Wood Thief

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gpcollen1

gpcollen1

Minister of Fire
Oct 4, 2007
2,026
Western CT
Well, I finally experienced just a touch of what some others have had happen. Arrived home at 3 yesterday with the family. A neighbor stops by at 4 and proceeds to tell me about a guy in a red car stopping at my wood pile and taking some rounds. She drove by and noticed it, turned around up the street to come back and question him and he was gone. I don't live on a through street or anything so i thought this odd. I would have expected it a few years back when I just had piles of rounds down by the road. Now that there is split and stacked wood, I would expect someone to know that I actually use the wood. Here is a photo I took a few weeks back with my phone prior to stacking. You can see the rounds in the back drop. My pile is about 90 feet long...

I am still trying to figure out if i will do anything about this. IF I can get enough work done at the house this fall, the plan was to not have any wood down there anyway.
 

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Looks to me like its free for the taking. Looks like a truck dumped it. If it were stacked in an orderly fashion I doubt someone would take it, but you never know.
 
Grrrrr.

I'm glad my stacks are in a place where someone would have to pretty ballsy to take any.
 
This just shows the gall of some folks. Too bad the neighbor didn't get a license plate number. I'd be looking him up and "discussing" this thing with him. Perhaps an attitude adjustment might be in order?! Well, at least it sounds like he did not get much but I'd like to make sure this did not become a habit with this fellow.
 
gzecc said:
Looks to me like its free for the taking. Looks like a truck dumped it. If it were stacked in an orderly fashion I doubt someone would take it, but you never know.
Click to expand...

There is no difference in either someone taking wood off of your PROPERTY or taking oil from your tank!!! Its trespassing and stealing. PERIOD.
 
gzecc said:
Looks to me like its free for the taking. Looks like a truck dumped it. If it were stacked in an orderly fashion I doubt someone would take it, but you never know.
Click to expand...

if ya look at the big pic again it looks like a few cords stacked neatly ;-P

the guy was just a thief and probably going back to his camp site for the nite :-S

Terry
 
How many houses are on the street? I wouldn't dream of leaving my wood out near the road like that with all the criminals in this world today. Looks like easy pickings for a thieve.
 
I'm confused, is that your driveway, or the road/street that you live on. If it's the road, I'm not surprised that someone took some wood. If it's your driveway, that's a daring thief. Either way, it sucks. Sorry that it happened.
 
Ditto, is that the road or ?? Either way, nobody thinks split wood is there accidentally or without either a lot of effort or $ laid out for it. BUT, nice big pile like that, thief figured you wouldn't miss a couple splits.
Cute kids!
 
jdinspector said:
I'm confused, is that your driveway, or the road/street that you live on. If it's the road, I'm not surprised that someone took some wood. If it's your driveway, that's a daring thief. Either way, it sucks. Sorry that it happened.
Click to expand...

I assumed it was the street by this part of the original post.
CTwoodburner said:
A neighbor stops by at 4 and proceeds to tell me about a guy in a red car stopping at my wood pile and taking some rounds.
Click to expand...
I figured if the car could just stop at the wood pile it was the road. Either way it's a bold move on a dead end type road.
 
That sucks, CT. Definitely move it somewhere else so it isn't visible driving by and isn't so easy to take. I think having large piles is an attraction to a thief, too. I now keep my split wood in three different places.
 
About 4 cords of rounds in the back drop and that wood was all stacked when this happened as I noted in the OP. Yep, that split pile was right up to the road and my stacks are in a row about 15 feet in from the road. Call it my wood fence...

My road only has about 20 houses on it and is not a through street so we get no real 'traffic' or folks who drive through for fun really.

1 - I am pretty trusting. I don't expect people to be thieves. Sure I lock my house but not my lawn tractor, wheel barrow, misc tools or my wood.

2 - I found it very odd that he took some rounds and not the split wood. Funny enough, there are three large rounds across the street from my driveway that someone else dumped in the wood. I pulled them out and they are just sitting on the other side of the street untouched. Did not bring the wheel barrow over to get them yet. Someone dumps cherry rounds across the street from my house and then someone takes rounds from my pile...whooda thunk it...

