First time buying firewood, could have gone better

[briv]

After a few visits to this board I realized that I was going about wood burning all wrong and that I did not have properly seasoned wood. Since I just put a deposit on a new insert I decided I needed to buy a load of seasoned wood and this is what happened...

Found an add on craigslist, $200 for a cord of oak in local town of CT cut, split and stacked for 12 months. The longest c/s/s I've been able to find so far so I called, requested 18" to 20" lengths and set up a Sunday morning delivery. Well Sunday morning turns into a call from him at noon that he was running late. I had somewhere to be so I stopped by his place, saw him loading the wood and looked in the trailer, what was in the trailer looked good and on the large size but nothing excessive. I pay the man and give him directions to drop it off.

Get home Sunday night and I cringe, these splits were HUGE!! Some 24"+ and big enough to get 3 decent sized splits from each. A little bummed but I could work with it, just a little more work. Split a few open and took some moisture readings 30-35% on most, now I'm really bummed. Decided to cool down a bit so I stopped stacking and took the kiddo Trick or Treating, making sure to inspect (eat) multiple pieces of candy. Got back and finished stacking. Lo and behold, not a cord, actually about 20% less than a cord.

AH Frustration!!

 

[PNWBurner]

Welcome to the wonderfull world of buying firewood on craigslist! Your experience sounds pretty typical. On the bright side you'll have some nice wood for next year. Not sure about those 24" pieces though. Will that fit or maybe you'll have some sawing to do?

 

[midwestcoast]

Sorry to hear it. Seems like most firewood sellers go for the quick sale rather than longterm relationships with satisfied buyers. Why not give the guy a call about the oversized wood & undersized cord? Give him a chance to do better. He might at least drop off some more. Getting dry wood is very tough though.

 

[Bad Wolf]

Where in CT are you? I'm in Colchester and have found a few decent dealers. I don't buy wood any more though, just scrounge for it.

 

[briv]

I'm in Bristol. I think I went wrong by going with a guy that had probably cut 3-4 big trees and was selling that and not a tree service. What really got me was the fact that I've got about 2 cords in log form which I could have just bucked and split and probably been in the same position. Oh well. I did call the guy to see if he would bring me some more, we'll see if he gives me a call back.

 

[wood-fan-atic]

I dont buy anymore either, but several years ago when a similar thing happened to me, I did this -- I played dumb - called him, and said, " Hi, I'm sorry to bother you. But I think one of your delivery guys made a mistake. He must have taken from the wrong pile in your yard , b/c the wood I have is still green. He also made a mistake and only brought half a cord, instead of a full one. Could you either bring me dry wood, or come pick this up, b/c I cant use it." Well, he didnt want to pick it up, and HAD NO DRY WOOD, so he brought me some more and gave me $100 back. I ended up paying $50 for a cord of semi-seasoned wood for the next year. I still had to find dry wood, but it was better than getting TOTALLY ripped off. OH yeah- he also came back to drool over my wife, which he was acting like a fool in front of. It was actually pretty pathetic. What a jack-wad! :lol:

 

[jharkin]

You wont necessarily do any better from a tree service. Ive been screwed by them too.

If you got a 0.8 cord that's actually better than average - I've tried 3 or 4 different outfits and usually what you get is a half or at best 2/3. Usually they just bring a truck load, most never get called on it because 99% of people leave it piles in there driveway and stack it just before they burn it green in the fireplace.

Good luck...

 

[briv]

Yeah, the guy was close to a cord. And he probably did have it split and stacked for close to a year which is more than enough time for seasoning for anyone who doesn't read hearth.com so I can't fault him for that. I've got one seasoned face cord that I'll work through and then start looking forward to next year.

 

[ChrisNJ]

Yea I agree on how typical that is, my first wood purchase was from a guy whose adds I see daily in the paper sold me 2 cords for a decent price but after stacking and measuring them they were all of 72 and 74 sf. Took it as a lesson learned after his failure to come back and get it for my refund. Although at least it was not green wood, just recently split dead mixed hardwoods, was actually the best wood I had gotten that 1st year of burning

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Welcome to the forum briv. Sorry to hear about the bad experience but it is very typical. So keep your eyes and ears open for any possibility of some decent wood to burn. That oak will be okay, just not for this year and maybe not for next. Once it is dry, you will love it.

Try to look at it this way. You did not get what you want but you know you have to get ahead on your wood supply. This is just a start for another year. We just hope you can find some for this year.

 

[loon]

not sure what go's through their little minds? another ten minutes work and the cord is a cord???

but now they think they pulled one over on a guy/gal :-S and the person buying the wood wouldnt notice???

man oh man >:-(

loon

 

[briv]

He actually did call me back and was concerned that I did not have a full cord. Said that he had it measured before he brought it over but he would come over to see for himself. I told him that it was still stacked in my driveway so he could come take a look for himself. We'll see if he comes by and drops more off.

 

[gregp553]

I'm sure you'll be sure to show him a moisture reading while he's there.

 

[krex1010]

The problem is this is a side business for most of the people selling wood. Most of these people don't have the room to store a few years worth of wood, so they really can't properly season wood, also most don't stack the wood after they split it, it's usually in a big pile, so when someone orders wood they just throw wood into a truck until they think they have a cord and off they go. And most people buying wood don't know they are getting shortchanged. I worked for a few tree service / firewood on the side guys all through high school and college and I know firsthand what goes on. If I was going to buy wood from someone for the first time i would have a talk with the guy , explain that you know how much wood is in a cord and you have been shortchanged in the past, let him know that you are looking for someone who sells honest cords and that you are someone who buys wood every year. The one guy I worked for for a few years had about 4 or 5 people that he knew were going to buy wood from him every fall so he always had wood split and set aside for them and they always got at least a cord. The people who called in October and were first time customers got the greener wood, he wasn't prepared for their order and he wasn't going to give his limited supply of good wood to someone who wasn't a long time customer. Remember most tree services are first and foremost a tree service, they will usually only spend time splitting wood when business is slow or the weather is holding them back. Firewood is just a side gig for most tree guys. Where I live there are a few guys who do have serious firewood businesses , they have wood that is seasoned for a year or more, but they charge like $250 a cord, which is more than I would ever pay (if was someone who bought wood). So if you have to buy wood I would say try to establish a relationship with a tree guy, let him know you are an educated customer, let him know if he is a trustworthy and dependable wood source then he can count on your business. Place your order in late winter or early spring so you know you at least have the summer for additional seasoning. Also if you are someone who wants to start processing your own wood remember depending on where you live, many tree services have to pay to dump wood. Some may be willing to drop logs at your house for a very modest price.