Our stove loads from the side. So, refilling or initial loading, is the same. Splits lay on their side horizontally, or an east/west config as viewed through the stove's front glass door.
My stove has a 3 cu.ft firebox. I buck my wood short usually 12 to 16" range.most of my loads end up with both north/south and east/west. If I bucked longer like 20 to 24 I would load n/s
I've got a 3.4 CuFT firebox and can stuff a 22" stick e/w and a 20" stick n/s. I cut everything at about 20". If I need more heat, I'll run n/s. With the stove damped off, flu temps run about 600. If I want a longer burn time, I'll run e/w and flu temps will run around 450-500 with the stove damped off.
My house stove e-w and my shop stove n-s. I cut all my wood close to 16” although both stoves will take somewhat longer.
We cut 17 to 18 inches for our stove, and go north-south with full loads. We'll do combo north-south and east-west with half loads, but that's as much for ambiance than anything else.
I go both ways In all seriousness I generally load E/W but I have some shorter splits I'll load N/S, I think I get better airflow that way and don't have to worry about anything rolling forward hitting the glass.
My stove will take logs up to 24". Most of my wood is cut to 18". I stack E/W then NE/SW or NW/SE (depending on how much I've had to drink!)
