some people....

[Remmy122]

I saw a friend of mine last night who has recently moved away. He was telling me that a friend where he lives is collecting up wood now for the winter because he also burns wood.

He then said to me "If you ever have too much wood and want to get rid of some let me know, I can get rid of it for you" .......
Yeah, because I want to "get rid" of the 6 cords of wood I hauled by hand, split by hand, stacked and actualy took the time to properly season, FOR FREE.

So to finish the title "Some people have NO idea!"

 

[oldspark]

I get rid of my wood by putting in the stove.

 

[snowleopard]

I get rid of my wood by putting in the stove. :lol:

I am trying to hold my head at a funny angle to see if his question makes more sense of I kind of jiggle my brain a little, and nope.

How does someone figure that you end up with too much wood? It follows you home? The piles breed? New math? You have awood-gathering compulsion? (well, we've all got that lil problem, but that's why we participate in this online support group, to help us cope.) A little like asking, if you ever have too much money . . .

OTOH, I think you're right--it's because your friend sees another friend with a problem, and has no clue of what's involved.

 

[Remmy122]

OTOH, I think you're right--it's because your friend sees another friend with a problem, and has no clue of what's involved.

Im all for lending a hand and helping, and would take him some if thats how it was asked.

He lives 45 mins away so I not worried about him stepping on my scournging grounds, so I gave him some tips (CL, Tree trimmers, the city, etc...) but as far as driving 45 minutes to LOOSE wood, I dont think so!

For some reason people look at my wood stacks (4 4'x12' pallets) and think I have alot, they need to take a look at some of you guys to see what "alot" of wood looks like!

 

[woodchip]

I am trying to hold my head at a funny angle to see if his question makes more sense of I kind of jiggle my brain a little, and nope.

People who do not burn wood have no conception of the idea of working 3 years ahead.

It's like the old days when you wanted to buy a car, went without and saved up for three years, and bought it with your hard earned money.

Everything is now so instant at the touch of a button, the idea of keeping wood stored for 3 years is an alien idea, like some curiosity out of a Dickens novel....... ;-)

 

[Shadow&Flame]

You can always find people who want something for nothing. I have been asked about wood many times and some even had the gall to ask if I would deliver it as well... Then you have those who want to trade you green poplar for seasoned oak...yeah that's gonna happen.

I don't mind helping people out, but I am not going to be a patsy either. I make sure that the older people around me have plenty of wood and kindling for the year. They have been good to me in the past and I return the favor in kind.

Last sig line says it all...

 

[Flatbedford]

I gave about 1/4 cord to my brother in law when he bought his house in fall 2009. I was there for the last Super Bowl and he still had most of it. At least it is well seasoned now. I hope he hasn't thrown it away.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

OTOH, I think you're right--it's because your friend sees another friend with a problem, and has no clue of what's involved.

Im all for lending a hand and helping, and would take him some if thats how it was asked.

He lives 45 mins away so I not worried about him stepping on my scournging grounds, so I gave him some tips (CL, Tree trimmers, the city, etc...) but as far as driving 45 minutes to LOOSE wood, I dont think so!

For some reason people look at my wood stacks (4 4'x12' pallets) and think I have alot, they need to take a look at some of you guys to see what "alot" of wood looks like!

I know what you mean Remmy. People seem to think I have a lot of wood on hand too. Can't seem to figure that one out.

 

[Village Idiot]

In the spring I had my house torn down and am building a new on in its place. Prior to moving out, I cut down all the trees that needed to go and C/S/S it all along the back property line. My builder let me know that he was getting phone calls from people offering to help clear up the mess in the back yard by getting rid of all that wood.

Perhaps if it were a big jumble of wood, but it was C/S/S in nice rows. The next day my wife and I made laminated signs with hot pink paper that said "Do Not Remove any Wood." The phone calls to our builder stopped.

 

[mhrischuk]

To be honest with you, I have, on many occasion seen people with cords of split wood.... literally rotting away and asking people to take it away. Some inherited it while others built it up but didn't burn it fast enough.

 

[firefighterjake]

Only here do I feel normal about my stacks of wood . . . in the "real world" friends and neighbors wonder why I have so much wood and joke about me and the wood . . . they just don't get the need to plan ahead and have well seasoned wood . . . especially when right now they see or know of folks bucking up, splitting and stacking the wood for this coming winter whereas my wood was processed two years ago.

 

[wannabegreener]

Only here do I feel normal about my stacks of wood . . . in the "real world" friends and neighbors wonder why I have so much wood and joke about me and the wood . . . they just don't get the need to plan ahead and have well seasoned wood . . . especially when right now they see or know of folks bucking up, splitting and stacking the wood for this coming winter whereas my wood was processed two years ago.

