How Do You Scrounge?

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richg

Minister of Fire
Nov 20, 2005
888
Greetings and salutations fellow gangsta rappas:

here's a question regarding scrounging technique. do you pick up the one-off rounds that you see lying here and there, or do you wait until you see a major pile? The reason I ask is that I'm in sales and drive constantly...I pass a round here, a round there, big scores, medium scores, etc. Do little scores add up or are they a waste of time?
 
If I'm out & about,not on way to work or a similar venue,I'll stop & pick up even 1-2 large rounds or a stack/pile of smaller ones,if they look decent.

Even though this is less than 2 miles from me,I wont be stopping here though -That old stuff looks too far gone to be worth my time or gas. ;-)


http://desmoines.craigslist.org/zip/2247134304.html
 
richg said:
Greetings and salutations fellow gangsta rappas:

here's a question regarding scrounging technique. do you pick up the one-off rounds that you see lying here and there, or do you wait until you see a major pile? The reason I ask is that I'm in sales and drive constantly...I pass a round here, a round there, big scores, medium scores, etc. Do little scores add up or are they a waste of time?
Click to expand...

I usually respond to CL ads for free wood for large scores to make it worth the time. But last week I helped a friend move and saw a large branch of red Oak that had been bucked up by the city laying on the sidewalk and since I had my truck, I through it in the bed...wasn't much but its not everyday you find red oak to burn around here. The truck isnt my daily driver but given my wood whoreish ways, if I'm in the truck and spot wood I'll grab regardless of how much is there.
 
If I see it, it'll go in the bed. I have about a 40 mile commuter; about 30 on a highway. But in the neighborhoods I go through, or just going to the store or what have you, I'll stop and grab what ever is in descent shape. Gotta love a pick-up ;-)
 
I keep the saw in the truck and if I pass any reasonable amount of wood, I stop. It all adds up. Even a couple of good sized rounds might come close to a day's worth of heat - I'll take it. Cheers!
 
NH_Wood said:
I keep the saw in the truck and if I pass any reasonable amount of wood, I stop. It all adds up. Even a couple of good sized rounds might come close to a day's worth of heat - I'll take it. Cheers!
Click to expand...

+1...I got my pick-up for exactly this reason---to scrounge. I always have my saw behind my seat,and am ALWAYS on the lookout for a score. If its hardwood and its free....its comin' home with me(oh,that rhymed!). No matter if its one nice fallen limb, or a tree co. bucking up several trees, I'm there with my saw and a smile. ;-P
 
I tow a trailer behind a SUV. I prefer my scrounges to be 1.333 cord per load * as many loads as it takes.
 
Jutt77 said:
richg said:
Greetings and salutations fellow gangsta rappas:

here's a question regarding scrounging technique. do you pick up the one-off rounds that you see lying here and there, or do you wait until you see a major pile? The reason I ask is that I'm in sales and drive constantly...I pass a round here, a round there, big scores, medium scores, etc. Do little scores add up or are they a waste of time?
Click to expand...

I usually respond to CL ads for free wood for large scores to make it worth the time. But last week I helped a friend move and saw a large branch of red Oak that had been bucked up by the city laying on the sidewalk and since I had my truck, I through it in the bed...wasn't much but its not everyday you find red oak to burn around here. The truck isnt my daily driver but given my wood whoreish ways, if I'm in the truck and spot wood I'll grab regardless of how much is there.
Click to expand...

+1. This is how I do it as well.
 
SolarAndWood said:
I tow a trailer behind a SUV. I prefer my scrounges to be 1.333 cord per load * as many loads as it takes.
Click to expand...

I also tow a trailer (5x10) behind an SUV, Toyota Land Cruiser. Unfortunately, the capacity of the trailer is just under a cord.
 
I have a truck so I throw whatevers decent in the back, I may try craigslist like you guys have in the future.
 
ummmm who,s a gangsta rappa (or really,what is it....)
 
roddy said:
ummmm who,s a gangsta rappa (or really,what is it....)
Click to expand...

haha I was wondering that myself.
 
richg said:
Greetings and salutations fellow gangsta rappas:

here's a question regarding scrounging technique. do you pick up the one-off rounds that you see lying here and there, or do you wait until you see a major pile? The reason I ask is that I'm in sales and drive constantly...I pass a round here, a round there, big scores, medium scores, etc. Do little scores add up or are they a waste of time?
Click to expand...

Rich, I used to be in sales so did a fair amount of travelling. If I saw wood, I picked it up. Even if I saw only one log which fell from someone's trailer, I'd stop and throw it in the back. Fortunately for a while I had a station wagon so that worked nice. Not so nice when they gave me a car, but I still got wood.

It seems around our area lots of folks haul firewood and are not too careful with their loads. One can get quite a bit of wood that way. I always compared it to the days when people would climb on a train and throw off coal as the train was going from one town to the other. Then they'd go back and gather up the coal. That may not have been the best way and not legal, but usually this happened during the depression and I've always said that necessity knows no law. It usually proves to be that way. Even the druggies can be grouped into this one.... That explains a lot of breaking and entering.
 
When we first started burning in our rental home, we would take whatever we could get our hands on. Now, we stock our woodpile with maple, beech, and oak. However, we won't need to scrounge for quite a while. Our neighborhood is in the process of taking approx. 12 trees down (mostly beech and maple). I was told we could take whatever we wanted. Husband was happy with this news. We already have two piles of logs in the yard but it's under 7+ inches of snow....with another 6+ to come mid week (not including the rounds he brought home and started to split before the snow arrived). Saw the tree company come through again this morning. We haven't even come close to cleaning up what they've already dropped to date. We'll have our hands full when the snow melts. We have truly been blessed.
 
