Are you thinking about going camping soon?
If so, it would be a good idea to know ahead of time how to build a campfire and which type of campfire burns the most brightly.
One of the things to learn about building such a fire is the type of wood to use.
Aspen is arguably not the best wood to use for campfires. Two proper wood types with the longest burning time would be oak and ash.
However, aspen could be great for certain added conditions because it burns quickly, which is ideal if you want to make a fire at night for a few hours and stop.
Now, we know that aspen wood is not the best wood for campfires, but it is handy and has especially good properties for making fire.
To help understand aspen wood as firewood, let’s look at the aspen wood type and a few others more closely.
Is Aspen the Best Wood for Campfires?
(Best Camp Firewood) In Detail
Aspen may not be the ideal wood for fires, but it still can do the job for you.
In this section, we would like to take a closer look at aspen and its properties.
A Guide to Aspen (Populus tremula) Trees
Aspen trees bear strong resemblance to birch trees and have a white appearance.
Aspen is a lightweight wood, but it has strong enough properties for people to utilize in constructing wagon frames.
Aspen typically likes to thrive in open sunlight in slightly wet soil; Aspen does not grow well in the shade and it thrives as part of colonies.
Aspen are native to cooler climates and often grow in communities of trees in the northern hemisphere. They typically grow to about 50 feet tall to just over about 100 feet long and are considered a taller tree.
Aspen wood is not very flammable, so that means it is a great type of firewood for example for making matches.
Aspen wood does have low heat output which means chipping it for firewood may not be as good of an option for colder seasons.
For example, if you live somewhere hot and don’t get a lot of snow, a good option for firewood is aspen wood.
If you were to live somewhere that was colder, other wood with higher output heat would be a much better option for firewood.
Other Types of Wood
Several types of wood can be good for making campfires, including:
- holly
- hazel
- oak
- and ash
All of those types of wood are hardwood.
| Wood | Description |
|---|---|
| Oak | Oak is among the most popular firewood options on the market. All oak species are hardy, lasting, heavy, and resistant to insects. It is heavy and resistant to tearing, and we typically make furniture, doors, decking, etc., out of oak. One downside to oak is that it takes a long time to season the wood. When buying from an oak wood supplier, they may have already seasoned the wood. |
| Holly | Holly presents as a pale white with nearly no pattern. You can burn holly green but its notoriety is more widespread for decorative moments than it is as a fire wood. It is far less common than oak or ash due to holly’s calcifying properties, slow growth and smaller cutting sizes. It really depends on your location, but holly can be considerably pricier than oak or ash. |
| Hazel | Hazel is a wood type with very high durability and elasticity. It proves to be great for campfires and even wood burners. Hazel burns quite quickly, though it is still not as famous for firewood use as oak. |
| Ash | Ash is a multifaceted wood that comes in a variety of shapes, sizes, and color schemes. Ash is a strong and sturdy wood type similar to oak, with a lot of flex to it, making it popular for musical instruments and flooring. |
What Makes Specific Wood Types Good for Campfires?
Wood can be made of many different species, structures, strengths, and durable properties.
Diiferent species of wood belong to one of two families, hardwood or softwood. In a fire context, this can typically mean one species will burn better than the other.
Hardwood vs Softwood
The well-known saying “hardwood is better wood” comes from the fact that hardwood is denser timber and can last longer when burning than softwood.
Hardwood can also create a hotter fire than softwood, but not every hardwood is the same.
A word of caution! Poplar is not a wood that you want to burn in a campfire. When burning, poplar will produce thick smoke and is not pleasant around campgrounds, in addition to producing an unreasonable bitter odor if you plan to cook over your fire.
Poplar will produce a lot of sparks and is not a good safety wood in the area of young children.
Water Absorption
Wood is hygroscopic, meaning that it absorbs moisture from its environment.
But, different wood types and wood species have different moisture absorption.
Low moisture absorption wood types are better for campfires because they are easier to work with in humid or wet conditions.
For cold, wet, and rainy days, oak is the best wood for campfires.
Other types of water-resistant wood include cedar and teak. These types of wood can last a long time and are natural moisture repellents.
Process for Making a Campfire With Aspen
Once again, the answer to ‘is aspen the best wood for campfires? (Best campfire wood ) is no, not at all.
Although aspen may be the best and cheapest option in your area if you can find enough of it to burn.
If you do decide on aspen for your campfire there are a few simple steps to make it easier for you.
To start, choose a location that is somewhere away from trees, bushes, or anything else in nature that could get in your way.
You will also want to keep your tent or any personal belongings away from your campfire.
You will need to place the fire on a gravel or dirt surface as well as below the wind and away from moisture.
Find the aspen wood you will burn and pile it on the ground in a pyramid style, surrounded on the inside by your tinder so that the fire can start easily.
Use a firestarter to light the aspen and let it grow from there to campfire size, you can add more wood as the fire grows.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Kind of Wood Burns the Longest?
On the whole, hardwoods will burn, the longest.
Specific hardwoods that burn for a long time are oak, hickory, cherry, and walnut.
Because oak burns slowly, to improve your campfire experience, you could mix it with faster-burning wood like aspen.
Which Wood Burns the Hottest?
The hardwoods that burn the longest are also the hottest burning types of wood. Timbers with the highest BTU values are apple, birch, ash, and hickory.
Depending on where you live, apple wood can be scarce and therefore more costly, so a more readily available substitute for you can be ash.
Which Wood Burns With the Least Smoke?
If you want to avoid having your wood smoke, it must have been through the wood seasoning process prior to burning.
After seasoning wood, ash burns cleanest and produces the least amount of smoke. It is also experienced relative to other woods that burn cleanly.
Conclusion
When choosing a type of wood for a campfire, oak is the best choice, not aspen.
Oak lasts longer, burns strong, and is available in many states, which makes it the easiest type of wood to use.
If you are camping and want the most practical type of wood to use, consider using oak or another hardwood.