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firewood business

Started by crankin, January 04, 2010, 07:40:43 PM

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crankin

my first post but I'd like to say this site and the info from members is excellent. I was thinking of starting a firewood business and was wondering if it would be a smart decision . I'll be moving from LI  new york back to nek in vt and one thing that is always needed and always bought regardless of economy is firewood . I would have money to buy a processor and was wondering if anyone is familiar with the chomper or what would be your choice if buying one . Also wondering if it pays to buy a large woodlot or harvest off other people's land etc'. Would there be a market to process other people's firewood . Any help or thought's would be greatly appreciated.

Tom

Welcome to the forum, Crankin.

I'm not a firewood guy, but I most always have an opinion. 

The chomper has posts written about it here and a processor is the way to go if you want to get into the firewood business.  I'm sure there will be guys offering their opinions who are in the business.

I'd buy a woodlot just to live on.  That way I wouldn't have to put up with the people in town.  I'd do that even if I didn't sell my own wood.  It would be nice to have a backup supply of wood if things got tight though.

There's lots of wood that can be had for free or even charge people to dump, if you have the space and zoning.

One company that got started here in Jacksonville started a dump facility for arborists and tree companies in the surrounding towns.  They were getting $30 a ton when the County dump was charging $35.  Then they would split and sell the wood all over the State to homeowners and bar-b-cue houses alike.

They finally had to move because the County, unable to find them doing anything wrong, condemned their incinerator.  They were using it to burn the trash and tops and selling the ash.  Now they are a County south and still doing fine, as far as I've heard.

Magicman

I can't help you with your questions concerning a firewood business, but I can say Hello and Welcome to The Forestry Forum..... :)
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Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

wi woodcutter

crankin welcome to the forum. :)

Secondly I have a firewood business myself. Before I spend huge money on a processor I would make SURE I had the market to support it. Maybe a better way to start would be just get a splitter and start slow. As far as getting wood if you had a processor I think that your time would be taken up with running the processor and marketing the wood. I think to justify having a processor you are going to need to sell 100's of cords, they are a big investment. With that the best way would be to just buy the wood from local loggers. For brands of processors look at Block-busters they seem to be a good bang for the buck. I have seen one of those Chompers I don't think that they would that great, but I could wrong.
2-066's ms660 034av 076av huskee 27ton splitter CB5036
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woodmills1

I have a small chomper, it is great, but small

I started out chainsaw, pick up, hand split, firewood business, full time job, check some of my recent posts


I am getting a multitek 1610 this week or next.


get your customers, get free wood or short money wood at least to start

do you have a dump truck?
you need one
James Mills,Lovely wife,collect old tools,vacuuming fool,36 bdft/hr,oak paper cutter,ebonic yooper rapper nauga seller, Blue Ox? its not fast, 2 cat family, LT70,edger, 375 bd ft/hr, we like Bob,free heat,no oil 12 years,big splitter, baked stuffed lobster, still cuttin the logs dere IAM

Maine372

i think you would do better to make some firewood in NEK and take it back to LI. make it nice a pretty, bundle it, all even lengths and clean splits. sell it for $50 a bundle.

i suspect that in NEK, like any where else rural, everybody and their brother is in the firewood business. whether its just a saw and a pickup or a full blown show. and alot of people are on the same page with you. people laid off are starting to use firewood as a side job or replacement income. and people are cutting (or stealing) thier own to save money.

i wouldnt suggest going all in on a processor unless you can move enough wood to pay for it. that means wood out as well as wood in. most guys i know running a processor purchase tree length hardwood pulp. infact most of them get better than hardwood pulp. straight, no smaller than 4 or 5 inches and 12-24ft lengths. they are usually picky about species too, no popple, little or no birch. since most of thier suppliers have contracts at pulp mills too they can get rid of the rest there. (or chip it)

start small. build a customer base. build a reputation. it may be harder than think to get started when youre the new guy in town.

240b

firewood in the kingdom is a tough one. too,many guys who are willing to work for very little.  wood is pricy up there due to pulp markets in n.h.(shelburne) and almost all the wood lots were cut off(hard) 15/ 20 yrs ago. Forget about free wood up there too. There are afew big processors st.j, lyndonville, barton, but those guys have been at it for years and can get wood regardless. You might do ok starting w/a splitter and ton truck.  I love the kingdom but its a tough place to make a go of it. My folks and sister live there still.  I moved an hour and half south. no doubt its a great place to live.  good luck

woodmills1

once again I will ask all to post their location/fill out profile so we others have a chance at knowing where you are to taylor our responses.

