That point when you don't have to worry about running out

[JA600L]

So I made a goal this last year to get 3 years ahead. I cut early and often. I cut lots of softwood and hardwood and kept them separate. I worked around my (now 3 year) pile of split oak. I started in the fall of last year and am now burning those soft woods mixed with cherry and ash. I am on my way to 10 cords of wood. Most of which is premium.

The funny thing is that I still find my self trying to conserve wood. I've been teaching myself to enjoy a nice warm house and keep the stove loaded. There's no sense in being cold when there is a large wall of wood outside. It's a good situation to be in! I encourage everyone to aim for 3 years. It really cuts down on the anxiety and you can enjoy it.

 

[Rossco]

So I made a goal this last year to get 3 years ahead. I cut early and often. I cut lots of softwood and hardwood and kept them separate. I worked around my (now 3 year) pile of split oak. I started in the fall of last year and am now burning those soft woods mixed with cherry and ash. I am on my way to 10 cords of wood. Most of which is premium.

The funny thing is that I still find my self trying to conserve wood. I've been teaching myself to enjoy a nice warm house and keep the stove loaded. There's no sense in being cold when there is a large wall of wood outside. It's a good situation to be in! I encourage everyone to aim for 3 years. It really cuts down on the anxiety and you can enjoy it.

You will run out in the end.

You never have enough.

The short term looks great and good for you.

 

[JA600L]

No I won't run out. I burnt 3 1/2 cords last year. I'm pretty sure I won't use 10.

 

[Lyndenbrook Farm]

No I won't run out. I burnt 3 1/2 cords last year. I'm pretty sure I won't use 10.

I am in my first year of this.

I started out this winter with about three cords CSS (after a steep learning curve made easier by the good pyros of this forum).

I think that should get me through the cold months. We are not 100% wood and we have gone through about 1/3 of a cord so far. That includes probably a bit of waste as I both learn how to use my stove and get too excited about firing it up. I have heard "too hot in here" a couple times


So I think my 3 cords (with some extra backup I 'hid' from myself) should be good for this year, but I admit I have nothing to base my guess on other than trying to triangulate from what others have posted here.

Thoughts? (Other than try and get ahead for next year, of course...) thanx

 

[Rossco]

No I won't run out. I burnt 3 1/2 cords last year. I'm pretty sure I won't use 10.

NA I ment 'You Never have enough'

You will be ok this year and next but I always wonder about the future.

 

[JA600L]

Take one year and make it an absolute priority to gather 3 years of wood. Do it while the sap is down. Keep going and going and going. Your neighbors, friends, and family will think your nuts. One year. Then simply maintain what you use after that.

 

[Rossco]

Take one year and make it an absolute priority to gather 3 years of wood. Do it while the sap is down. Keep going and going and going. Your neighbors, friends, and family will think your nuts. One year. Then simply maintain what you use after that.

Yeah the next door neighbour calls me 'Woody'

I went wood crazy this year and will probably start cutting early next year.

I have enough for this year and next but it will all go up in smoke eventually.

 

[russb]

Lat year, in our new house (new to us, it was built in the mid-late 1800s), we put in a stove mid-winter. I got some wood from the seller of the stove (a Kent Tile-Fire), and it was okay, but I was scrounging and trying to find dry wood all year. It was an emergency install due to obscene oil bills that simply couldn't continue. so I burned whatever I could find. I made sure to start splitting wood that I'd set aside for this year, and it's been a much nicer experience. I now have enough wood to last me this winter (I have about 6 cords c/s/s), of much better quality, though not perfect. But, I also started next year's pile, so I'll be better off next year. By the year after that, I think I'll be a full year ahead, so anything I stack will get two years of seasoning. Time does not permit me to get much ahead of that (not sure I'll ever get to the three year plan unless someone gives me a bunch of wood, but I'll keep collecting until there's no wood to collect; we're using wood at an alarming rate (over a half cord so far), but I'm hoping I'll have just a little excess when the burning season is over.

It brings me great joy to go out each day and split and stack rounds that I know I won't need to burn for over a year. I can imagine getting further ahead will feel even nicer.

 

[weatherguy]

I've been 3 years ahead for a couple of years now and still find myself being conservative and saving the good stuff for a colder night.

 

[Applesister]

The best laid plans always go amuck. I think I have grasped the 3 year plan strategy but something in my math calculations have come up short.
Bar napkin math?

 

[Sconnie Burner]

I did the same thing this year! Moved in last February and started as soon as the snow was gone. (End of March) I searched CL every day. And posted an add as well. At the end of October I had a total of 13 cords. I saved all the full barkless elm trees and upper oak branches and came up with 4.5 cords ready for this year. I scored some boxelder that I cut early spring and it dried to 18% which gave me an extra 3/4 cord.

 

[PA. Woodsman]

So I made a goal this last year to get 3 years ahead. I cut early and often. I cut lots of softwood and hardwood and kept them separate. I worked around my (now 3 year) pile of split oak. I started in the fall of last year and am now burning those soft woods mixed with cherry and ash. I am on my way to 10 cords of wood. Most of which is premium.

