Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Pond Boss Firewood purchase question

I bought some firewood earlier this year, and I'm curious to what the general thoughts are. (besides the ones that I'm too lazy to cut/split/stack it myself.)

What would you say the lengths should be (min/max) if you bought firewood and said "It's for my woodburner that takes a maximum length of 22". The firewood was bought by the cord, and this particular source included delivery and stacking it in my shed. It's a mixture of Oak, Cherry, Hickory, Walnut and a little Sassafras. The area that it's stacked in is equal to the amount of cords that I bought, but I'm running into very inconsistent lengths, 12" to 24" long, with about 60% of wood is running 15"-20". I feel that the short pieces contribute to a "short cord", but until I'm further along in to the season I don't know for sure exactly how short it will be. It seems that it's lasting as long as the Oak/Hickory mix that I cut/split/stacked myself last year that was all within 1" of each other.

The price was $20/cord less than the going rate for firewood that is cut/split/dumped at the house.

If I buy wood for next year (I have trees that will be cut/split/stacked this winter for next winter), I'm debating on whether to use this guy or somebody else.

We have had large differences in what is advertised/promised and what is delivered. It makes no difference who we use its all the same so-so service and product. I have never received what I thought was a true cord of seasoned wood. Usually short on amount and green .

I though that a cord is 128 cubic feet. So if there are short pieces he would, theoretically, have to include more to make up a true cord. A "face cord" however is 4'x8' so if you're getting shorter pieces you're getting less wood. Firewood is a real "buyer beware" market. I've never been too thrilled with firewood I've bought.

Except for my time in the Navy, I've been heated with wood nearly my entire life. I grew up burning coal and wood.

For the last 35 years, I've generally had enough of my own firewood. We burn 5-6 cord per year. Some years I'm a little short and I have to buy a cord or two. Some years I have an excess. Most years, a number of friends plus me, deliver or cut/split firewood for the local elderly for free.

I've got several friends who sell hundreds of cords per year. To sell year after year, they are careful to sell seasoned wood that properly fits the customer's stove or fireplace.

It sounds like the wood you are getting is coming from the spoils of arborists who are taking down trees.

People selling wood for burning, at least around here, typically cut it in 16-18 and 20-22 inch lengths. If they know you, and you call ahead in late summer, they will cut it to the length you want. Short lengths cost more than long lengths.

If you aren't getting that service, find another supplier. I wish you were near here. I could recommend several really good suppliers who sell only oak, gum, hickory, and maple.

Please be careful with the sassafras. I have a lot of it on some other property we own nearby. It burns like dried pine soaked in gasoline. We use it only for starting fires.

Keep Warm,
Ken

Is there a piece of firewood more offensive than one that is just barely too long to fit in the woodburner?

Theo, you're right. I had a couple of pieces that I had to put in at a diagonal, and a couple more that I needed to take the chainsaw to.

cat, this is the first year the guy was selling due to being out of work, but all the wood that I bought was dry. He said he had 50 cords cut and split; this was back in May. I hear ya on the Sassafras, it sure goes up quick and does make good kindling. I've got a couple in the woods that are close to 24" across near the ground. Since there are quite a few round pieces in the wood that was delivered, I think he's going in after a woods has been logged and cutting up the tops of the trees that are left.

The wood was bought per whole cord, and I had an area that I measured off that when filled, would = 5 cords. The only problem that I see is that with the big difference in lengths, there are LOTS of air spaces in the stacked wood. I have a neighbor that heats with wood and uses a different supplier, but his supplier just dumps the wood on the ground and drives away. The guy that I used stacked it in my shed for me, plus he was either $20 or $30/cord cheaper. I'm on the fence on whether it was a better deal or not.......

The next time I order (depending on what the wood supply looks like this Spring) I'll be sure to ask what how much the wood varies in length!

One of my friends, who has an excavating business, also has a really big firewood "processor." He gets truckloads of large 30-40-foot logs from land that they clear for roads, building sites, etc. The processor cuts, splits, and loads a dumptruck with a big conveyor. All the pieces are nearly exactly the same length. They can do about 30 cords a day.

Here is one that is similar: Firewood Processor

My cousin in Wy. has a smaller one like that. His 2nd job is supplying shrink wrapped wood to the convenience stores for "tourists". He goes thru 50-75 cords a year. If I had a wood business, I'd use something like that machine as well. New, the one that my cousin has would run close to $20K.

