firewood measures

Stove manufacture in Senegal.

In cooking, a cook stove is a very basic stove heated by burning wood or fossil fuels. Cook stoves are the most common way of cooking and heating food in developing countries.

Developing countries consume little energy compared to developed nations; however, over 50% of the energy that they do use goes into cooking food. The average rural family spends 20% or more of its income purchasing wood or charcoal for cooking. Living in the city provides no refuge either as the urban poor frequently spend a significant portion of their income on the purchase of wood or charcoal.

Besides the high expense, another problem of cooking over an open fire is the increased health problems brought on from the smoke, particularly lung and eye ailments, but also birth defects. Replacing the traditional 3-rock cook stove with an improved one and venting the smoke out of the house through a chimney can dramatically improve a family’s health.

Deforestation and erosion are often the end result of harvesting wood for cooking fuel. The main goal of most improved cooking stoves is to reduce the pressure placed on local forests by reducing the amount of wood the stoves consume. Additionally, the money a family spends on wood or charcoal translates into less money being available to be spent on food, education, and medical care; so an improved cooking stove is seen as a way of boosting a family's income.


How to measure wood or firewood for burning


Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

  • to review this article
  • a basic knowledge or idea of the amount of wood you would like
Step1
8X4X4= a cord of wood 8X4X4= a cord of wood A standard Cord of firewood. A standard cord is 8 X 4 X 4 - 8 foot long by 4 foot high by 4 foot deep
Step2
a face cord is equal to 1/3 full cord a face cord is equal to 1/3 full cord A Face cord. A face cord is generally 4 foot high X 8 foot wide and as wide as the individual piece of firewood (16" average). The average face cord is equal to 1/3 full cord.
Step3
3 ricks of wood to equal 1 full cord 3 ricks of wood to equal 1 full cord A Rick of wood. A Rick of wood is another term for a face cord. Again, you would need 3 ricks of wood to have a full cord.
Step4
foot, gallon, or ton are terms that should not be used foot, gallon, or ton are terms that should not be used A 'foot, gallon, or ton' of wood. If someone is selling using these terms, they may be trying to scam. These are not legal terms for selling firewood and should not be considered when purchasing.