Scrounge priorities - Species, ease of access, difficulty?

[basswidow]

For all of you scroungers,

what is your criterior that you use to decide whether a scrounge is taken? Scrounges can be an easy blessing or tough. Where do you draw the line?

For me, tree species comes first, and ease of removal comes next, then technical difficulty (within my skills) comes into play. If it's a junk tree, tough to get, ...... let it sit.

Would you pass on a tree that is tricky or requires alot of effort to remove it?

Whats your breaking point? Most of my remaining scrounges are remaining because someone doesn't want to put the effort into taking the tree.

One oak is tetering on a rock ledge (I'll cut it and let it drop) and get it at the bottom. The other oak involves 100+ feet of wheel barrel thru a thicket to get to the truck (that's gonna wear me out but I'll do it for oak). The ASH is down a 4 foot bank in a thicket of briars (so I'll have to toss the rounds up the bank). I'll take a swing sickle and clear a path. Another hickory is tetering close to the road and because of yard landscaping - the truck will not be close (it's gonna be a bear - but hickory is worth it). (I'll use a latter to top the branches first). Another Hickory is hanging across a neighbors drive and over a neighbors fence. (I'll use a latter again to top the branches so it will clear the fence).

I love the scrounges that are at a construction site and all the work is done - just pull up and cut and fill the truck. They're rare lately.

 

[RNLA]

I think about access mostly. The species is important but any scrounge is work so I'm into easy...

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Remember that it takes no longer to put up good wood as it does marginal wood.

 

[bluedogz]

For me, it's ease of access... I tend to find wood while driving around in my Camry for work, which can take me 100+ miles from home. The Mrs. has the truck, so it needs to be:
1) available
2) free
3) burnable
4) somewhere I can drive the truck to on a Sunday, my only day off.

I've already had the experience of finding free oak in New Jersey, 120 miles from home. Yuck.

 

[Gunks]

Ease of access is most important for me. Don't want to haul the wood a long distance. Then it is distance from my home. I seldom scrounge any wood more than 20 miles from home. Then it is the species. Willow, sycamore, or pine? Only if they are delivered to my house for free.

 

[Flatbedford]

Remember that it takes no longer to put up good wood as it does marginal wood.

1. species
2. access
3. technical challenges (leaner, buildings, roadside traffic)

There are about a dozen nice sized Black Locust rounds about 5 miles from me on the side of a 4 lane highway. The ground they are on is about the same height above the road as the bed of my truck with a vertical concrete wall down to the road. The road is pretty heavily traveled and the shoulder is only about 3/4 the width of my truck.

1.Excellent species
2.Easily loaded on the truck, and already cut into rounds by the state DOT
3.Will interfere with the flow of traffic on a busy road

I will have to see them every day I drive to work until the are covered by other growth, rot (not likely with BL) or somebody else is crazy enough to take 'em.

 

[smokinj]

If the trailer and splitter can not be put next to the tree. NO BRUSH!

 

[Jack768]

Location and access are most important for me. My SUV, fully loaded, holds maybe 1/4 cord and, loaded that way, gets something like 10 mpg (and requires 93 oct). So get out about 35-40 miles, and it costs nearly the same as c/s/d except I have to do the c/s/ding. Have had some great really local scrounges -- two houses over, big oak came down in Irene, rounds stacked by removal co, got them to stack it in my driveway for $20, two cords total, another time three houses down grabbed half a cord of oak from tree trimmers -- but with my equipment, driving a long way for wood doesn't make sense.

 

[cygnus]

1) Must be at the curb (=bucked)
2) distance
3) species
4) processing space
5) wife's current view of how much is enough

 

[SolarAndWood]

I no longer go after anything I can't back my trailer to.

 

[Flatbedford]

I think it also depends on how badly you need it. I have three years stacked now. I don't have to kill myself or take lesser wood either any more.

 

[WOODBUTCHER]

1. ease of removal and technical difficulty

2. tree species

Would you pass on a tree that is tricky or requires alot of effort to remove it? YES

Whats your breaking point? 1.

WoodButcher

 

[kbrown]

Location, Location, Location! :cheese:
Followed by species. Like Backwoods said, the amount of work is the same regardless of species, so I like to first see where the stuff is located. Normally, I wouldn't take box elder, but when it's cut up sitting along a driveway with a FREE sign, then why not get a quick truck full? However, if it was in the backyard with no access and you have to take it piece by piece, then it's not worth it for stuff like that.

 

[red oak]

I cut in the National Forest - I get 18 loads per year for $20. I will usually select the easiest trees to get and can almost always find something within 50 ft. of the road. I'll only cut hardwood, mostly red or white oak. And if it's hard to get too or technically difficult I will just pass on it and let someone more skilled/determined than I am get it.

