On December 5, 2023, the time has come again: the first firewood auction of the season will take place in Erligheim. Auction dates will be offered throughout the district until March. As there are currently no restrictions due to coronavirus, the events are planned to be held in person again and will take place either in a large hall, an inn or directly in the forest.
Firewood prices heavily dependent on bidding behavior
Raphael Müller, wood salesman in the forestry department of the Ludwigsburg district office, is optimistic about the new season: "The energy crisis is not as noticeable this year as it was last winter. I assume that the firewood auctions will therefore be less emotional". However, Müller does not give an assessment of the firewood prices. A trend will only emerge after a few auctions. After all, prices are heavily dependent on bidding behavior.
As usual, there are a few things to bear in mind at the firewood auctions. When using a chainsaw, proof of chainsaw training must be provided and suitable personal protective equipment must be worn. "If you observe these rules, you can happily start processing the wood you have bought at auction. Although this is, as the Swabians say, a "hell of an effort", the work is worth it, also in terms of climate protection," says Müller. Because the firewood is hardly suitable for other purposes due to its thickness or knottiness. If the wood is burnt, the stored carbon is released, but only as much as the tree has stored during growth. This prevents the release of carbon from fossil fuels. In contrast to wood, these energy sources release carbon that has been stored for millions of years and is therefore added to the cycle.
Important for good combustion: split firewood should be left to dry for two to three years
However, to ensure that the wood burns well, it is very important to only burn dry wood. As a rule, split firewood should be dried for at least two to three years in a dry and well-ventilated place.
As every year, the firewood dates can be found on the website of the forestry department (landkreis-ludwigsburg.de/brennholz). The dates are updated and supplemented throughout the winter. Details of the events are published on the homepage of the forest-owning municipalities.
Regional firewood from sustainable forestry is sold at the local authority firewood sales. The quantity is specified in solid cubic meters or cubic meters. One solid cubic meter is one cubic meter of pure wood. One cubic meter is the amount of wood required to obtain a volume of 1x1x1 meter when split and stacked. Already split wood cannot be purchased from the local authorities in the district. This ready-to-burn wood is often offered by suppliers in the unit of bulk cubic meters. This is the amount of split wood that can be "poured" into a lattice box with a volume of one cubic meter. One solid cubic meter of firewood yields approximately 1.4 cubic meters, or two bulk cubic meters. |