Jake, It must be a wood forum thing. I get the same joking with the neighbors. My neighbor asked me yesterday if I went into the wood selling business. I just finished c/s/s my grapple load. I had 5 cords before the load and I have 11+ cords now. I have the need for more. I have no good place to put it, but I still want/need more.

This will be my first full year with the insert so who knows how much I will need. Last year I ran out of dry wood in march and went through 2.5 cords. Started late December.

I'm hoping the 11 cords will be about 3 years worth of wood.

 

[Bspring]

I would offer them some Gum, Yellow Poplar, or Virgina Pine. They all grow on my land and I have little use for any of them. However, I am not going to c/s/s it for them.

 

[CTYank]

I would offer them some Gum, Yellow Poplar, or Virgina Pine. They all grow on my land and I have little use for any of them. However, I am not going to c/s/s it for them.

Definitely cut it for them. Then they won't bleed on your property.

 

[Cluttermagnet]

Around here, when a tree comes down, homeowners are required by statute to have the wood stacked as rounds. You can't legally leave it lying around in piles (though some do, and get away with it). Nothing in the statute about any need for splitting. Anyway, I think that many stacks of rounds were never intended for the homeowner's use as firewood. Others who do burn firewood get used to that sort of thing. "Ask and ye (may) receive." "Nothing ventured, nothing gained..." ;-)

 

[fabsroman]

Only here do I feel normal about my stacks of wood . . . in the "real world" friends and neighbors wonder why I have so much wood and joke about me and the wood . . . they just don't get the need to plan ahead and have well seasoned wood . . . especially when right now they see or know of folks bucking up, splitting and stacking the wood for this coming winter whereas my wood was processed two years ago.

Jake, It must be a wood forum thing. I get the same joking with the neighbors. My neighbor asked me yesterday if I went into the wood selling business. I just finished c/s/s my grapple load. I had 5 cords before the load and I have 11+ cords now. I have the need for more. I have no good place to put it, but I still want/need more.

This will be my first full year with the insert so who knows how much I will need. Last year I ran out of dry wood in march and went through 2.5 cords. Started late December.

I'm hoping the 11 cords will be about 3 years worth of wood.

You and I are about in the same shape. I am about to install a wood burning furnace and have finally put the brakes on cutting and splitting for the year. I think I have 10+ cords on hand, but will not know for sure until I stack it all. My neighbors think I have 10 years worth of wood.

Once I get all the racks built and all of this wood stacked, I will see if I have any more room available to stack it right now. Today, I told my dad that I want to have about 15 cords on hand. He looked at me and said "You are nuts." That was just after he said "Get all the wood you can while you can get it for free."

To the OP, your friend has lost his mind. I would have replied "If you want to come along and help, I would be more than happy to fill your truck up too." Other than that, I wouldn't give him a piece of firewood unless he was hurt and couldn't do it himself or he was handicapped. As an attorney/CPA with my own practice, I can completely relate to this situation. So many of my "friends" want me to do things for free for them because it does not cost me anything to represent them since I have my own practice.

Before cutting and splitting everything that I have done in the past 60 days, I thought about selling some of this stuff. Now, I have a connection with this wood and the only place I want to see it go is into the furnace.

 

[fabsroman]

Around here, when a tree comes down, homeowners are required by statute to have the wood stacked as rounds. You can't legally leave it lying around in piles (though some do, and get away with it). Nothing in the statute about any need for splitting. Anyway, I think that many stacks of rounds were never intended for the homeowner's use as firewood. Others who do burn firewood get used to that sort of thing. "Ask and ye (may) receive." "Nothing ventured, nothing gained..." ;-)

Is that a local ordinance, or a state statute? I am wondering if there is something like that where I am living because I have stacks of split wood all over the place. Kind of silly to require the rounds get stacked.

What happens if you leave the tree sitting on the ground? Does the statute require that splits be stacked immediately too?

 

[Cluttermagnet]

Is that a local ordinance, or a state statute? I am wondering if there is something like that where I am living because I have stacks of split wood all over the place. Kind of silly to require the rounds get stacked.

What happens if you leave the tree sitting on the ground? Does the statute require that splits be stacked immediately too?

Stacks should rarely if ever cause any problems. Piles might be another story. Downed trees that go uncut would definitely be a problem around here.

It's a county ordinance where I live. (I'm in a different county than you) I can't answer every question you asked, but I'm quite sure about the stacking thing. Basically any tree that comes down must be cut up and either removed from your property or stacked. It mentions nothing about splitting prior to stacking. I'm sure it is mostly about minimizing unsightliness. They could care less whether it is intended for firewood or not.

