorter coal bed, around 30 to 40 minutes.
Birch produces 20.8 million BTU per cord. Lower than the oaks and maples but birch lights instantly because of the natural oils in the bark. Birch works well as a starter wood layered under oak or ash.
Real-world results for a typical 36 inch fire pit running 3 to 4 hours average around 6 to 8 pieces of kiln-dried oak or maple, 7 to 9 pieces of ash, or 10 to 12 pieces of birch. Heavy use or windy conditions can push these higher. We deliver all of these species kiln-dried under 15 percent moisture. Order through same day firewood delivery in our Northeast service area, or set up regular delivery through nationwide firewood delivery. Restaurants and large events can access volume pricing via wholesale firewood.
For full BTU values across 25 species, see our firewood BTU chart by species.
FAQ
Which hardwood produces the least smoke in a fire pit?
Kiln-dried sugar maple and white oak under 15 percent moisture produce the least smoke on average. Smoke is almost entirely a function of moisture, not species. Any hardwood at 25 percent moisture or higher will smoke heavily. Kiln-dried wood at 12 to 15 percent moisture burns nearly smoke free, which is why our Mega Bags consistently outperform seasoned wood from local yards.
Why do some hardwoods spark more than others?
Sparking comes from trapped moisture pockets and pitch deposits. Pine and cedar spark heavily because of resin pockets. Among hardwoods, hickory and oak occasionally pop when a moisture pocket flashes. Sugar maple and ash spark the least. If your fire pit is on a wooden deck or near combustible materials, choose maple or ash and use a spark screen as a backup.
How long does a fire pit fire last on one Mega Bag of firewood?
On average, a full Mega Bag of kiln-dried hardwood (1.75 cubic feet) fuels a typical 3 to 4 hour fire pit evening. Oak-heavy bags push toward 4 hours because of the long coal bed. Lighter species like birch run closer to 3 hours. Two bags cover most all-evening gatherings comfortably, although windy nights or larger pits may burn through wood faster.
Can I burn pine in a fire pit at all?
Pine burns hot and fast but produces heavy creosote and pops aggressively from resin pockets. In a metal fire pit with a screen, pine is acceptable as a kindling layer. Avoid using pine as your main fuel because the creosote will coat the inside of the pit and reduce its lifespan. Hardwoods like oak, maple, and ash are far better main fuels.
Do I need to cover my fire pit firewood between fires?
Yes, kiln-dried firewood needs to stay dry to keep its low moisture content. Even a few rain showers can drive moisture from 15 percent back up to 22 percent, undoing the benefit of kiln drying. Store opened bags inside a garage or under a tarp on a raised pallet. Unopened sealed Mega Bags can stay outside for short periods because the bag is weather resistant.
How much wood should I order for a full fire pit season?
For a casual user with weekly fires from April through October, roughly 14 Mega Bags is a common average, which matches our 15 Mega Bag Bundle ($449.90). Weekend entertainers often run through 25 to 30 bags, in which case the 30 Mega Bag Bundle ($749.80) is the better fit. Your real usage will depend on how often you actually burn and how long each fire runs.
Sources and references
- USDA APHIS Plant Pest and Disease Programs
- US EPA Burn Wise Program
- USDA Forest Products Laboratory
- Utah State University Cooperative Extension, Heating with Wood
- US Forest Service for cord and species data
About the Firewood Flex Team
Written by the Firewood Flex operations team. We kiln-dry to USDA APHIS standard, log moisture content per batch, and ship from our Levittown, PA distribution facility with USDA APHIS phytosanitary-certified hardwood to 11 Northeast states. Founded 2025. USPTO Serial 99591611.
