Just payed for 6 cords of wood

[wolfkiller]

Construction is very good this year. So good I didnt have time to get my wood. I ordered 6 cords of birch from a local wood guy. He hauled it unstacked in a full 10 yard dump truck. Two full loads. After spliting and stackin it is only mesuring 5 cords. My stacks are very tight. You cant even hardly see light through them. Should I raise a stink? It would have probably stacked to six cords if unsplit.

 

[LLigetfa]

Tree length Birch being generally crooked doesn't stack very tight so you are paying for air. I prefer to buy my logs in 8 foot length as it stacks in tighter.

I would ask the seller to make up the missing cord.

 

[webby3650]

If the guy didn't want any flack he should have split and stacked before delivering. If he said "about six cords" then that might be different, If he said it was 6 cords, then it should be 6 cords. Let him see it stacked, the truth don't lie.

 

[CarbonNeutral]

Get him to come have a look at it, ask him what his explanation is........


A cord short is some mighty stacking abilities....

 

[North of 60]

This has no bearing on you being shorted, just wondering the price of a cord of CSD in your area. Its going @ $200-$230 a cord here for beetle killed spruce.
Your closest hearth.com neighbor, N of 60.

 

[wolfkiller]

This has no bearing on you being shorted, just wondering the price of a cord of CSD in your area. Its going @ $200-$230 a cord here for beetle killed spruce.
Your closest hearth.com neighbor, N of 60.

I paid 1380. for 6 cords. It was well seasoned. I can find green for 200 a cord in rounds. I am buying 20 acers of heavily wooded land next week. I will be building a house there. Hopefully I wont be buying wood for a while. I am going to call the guy who delivered my wood and see what he says.

 

[jebatty]

6 cords of logs does not equal 6 cords of cut and split wood and vice versa. Before arguing with your supplier, it is important to be very clear that you and your supplier were talking exactly about the same kind of cord. As you know, a yard is 27 cu ft, a level 10 yard dump truck is only 270 cu ft, and if the wood was loose cut and split wood tossed into the truck, two loads may amount to only about 3 cords or so. If the truck was stacked high, the amount would be greater; apparently the 5 cords that you measured.

So, what was your exact agreement on "what kind of cord" you were buying? IMO, if you got good well-seasoned wood, your stacked 5 cords may be much better than 6 cords of unseasoned or poor quality wood. Maybe the best thing is to take this for what you got and be more precise the next time you buy wood.

You also probably already know that when you buy wood, different woods have much different heating values. To a firewood supplier, the cost of cutting, splitting and delivering is far higher than the cost of the wood itself, and you may find that the per cord price of high btu wood is barely higher than low btu wood - so buying high btu wood may be a better value.

In Minnesota, to get technical:

"Minn Stat 239.33 STANDARD MEASUREMENTS OF WOOD.

In all contracts for sale of wood the term "cord" shall mean 128 cubic feet of wood, bark, and air, if cut in four-foot lengths; and if the sale is of "sawed wood," a cord shall mean 110 cubic feet when ranked, or 160 cubic feet when thrown irregularly or loosely into a conveyance for delivery to the purchaser; and if the sale is of "sawed and split wood," a cord shall mean 120 cubic feet, when ranked, and 175 cubic feet when thrown irregularly and loosely into a conveyance for delivery."

 

[BrotherBart]

Guy sold you six cords of wood. He should deliver six cords of wood.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

I agree with BB. If the guy said it was six cords, then it should be six cords. However, if he said around or about six cords, then he is probably right. However, if it were me and I bought six cords of wood, I would expect six cords or a little more.

There is one key of a good seller. He should make sure you get what is ordered and then throw on a little extra to be sure of the volume. That little extra may be just kindling but is extra. It is sort of like the baker's dozen thing.

As for me, if I sell wood around here, I have to sell it as a "face cord," (which I hate). So I measure out a "face cord" of wood and then add a bunch of kindling. If I happen to be short on kindling, then I'll just throw on perhaps 10 or 15 extra splits or whatever. The point is, I make sure the guy gets his money's worth. I also never tell someone the wood is "seasoned." However, I do tell him when it was cut, split and stacked.

 

[smokinj]

Guy sold you six cords of wood. He should deliver six cords of wood.

+1 thats alot of cash

 

[Wet1]

I'd call the dealer and tell him what you have. If he's worth a sh!t he'll come over and make it right. It sounds like you paid him pretty good (although that might be the going rate in your area), so I would expect to be taken care of. I assume this is for the 2010/2011 heating season? If not, it looks like you're going to be burning wet wood this year...

BTW, haven't seen you around for a while... It sounds like construction is big in Alaska, kind of surprising given the economy. So how's that BK treating you? Recently someone was pointing out the BK is only rated for 2000 sq ft, I suggested they look up some of your old posts. :cheese:

 

[CrappieKeith]

I'd call him and ask him to pay you a visit...then show him your pile.
If he refuses to make that lost cord right ...I'd explain to him that your business is now lost and that you'll go out of your way to inform everyone about how the guy shorted you.

