by Rodney
(Michigan)
I have a lean-to on the side of my garage that is 4 walled with an overhead door. I was planning on stacking my wood inside after it's split so as to keep rain off of it. The overhead door is left open most of the time. As a result, no sun will get to the wood but there should be plenty of air circulation. If this is not alright and I store outside where the sun gets to it, do I need to cover it?
Answer
Rodney,
I'll answer your questions in the order you asked them.
First, storing your firewood in an enclosed lean-to is not the best idea- even if you keep the door open most of the time.
Even with one door that remains open,there will be less air circulation than storing the wood outside in the open. Combine that with the lack of sunlight and you're looking at a pretty long seasoning time. The second reason not to store your wood in the lean-to at first is to avoid problems with mold.
My suggestion is to let your wood season outside in the sun and then once it is seasoned, transfer it to the lean-to for storage. This way you'll get the best of both worlds.
In regards to covering the wood outside, that is entirely up to you. It will season uncovered but you can expedite the process by covering only the top of the firewood stack or by covering the entire pile when you know it is going to rain. The latter option is a bit more labor intensive, so I recommend only covering the top of the pile.
-Firewood Matt