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Can You Burn Cedar in a Fire Pit? Yes, With a Screen On

Cedar smells wonderful and lights instantly, but it is the sparkiest common firewood. Outdoors that means a screen; indoors it means caution.

By Zakaria 2 min read Save to Pinterest — opens Pinterest in a new tab
Cedar branches carrying upright cones against a blue sky
Photo: ergie, Pixabay Content License, via Pixabay
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Yes — with a screen on. Cedar smells better than anything else you will burn and lights almost instantly. It is also the sparkiest common firewood, throwing embers several feet. Outdoors that is manageable; unscreened beside a deck it is not.

Where it sits as fuel

This table answers the question on its own
WoodMillion BTU / cordSparksLights
Oak, hickory~27–28FewReluctantly
Ash~24FewEasily
Pine~15–20ManyVery easily
Cedar~12–18Most of anyInstantly

Cedar is a starting and scenting wood, not a heating one.

The spark throw is the whole caution

Low density plus trapped air plus resin pockets means frequent loud pops carrying embers several feet. With a screen, outdoors, clear of a timber deck, dry grass, furniture and overhanging branches — fine. Without one, it is a real risk, and not a worthwhile one.

Indoors

  • Open fireplace — poor idea. Embers land on the hearth rug.
  • Closed stove, door shut — sparking is irrelevant and cedar burns cleanly. It still burns through fast and leaves little coal, so it is a kindling wood there too.
  • Any flue — the usual resinous-softwood rule: burn it dry, burn it hot, normal sweeping schedule.

Using it well

  1. Split small and keep it as kindling. This is cedar’s best job by a distance.
  2. A split or two on an established fire for the smell, late in the evening.
  3. Season 6–12 months — split, stacked off the ground, top covered only.
  4. Leave the bark out of the pit. Cedar bark is stringy, catches instantly and lifts.

Cedar planks are not the same as cedar firewood

Planking is a legitimate technique — a soaked cooking-grade untreated cedar plank under salmon gives mild aromatic smoke without the food sitting in resin. That works because the food never meets the flame. Never use fence timber or anything treated.

Common questions

Can you burn cedar in a fire pit?

Yes, and it is one of the best-smelling woods you can put on an outdoor fire. The condition is a spark screen, because cedar is the sparkiest common firewood — the wood holds air and resin pockets that snap loudly and throw embers well beyond the pit. Seasoned cedar lights almost instantly and burns bright and fast, so treat it as a wood that starts and perfumes a fire rather than one that sustains it.

Does cedar spark a lot?

More than almost anything else you are likely to burn. The combination of low density, trapped air and resin pockets produces frequent loud pops that carry embers several feet. Outdoors with a screen this is a feature of the evening rather than a hazard. Without a screen, next to a timber deck, dry grass or garden furniture, it is a genuine risk and not one worth taking.

Is cedar safe to burn indoors?

In an open fireplace it is a poor idea because of the spark throw, which can land embers on a hearth rug. In a closed stove with the door shut the sparking does not matter and cedar burns cleanly, though it burns through fast and leaves little coal. The usual caution applies to any resinous softwood in a flue: burn it dry, burn it hot, and keep to the normal sweeping schedule.

How many BTU does cedar have?

Around 12 to 18 million per cord depending on the species, with eastern red cedar at the upper end and western red cedar lower. That is well under half of oak or hickory, so cedar is not a heating wood. Its value is in how readily it lights, how fast it comes to temperature and how it smells, not in how much heat a cord delivers.

Can you cook over cedar?

Not directly over the flame — resinous smoke is acrid and will taint food. Cedar planks are a different matter and are a well-established technique: a soaked plank of untreated cedar under salmon on a grill gives a mild aromatic smoke without the food sitting in the resin. Use cooking-grade planks, never fence timber or anything treated.

How long does cedar take to season?

Six to twelve months, and often at the shorter end, because it is light and open-grained and sheds water readily. Split it, stack it off the ground in single rows and cover the top only. Cedar is also naturally rot-resistant, so a stack tolerates being left longer than most woods would without degrading.

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