Time to stock up on firewood

It seems there is a run on firewood.

Suppliers say the waiting list is at three weeks – and growing.

Suppliers like Joe Yost. He’s getting a lot of phone calls these days.

He said, “It’s been absolutely nonstop. We’re looking at a couple of weeks out – two to three weeks on a waiting list.”

Sales of firewood are going up.

Yost explains, “It’s mostly been driven by the cold weather.”

Michael Walker is one of those people who are stocking up. He uses a lot of firewood.

“As soon as I get up in the morning I get it all stocked up and ready to go,” he said.

The pile of wood at Urban Firewood Company grows to around five cords by the end of the day. By the beginning of the next day, the crew of four will start it all over again.

It’s the most basic rule in economics, demand leads to higher prices. And that’s the case with firewood too.

But the spikes are not as high as you might expect.

“About $15 a cord in the wintertime,” said Yost.

Part of the reason is the source of the wood. It’s the principle of recovery and recycling.

Yost said, “Right now, we’re harvesting everything from the black forest burn scar.”

And Yost’s customers seem to like the wood that they’re getting.

Walker said, “I found out very quickly that this os good, quality wood.”

And getting it locally has another advantage. It helps to stop the spread of some nasty pests.

Like the Emerald Ash Borer.

Dennis Will, Colorado Springs forester explains what that is: “That’s an invasive species from China that’s causing big problems in ash trees in Boulder.”

No matter where the firewood comes from, one thing is for sure.

A lot of it will go in fireplaces around the area in the next few months.

The best time to buy is in the spring when the prices are lowest.