Esshup,

I think you know I am burning corn now. It is working out great. 2 five gallon buckets of corn a day does it with no splitting or stacking. I will probably use 3 five gallon buckets this week since it supposed to get down in the single digits.

dap:

I was tempted to go with a corn burner when I was looking at purchasing the fireplace insert, but I was spooked by the way corn was climbing in price. While I could probably buy direct from the farmer down the road, I don't have a way to dry the corn if it was too wet. Are you able to get the corn wtih the right moisture content, or do you still have to run some thru the dryer? Did you get all the concrete poured?

Mom & Dad had Miller Stove in Nappanee install a pellet/corn burner in the place on Redwood, and it works really well. They have 2 1/2 tons of pellets in the pole barn. It'll be interesting to see what their propane usage is this year compared to last year.

I brought a gravity wagon that hold 135 bushel. I filled it on Nov 1 and should have enough to last through the new year. I brought it from a farmer over on Quince Rd. He dried it down for me to around 14%. He charges market price for his grain. I have one more pour to complete my floor. I will probably wait until spring since things are so frozen after this week.

Sounds like a bushel or so per day. Let's compare notes in the Spring to see what's more cost effective. While your house is bigger, I think mine isn't sealed as well, so it might be a wash.

During my recent adventure I discovered that about 1/3 of the wood that I have is too long for our wood stove. That is not fun to discover when you have hauled it in and are relying on it to keep your southern California blood from forming icicles.

This isn't like the time you discovered half of the nails in the keg had the heads on the wrong end, is it?

Geeze Jeff!

You need some wilderness training. I think I can help.

I'm just headed out to cut and split a trailer load of firewood. I've got three chainsaws, a hydraulic splitter, and I skidded lots of trees into the field early last summer. Come back here for a week or so, and I'll teach you how to properly cut, split, and stack. About 40-60 hours of practice should get you to where you are reasonably proficient.

You can use the 4WD tractor to learn to drive in the snow -- especially with a snow blade on my half-mile of driveway. Maybe we can send you in a rental car to visit Todd or Sunil a few times -- the highway (I-68) between my place and theirs has nearly daily blizzards this time of year.

Heck, I'll even teach you how to handle those killer squirrels, and how to make them delicious. Hopefully, I'll have a deer hanging in the barn this evening. If you come next weekend, I'll teach you how to butcher.

Ken

I was wondering if he knew how to to get them ready for the table if it went that far.

Since he's had the time away from the house planned already, he should jump on the chance.

Ken, although I appreciate the offer and I know I would learn more in a week with you than years on my own I'm gonna have to pass. That just sounds like too much work.



Don't be ridiculous of course I do. At Pond Boss 2 Conference I attended the break out session on filleting fish. Besides I have been carving the Thanksgiving Turkey for years. Heck if I can fillet a BG, skin a Catfish, and carve Turkey, how hard could it be to fillet a deer?

The offer still stands to come learn how to skin and fillet a deer. She's hanging from the tractor bucket as I write this. I won't get the knives out till next Friday morning.

Next year's recipe challenge.

Regards,
Ken and Bambi's mom

Heck, Ken, if we want him to really learn, send him over to my place via Route 50. That'll learn him real quick! If he makes it, I may just be able to give him a test on how well he learned to cut, split, and stack wood, then have him report back to you on his progress!

If he is coming by car, have him stop here and I'll get his training started.

I can show him how to get those pesky fur coats off of the critters without leaving too much loose fur on the carcass, and get him started on the correct way to split/stack firewood.

I know a little bit about cold weather survival and survival skills in general. My mom and dad were outdoor enthusiasts and we spent quite a bit of time camping. During those trips dad imparted quite a bit of his out door skills to me. During my stint in Antarctica I spend two days in "Survival School" in which we learned cold weather survival skills.

Unfortunately, by the time I was old enough, both of my parents no longer hunted so I've never been hunting. I've never seen a deer dressed or had any similar experience.

All kidding aside though I wish I knew half as much about outdoor survival and hunting as some of you guys. My dad bought me two interesting survival books which reminded me of many of the survival skills that I had previously learned and had forgotten.

Still, I'm gonna have to pass on the firewood splitting and stacking lessons.

I wouldn't fret about that. It's not a pretty picture.





I guess this too is probably for the better. By the time we would have gotten done with you, you wouldn't be able to safely return to San Diego. The Navy SEALs would take one look at the new you, and grab you off the street to make you head of the training school -- but in your new svelt and trim condition, it would take a lot of SEALs to take you off the street.

Oh Well!!! We tried.