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Messages - chadley

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1
Fire Wood / Re: Tarps
« on: January 09, 2013, 04:24:07 PM »
I have an 8x8x8 wood shed I built for my OWB wood but I sell firewood and don't have the money to build a big enough shed to hold 50-60 cords.  I cover my piles of wood with one tarp each and move the tarp to cover wood as the pile gets smaller.  To me, it seems like canvas would soak in the water and keep the wood wet so that's why I was asking. 

2
Fire Wood / Tarps
« on: January 07, 2013, 07:31:53 PM »
What kind of tarps do you guys use to keep your wood dry?  My plastic tarps seem to rip easy and don't weather very well so I was thinking about getting canvas tarps but wasn't sure how dry they would keep the wood.  What do you guys think?



3
Hawken Energy, support only / Re: New HE 2100 up and running
« on: December 14, 2012, 11:08:00 AM »
this is the only pic I have right now and its from an angle that shows the wood shed and pad  I built next to the stove.  I was able to find the exact matching color metal/trim as the woodburner at Menards so the woodshed matches the stove.  There is a piece of corner trim on the wood shed that is trimmed off now.  The shed is an 8x8x8 and holds 3 rows of wood.  So far I've run through 2/3 of the wood shed in 4 weeks.

[attachment deleted by admin for space issues]

4
Fire Wood / Re: Not selling any wood
« on: December 14, 2012, 11:01:26 AM »
I'm impressed. I teach high school too and work on wood on similar schedule to you.  I carry a summer job or two also along with my firewood.  All I can say is your gettin after it preparing that much wood.  Congrats.

5
Fire Wood / Re: Not selling any wood
« on: December 13, 2012, 08:20:57 PM »
jrider- where are you located?  65 cords is a ton of wood.  What is your day job? Are you splitting it all or selling rounds too?  Hardwoods or everything? 

I work a 6-3:30 day job M-F.  I'm off holidays and summers so that is when I get my wood cutting done.  By myself 35-40 cords felled, bucked, and split is about all I can do with a wife and 2 year old daughter at 32 years old.  I can't imagine selling 65 cords by mid Dec.

6
Fire Wood / Re: Not selling any wood
« on: December 12, 2012, 06:32:34 PM »
Seems like wood goes for more up north.  I sell an 8ft truck bed flush with the sides (a shade under a cord tightly stacked) for 65 plus delivery.  I separate all my wood.  Red oak, white oak, walnut, ash, cherry, hickory or campfire wood are my choices.  My hickory and white oak are 100 a load and my campfire wood is 40 a load.  everything else is 65.  Delivery is a dollar a mile roundtrip simply because my work truck gets 8 mpg and I need to cover my fuel and time.  My prices are average for my area but I am not getting any calls compared to last year.  I advertise the same way I have in the past and I call my customers from the past two years and drop fliers at previous homes to let them know I am selling again this year.  I ask when I sell if I can contact them next year and if they say no, I don't bother them so I know I'm not bothering them.  I don't know what the deal is. We'll see what the rest of the winter brings I guess. If this year and next are the same (no calls)  I will probably hang it up except for cutting my own wood.

7
Hawken Energy, support only / New HE 2100 up and running
« on: December 12, 2012, 11:24:39 AM »
Its now been 3 weeks since I got my HE 2100 up and running and I cannot be happier.  I have an 8x8x8 wood shed I built next to it and I still have it about 1/3 full of wood.  My wife is now running around in the type of clothes I like to see her in. :thumbup:  I was on here last year quite a bit doing research and settled on the HE2100 (non gasser) and had it delivered in April.  Took my time hooking it up and working out a few quirks with the existing heat unit.  At the time I was researching there were several complaints about Haweken but I couldn't be happier with my dealer and unit. 

8
Fire Wood / Re: Not selling any wood
« on: December 12, 2012, 06:07:48 AM »
the simple answer to your question is we don't make any money.  We just enjoy doing it.  At least I do.  Its more of a hobby.  I lost 50 lbs when I started my firewood business.  I feel healthier and have more energy.  Something about the process of working a standing tree into a pile of wood gives me a real sense of accomplishment.  Its not for everyone but I LOVE it.  When I'm not cutting my firewood on the side, I work for a tree service cutting. When I'm not doing that, I clear brush (sapplings, briars, bushes etc.) on my property running a saw.  I bet I run a saw 250 days a year or better some years.   

