Firewood cost per cord

hazmat · Jan 10, 2006

With Nat gas prices as high as they are, I calculated that a cord of wood was worth $480 worth of natural gas (btu for btu). of course this assumes my wood stove is as efficient as my hot water boiler... Made the decision to buy a new log spitter for $1,100 easy (we burn 4 cords/year).

So far I cut my own, but the "forest" is getting thin. I'll probably have a truck load of log length delivered in the spring. I hear I can get 10 cords worth for $600 from a local land-clearing outfit.

scott_vt · Jan 10, 2006

( Oak is the BEST firewood! Unfortunately we only have two oaks on our entire hill. The wife and I call it our retirement plan. When we feel the end is near we'll drop those trees and use them to keep us warm those last two winters.

Pete )

I liked that one Pete /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif We have some oaks down here, we also have a lot of poplar and birch. One tree that throws an unbelivable amout of heat is the hardack, I have a bunch of them on the backside of the property that Im saving for retirement also /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
I dont know what the goin rate around here is, everyone that burns, cuts there own /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

scotty

Highbeam · Jan 10, 2006

"With Nat gas prices as high as they are, I calculated that a cord of wood was worth $480 worth of natural gas (btu for btu). of course this assumes my wood stove is as efficient as my hot water boiler"

Well that depends on the type of wood of course. Also compare the efficiency of the best woodstove I could find at 70% to the natural gas furnace where they can easily get in to the 90% range. More people need to do this kind of comparison, good job using your noodle.

My plan is burn the logs from the clearing debris in a 70% efficient non-cat woodstove until that is gone and then purchase log loads to be processed by me. I have already secured the source for these loads and it should be a win-win for both of us. I keep hearing 10-12 cords from a log load, I sure hope so that would be nice. Also the convenience of having those logs dropped in one spot to be chopped up and moved a minimal distance to the woodshed for drying. No slash to burn, no stumps to dig up, no permits for logging.

beenthere · Jan 10, 2006

Not to pick on 2nstonge, but in this discussion of cost per cord, the real important factor is how many BTU's one can get from a cord (I'll only talk of full cords here). Wood seasononed only one summer is not going to yield the BTU's that are in the wood, and at least two summers of stacked, split wood protected from rain is important. Sure, the wood will still burn up ok, but it will not produce the heat. Neither will wood that only yields half the BTU's of oak or maple (like aspen, fir, pine, etc). Buying wood by volume (i.e. a cord) doesn't reflect on the drying or the density of the wood, which are most important when determining the cost and payback.

I brought in a pallet of wood last month that I had stacked, over a year ago, and couldn't get the heat out of it compared to wood stacked for drying over two years ago. Big, huge difference.

Anyone burning wood in less than a year is doing a lot of work for very little return, IMO. Don't mean to pour cold water on anyone's parade, but the facts are something to not take lightly.

Outdoor wood burners sell themselves on the fact that they will burn green wood. Sure, they will burn it alright, but the energy is used up converting the water in the wood to steam that goes up the chimney with the smoke. Very little heat, and a whole lot of work.

Highbeam · Jan 10, 2006

There are many different thoughts on how long is long enough to wait before burning the green wood that you split and stacked under cover. The woodstove owners manuals call for as little as 8 months but longer is always better.

Expect to pay more for a cord of oak than a cord of cottonwood. And expect to pay more for seasoned wood for green wood.

2nstonge · Jan 10, 2006

( but in this discussion of cost per cord, the real important factor is how many BTU's one can get from a cord )

Guess I misunderstood the thread. Absolute BTU's is not the #1 factor for me. I like the ambience of having a fire going, the fact that when my woodstove (Hearthstone; soapstone with a glass front) is fired up the furnace isn't running is a nice benefit. My seasoned wood (8 months?) lights easy - 1 match, 4 pieces of newspaper and a couple pieces of kindling - it burns great and throws enough heat to heat my house to 70-73 degrees consistently (2200 sq ft, 2 floors), 3 logs will burn all night with enough glowing coals left in the morning to re-start a fire without kindling. I don't see the extra work or wasted $$ in this scenario.

Will another year of seasoning provide a huge benefit? I doubt it. Some benefit? Maybe, but not enough to get me worried about it.

-Norm

RichZ · Jan 10, 2006

Here in Washington County, New York (on the Vermont border) cut, split, seasoned hardwood goes for about $175 for a full cord. I bought one cord this year from a friend, and it's almost all oak.

I cut up any trees that fall on my farm. I like to leave dead trees standing for the woodpeckers. We have all kinds, including piliated woodpeckers, and they need large dead trees for their nests. But once they fall, I cut them up for firewood. I also run to neighboring farms that I know don't burn wood, when they loose trees in a storm, and cut them up, haul them home, and split them later. We usually get a few cords every year by doing that. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif

PhilNH5 · Jan 11, 2006

Beenthere,
I am a relative novice at wood heat but now have 8 winters under my belt. I think there is more to drying wood than just time.

I live in a valley and flat space is a premium. I stack half of my wood in one spot. It gets full sun and the valley funnels the wind to that spot. That wood is ready to burn in 6 months. I have never done a before and after weight test to determine water content but all the physical signs show it is dry. And it burns well.
The rest of my wood gets stored/dried in 3 other spots. These all dry at different rates and none as fast as the first spot I mentioned. In the worst spot (less than full sun and against the hill so less wind) it takes 2 years.

I keep dreaming of building a woodshed with a solar powered fan. I would keep it closed up to heat up and use the solar fan to draw off the moisture. Maybe one day.

Phil

scott_vt · Jan 11, 2006

I live in a valley and flat space is a premium. I stack half of my wood in one spot. It gets full sun and the valley funnels the wind to that spot. That wood is ready to burn in 6 months.

Hi Phil,
You have definitely discovered the secret of drying your wood, with that spot. Without the sun or copious amounts of it, not only will it take a long time to dry but you can actually get some rot in the wood. The sun and the wind are definitely your friend in that department /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

scotty

HammerFour · Jan 11, 2006

Ok, the comment on wood drying made start wondering....

What dries faster, a stack of wood in a shed protected from the rain, but also shielded form the drying effects of wind and sun, or a stack of wood with a nice air gap in each side left out in the rain and snow, but out in the open and exposed to the drying wind and sun?

In my experience, wood stacked indoors out of the sun and wind will have a tendency to rot as it dries, while wood left out exposed to the weather dries out nicely...

I am sure this is climate dependent, we get a lot more sunny and windy days then rainy days here.