Now as to whether it's enforced or not, that is a totally different issue. Either there would have to be a neighbor complaint or an accidental sighting by one of the code enforcement people. Then they would 'have to' write you up and demand the stacking. They (fortunately) can't be everywhere. But if you give them an excuse to write you up, they may feel free to also write you up for any other visible infractions if they feel like it. Best to try to keep a low profile.

The whole thing that started me out in wood burning was that a neighbor sic-ed the county on me over a dead tree. He never even bothered to first contact me personally to discuss the matter. Yeah, nice neighbors. I was looking at 3-4 thousand dollars initially to have it removed. But the county's backlog ended up allowing me enough breathing room (time) to get more estimates until I got it down to around 1500. Still, it hurt me financially. Most expensive 3-4 cords of Oak I've burned so far (I'm a scrounger).

Even in the same state, different counties can have very different rules, oftentimes. Over here, the locals are aggressive. There is no point in going up against them, you are ultimately going to lose, and they have deep enough pockets to make you miserable if you want to try to buck them. There have been a few notable cases in this area that dragged on for years, but the county always prevailed ultimately. Their lawyers just relentlessly wear you down. I would never get involved in such a situation myself- I know a lost cause when I see one. Just cave and cut your losses.

Wood stacks? No problem IMO. BTW my expensively felled Oak lay around in my back yard as rounds for about three years, unchallenged, before I got around to splitting it all up. No more neighbor complaints, I guess. But I'm darned sure that they checked to verify that the tree did come down. Once they're on it, they'll never give up. Think 'Pit Bull'.

 

[fabsroman]

Is that a local ordinance, or a state statute? I am wondering if there is something like that where I am living because I have stacks of split wood all over the place. Kind of silly to require the rounds get stacked.

What happens if you leave the tree sitting on the ground? Does the statute require that splits be stacked immediately too?

Stacks should rarely if ever cause any problems. Piles might be another story. Downed trees that go uncut would definitely be a problem around here.

It's a county ordinance where I live. (I'm in a different county than you) I can't answer every question you asked, but I'm quite sure about the stacking thing. Basically any tree that comes down must be cut up and either removed from your property or stacked. It mentions nothing about splitting prior to stacking. I'm sure it is mostly about minimizing unsightliness. They could care less whether it is intended for firewood or not.

Now as to whether it's enforced or not, that is a totally different issue. Either there would have to be a neighbor complaint or an accidental sighting by one of the code enforcement people. Then they would 'have to' write you up and demand the stacking. They (fortunately) can't be everywhere. But if you give them an excuse to write you up, they may feel free to also write you up for any other visible infractions if they feel like it. Best to try to keep a low profile.

The whole thing that started me out in wood burning was that a neighbor sic-ed the county on me over a dead tree. He never even bothered to first contact me personally to discuss the matter. Yeah, nice neighbors. I was looking at 3-4 thousand dollars initially to have it removed. But the county's backlog ended up allowing me enough breathing room (time) to get more estimates until I got it down to around 1500. Still, it hurt me financially. Most expensive 3-4 cords of Oak I've burned so far (I'm a scrounger).

Even in the same state, different counties can have very different rules, oftentimes. Over here, the locals are aggressive. There is no point in going up against them, you are ultimately going to lose, and they have deep enough pockets to make you miserable if you want to try to buck them. There have been a few notable cases in this area that dragged on for years, but the county always prevailed ultimately. Their lawyers just relentlessly wear you down. I would never get involved in such a situation myself- I know a lost cause when I see one. Just cave and cut your losses.

Wood stacks? No problem IMO. BTW my expensively felled Oak lay around in my back yard as rounds for about three years, unchallenged, before I got around to splitting it all up. No more neighbor complaints, I guess. But I'm darned sure that they checked to verify that the tree did come down. Once they're on it, they'll never give up. Think 'Pit Bull'.

If I had to guess, I would guess that you live in Montgomery County, Maryland, which is where I just moved out of 7 months ago. My sister lives in that county in Chevy Chase and the regulations are insane. She cannot take down a tree without a permit. You pretty much need a permit to pass gas where she lives. I grew up in that county and lived there for 36 years. I had enough of it a little while ago.

 

[Cluttermagnet]

I had enough of it a little while ago.

Quite understandable. If I were a little more 'portable', I'd much prefer to live more out in the country. I couldn't stand it to live in a place like Silver Spring, Rockville, Bethesda, etc. I'm about half way between those two extremes.

 

[billb3]

I have too much wood.

I'll go 50/50 with anyone can unload pine.
You'll have to cut it, split it and deliver it to get your cut.

:devil:

 

[fabsroman]

I had enough of it a little while ago.

Quite understandable. If I were a little more 'portable', I'd much prefer to live more out in the country. I couldn't stand it to live in a place like Silver Spring, Rockville, Bethesda, etc. I'm about half way between those two extremes.

