Stacking Firewood...

[The-Burl-Hunter]

hello,
I have a question on stacking firewood, anyway yesterday I was out cutting walnut ( a few good piles ) from what loggers had left from the logs that they cut at the apple orchard which is right accross the street from me, ( I still have a lot to cut, but I just thought that I would start ) anyway usually I cut enough wood to sell about 5-8 ford ranger pickup loads full of dried wood per year, and currently besides the walnut I cut yesterday, I also have red oak, birch, hickory, and some elm. but usually I just stack all the wood together to dry sell it called mixed hardwoods, when I see some people in the paper who sell it individually. would that be a better thing or do you guys think that it doesn't matter. ( I would have the space to stack it individually although all together saves room I figure. I also thought that I could get more money by selling it like say "individually" such as a face cord or walnut or a cord or red oak, I don't know Just something more to kill time, thanks  :D

[thedeeredude]

I don't sell firewood, but I will say a lot of folks think oak is the only suitable wood for burning.  I would advertise   
"mixed hardwoods including oak" or something to let people know you have oak in the mix.  I was cutting some wood one time and a guy asked if it was all oak.  Said, no locust birch and maple.  He said, oh I guess they'll burn OK too, right?. :
I explained it before as what I call home depot syndrome, people think oak and pine are the only two woods that exist because that's what you see in home depot.

[The-Burl-Hunter]

thanks

[isawlogs]

   
   The only wood that I see sometimes sold as not mixed around here is white birch ... it is sold seperatly for the fireplaces... ya know the candle/whinewine/birch fire ....  : :D :D :D 

[Engineer]

I'm not in the firewood business per se, just the firewood burning business.  I never see firewood advertised around here as anything other than "mixed hardwoods".  With the abundance of hardwoods, people just don't burn softwood unless (like me) they have an outdoor wood boiler.  As for just oak, once in a while someone with a vacation home might ask a firewood dealer for a face cord or pickup truck load of oak, but that request is more often than not, likely to be laughed at.

I love white birch, Marcel.  Since my father refuses to put it in his woodstove ("too much creosote" he claims) I get all I can carry.  You have to burn it at the right time, though.  Too green and it's like trying to burn your socks after a full day in the woods.  Too old and you might as well burn a handful of dry mushrooms mixed with some talcum powder.   :D :D :D

[bck]

I wouldnt go through the hassle of seperating it, but if you think you could get more money for it ??? .   I guess you could call it organically grown and some people would pay more.  :

There has been somebody putting adds on craigslist this winter that wants any red or white oak tree that has fell in your yard for free. He can ONLY use red and white oak though.   :D

[rebocardo]

Since a Ford Ranger only holds about a 1/4 of a cord, that means you are selling about 2 cords. I wouldn't bother doing separate piles for that small amount unless you have wood you could sell for "BBQ".

FWIW: In the USA it is against the law to sell in anything other then cords and fractions there of, most states have laws that reflect the Federal law.

I would stack it neatly in cross cross rows so it dries better and so you could sell for more money seasoned.

[Dan_Shade]

can you reference that law, rebocardo?

In Maryland we have that law on the books, but I wasn't aware that it is a federal law.

[Dodgy Loner]

In my area, most everybody who sells firewood advertises it as oak firewood or oak/hickory firewood.  Since my firewood always came about as part of my timber stand improvement efforts, most of what I was cutting was less desirable stuff.  Here how I handled it when I sold firewood:  I stacked the oak and hickory separately from the rest of the hardwoods, but I just advertised "mixed hardwood firewood".  When people called and asked what type of wood it was (they almost always did) I would give them the list: maple, cherry, elm, birch, hackberry, chinaberry, and sweetgum was usually what I had.  If they were satisfied with that, then great.  If they were looking for oak and hickory, I would tell them that I sold oak and hickory firewood but charged a $10 premium per half-cord.  It worked well and I never had an unhappy customer (it helped that I was one of the few people selling "seasoned firewood" that was actually seasoned).

[rebocardo]

I have posted the link before, I am pretty sure it is under the FTC, I did a quick search (GPO) and can't determine which title it is.