 

['bert]

Give him a call, what do you have to lose? If he makes good on his 6 cords then you have found a honest dealer who will respect you for knowing your facts. If he does not, then the only thing you have lost is a few minutes of your time, but you will have gained the knowledge of who to NOT call next time. If he decides not to make up the difference, a reminder that word of mouth goes a long way in a small community would be in order. You have knowledge (and wood) to gain and nothing to lose.

 

[maplewood]

One fall I realized my cutting efforts were slack, and I had to buy a cord of wood to top off my supply.
I called around for seasoned firewood, max 18" long for my stove, white maple or better.
Ordered it from a guy who promised it was a full cord (4'x4'x8'), seasoned one full year, all maple, $185.
He came in a half ton pickup truck with an 6' box, loosly stacked and slightly rounded. As we unloaded it into
my garage, I noticed some pieces were damp (stacked directly onto the ground, I guessed) and about
10% were longer than 18" (my max stove length at the time). I could live with that - I have a saw, and
I was keeping the wood in my garage - I could de-bark the damp pieces and get them to dry off.
But when he said, "Thanks, good bye", I said, "Uh - you're coming with the second load, aren't you?"
"What do you mean? This is a full cord! I've been selling wood for a long time - this is a full cord!"
In my youth and inexperience, I was shocked to see this reaction to my question. There was just over
1/2 a cord - no more. I said so, and he got red in the face: "I by my wood from a good friend, and he
delivers 12 cord tree length loads. This is 1/12th of one his loads - it's a full cord." I was shocked.
I didn't argue any more. I could not have made him see the truth.

Chalked it up to experience in transactions, verbal contracts, business honour and my poor planning.
Never had this problem again.

If you ordered 6 cords, and knew you were getting it cut to length but unsplit, and you say that it would
have probably stacked out to 6 cords before splitting - you got your wood. I'm guessing he would say
that the agreement wasn't for 6 cords after you split and stacked it. I've seen stacks of big rounds
that made smaller stacks of splits, but I couldn't guess if I had a 16% loss of my volume as you did.

You can't loose by calling him and explaining what you are experiencing. I'm guessing he'll say that
his loose loads sometimes have more air than he realizes, and he'll bring out a bit more wood.

Good luck, and happy burning up in God's country. I spent 9 years in Anchorage and 1.5 in Fairbanks.
Miss the mountains terribly.

 

[billb3]

Oh my, did I mis-read this thread title.

I was hoping you'd pray for me, too.

 

[myzamboni]

Oh my, did I mis-read this thread title.

I was hoping you'd pray for me, too.

Due to the font, I read that he paved for 6 cords and wondered how much paving he did.

 

[wolfkiller]

I called the wood guy today. He was insistent that it was impossible he was a cord+ short. I gave him the exact measurement's and explained the math. I asked him to stop by. He said he will stop by to tell me how many cords he thinks it looks like :question: . I explained looks had nothing to do with it but that he should stop by so I could show him it was short. He is supposed to be by tomorrow. He has fliers all over town advertising FULL CORDS. If he does not make it right there will be a flier under each one explaining how he shorted me with pics, measurements, and my name and phone number.
I might blow a few hundred on boat gas every weekend but I wont be cheated.

BTW The measurments are two rics 30' x 6' x 18"

 

[meathead]

Man that's just a little over 4 cords

30 x 6 x 1.5 = 270
270 x2 = 540

540 / 128 = 4.2

I don't care how tight you stack - he owes you 1.8 cords

 

[Arlo]

Why don't you call palin, maybe she'll get him fired.

LOL, sorry, couldn't help but read your handle. %-P

 

[Wet1]

Yep, I came up with 4.22 cords as well... sounds like he owes you at least 1.5 cords since you said it was stacked pretty tight.

 

[wolfkiller]

It looks like he decided to screw me. I called, he said he would come look and make it right, and he did not do either. Now I have set a spending limit of $1200 to make people aware of his business practices. This is a small town and a little advertising goes a long way.

 

[burntime]

Print a few of your own fliers...and file a complaint. I bet he comes running...

 

[wendell]

Have you just called him back that one time? I'd sure give him one more call before I ratchet things up and give him a deadline to have it delivered. As a fellow procrastinator, I know things don't get done until there is a deadline. :cheese:

 

[wolfkiller]

Well I called again. He didnt answer. So I called from my wifes phone. He picked right up. After I identified myself he hung up. I have fliers out. They have pics and my name and number after a decription of his practices. I have put out about 40 so far. After going after his future buisness in town I am going to take him to small claims court.
Yes I am pissed.
On the plus side I sold my house and my new property has a lifetime suply of fire wood.

 

[Wet1]

Definitely take him to court. Can you call the police with something like this and press charges? You paid for 6 cords of wood, he delivered <5 cords, that certainly sounds fraudulent to me!