I grew up in Kensington and then Silver Spring. Used to ride my bike up route 97 all the time in the mid 80's without an issue. Now, I only ride on that road out of necessity. Way too much traffic.

7 years ago my wife and I moved to Germantown. Thought I would be getting away from the madness in the Silver Spring area, but they are developing the Germantown area like crazy. Cornfields I used to hunt in are now developments. Driving through King's Farm makes me want to cry. I can remember when there were dairy cows and geese aplenty there. I can just see the look on my kids' faces when I tell them that King's Farm used to be a dairy farm. Kind of like 35 years ago when my dad pointed to a shopping center in Prince George's County and told me that he used to hunt quail there. I thought he was crazy.

We like the new area we moved to, but I am willing to bet that in 20 to 30 years it is going to be just like the Silver Spring/Colesville area because the developments are starting to pop up here too.

 

[Cluttermagnet]

I grew up in Kensington and then Silver Spring. Used to ride my bike up route 97 all the time in the mid 80's without an issue. Now, I only ride on that road out of necessity. Way too much traffic.

7 years ago my wife and I moved to Germantown. Thought I would be getting away from the madness in the Silver Spring area, but they are developing the Germantown area like crazy. Cornfields I used to hunt in are now developments. Driving through King's Farm makes me want to cry. I can remember when there were dairy cows and geese aplenty there. I can just see the look on my kids' faces when I tell them that King's Farm used to be a dairy farm. Kind of like 35 years ago when my dad pointed to a shopping center in Prince George's County and told me that he used to hunt quail there. I thought he was crazy.

We like the new area we moved to, but I am willing to bet that in 20 to 30 years it is going to be just like the Silver Spring/Colesville area because the developments are starting to pop up here too.

I still remember that the roof of the barn on King's farm had block letters:

Milk for Thompson's Dairy

That lettering became too faded to read, many years before that barn got taken down for the present 'instant city'. Heck, we actually had home delivery from Thompson's for one year (59).

A friend and I once rode our bicycles from Gaithersburg all the way down to DC via Bethesda one afternoon. Went as far as the WTTG TV5 studios on Wisconsin Avenue before turning around and riding all the way back out. It was no big deal, really- and these were single speed bikes. Today I wouldn't risk cycling through Gotham- er, Bethesda. Totally uninviting metropolis of glass, steel, and concrete and unfit for human habitation IMO. Seriously, how do people live that way? I guess I'm a country boy at heart. I hope to some day actually live in the country. Hmmm, well, I guess I did, for a time. Progress... (siiiighhh!)

 

[fabsroman]

I grew up in Kensington and then Silver Spring. Used to ride my bike up route 97 all the time in the mid 80's without an issue. Now, I only ride on that road out of necessity. Way too much traffic.

7 years ago my wife and I moved to Germantown. Thought I would be getting away from the madness in the Silver Spring area, but they are developing the Germantown area like crazy. Cornfields I used to hunt in are now developments. Driving through King's Farm makes me want to cry. I can remember when there were dairy cows and geese aplenty there. I can just see the look on my kids' faces when I tell them that King's Farm used to be a dairy farm. Kind of like 35 years ago when my dad pointed to a shopping center in Prince George's County and told me that he used to hunt quail there. I thought he was crazy.

We like the new area we moved to, but I am willing to bet that in 20 to 30 years it is going to be just like the Silver Spring/Colesville area because the developments are starting to pop up here too.

I still remember that the roof of the barn on King's farm had block letters:

Milk for Thompson's Dairy

That lettering became too faded to read, many years before that barn got taken down for the present 'instant city'. Heck, we actually had home delivery from Thompson's for one year (59).

A friend and I once rode our bicycles from Gaithersburg all the way down to DC via Bethesda one afternoon. Went as far as the WTTG TV5 studios on Wisconsin Avenue before turning around and riding all the way back out. It was no big deal, really- and these were single speed bikes. Today I wouldn't risk cycling through Gotham- er, Bethesda. Totally uninviting metropolis of glass, steel, and concrete and unfit for human habitation IMO. Seriously, how do people live that way? I guess I'm a country boy at heart. I hope to some day actually live in the country. Hmmm, well, I guess I did, for a time. Progress... (siiiighhh!)

I was just in Chevy Chase tonight right by East West Highway and Connecticut for my brother in-law's birthday party. As soon as we got there, I wanted to leave. Montgomery County just isn't what it used to be, and sadly I think I am going to witness the same thing happen to Howard County while I am here. Next big purchase for us is a farm on the eastern shore.

Can you imagine trying to ride on 355/Rockville Pike/Wisconsin Avenue nowadays? Even up around Frederick it is pretty bad. I remember riding that road all the way to Frederick in the mid 80's and there was hardly a car to be seen.

Ah, progress, you have to love it.