[Meadows Miller]

Gday

For the volume you are cutting Id just sell it as mixed Hardwood Mate  ;) ;D

I sell about 75 cords a year of Box/Ironbark firewood to a couple of  melbourne firewood yards that my family has been selling to for about 70 years and get about $225 us a cord Bulk Wholesale  ;) Just for a little extra money during the winter slow down  ;) Firewood downhere gets sold in three different grades Box/Ironbark , Red Gum , Sugar Gum  and Mixed Common species

The box/Ironbark Comes out of Dryland Hi density timbers that are heavy timbers and yards are carting from anywhere upto 600 miles to melbourne these days We are the closest producer of B/Ib IN VIC but they turned 60 % of the local forest into national park about 8 yrs ago and basicly killed the industry downhere most of it comes of farms in n/w Nsw and sourthern Qld these days  : And I aint gonna go that far to cut wood  ;) :D :D ;)

Red gum comes out of the riverland areas and is of medium density and usually has a cartage distance of around 300 miles to Melb

Mixed Common species comes mainly from high altitude low density hardwoods and is the easyest to get hold of but people dont buy it in any great volume wich is stupid as its cheaper and can be sorced within a 100 od mile radius of Melb    : : But I see the volume used increasing because of the shear volume of timber burned in the fires was this type of forrest  ;)

Sugar Gum Is plantation grown in the S/west of Vic and a medium density wood which is carted up to 200 miles to melbourne I have a Mate /old boss who sends about 2000+ cords to melbourne a year and gets about the same price as i get for B/Ib deliverd

Melbourne uses 1 million + cords of fire wood a year   ;)

I just thought id add the little extra as I love the firewood industry and like reading about how you do things overthere and though some of you blokes might like to know a little of what we do here  ;) ;D

Reguards Chris

[Don K]

Glad that in south Alabama you can still sell it by the truckload. Not much math in that. Sold many loads when I was younger, now just cut for myself.

Don

[Corley5]

The State of Michigan buys firewood by the 16" face cord.  Guess they don't know they are facilitating we criminal types who sell it that way  :

[Dan_Shade]

I'd argue that when you say 16" face cord, that's the same as saying 1/3 of a chord

[Corley5]

It is but 1/3 of a cord is never mentioned 

[Dale Hatfield]

Your average fiirewood  Joe would have no Idea how to figure a 1/3 of a cord.
I'm sure that the cord law was put into place because of state subsidized Heat vouchers. Plus they like to have their hand in everybody's Biz . Their will soon be firewood police. Who show up with clip boards, tape measure, and Tree Id guide . To measure and fine you for under/over sized stacks of firewood as well as mis advertised types of wood.  Just the next step in free enterprises .

[brdmkr]

Seems the best approach would be to stack it and sell it by the stack.  Let the buyer see what he is getting before he buys.  There is a guy that does that here.  You have to go to his place to buy the wood.  You pick out the stack you want and you load it or he will deliver for a price.  He has many different sized stacks and sells a lot to campers wanting to build a fire (I know!).  Still, he sells plenty and nothing is standardized.  I don't see how you could be required to sell by a particular volume.  Who would turn down someone wanting to buy 2 - 3 sticks?  Would you try to figure out what fraction of a cord they were buying :D

[Corley5]

I've sold LOTS of wood to Dept of Human Serv. clients, people with home heating credit vouchers, and Headstart families who receive vouchers from the feds.  All of it has been sold by the evil face cord unit  ;) ;D   The govt agencies up here have no problem with them 

[Part_Timer]

I don't sell much but a friend of mine does.  He always has one cord setting out off to the side that is all ash.  I asked why and the answer was simple.  He has one customer that only wants to burn ash.  It pays $60 per cord more for him.  I guess the answeer is if you can find someone who is willing to pay the money go for it.

[gunman63]

How  high or wide or big of a pile of fire wood can u loose stack and have it dry decent, as it comes off a coneryor?

[Meadows Miller]

Gday

When i was working at robs we use to stack it as high as th Hakki conveyer would go then roll the stack over half way through the drying process with the old hough but it seemd to be drying  pretty well even w/o rolling it over w/o much mould but we get pretty hot summers here tho mate  ;)   :D ;D 8) 8)

Chris

[stonebroke]

So to dry firewood all we have to do is take it down under for awhile?

Stonebroke

[WH_Conley]

I'm not sending my firewood down there unchaparoned, I would have to go with it. ;)

[Meadows Miller]

Gday

:D :D ;D ;) No Worrys Fallas come on down anytime there is plenty off room left in the yard  ;)  ;D 8) But you might get lumped with some work to do  from me tho  ;) :D ;D I cant just let you blokes just sit around the yard all summer sinking cans and going fishing in the lake while you watch your wood dry tho  ;) :D :D :D

Reguards Chris