Burning wood is free, right?

[jotul8e2]

Yesterday a moment of poor depth perception resulted in the head snapping off of my new practically brand new six lb. splitting maul. Resorting to a back up double bit ax, I managed to snap the head off of it in under five minutes. Today some work with the chainsaw resulted in what appear to be compound curves in the cuts - time for another new chain bar. With the new gallon of bar oil from last week, I'm pushing $50 for the last six days.

But if you have plenty of trees, firewood is free, right?


Mark

 

[kenny chaos]

Man up Mark. Ain't nothin' free.

 

[weezer4117]

you could easly have a $150 gas bill when things go wrong, just think, it could ALWAYS be worse!!

 

[bcnu]

Hey, I love my "free" wood.

 

[jeff6443]

I cant drink beer all day everyday , yesI can so far my woods free . And I have more beer . Too Cool JM

 

[doubledip]

That's what I keep telling my sore elbows, back and knees... the wood is free.

 

[jeff6443]

Chain saw tractor my wood guy splitter my time I m 44 yep all free . To me I hurt South Jersey Gas . I hit him harder next year I have poor wod . JM

 

[Bigg_Redd]

Yesterday a moment of poor depth perception resulted in the head snapping off of my new practically brand new six lb. splitting maul. Resorting to a back up double bit ax, I managed to snap the head off of it in under five minutes. Today some work with the chainsaw resulted in what appear to be compound curves in the cuts - time for another new chain bar. With the new gallon of bar oil from last week, I'm pushing $50 for the last six days.

But if you have plenty of trees, firewood is free, right?


Mark

You know any saw shop can true that bar, right?

 

[free75degrees]

process more of the free wood and sell it to pay for the equipment.

 

[savageactor7]

^I thought of doing that too but it a lot of work and the price around here doesn't make it worthwhile. Sure it's worth my time for our house but to sell it I dunno. If Mark had to pay for wood for a few years he'd be me quick to admit that his wood is free...

...the day will come when the goverment will will find a way to tax us for the trees we cut down on our property... ya all just wait and see.

 

[Wet1]

LOL, I've spent way more on wood harvesting equipment that I'll save in a lifetime! But yes, my wood is "free"...

 

[smokinj]

process more of the free wood and sell it to pay for the equipment.

This is what I do sell enough to pay for equiment (got a lot more to cut but everything holding up nicley)

 

[DWW68]

It is funny how sometimes I can't afford free. :-S

 

[wiringlunatic]

And don't forget the chiropractor appointments from splitting and stacking, the gas for whatever you move it with, and the fuel for the saws. My old Homelites get about the same gas mileage as my Chevy work van. (My Echo is lighter and more fuel efficient, but that cost me $50+ to get fixed because I didn't want to have to get a mining permit to take it apart the engine is so deep, and it still is about useless.) But it's fun and good exercise (or so I've been told.) Actually, I think the greatest thing about cutting wood is if you have a friend who does as well and you spend a Saturday together cutting and dragging. It don't get any better than that (well......) Hey, maybe I could spend some quality time with my wife that way ... wonder how she'd look swinging my old 770D 26" Homelite around -- maybe not. Keep burnin' and have fun with it. At least your money is going to some losal businesses, not to foreign countries that hate us.

 

[smokinj]

It is funny how sometimes I can't afford free. :-S

yep there is nothing free about it.I broke down the cost of free wood for me fix cost 3500.00(equiment) and variable cost is a cord of wood 30.00 per cord! with just me using the wood it will take 3 years to pay off the equiment.I sell 10- 15 cords a year that bring in 1500-2250 a year!so by sellin it i will pay for every thing in a season.but still have the 30 per cord cost thats including help(i use 10 cords a year) and produce 32 cords so far and doing 3/4 cord a week right now.

 

[woodconvert]

Yesterday a moment of poor depth perception resulted in the head snapping off of my new practically brand new six lb. splitting maul. Resorting to a back up double bit ax, I managed to snap the head off of it in under five minutes. Today some work with the chainsaw resulted in what appear to be compound curves in the cuts - time for another new chain bar. With the new gallon of bar oil from last week, I'm pushing $50 for the last six days.

But if you have plenty of trees, firewood is free, right?

Mark

First, dunno how long you've been at it but you will get to the point where you don't have those depth perception moments...or they will be very rare. It comes with time.
Second...defince compound cuts. I'd bet you have one side of your chain dull so instead of cutting straight you are cutting an arc?. Inspect your chain and file it back in (both sides, by hand), try it again before you purchase more "free stuff".
Lastly, when you can go out and cut all day or many days with no failures it's as close to free as you are going to get....but you'll still pinch a bar when felling, still gotta buy gas and oil, maintenance, etc. Taint nothing free but it's closer to free than burning oil/nat gas/propane.

