"Demand is Exploding": Huge rush for firewood and stoves

Created: 06/26/2022, 17:35

By: Claudia Schuri

More and more people want cozy warmth from an oven fire.

© Angelika Warmuth/dpa

Gas is scarce, oil is expensive - so many are toying with the idea of ​​heating more with wood in winter.

The demand is enormous – but there are problems here too.

It's freezing cold outside - and inside, a crackling open fire provides cozy warmth.

This is how many Munich residents are currently imagining things for the coming winter.

But here, too, everything is scarce.

Stove builder Dietmar Sewald reports long waiting times for the wood stove.

© private

"Some of the stoves that we are ordering now will no longer be available this year," says Dietmar Sewald, who runs a stove construction company and is the foreman at the guild of tiled stove and air heating crafts in Munich-Upper Bavaria.

Before November nothing was available from many companies.

And the prices are going up.

"There have already been two price increases this year of six to eight percent each," he reports.

Nevertheless, the demand is immense: "The number of inquiries is five to six times as high as usual," he explains.

Cooking stoves with a fire and stove-stove combinations are also popular.

"They used to be more of a cult hit, now they're going through the roof," says Sewald.

"Many are afraid and want to know how to help themselves."

An oven is not always feasible

The Munich stove builder Mirdad Wachter shares the same impression.

"I get some panic calls," he says.

"But the buildings don't always have the right conditions for a stove." He's now asking interested parties to send him photos of the house first.

He has already had to cancel a few orders, and he will not have appointments available again until September for a detailed consultation.

In the short term, an oven is often not feasible, he explains.

"The delivery situation is more difficult and the approval from the city is a longer process."

Firewood, pellets and briquettes - everything is becoming more expensive

But even those who already have a stove and only need the wood could have problems.

"Demand is exploding," reports firewood dealer Konrad Kötterl.

"Some people are panicking about not being able to get any more wood." The result: they stock up.

"The hamster effect is about 20 percent," he says.

Normally he has three to four orders a day in the summer.

"Right now it's 20 to 30."

Konrad Kötterl from CN Trading © privately experiences a huge demand for firewood and rising prices

The problem: "Wood is a finite commodity and only available in a certain quantity," he explains.

The working, drying, transport and packaging capacities are also limited.

"There is already a shortage," says Kötterl.

Delivery times are getting longer and prices are skyrocketing.

At the beginning of the year, a star of beech wood cost around 120 euros.

"Now it's about 160 euros and the trend is towards 200 euros," he reports.

Because the enormously increased energy costs are only partially included.

His advice: "If you still need wood for the winter, it is best to see that you can get something in the next four weeks.

What will happen in September or October is difficult to foresee." Because of the rush, he can only supply existing customers this year.

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This is also how dealer Matthias Birnkammer handles it.

“For firewood, we are now working through the autumn reservations,” he says.

"The problem is the procurement of the products and sometimes three to four times the amount is bought." He also has wood briquettes and pellets on offer - and there are similar tendencies here.

A tonne of pellets would currently cost between 450 and 500 euros.

"It used to be 250 to 300 euros," he says.

The prices for briquettes have increased from 250 to 300 euros to 420 to 550 euros.

Nevertheless, panic does not make sense now, says Birnkammer: "Somehow there is always a solution," he emphasizes.