 

[madrone]

1. Is it free?
2. Do I have time?

 

[chvymn99]

When I started this spring, I worked my butt off to get a head start. But as I started building inventory, I started to become more picky about location, Wood, and how much work was involved to get it home (size of wood and location of wood to loading area). Now that I've got 3-5 yrs (dont know how much I'll use assuming 2 1/2 cords a year) of inventory at the house. I'm just helping my elderly neighbor to build inventory.

 

[stephiedoll]

I watch CL but easy is everything. I have a tree service dumping on my driveway (2 years of wood here at the house). Also have a tree service that will dump at my partner's place when we want (I have about 2-3 years of personal wood there as well). In addition, yet another tree service will dump from time to time or call me when he has good wood. A couple weeks ago, spent the Sunday helping them and getting 4+ cords of honeylocust out of it.
Life is good in the land of taxes

 

[Wood Duck]

I've never really thought much about how I make my decisions, but now that you ask, I guess ease of access is about 75% of the grade, species is about 25%. A scrounge needs about a B- (80%) to be selected, so if it is super accessible (it gets all 75% of the accessibility points), it needs only a few points in the species category to be a go. That means unless it is willow or ailanthus (both earn zero points in the species category) an easily accessible tree is likely to be a go. On the other hand, if it is tough to get to, then even a perfect score in the species cateogry might not be enough for me to go after it. Technical difficulty is more like a yes/no decision; either I think I can safely fell it or not. If it is down already either I think I can buck it with my saw or not. If i think I can handle it technically I decide based on accessibility and species of tree.

 

[SolarAndWood]

A scrounge needs about a B- (80%) to be selected, so if it is super accessible (it gets all 75% of the accessibility points), it needs only a few points in the species category to be a go.

Never really considered the level of precision that has crept into scrounge evaluation. I now use a sliding scale: primo, burnable, not worth my time. I think I use your precision in the sub conscious though as all the pine I get comes from within a half mile of my house while I will drive 10 or 15 miles for the good stuff. Before I got ahead, I brought just about anything home with the hopes it would split instead of crumble.

 

[SolarAndWood]

yet another tree service will dump from time to time or call me when he has good wood. A couple weeks ago, spent the Sunday helping them and getting 4+ cords of honeylocust out of it.

I am in awe of you guys that work these deals out. And you have 3 of them? Need to up my game.

 

[stephiedoll]

yet another tree service will dump from time to time or call me when he has good wood. A couple weeks ago, spent the Sunday helping them and getting 4+ cords of honeylocust out of it.

I am in awe of you guys that work these deals out. And you have 3 of them? Need to up my game.

Good for them and for me. Last load I got was Russian Olive with no notice. I checked my camera and it took them 4 minutes from the time they drove up to the time that they were out of here. I'm told it is big bucks to dump at a tree dump plus (at times) the lines. I am also lucky because I live less then a mile from where they park their trucks (next to my work so I got several loads by throwing it in my truck from theirs when they have it. So far, they have been good to me by not dumping oversize or soft woods. Load before this was ash and 1/2 cord apple.

To all that read this, call around. When they are in your area they will be happy to dump, but it must be easy access.

 

[Wood Duck]

A scrounge needs about a B- (80%) to be selected, so if it is super accessible (it gets all 75% of the accessibility points), it needs only a few points in the species category to be a go.

Never really considered the level of precision that has crept into scrounge evaluation. I now use a sliding scale: primo, burnable, not worth my time. I think I use your precision in the sub conscious though as all the pine I get comes from within a half mile of my house while I will drive 10 or 15 miles for the good stuff. Before I got ahead, I brought just about anything home with the hopes it would split instead of crumble.

I hadn't really thought about driving distance, but I guess that is part of the accessibility. 10 or 15 miles is a long drive for me to get wood - there are a lot of trees a lot closer than that.

 

[Got Wood]

The main factors have been covered already.... I'll add

If this scrounge has the potential to lead to more....it gets an upgrade

If this scrounge is helping a neighbor or friend clean up .... it gets an upgrade

If its the middle of winter and I have been inside too long and need to get out and move .... it gets an upgrade

If the wood is covered in poison ivy vines .... downgrade

In general, I have been able to get well ahead (working on 2014-15 now) by using the motto "never say no"

 

[basswidow]

Great replies! Thanks all.

I am also completely jealous of those who get Free wood dumped at home by tree companies. It's only happened once to me (right place and time). I need to ask around and groom up some contacts.

I also agree - it takes no less time to cut up a good tree vs a poor tree. Might as well shop around for good wood.

Another aspect which should have been obvious is - it depends on how much you have already and how hard up you are.

That makes perfect sence and is the reason I will trudge thru on the rough scrounges - because I need to fill 2013 and beyond.

 

[lukem]

LukeM's firewood rules to live by:

1.) Must be free...
2.) Must be "cherry or better" species
3.) Must not be more than 10' to truck or trailer
4.) Must be within a 20 minute drive each way

Might sound a little picky, but I've gotten about 30 cord of wood in the past year and a half that met all 4 criteria.