It is part of what makes the FF the FF :P
James Mills,Lovely wife,collect old tools,vacuuming fool,36 bdft/hr,oak paper cutter,ebonic yooper rapper nauga seller, Blue Ox? its not fast, 2 cat family, LT70,edger, 375 bd ft/hr, we like Bob,free heat,no oil 12 years,big splitter, baked stuffed lobster, still cuttin the logs dere IAM

gunman63

Being in the firewood business also, I started with a  processor right away, its a hakki, 1x37, cost 15-20 grand depending on powerplant and feeddeck, not a lot of money i dont think, dont look at 50 grand  and up starting out, dont buy used, someone elses problem, go with a dump trailer, 14'-16' long  can haul to to 2 cords, lower to the ground, easier to load, pickup insurance covers the trailer, cheaper linsense than a dumptruck, skidsteer is a must tho.

indiaxman1

Having a company dump trees/tops guarantees your supply...a guy I used to cut with has an agreement with local rural electric and tree services..never leaves his lot.....sells by the rick near state road.....always busy, but it is full time labor intensive......business is good esp with cold temps here

bill m

Having the local tree services dump their wood is not the best of ideas. Mostly you get the real big stuff no one wants to cut and split. Contracting with some local loggers will get you better wood for a processor.
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woodmills1

My tree guys cut house trees and they are happy to have me take away everything.  Ya does needs a log loader or trailer truck to do that.  notice I didn't say trailer truck trash :D
James Mills,Lovely wife,collect old tools,vacuuming fool,36 bdft/hr,oak paper cutter,ebonic yooper rapper nauga seller, Blue Ox? its not fast, 2 cat family, LT70,edger, 375 bd ft/hr, we like Bob,free heat,no oil 12 years,big splitter, baked stuffed lobster, still cuttin the logs dere IAM

crankin

thanks for the replies and welcomes. i know it could be a tough market there being a new guy or the flatlander syndrome that is rather common there. when i was ordering some wood this past aug i called 4 ads in the paper . 2 never called back and the 3rd guy was 3 weeks behind and i went with him . the 4th guy called more than a week later . i grew up in the st johnsbury area and know a lot of people there so I figure building a client base wont be to difficult especially if I dont mind selling to the "flatlanders" .I'm a builder by trade but business is business and i've found out through the years if your honest, do what you say and when you say you'll have many clients. Eastern Long Island is gettin pretty crowded and I really don't like being sorta trapped out here in the event of an emergency, seems like ny could have a big bulls eye sittin on it.

Mooseherder

Welcome to the Forestry Forum crankin!
Sounds like you could make a go of it and always fall back on your other skills while building your business.  When you mentioned buying woodlots it reminded me of a guy I went to School with.  He became a logger who kept buying up Woodlots to log.  He ended up with over 3 thousand acres. :D
Another logger from the same area has more acres than that.  He is trying to sell a 2500 acre tract right now.  Funny how things turn out.  Good luck to you! ;)

Black_Bear

Maine 372 and 240b hit the nail square on the head. The firewood market is saturated up here, although sale prices are down from last year. There are a lot of suppliers, some big time, most small time.

NewPage pulp may have an effect on the market, but for the most part there are a lot of woodcutters who don't even think about pulp, it all goes to firewood. Once you get north of Sheffield heights it becomes a long haul to Shelburne and is often counterproductive. Or, you have to sell to a concentration yard and take a hit on price.

Finding wood to cut is hard to do, but not impossible. I was part of a rather ruthless crew that clearcut 100s of acres at a whack in the 90s and early 2000, but I think it's an overstatement that all the woodlots were cut hard 15-20 years ago. There is plenty of wood out there, but buying stumpage or land is difficult and expensive. Land prices have been inflated for some time now, mainly due to the flats willingness to pay $5K+/acre for swamp. They then build a 500K home on it and prices and taxes go through the roof.

Also, mostly anyone who burns wood has been getting it from the same guy for years. Some play the numbers game, but when a buyer finds a seller who gives an honest cord and doesn't load the cord with popple and white birch, they usually become repeat customers.

240b is spot on when he wrote that it is a "tough place to make a go of it".

Ed     

240b

South of st jay you might do better. Sounds like your experience is pretty typical, people don't call back  either to busy w/  orders or just don't care. I live in Orange Co. VT there are so many firewood guys. the prices are all over the place. One guy is getting 165./cd delivered he has huge overhead. My nighbor gets 230/ cd in his yard. has low overhead and another job.(IT guy) 3miles down the road is another guy I think he is 185/ w/ a two cd min but his wood is almost all sugar maple. He stock piles  (couple hundred cd)this time of the year and is probably the only "real" full time guy.  Around here people will complain if the load isn't 99% sugar maple- go to montpelier and you can sell ash, white birch and soft maple to the flatlanders.  Right now log length wood is going to be 130-150/cd delivered.  It is really hard to find a landing to work on mainly because of insurance reasons and wood guys and usually in the way. I only did it once w/ a guy I knew really well. The best market is the hanover, nh area (dartmouth$$$) but those people are a huge pita True business is business, but the wood business is like NO other.  

motohed

I have to agree with 240b about the wood business . I sell about three or four hundred cords a year , yes I sometimes lose a customer by not getting back to him the same day , it happens . We work in a lot of areas and get out of the woods late , we also don't get cell service every where . I have found that if you miss the call , and it's a potentsial new customer , you have already lost the sale . My customers are very loyal , they know that they won't get shorted ,and the wood will be clean and dirt free . I still do all my wood with a splitter and conveyer only . It produces higher quality wood at a uniform size . The other thing is , EAB an insect problem in Ash firewood , that is quarentined  nation wide almost , i t has stopped all transpartation over state lines , and even county lines in some larger states . Do your home work , have a good delivery system . I personally would not start out with a processor . Welcome to the forum , I hope we all can help with questions in some way .
           