 

[wiringlunatic]

Fiberglass handles and those rubber shock collars to put on the handles both lessen the effect of those "depth perception" problems. My maul has a 'glass handle and my axe is wood. My axe is sitting in a corner with a broken handle, my maul is still running strong, despite some "depth perception" issues.

 

[gzecc]

For all the work that goes into processing firewood, I still can't believe somebody sells it for $200 per cord. I think it should be 450-500. I wouldn't sell mine for anything less, even unseasoned! Man its a lot of work!

 

[bcnu]

For all the work that goes into processing firewood, I still can't believe somebody sells it for $200 per cord. I think it should be 450-500. I wouldn't sell mine for anything less, even unseasoned! Man its a lot of work!

After my first year of cutting, loading, unloading, splitting, stacking, loading, unloading, stackng, and burning, I decided I would never sell my wood for any price. Too valuable. I might give some away. Sell it - nope.

 

[smokinj]

For all the work that goes into processing firewood, I still can't believe somebody sells it for $200 per cord. I think it should be 450-500. I wouldn't sell mine for anything less, even unseasoned! Man its a lot of work!

After my first year of cutting, loading, unloading, splitting, stacking, loading, unloading, stackng, and burning, I decided I would never sell my wood for any price. Too valuable. I might give some away. Sell it - nope.

yea but then you can justify more equiment!lol thats where it all starts

 

[kenny chaos]

What kinda caveman even uses an ax or maul anymore.:coolsmile: If you're using those tools, be grateful for your health.

 

[smokinj]

What kinda caveman even uses an ax or maul anymore.:coolsmile: If you're using those tools, be grateful for your health.

on the big rounds the splitter donesnt always go all the way through thats when i use them!

 

[wiringlunatic]

What kinda caveman even uses an ax or maul anymore.:coolsmile: If you're using those tools, be grateful for your health.

UGH! This kind. As long as you have good wood to split, a maul is way faster than a splitter. A few wedges make the difficult easy and the impossible only difficult. It's also good exercise. But the number one reason for the maul and wedges is.........*drumroll*........... I'M CHEAP! I have about $30 invested in my maul and wedges.

 

[jotul8e2]

I regret to say I've been doing this sort of thing for 30 years now. However, my excuse for the maul handle is that a) I was tired, b) it was twilight, and c) I've only been using a splitting maul for about a month; too soon old, too late smart.... The ax handle was of unknown age - I have a weakness for double bit axes and can't pass them up at $1 or $2 each at farm auctions - and this one was just dry rotted.

No, my post was part in fun, part serious. I knew when I began to design our new house that the wood heat would be a slow payoff, what I didn't realize was that increased efficiency in heat pumps combined with my extensive use of insulation means that in our Missouri climate the stove, flue, and associated costs of gathering wood means that I may never pull ahead. Since our furnace was new last winter, and under warranty, I used it exclusively for heating our house. Our total heating costs were $400. No, that is not a misprint - four hundred US dollars for the entire heating season. We are all electric and it runs about nine cents a kwh.

I fear that too many people simply look at the cost of the stove and installation and fail to calculate what it will cost in time and money to keep a steady supply of wood going year after year. And that is without going into all the things that are "nice to have." I do not have a powered splitter (and not really sure I would like one for my particular situation), but I would like a 4X4 atv, or maybe four wheel drive Kabota tractor for hauling logs out of the woods. The cost of a used one would buy me, what, 10 years of heat? And another machine to maintain?

Oh, about the saw bar - it's at the saw shop ready to pick up. I really didn't think it would true up again, but it did. My other one is about as worn, so I probably ought to get one new one soon anyway.

I'm not complaining, mind you. And I'd do it all again in a heartbeat. The warmth, the glow of the fire, the source of heat when the power is down, it is all very important to me.

Excuse me, I've got to go cut up some logs.

Mark

 

[savageactor7]

jotul8e2 I have all those toys you mentioned paid for with what I 'saved' burning free wood. Somewhere around here is a post where I explained...as my wife explained it to me, to realize any true savings you have still put away the money you budgeted for household heat and don't touch it except for tools of the trade. Or until such time as yada yada yada...then it gets confusing and my eyes glaze over.

If you spend money that you supposedly saved from free anything, that's living beyond your means or planning a spending budget based on what you make including temp overtime. Not to jump on jotul8e2 but as a heads up to you young bucks that burn to save money. You can save a lot of coin doing this but savings are only realized when estimated fossil fuel heating expenses are redirected to an untouchable account.