As the winter months approach, having a large stockpile of firewood is essential to keeping your home, and yourself warm over the coming season. If you rely on firewood for a main source of heat, you’re going to want to have a large stock of chopped kindling and firewood ready to go, rather than chopping it in mid-December in a foot of snow and your hands frozen solid. Doesn’t sound like a fun experience.
Whether you’re a traditionalist and a diehard axman, or someone who prefers the efficiency of a modern wood splitter (we applaud you), safety is always the number one priority when it comes to splitting wood for your fire. One little slip up could mean a disaster. Taking the necessary precautions and having the proper safety equipment ready to go for your wood splitting venture.
If you’re a traditional lumberjack at heart, chances are, you’re going to stick with your trusty axe when it’s time to split some wood. This can be a very therapeutic way to split, and a very fun and enjoyable process. It does however, present a plethora of dangerous factors as precision and technique are key to splitting wood successfully. Splitting wood safely with an ax requires several tools and procedures. To split the wood you should always have the following items:
- Protective eyewear
- Safety gloves
- Chopping block
Once you have these items, you are ready to set up your wood on the chopping block. When splitting the wood with an ax, keep your feet shoulder width apart and keep your non dominant hand at the base of the ax with your dominant hand near the head of the ax. As you take the ax up and back down, allow your dominant hand to slide down the ax toward your non dominant hand as you strike the wood with a descending blow. Technique is more important than strength as you should let the tool do the work. Never swing the ax around your body to avoid injury.
If you’ve entered the 21st century of wood splitting and have invested in a wood splitter from Wood Splitters Direct, you are well on your way to the most efficient process to splitting wood. Using a log splitter will help you save both time and energy and can grow the amount of wood you split exponentially. When using a log splitter, make sure you have the necessary safety items:
- Protective eyewear
- Safety gloves
When loading a log into the splitter, always hold the sides of the log, never the ends. Make sure the wood is stable as you ease the wood into the splitter and let the machine the work. Never force it or use and body parts to stabilize the wood. Never split more than one log at a time and make sure the most square side of the log is up against the blade.
No matter what process you use, following these necessary precautions will lead to a safe log splitting venture and help you stock up your needed wood for the winter.