9
Fire Wood / Re: Please tell me its not just me!
« on: December 11, 2012, 07:29:15 PM »
to the point... I've gotten to where I can cut and be within an inch or less of the length I want. I started out years ago measuring 18 in with a tape measure and striping the log with my chain tool.  I got so used to it that I don't even need to measure now.  One year I had a guy buy 6 loads of oak but he had to have it less than 18 inches for his burner.  We literally went through measuring one piece at a time to see if it was less than 18 in to get his 6 truck loads.  It was a struggle let me tell you.  From that point on, I started cutting my wood shorter and got to where I can cut less than 18 in consistently. 

Now to add to my situation, I am cutting my OWB wood longer b/c I can burn 4 ft logs so I have to take into account what I am cutting for and I can generally get it the length I want without measuring.  Practice has taken away the time of measuring.  So to answer the question.  I think we are all anal about our wood. lol

10
Fire Wood / Not selling any wood
« on: December 11, 2012, 07:15:18 PM »
I'm in southern Indiana. I've been selling firewood for three seasons now.  The last two seasons I have sold 23 and 27 cords.  This year I started heating my house with an OWB so I cut 50 cords (most split for sell) and I haven't sold but 2 loads so far.  Is anyone seeing the slow down like I am?  I'm wondering if the economy is bad enough to cut my firewood sales down that much.  I've checked prices locally and am in the average range and offer a variety of hardwoods to choose from.  My customers over the last two years have raved about the quality of wood I sell compared to others locally.  Whats the deal?

11
Equipment / Small Limb Saw Suggestions
« on: December 11, 2012, 11:20:55 AM »
I have always used large saws for firewood and have used both Stihls and Husqvarna's.  I work for a tree service as a side job and use mid-range to larger saws daily.  However, I've never really used small limb saws as we tend to use pole saws for that type of work.  I am in the market for a small lightweight but dependable Stihl saw for clearing small saplings and small dead fall off my farm.  I have a Stihl 461 for my big firewood and felling jobs.  Can you suggest a saw for me? My dealer recomended the 170 but I've read bad reviews on them being cheaply made as well as the whole line of smaller Stihl saws.  I just spent a grand on my 461 so I'm on a budget as well.  What do you guys suggest?

12
Fire Wood / Re: Pulling trees down
« on: May 08, 2012, 09:01:47 PM »
I would have to agree.  You would not beleive how LITTLE amount of weight the higher up the tree it takes to snap the trunk.  Your best bet is to drop the tree 3 ft or less from the ground and hook your cables to the trunk there.   Otherwise, you will snap the trunk (or not move it at all depending on diameter of tree).

Also, think about using your skidsteer to dig around the trunks of the bigger trees.  I know they aren't backhoe's but they can still remove some of the dirt from around the roots to weaken them.  Just my opinion...for what its worth.

13
Fire Wood / Re: New 2nd job = free wood and money
« on: April 29, 2012, 08:07:48 PM »
I don't bring home wood EVERY day but when I do... its a dump truck load. ;D  I get paid to load the dump truck and with a push of a button, its unloaded.  Not much manual labor on my part after its loaded.  I'm really going to enjoy this job.  Good working atmosphere on top of the wood perk.

14
Fire Wood / Re: Hickory/Cherry Smoking Wood Price?
« on: April 26, 2012, 07:43:33 AM »
Jrider-

thats my problem.  Nobody wants a full cord of hickory right now.  They won't use that much to smoke with.  Of course later on for firewood I could sell it by the cord.  I've got a guy in particular who wants it to smoke with.  he asked for it to be a foot long in the size of his hand so I had to cut it down from firewood length and split it smaller.  I was thinking about selling it by the pound in smaller quantities like that.  Just trying to get some idea of how/what to charge for smaller quantities.

15
General Discussion / Smoking wood-Hickory/Cherry
« on: April 25, 2012, 08:03:17 PM »
I didn't know where to start my thread but if you know anything about smoke wood prices (hickory/cherry) check out my thread in the firewood section.  I'm curious to know how much it goes for-and how much to charge.  Thanks and I apologize for "double posting"

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