Lowtech Graph lists low-tech options for every need of a home. Here you can compare them, find tutorials to build them, and link them together into a circular system. Why low-tech?
Dry, ventilated firewood storage
Passive
One of 3 ways to meet this need. Cost, carbon, footprint and rankings are relative to other solutions for the same need, not absolute.
A roofed, open-sided store where split firewood is stacked with air around it. Wind dries the wood over a season or two, and the roof keeps rain off. Dry wood lights easily, burns hot and clean, and is ready whenever the stove or cooker needs it.
Structure (roof/walls of the store): 20-40 years for a simple timber lean-to; the stored wood itself is consumed, not a wearing asset
Embodied carbon
Low
Space / material use
Low
Output timing
None
Skill to repair
Basic
Regulation (FR example)
Flue installation follows DTU 24.1. Chimney sweeping is compulsory (typically once or twice a year) under the departmental sanitary regulation, and insurers generally require proof. Some communes restrict wood burning under an air-quality plan.
Levels are relative to the other options for this need, not absolute. Fewer dots is lighter.
Dry, ventilated firewood storage (This page) Can I use it? Works in a flat · No rebuilding needed What does it cost me? Upfront cost: Low · Skill to build: Basic · Upkeep: Light · Change to daily life: Occasional · Works without the grid: Yes Choose it if you heat or cook with wood and want it dry and ready.
Bulk propane or heating-oil storage tank Can I use it? Not in a flat · No rebuilding needed What does it cost me? Upfront cost: Medium · Skill to build: Intermediate · Upkeep: Light · Change to daily life: Occasional · Works without the grid: Yes Choose it if you are off the gas mains and want dense fuel on demand, with no splitting or drying.
Mains gas Can I use it? Works in a flat · No rebuilding needed What does it cost me? Upfront cost: Medium · Skill to build: Specialist · Upkeep: None · Change to daily life: None · Works without the grid: Yes Choose it if the gas mains reaches you and you want fuel with nothing to store, order or carry.
We don’t list sizing or quantities, as the yield of each technique depends on the quality of its build. The catalogue compares options but doesn’t dimension them. Regulatory notes are indicative, with a French example, and need to be confirmed locally.