The funny thing is that I still find my self trying to conserve wood. I've been teaching myself to enjoy a nice warm house and keep the stove loaded. There's no sense in being cold when there is a large wall of wood outside. It's a good situation to be in! I encourage everyone to aim for 3 years. It really cuts down on the anxiety and you can enjoy it.

I kind of feel the same way; I see the pile going down because of the cold snap we had (now they want it around 70 Monday ), but felt today "wouldn't it be nice to get more" even though I have loads just sitting around! I guess it's like some people feeling they never have enough money, so they need more. I guess it's a good thing to have that "feeling" inside of us though as it keeps us ALWAYS looking and "on the scrounge" so we do stay ahead of the game

 

[Applesister]

Scrounging 13 cords of wood is very industrious. Its an admirable use of time. I like the idea of wood be collected and consumed in such a nice manner.
Instead of some really great firewood being dumped in landfills. Its just your time..and gas. A great alternative to buying processed fuels.
A total win win.

 

[STIHLY DAN]

So I made a goal this last year to get 3 years ahead. I cut early and often. I cut lots of softwood and hardwood and kept them separate. I worked around my (now 3 year) pile of split oak. I started in the fall of last year and am now burning those soft woods mixed with cherry and ash. I am on my way to 10 cords of wood. Most of which is premium.

The funny thing is that I still find my self trying to conserve wood. I've been teaching myself to enjoy a nice warm house and keep the stove loaded. There's no sense in being cold when there is a large wall of wood outside. It's a good situation to be in! I encourage everyone to aim for 3 years. It really cuts down on the anxiety and you can enjoy it.

I have at least 3 yrs, closer to five. But with the talk of a possible mini ice age looming, and seeing it get much harder to scrounge with everyone doing it now. It still is not a relaxing feeling.

 

[Paulywalnut]

I'm three years ahead, all the time or every year. I try and scrounge or collect different ways 3 cords a year. That keeps me ahead at all times. As Dan said, it is getting harder to just find wood. Everyone is looking especially in sept oct nov.
The landfills are nothing but big pine rounds, I'm going to get a couple of cords of pine stored up for the future too. Good luck with your stockpiles.

 

[Sconnie Burner]

Scrounging 13 cords of wood is very industrious. Its an admirable use of time. I like the idea of wood be collected and consumed in such a nice manner.
Instead of some really great firewood being dumped in landfills. Its just your time..and gas. A great alternative to buying processed fuels.
A total win win.

I was able to catch a few trees that would have been ground into wood chips! Though, most of it came from cleaning up standing dead trees on 3 different properties. I did have help from my Dad and friends at times. I should also mention I have a hand built hydraulic splitter from my Grandpa as well. No way would I have accomplished that with a maul! It feels good to know that I can just replace what I use now instead of having to work that hard again next year! I want to do some more fishing! I sacrificed a lot this year to get it done.

 

[blades]

I have around 30+ cords css. 60 % is at the 2 year mark, about an even split of the remainder 1 year and 3 year. I got it bad( fad) as I just could not seem to connect all summer, that all changed around the first week of Aug- now there is another 16 cord fresh css ( about 3 times what I used last year) + a couple more cords in the round. I feel much better now. In fact yesterday I collected apx a cord ( when split ) of Beech, and there will be some Box Elder, Chestnut Oak and Sugar Maple from the same home owner between now and spring. Likely around 2-3 cord of usable fire wood in the lot.

 

[BigCountryNY]

I like to think of it this way: firewood is like money, you can never have too much.

 

[JTRock]

I feel so at a disadvantage. I don't have a truck to scrounge. I am convinced to bite the bullet and have log lengths delivered. I was told $900 gets about 9-11 cords. I think that's the move. The provider of my wood gave . So far it's burned ok. I can do up to 20 in lengths. I can never load up my box because these lengths he gave me are over 20 so I have to load a few on an angle.

 

[aansorge]

JT Rock - get a nice 4 by 8 trailer and a hitch and call it good. A trailer is easier than a truck as they are considerably lower to lift the wood up to and take off of.

The main downside is it needs to sit somewhere.

 

[JTRock]

I thought of that too. Probably not a bad idea, my wife's lease on her CRV is coming up. Might get something with a bit more capacity. I think it tows 2000lb including trailer weight

 

[Lyndenbrook Farm]

I feel the pain of being truckless. All this free wood on CL and I can't get any of it. WAAAHHHHH

Can't pull a trailer on my POS Saturn Vue, either

I want a truck!

 

[JTRock]

I feel the pain of being truckless. All this free wood on CL and I can't get any of it. WAAAHHHHH

Can't pull a trailer on my POS Saturn Vue, either

I want a truck!

If you end up trying. Take pictures lol!

 

[Alex C]

How far out is too far out? If I were three years ahead, that would seem adequate to me. I burned some ten year old wood that was in a wood shed the whole time and it was like balsa wood. At one point it was maple...

 

[blades]

How far out is too far out? If I were three years ahead, that would seem adequate to me. I burned some ten year old wood that was in a wood shed the whole time and it was like balsa wood. At one point it was maple...

Sounds like it was stacked in the shed green- then dry rot set in. Wrong procedure.