Firewood in the house is said to be a bad idea, but is it really? How many people do you know that have had a problem with bringing firewood inside? I’m in the pest control industry, so I can attest to the fact that it can happen, but not as often as you’d think.
Here are 3 real life scenarios that actually can happen and how to avoid them.
Moisture
A rather large, but under reported issue with bringing firewood in the house is moisture. Depending on how much wood you’re bringing in and what stage of drying you’re at you could be bringing in a lot of moisture. Think about this. All wood has a high percentage of moisture. In fact, in order for wood to be good for burning it must be seasoned (or dried). The seasoning process can take a season or two to end up with a burnable piece of wood. If the wood is left to dry inside, all that moisture evaporates into your home and will be trapped in the area it’s stored. Once this moisture is trapped the area becomes an ideal area for insects to thrive.
Let unseasoned wood dry outside then bring it in.
Insects
If there were any doubt in your mind as to whether wood can have insects inside it, let me answer directly. Yes, frozen wood can have insects in it especially carpenter ants. Carpenter ants can survive the winter outdoors. They have a natural antifreeze in their body that allows them to stay alive. However, if a piece of wood is brought inside that’s frozen those ants thaw and can infest your home.
Don’t bring newly cut unseasoned wood into the home.
Mice
I think the following scenario is the most likely to occur when you bring firewood in the house. If you bring firewood into your home and have mice already inside you’ve just created a mice condo complex. Theres’s no doubt that mice will use every nook and crannie to set up shop and have young. I’ve seen this with my own eyes.
Make sure your home is rodent free before bringing firewood inside.
In the end if you bring firewood in the house and expect not to have issues you may be right. On the other hand you may be wrong. It’s the chance you take for the convenience of not walking in the snow on a 15 degree night.
If you have a pest issue call Envirocare Pest Control at 1-888-879-6481. We can help.