                      Best Regards Scott

woodmills1

moto, I am getting a 1610 EZ from multitek tomorrow or thursday.  The truck is headed to east greenwich in your state with one of their 12 foot giant splitters.  so if you see a tractor trailer with some multitek stuff on it tomorrow think of me.
James Mills,Lovely wife,collect old tools,vacuuming fool,36 bdft/hr,oak paper cutter,ebonic yooper rapper nauga seller, Blue Ox? its not fast, 2 cat family, LT70,edger, 375 bd ft/hr, we like Bob,free heat,no oil 12 years,big splitter, baked stuffed lobster, still cuttin the logs dere IAM

crankin

Hey 240 b I used to have a house in groton  Went to school at Blue Mountain HS ,  I guess what i'm trying to figure out is what would be the best way not to go stir crazy and make some money doing something i would enjoy. if I ever get out of here I'll have a lump of money and need to do something . Not sure I want to buy rental houses or apts and listen deal with those headaches , sure can't make any money puttin it in the bank . I did see truck loads log length for a 100 a cord delivered then was thinking if you process the wood, have it dry, the going rate seemed to be about $ 185 - 225 a cord which stills seems better than some other option for investing . By the way will wood prices rise as oil prices go up? My thinking is we are one issue away from something serious in middle east which will double oil price or more in the blink of an eye. Thanks again Boys

motohed

Quote from: woodmills1 on January 05, 2010, 04:01:44 PM
moto, I am getting a 1610 EZ from multitek tomorrow or thursday.  The truck is headed to east greenwich in your state with one of their 12 foot giant splitters.  so if you see a tractor trailer with some multitek stuff on it tomorrow think of me.
[/quote

That cool it's about twenty minutes from me , are you going to pick it up there .

mrnero

Quote from: crankin on January 05, 2010, 04:56:48 PM
Hey 240 b I used to have a house in groton  Went to school at Blue Mountain HS ,  I guess what i'm trying to figure out is what would be the best way not to go stir crazy and make some money doing something i would enjoy. if I ever get out of here I'll have a lump of money and need to do something . Not sure I want to buy rental houses or apts and listen deal with those headaches , sure can't make any money puttin it in the bank . I did see truck loads log length for a 100 a cord delivered then was thinking if you process the wood, have it dry, the going rate seemed to be about $ 185 - 225 a cord which stills seems better than some other option for investing . By the way will wood prices rise as oil prices go up? My thinking is we are one issue away from something serious in middle east which will double oil price or more in the blink of an eye. Thanks again Boys
Move to Boston or Metro area, plenty of firewood customers in this area. Firewood price are $250.00 and up. Why would oil prices effect firewood prices?? Processing/manufacturing firewood cost the same no matter where you are. Good Luck

Jeff

QuoteWhy would oil prices effect firewood prices??
A little thing called supply and demand have a bit to do with the price. When fossil fuel prices are up, demand for alternative, more affordable fuels go up and so goes the price. Firewood for example.

Quote
Processing/manufacturing firewood cost the same no matter where you are.
:D  :D  :D

No they don't.


Just call me the midget doctor.
Forestry Forum Founder and Chief Cook and Bottle Washer.

Commercial circle sawmill sawyer in a past life for 25yrs.
Ezekiel 22:30

mrnero

Quote from: Jeff on January 05, 2010, 07:00:08 PM
QuoteWhy would oil prices effect firewood prices??
A little thing called supply and demand have a bit to do with the price. When fossil fuel prices are up, demand for alternative, more affordable fuels go up and so goes the price. Firewood for example.

Quote
Processing/manufacturing firewood cost the same no matter where you are.
:D  :D  :D

No they don't.



The only reason why firewood prices are lower in different parts of the country, its because the dealer is selling his firewood below cost. :D :D :D
I thought supply and demand, means you just sell more firewood because the demand is greater.

Jeff

I'm sorry, but you really need to get out and live some life in the real world so you know how things work. That statement is so ridiculously uninformed and uneducated I feel the need to put some sort of force field around you to keep the membership from pummeling you.
Just call me the midget doctor.
Forestry Forum Founder and Chief Cook and Bottle Washer.

Commercial circle sawmill sawyer in a past life for 25yrs.
Ezekiel 22:30

wi woodcutter

Quote from: Jeff on January 05, 2010, 07:43:44 PM
I'm sorry, but you really need to get out and live some life in the real world so you know how things work. That statement is so ridiculously uninformed and uneducated I feel the need to put some sort of force field around you to keep the membership from pummeling you.

That is the funniest thing I have seen in weeks! :D :D :D
2-066's ms660 034av 076av huskee 27ton splitter CB5036
A guard dog needs food, water, shelter, walking and training.
My Smith & Wesson only needs a little oil!

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