3 - She tried to get the plate # when she turned around but he took off too fast. She said her boy was telling he to floor it. I think initially she would have stopped the first time but she was just looking to see who it was. Then by the time she turned around he must have high tailed it out of there...
 
just put up a sign that reads: This woodpile protected by motion sensing tesla coil.
I dont think there is such a thing, but that doesn't matter......its the thought that counts.

or leave a chalk outline of a body on the ground near the pile.
 
CTwoodburner said:
Yep, that split pile was right up to the road and my stacks are in a row about 15 feet in from the road. Call it my wood fence....
Click to expand...

A guy out by me has wood stacked in his front yard about 10' off the road. I was looking for wood one year for my fireplace(before the stove) and thought the wood was for sale. I pulled into his drive and he had a sign posted stating the wood was not for sale and for his personal use. I put the truck in reverse and went on my way. It might not be a bad idea to put a sign up stating the wood is used as your primary heat source to keep you and your family warm during the winter, it's not free or for sale.
 
Wow, left at the curb like that means free-for-all here.

I've put broken windows out at the curb and someone takes them.

Course I put a couch out a while back and someone took just the cushions.


Comes in handy when you're cleaning out the garage and can't be bothered with a yard sale.


You could try a sign.
Here, someone would probably take it.


I put a computer desk out a while ago and it was gone in 5 minutes.
A month later I noticed it in my neighbor's garage. (fine with me)
When he says he watches the neighborhood he wasn't kidding.
 
billb3 said:
Wow, left at the curb like that means free-for-all here.

I've put broken windows out at the curb and someone takes them.

Course I put a couch out a while back and someone took just the cushions.
.
Click to expand...

Many do put stuff out at the curb for others to take. Usually they put a little sign that says FREE, not DO NOT TAKE. If I had just a pile of rounds, I get it but someone should still ask. If you step on my property, you should be asking permission. The majority of my wood is stacked nicely on pallets. Who stacks it like that for others to take?
 
Common practice around here is anything set on the edge of the road like your trash would be is free for the taking.That whole ple would be gone in a few days, I know thast doesn't make it right but..
I would say you are just asking for trouble by leaving right next to the road. I would put a sign there and get it moved and not put wood there ever again.
If you lived here people would laugh and say what did you expect when you complained about people taking the wood. Of course the other point is in Illinois that first 15' is considered right of way and isn't even your land to begin with !
On the other hand if you have to stack it there you could get some snow fence and put along side it to clearly show it's not wood put out for the taking.
 
billb3 said:
Course I put a couch out a while back and someone took just the cushions.
Click to expand...

I know around here their called "curb alerts". Out at the curb is free.

My BIL who does a lot of roofing, will take just the cushions for using on the roof to make it easier on the knees.

Charlie
 
It's good to have neighbors who care instead of "I don't see nothing." because they don't want to get involved. I would certainly thank her for trying, as I'm sure you did.

Steve
 
By me at the curbside is right of way, its usually free for the taking. They leave it there for people to take... If its questionable I always ask first. Obviously a split and cut stack is questionable...rounds are free for the grabbing.
 
Had a simular problem, My wood is stacked next to the garage, noticed on day that the pile was getting smaller .Marked a couple of pieces of wood , next week GONE. Had to move the pile to the rear of my lot
 
I agree with the others. You really need a sign or to relocate your stack. That situation is confusing enough that it is bound to cause some trouble. Someone from an area that curbside means waiting on the garbage men to pick up also means free to anyone that wants it.
 
The "Wood Fence" should have made it obvious that the wood is being used regardless if they were just rounds that were taken. There was not enough time to split the rounds that is why they were still rounds and the pile of split is still there because there was not enough time to stack. No one goes through that trouble to stack so that someone else can come by and take.

To me it's still called stealing even if it is by the road because of the obvious.

I keep a tandem dump truck fully loaded for the next few months until I can clutter up my back yard with the split wood. I only have a 100x80 property and keep my wood where I keep my commercial equipment and others there pick at it if I keep it on the ground, they still pick from the truck but it gets harder to climb. I need a sign.
 
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