We often scour the marketplace to ensure that our packaged firewood is the best it can be. We're sure you're thinking, "Come on... Really?" Well, yes, we do. A lot, in fact. We are consumers just like our customers.
When we're out shopping or traveling to various New England locations, we visit campgrounds, retail stores, and supermarkets that carry packaged firewood. We assess various factors such as how they are displayed, wrapped, the number of pieces in a package, the quality of the wood, and, of course, the cost.
To be fair, we sift through the pile and pick out the best package. (It's not always as easy as you think.) Sometimes, we ask a passing shopper to select the best package they would personally buy, and that's what we purchase and evaluate. Honestly, the options are often slim. Some are downright insulting if we weren't so knowledgeable about what packaged firewood should be.
Here are some things we've found:
- •Competitors often have a small number of firewood pieces; four or five in most cases.
- •West End Firewood packages contain six, seven, or more pieces.
- •There is a huge disparity in competitor firewood thicknesses. They're either all thin or all huge pieces, offering little variety to start or maintain a fire for an extended period.
- •West End Firewood utilizes a 12-way custom multi-level splitting wedge that ensures a consistent range of medium and thick pieces. Our packers hand-select a variety of thicknesses, perfect for a great campfire.
- •Competitors often have a lot of broken or ripped plastic wrap, shrink wrap, or use netting bags. Some use lightly center-wrapped "food-type" plastic.
- •West End Firewood uses thicker mil plastic to prevent bursting packages on display or during transport. It also protects it from inclement weather.
- •Competitor packages often develop a significant amount of mold due to damp wood, improper or little kiln drying, and lack of protection from weather.
- •West End Firewood is kiln-dried and certified by state environmental agencies (MA, NY) and the USDA to be heat-treated to kill all insects.
- •Competitors often have missing or broken carry handles, and some don't have any handles at all.
- •Our packers lift each package handle directly out of the conveyor belt before stacking it on the pallet. If a handle is going to fall off, now is the time to fix it.
- •Packages falling off the pallets they were shipped on are mostly due to uneven wood packages and poor positioning.
- •Because West End Firewood packages are split into consistent sizes and carefully packed, the pallets have a stronger footing.
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