Recently, I have been looking everywhere, but have not had a tremendous amount of luck. A couple truckloads here and there, but other than a few logs of oak, nothing spectacular. It is funny because my wife is always making fun of me when I point out piles of wood on people's lawns, especially with the recent tough weather. She said the other day driving how much firewood she notices now from constantly hearing me pointing it out while driving. I have yet to stop and pick some up on side of the road, or knock and ask the homeowners if they want the wood. It will be when I am not looking that I run across a big score, I hope! Keep checking craigslist...
 
BucksCounty said:
Recently, I have been looking everywhere, but have not had a tremendous amount of luck.
Click to expand...

Give it a few weeks. After the burning season is over and before Memorial Day is usually pretty good.
 
I take whatever comes my way, be it a few pieces to a full Bronco load and anything in between; it all adds up. And sometimes scrounging a few pieces is more fun than getting a whole ****load at a time, for whatever reason.

If you see it, grab it or someone else will....with permission, of course!
 
Jutt77 said:
richg said:
Greetings and salutations fellow gangsta rappas:

here's a question regarding scrounging technique. do you pick up the one-off rounds that you see lying here and there, or do you wait until you see a major pile? The reason I ask is that I'm in sales and drive constantly...I pass a round here, a round there, big scores, medium scores, etc. Do little scores add up or are they a waste of time?
Click to expand...

I usually respond to CL ads for free wood for large scores to make it worth the time. But last week I helped a friend move and saw a large branch of red Oak that had been bucked up by the city laying on the sidewalk and since I had my truck, I through it in the bed...wasn't much but its not everyday you find red oak to burn around here. The truck isnt my daily driver but given my wood whoreish ways, if I'm in the truck and spot wood I'll grab regardless of how much is there.
Click to expand...

I answered an add on CL last week for free firewood. The guy tells me he has more wood than I could possibly burn in two seasons, come and get it. So I excitedly throw the saw in the truck and head over there thinking I hit the jack pot.
Once I get there, he shows me a stack of rounds that he had just cut and stacked. Looks good so far. Then, he takes me to the woods behind his house and shows me all these downed dead trees that he had been using as some sort of boarders for a walking path for the last 10 years and tells me I can have all of it I want. Obviously this crap was rotted and bug infested. His neighbor then came over telling me I could have all his garbage too. All these guys wanted was some one to clean up their yards. I took the truck load of good stuff and never went back.
People who don't burn think that those of us who do will take anything!
Saw another post on CL advertising free firewood in an area that I'd be working in the following day. The ad said that the wood was in the front yard by the curb. As I drive past the house, I see what looked to be a pile of sticks and branches from an old dead limb that had fallen from the tree in front. I had half a mind to pull out the saw and cut down the rest of the 40' Elm in the front yard!
 
I enjoy the ads that offer railroad ties, treated lumber, and old fences with more nails than wood. Thinkin' of posting my extra telephone poles but I'm afraid the neighbor would take them and he's upwind.
 
Being near the coast, I often forage along the shoreline for lumber that's washed overboard from passing ships.
Last summer, when my brother in law took us all for a ride in his new BMW down to the beach, he was most surprised to see me chuck my bowsaw in the back.

He has since likened us to the Flintstones................
 
egclassic said:
Jutt77 said:
richg said:
Greetings and salutations fellow gangsta rappas:

here's a question regarding scrounging technique. do you pick up the one-off rounds that you see lying here and there, or do you wait until you see a major pile? The reason I ask is that I'm in sales and drive constantly...I pass a round here, a round there, big scores, medium scores, etc. Do little scores add up or are they a waste of time?
Click to expand...

I usually respond to CL ads for free wood for large scores to make it worth the time. But last week I helped a friend move and saw a large branch of red Oak that had been bucked up by the city laying on the sidewalk and since I had my truck, I through it in the bed...wasn't much but its not everyday you find red oak to burn around here. The truck isnt my daily driver but given my wood whoreish ways, if I'm in the truck and spot wood I'll grab regardless of how much is there.
Click to expand...

I answered an add on CL last week for free firewood. The guy tells me he has more wood than I could possibly burn in two seasons, come and get it. So I excitedly throw the saw in the truck and head over there thinking I hit the jack pot.
Once I get there, he shows me a stack of rounds that he had just cut and stacked. Looks good so far. Then, he takes me to the woods behind his house and shows me all these downed dead trees that he had been using as some sort of boarders for a walking path for the last 10 years and tells me I can have all of it I want. Obviously this crap was rotted and bug infested. His neighbor then came over telling me I could have all his garbage too. All these guys wanted was some one to clean up their yards. I took the truck load of good stuff and never went back.
People who don't burn think that those of us who do will take anything!
Saw another post on CL advertising free firewood in an area that I'd be working in the following day. The ad said that the wood was in the front yard by the curb. As I drive past the house, I see what looked to be a pile of sticks and branches from an old dead limb that had fallen from the tree in front. I had half a mind to pull out the saw and cut down the rest of the 40' Elm in the front yard!
Click to expand...

I would think that sometimes people figure that it's a trade-out...they'll let someone take the good wood in exchange for also getting rid of the bad wood. Basically by taking the good wood and not returning you took away they're "barter material" for getting someone to remove the rotten stuff. Did you discuss with them that you would not be coming back for the "border" wood before taking the rounds that the guy had just cut up? :long:
 
I'll pick up any amount of wood. I think my smallest scrounge was a single round. It has added up to a ton of wood over the past couple of years. Like somebody else wrote, a few pieces of wood might be a day's heat, which makes it seem more important than if I think of it as 0.001 cords of wood.
 
I grab whatever I can. i check craig's list regularly also. I have scored a lot of seasoned wood by being diligent on craig's list. That was very helpful to me especially because this was my first full season of woodburning.
 
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