The process of coppicing hazel, together with the pruning and thinning of standard trees to improve their form, results in large amounts of surplus wood. As there is no market for any of it, the most economic solution for us is to burn it as firewood. This has the additional bonus of reducing our use of fossil fuels to heat our home.

                        

Using the timber from our trees in a wood-burning stove, linked to our existing gas central-heating system, we can decide on whatever mix of gas and woodfuel we require to heat our 3-bedroomed house. We retain the flexibility of the instant heat that the gas system gives us,whilst using the woodfuel for the main heating load from autumn through to late spring.

 

This section describes the advantages to the environment of using wood as a renewable energy resource and the steps involved in growing and using wood as a domestic fuel.