The truck dumps the wood in your driveway, the driver takes your $300, and something looks off. The pile is smaller than the one in the ad. That feeling is usually right, and it has a name: you bought a loose cord, which holds 20 to 30 percent less wood than the stacked cord you paid for.
How to spot a firewood scam before the truck dumps it
Almost every firewood scam is one of two lies: a lie about quantity or a lie about quality. The quantity lie starts with the word cord. A full cord is 128 cubic feet of tightly stacked wood, a 4 by 4 by 8 foot stack. What arrives in the truck is usually thrown in loose, and loose wood holds 20 to 30 percent less than the same wood stacked. Sellers know this. The honest ones price by the stacked cord and let you measure. The others price by the truckload and hope you never stack it.
Learn the truck math and half the scams die on sight. A standard pickup bed with wood randomly thrown to the top of the bed holds about one third of a cord. Neatly stacked, the same bed holds about half. So when the ad says full cord, pickup load, $250, you already know the load cannot be a cord. No standard pickup bed holds 128 cubic feet. The face cord versus full cord math is worth ten minutes of your time before you buy anything.
The quality lie is the expensive one
Green wood sold as seasoned is the most common firewood fraud, and it is worse than a short load. Wet wood hisses, smokes, and produces a fraction of the heat, and it coats your chimney with creosote, which is how chimney fires start. The test takes five seconds: knock two splits together. Seasoned wood rings with a sharp hollow crack. Wet wood thuds. Seasoned splits are lighter than they look, gray on the cut ends, cracked at the edges.
Watch for the seller's behavior too. Consumer protection offices flag the same patterns every year: no permanent address, just a cell number; will not commit to a delivery time, because they do not want you watching the unload; price so low it has to be a steal, because you are the one being stolen from; demands prepayment through Zelle or a cash app before delivery. Any one of these is a reason to keep looking. Refuse delivery if the wood is not what was promised. A legitimate seller stacks it, lets you measure, and hands you a receipt with their name, address, and the quantity in exact dimensions.
The single check that catches everything
Be there when it is delivered. That is the whole trick, and I am holding it for last because it is the one thing that defeats every version of the scam at once. A seller who knows you will measure the stack does not short the stack. A seller who knows you will knock the splits together does not bring green wood. Ask for delivery stacked in the truck so you can measure before it unloads, or agree to pay part on delivery and the rest after you stack and measure. Measure the cord yourself; it takes a tape measure and two minutes.
If it already happened, report it. Firewood sold by false measure is a weights-and-measures violation in many states, and county consumer protection offices investigate these complaints every winter. The Better Business Bureau listing costs you five minutes. The seller counting on your embarrassment is counting on the one thing you do not have to give them.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a full cord of firewood?
A full cord is 128 cubic feet of tightly stacked wood, usually a 4 by 4 by 8 foot stack. A face cord is a single row of that stack and holds about a third, but the exact amount varies by seller.
How do I protect myself when buying firewood?
Be there for the delivery, ask for the quantity in exact dimensions before you pay, measure the stack yourself, and get a receipt with the seller's name, address, phone number, and the price paid.
How can I tell if firewood is really seasoned?
Knock two pieces together. Seasoned wood makes a sharp hollow crack; wet wood thuds. Seasoned splits are lighter, gray on the ends, and cracked. Or spend $20 on a pin moisture meter: under 20 percent on a freshly split face is the target.
What should I do if I got scammed on firewood?
Report it to your state or county consumer protection office. Firewood sales by false measure are a weights-and-measures violation in many states, and regulators do investigate these complaints.
How Much Wood Do You Actually Need?
Know your real cord count before you buy, so a short load cannot hide in a vague order.
Calculate Firewood Needs