Cord of Wood

How much is a cord of wood? There is a huge difference between a full cord of wood and other types of cords, like a face cord, a rick and a fireplace cord. Knowing how much firewood is in a cord of wood, and the differences between these measurements, will help ensure you are actually getting the amount of wood you are paying for.

Learn about the differences between these different firewood measurements.

A lot of consumers are confused by these different measurements and end up getting a lot less wood than they were expecting. A full cord, sometimes misspelled chord, is 128 cubic feet of tightly stacked wood. This measurement is derived from the common firewood dimension of a 4′x4′x8′ stack.

To measure a stack of wood, get the height, width and depth in feet. Multiply these three numbers together. This will tell you how many cubic feet you have. Since a cord is 128 cubic feet, divide the number of cubic feet in your stack by 128. That will tell you how many cords you have.

Although 4x4x8 is the common dimension for a cord of wood, there are many dimensions that will add up to a cord. Such as 2x4x16 and 1x4x32. Learn more about cord of wood dimensions.

In any stack of wood there is going to be air space between the pieces. The more tightly stacked the wood is, the more solid wood you will have in a cord of wood. Some people like to criss-cross the wood when they stack it. This can sometimes help in drying and is a way to stabilize the ends. This is fine, except for when it comes to measuring the wood, there will be more air space between the pieces and less solid wood in a cord. For a loose unstacked pile of wood the air space will be even greater. In this case you can figure around 180 cubic feet per cord.

The amount of solid wood in a cord can depend on the size and shapes of the pieces and who stacks it. One person may be better at stacking and will be able to fit more pieces in a cord. Because of this, firewood measurements are not exact. You may get a load of wood that measures out to be a full cord on the truck, but then when you stack it, it may measure out be a few cubic feet more or less. This may be just from differences in fitting the pieces together. Some honest wood sellers may add on a little extra wood just to account for this.

Cord of wood dimensions are easy to measure when wood is stacked, but not so easy if it is not stacked. This is one reason to buy wood from someone who stacks the wood on the delivery truck so you can measure the wood and verify the dimensions before they unload it.

• Cord of Firewood Prices and The Real Cost of A Cord of Wood Firewood prices can vary greatly depending on your location and the type of wood you are buying. It will also depend on what type of cord is being sold. When comparing the cost of a cord of wood, you really have to consider the variables involved, otherwi...