3PH OR ELECTRIC LOG SPLITTER

[inveresk]

I've been trying to assess a couple of options on log splitters at a budget price and it's down to either a 3ph or an electric. The 3ph is more powerful but the cycle time at around 14 seconds seems like forever. I'm just not sure of the power of the electric splitters though. 4, 5 or 6 tons seems pretty puny compared with what the 3ph will deliver.

Any opinions/views/experience on either of these that might help me make a considered choice between them?

 

[beenthere]

Get a good close look at the electric ones before you decide. To me, they may be handy for some real slow splitting (maybe when/if I am in a wheelchair) but not for anything serious, I wasn't impressed when I looked at them.
I was planning to get one and put it in the garage for breaking down my wood burner wood chunks into smaller pieces for the second wood stove we have in our great room. They didn't look that well made to me. But I can see for some that they would fit their needs. I wouldn't even put them in the same category for comparison to a 3pt splitter.
Maybe others with hands-on experience will have more positive info to offer.

 

[lrunge]

I bought an electric log splitter from Omegastores. It was about $700.00 and was around 9 ton. I have split 12-14 inch logs with no problem. It says it will do 24 inch. It is very fast cycle time compared to regular log splitters and no engine noise or fuel to mess with. You do need a 20 amp pwer supply and it is portable (about 150 lbs). The only down side is it is very low to the ground and you are bent over a lot. Need to raise it up on a platform. It has done a good job splitting the wood from the trees I have cut down and splitting wood into smaller pieces for my fireplace insert. If I had to split lots and lots of wood constantly to heat my house I would have a heavy duty stand alone gas powered 20+ ton unit for wood splitting.
This unit allows me to split wood at my convenience and I have split about 4 cords with it. I have 5 or 6 trees cut down that needs splitting when I get to it. Overall, it's worked out fine.

 

[jeffinsgf]

If you plan on doing any serious amount of firewood processing, don't waste your time on the electric. I have one, and it works. It is fast enough to make me breathe hard (which doesn't take much), but it balks at anything of serious size. It does fine on re-splitting stuff that I have bought that isn't small enough to suit my stove insert, but it hits the pressure relief valve every time I try to split anything over 17 or 18 inches.

I am trying to kill mine so I can get the wife to approve a 3ph upgrade.

Re: working height. One of the Werner scaffold steps from Lowe's or Home Depot get these little beasts up to a more comfortable level.

 

[inveresk]

Thanks for the useful replies. I've a pile of logs the size of a small house and some of them are pretty big. For this reason I've decided to opt for the 3ph splitter, despite the slow cycle time.

I'm in two minds to go for the horizontal splitter or one that can split vertically as well. They're the same manufacturer and power - North Star - sold by Northern Tool, one being $499 the other $699. I just don't know if having the vertical splitting arrangement is worth an extra $200 so will need to do a little more research to see if it's a real benefit.

 

[jeffinsgf]

Look at the "Iron & Oak", too. It looks a little heavier to me and is probably available from a local dealer. The vertical position is a great feature for large sections that you don't want to lift.

 

[HEC]

I have a friend who has the electric one and like his,I have used it and I don't ,not enough power for alot of the wood I split.I recommend the gas powered for this reason only,I like to have my fel right next to the splitter so as I split I simply put the split wood in the bucket , saves bending over again and alot of time.When the bucket is full it goes right to the wood shed.If you are going to leave the split wood right where it is it wouldn't make much difference.I personally would rather have a 2 or 3 hundred dollar gas engine running for hours on end splitting my wood rather than a 20 to 30 thousand dollar tractor ,just my thinking.I burn about 8 cord of wood every year though and at almost 64 I'm a little slow at it.
Herb,

 

[MadDog]

Herb, I see your point about putting time on an inexpensive gas engine instead of an expensive tractor. Having just turned 66, I can also relate to your other points.

However, the same could be said for quite a few things that I do with the tractor attachments; I could do many of them (mowing, tilling, chipping/shredding, fertilizer spreading, snowblowing, woodsplitting) with free-standing machinery that would save wear and tear on the tractor engine, but at the cost of having a barnfull of separate engines to keep track of and maintain.

Furthermore, judging by a recent thread on diesel tractor lifespan (estimated 5,000-10,000 hours), and my annual usage which I cannot see EVER going above 300 hours/year ( to date, I have averaged less than 150), my Kubota is highly likely to still be still going strong when I am just some grandchildrens' memory of their slightly eccentric grandpa who went to his maker laboring under the delusion that he was a farmer. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[crazymike]

Remember, that it might have a 14 second turn around time. But unless you are using a self loader. You can use that time to take the split log and stack it on a skid. Then get the next one, and so on.

 

[jeffinsgf]

To me, part of the reason to own the tractor is to get rid of as many of those %$^$ gasoline engines as I can. Nothing powered by a small engine will ever be replaced with another small engine version. As they die, they will be replaced with PTO machines. Except of course for the chain saw. A PTO chainsaw doesn't seem like such a good idea. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif