Actual cost of firewood

[majorwager]

Yes there is something soothing about an open fire. Also true that many stoves are very efficient, But the actual cost of producing your own firewood can be substantial if you step back and calculate the investment. Summarily just from the equipment perspective, the saw(s), chains, tractor, splitter, hand tools, covers, wear and tear, oil, fuel, and frustration when things break. There is the personal toll, strained muscles, poison ivy, cuts, scrapes, clean up, yea it makes a mess, bugs ( included at no charge). But we claim the enjoyment and satisfaction of depriving utility companies of our income. There is risk of burning the dam house down, chimney cleaning, outdoor furnace heaters are not exempt from their own set of issues. Yes there is much labor involved, but you tell yourself, I love it, and great exercise. So you never keep a running total of the hours spent and the direct and indirect costs. This list is NOT all encompassing, just a few thoughts to stimulate a conversation. So exactly what is the actual cost of producing your own firewood?

 

[oosik]

We burned wood for the first 10 to 12 years we were here. Then we converted to pellets. The reasons - my Ponderosa pine are ginormous(32" to 40" on the butt) and converting a live standing tree that is 40" on the butt, into firewood, is not a romp in the park. Then there was the bugs, bark & dirt that was continually being drug into the house. And finally, even though the stove - Lopi - was one of the state of the art stoves, at that time, it was still a challenge to regulate the temps in the house. Then we decided to go to pellets.

Pellets lasted another 10 to 12 years - until the cost got so God awful high - $250 to $275 per ton for the good ones.

Now we have gone back to the electric heat that we originally installed in the house. None of the negative features - its definitely cheeper than the previous two methods and controlling the temps is easy.

However - I do miss harvesting and processing the 4 to 5 full chords we used every year and the smell of the cured wood. Its just, at my age and knowing the work involved, its simply not going to happen.
I do "cheat the system" a bit though. I do cut and burn a very few larger pines, every year, that have died - pine bark beetle - and from this process I do bring a few selected chunks of pine into the house - just for the smell.

We never worried about the many and varied costs of burning firewood - its just all a part of living out here and the joys of being very rural.

 

[Thomas]

Never really thought about it cost etc. but Iam sure it would be :confused2: for almost 40 years...could add lot more to your list tho.
I still have doubts switching from wood to pellets next year,I like the wood heat feeling gives me something to do.

 

[dodge man]

Hard to say, I have a fireplace, a newer one but not a super efficient one. In my life, I’ve MAYBE cut 20 cords of wood. Based on direct costs, probably $50 to $100 a chord. Other than the log splitter, I would own the other stuff any way, such as saw, tractor, safety equipment etc.

 

[majorwager]

Thomas,
Believe adding more to the list is encouraged and enlightening. Thanks for the input.

 

[Jeff F.]

Yes it is a lifestyle. We can't forget the costs of helping prevent wildfires by thinning the forest and burning some of the dead trees. Stimulating new growth in the woods which is great for the environment. No need for a gym membership. The ability to let my wife set the thermostat as high as she wants and not worry about the gas or electric bill. And most importantly to me, it's soul healing being in the woods.

 

[oosik]

I know the feeling, Thomas. Here, our good pellets - Lignetics - are expensive. Just checked the internet - Lignetics of Maine, selling at Wallmart - $45.00 for a 40# bag. That can't be right. Last time I checked locally they were around $5.75 per 40# bag. Making a ton around $285.

Couple things we learned from burning pellets. Get the best brand pellets you can find. Less ash, less frequency of cleaning the stove, your beautiful glass pained front door, on the stove, might stay clean an added hour or so. Also, the better brand of pellets will have less loose sawdust in each bag. Pellet Master is an auger feed type situation and sawdust could and did bind the auger a few times. If you are going with pellets - look for a good brand stove and see if they have a model that DOES NOT have a glass pained front door. From our experience with our Pellet Master pellet stove - its only a matter of time until that beautiful glass is all sooted up or covered with creosote. It NEVER stayed clean for more than a day.

I cleaned the Pellet Master every weekend. It was obvious it could have gone longer between cleanings but I didn't want to risk the auger binding and burning out the tiny auger motor.

 

[LD1]

Firewood vs all others round 2 :laughing:

I cut firewood. Have sold a little over 20 full cords this year. (about 60 face, rick, rack etc if thats how you wish to measure).

This bitter cold snap that has lasted a few weeks now......sold out of wood. Oh well.

I cut because of two reasons.....1. cleaning up the woods. ~20 acres that was logged out a few years ago, and cutting down all the dangerous standing dead ash (due to the EAB). 2. beacuse I enjoy it.

The money and selling it is just an outlet to get rid of the wood.

I have geothermal. Selling wood for $160/cord.......that $160 buys MORE heat than burning that cord would. So I would loose money if I burned it and let my geothermal sit idle.

So I sell it, and keep the bugs, mess, and hassle of keeping a fire going out of my house.

 

[square1]

Firewood vs all others round 2 :laughing:

Yep, here we go again...don't forget the texans...or was that taxes

 

[KTurner]

Some of those issues, such as burning the house down, are not exclusive to wood heat. Chimney cleaning - other heating equipment requires maintenance as well, some of which requires special equipment. We rely on our wood stove for heat in the event of a power outage. Not optimal, but it's gonna work a LOT better than our heat pump during an power outage in an ice storm. If you've just been outside working in the freezing cold, it feels much better to stand in front of the wood stove than to stand over the heat pump air register.

We're casual wood burners and don't have dedicated equipment solely for wood processing except for (manual) splitting - a maul, a few wedges, etc. The wood we get is normally on the ground before I touch it - people paying to have trees cut down, stuff coming down in storms, etc, as opposed to maintaining a wood lot or buying by the cord. The stove was in the house when we moved in. Our investment is minimal, except my time.

Keith