Thinking About Log Length Firewood

[HillStreet]

I have been thinking about buying log length firewood. I could get easy delivery and off-load at the bottom of my hill, but after cutting would have to haul up the hill to split and stack in the shed. Also, I would need to rent a splitter once a year for about 3 cords at a time.

What is your experience? I have cut a bunch of logs that I skidded out of the woods but ran out of that supply. I only have the tractor bucket and chains to move the logs around. What is the best way to manage cutting a stack of 6 to 10 cords of log length?

 

[dmccarty]

Usually, I cut the tree into longs about 6-8 feet long and use my pallet forks to move the logs to where I split and stock the wood. This season, I am splitting wood from trees we had pushed down by a bulldozer and I am just cutting and splitting where the trees ended up. It would be more work to move the logs and make a mess so I am splitting and stacking in place for a change.

Pallet forks were one of the best things I bought for the tractor...

Later,
Dan

 

[HillStreet]

Dan,

That's good advice, I think the forks would be handy. I have cut from a small pile of log length that I gathered from my property a few years ago. Seems that I was always wrestling with the logs being crossed over each other, always putting down the saw to clear work area, etc. just was looking for a way to be more organized and systematic.

Thanks again.

 

[Tollster]

Always best to have the logs as close to the wood pile as you can before cutting them up, think of it as the same: Would you rather cut the tree up where it fell and load each piece, making multiple trips, then stacking in bucket, dumping it, bending over again for the same piece of wood and stacking again on the wood pile, or skid the log to the pile, and bend over and pick up splits, then placing on pile.

There will be certain instances such as DM's above where he cannot just cleanly remove the log in it entirety, but he does get as much as he can to put near the splitting and stacking operation.

If you cannot get them to the pile, at the minimum, try to get the larger ones uphill and as close to it as possible.

 

[oosik]

Tollster,
That is good advice - except - in my situation. My ponderosa pine run 26" to 42" on the butt and a chunk 10 feet long, when green, is a mighty heavy chunk of wood. I fell, limb, cut to length, split and stack in my firewood trailer right at the tree. I know it means I have to stack again in the firewood shed but that's the breaks. Besides in my area - dragging a tree just packs the bark full of volcanic ash and believe me - ash does not sharpen the blade. Going thru this complete process I can get two full chord a day. Any more than that and I become dangerous - too tired.

 

[Katahdin]

I think if you split that much of your own firewood you should seriously consider buying your own splitter.

My weekend routine is to use up a tank of gas in the chainsaw on Saturday, then roll the rounds into the bucket and take them over to the splitter on Sunday.

It doesn't get a lot of firewood done quickly, but the pile adds up and gives you time to spend on other things and it doesn't kill you physically.

 

[motownbrowne]

I split where the tree falls, or where the log is delivered. Then I stack it on pallet racks. I can move it with the forks to wherever I want it to cure, then move it to where I'm gonna burn it. If I split wood on the ground, I may only handle it twice, once to stack on the rack, once to put in the evaporator (syrup production is most of my wood consumption). That works most of the time, but each tree is different. Love my forks. Love moving wood on pallets too, I can get between a third and a half a cord on a load.

 

[peterc38]

These days tree length firewood is the way to go if you don't mind the sweat equity. I typically cut it all first in my processing area then as I split, I toss it in the trailer (course I have a dump trailer so that helps)and bring it up closer to the house where I stack it.

 

[haveissues]

Tollster,
That is good advice - except - in my situation. My ponderosa pine run 26" to 42" on the butt and a chunk 10 feet long, when green, is a mighty heavy chunk of wood. I fell, limb, cut to length, split and stack in my firewood trailer right at the tree. I know it means I have to stack again in the firewood shed but that's the breaks. Besides in my area - dragging a tree just packs the bark full of volcanic ash and believe me - ash does not sharpen the blade. Going thru this complete process I can get two full chord a day. Any more than that and I become dangerous - too tired.

I'm with you. What does it cost to rent a splitter each time?

 

[TnAndy]

Pallet forks were one of the best things I bought for the tractor...

Amen to that !

My forks are in use about 90% of the time compared to the bucket. Once you have a set, you'll wonder how you ever got along without them. Moving things with hydraulics is where it is at.

Even when I had a little 22hp Yanmar and no front end loader, I used a set of hay forks with the center spear/rod removed on the back most of the time. Cut them back from 48" to 40" because is was a more workable length.