Charging and method for houselot clearing

[mf40diesel]

Hello All,
As you may know, I have fairly recently picked up an old TJ 225.  Love it,  have loved logging all my life and am decent enough at cutting trees, and pretty good at running equipment, besides firewood though have never been truly a logger.  Bought the skidder for logging my own property and some neighbors as well.  My dream would be to cut wood occasionally when home (I go to sea for a main living) on side, the occasional person that wants to thin a small stand, something that might take a few weeks.  Pieces of land that are too small for most of the true professional loggers around me, and landowners that are not in a hurry.  Might actually be too much of a dream, but I digress...

A friend of mine has just approached me about clearing a house lot for him.  I have some questions, as it appears that I will have to put my money where my mouth is apparently.  Basics of the job, he wants to clear a 1500' drive way, and then clear an area roughly 2 acres for the house. 

I haven't the slightest clue how to bid something like that.  I want it to be a good deal for both of us, It will be a steep learning curve for me, and he is not in a hurry so should be good.

I believe that he will keep the hardwood for firewood, so I will separate that.  Soft wood, I will separate into logs, and pulp (hoping that I can get rid of the pulp)  when doing a job like this, what do people do with the tops? 

Do I make the biggest pile that I can, and then I guess I find someone else that can come in a chip the tops? Hopefully I can find a place for them, but I imagine with the chip prices so low in Maine that will cost me/us?

Also, and this might be the must obvious question for most, but I assume that when making the road and such, I am going to cut and skid everything of reasonable size.  The real small saplings just get crushed up in time into the road/clearing right? 

Clearly,  lots of gaps in my knowledge base of a logging operation.     

Thanks ahead,  thought I would pose the question to you fellas.

[mf40diesel]

Also, he has a pretty decent sized excavator, and some dump trucks too.  I don't plan on doing anything with the stumps. Thought that might be worth mentioning.  Thanks

[D2 Cody]

One important thing to remember is leaving the stumps up just high enough the excavating contractor can find them and either dig them out with a hoe or push them out with a Cat. I log and run an excavating company both and that's how I would do it if I were going to try and save the wood and if not I'd just tear them out root ball and all. Biggest thing is just getting stumps out to buildup drive and digging foundation and getting compaction at house site. I'm sure some others will have more advice to.  Sounds like a great job though and wish you the best of luck. Just get in there and get your foot in the door and don't give up when it gets tough, you'll do fine.
Regards, Cody.

[thecfarm]

In that 2 acres you are going to clear,could you make a brush pile and burn it? Bring all the wood to that area and limb it out there. It would be a bother,I do that when I am clearing out the grown up pasture. I bring no more than 2 trees at a time. I almost think one is just as quick as 2. Hard to see the branches of what's been cut and what has not when leaves are on the tree.
Softwood pulp will be a problem for you to get rid of. The last of me cutting,was hard. I was only having the tops of the trees for pulp. The pulp would start to gray before I got a load. You should be able to haul under someone else's pulp contract. Some will charge you,but that is not fair.
You also will probably need an intent to harvest number? I have no idea how your state is,but I need one here to move wood. It's not a big deal,easy to get,just keep track of your wood slip to file at the end of the year.
I have no idea about the power in your state either. I got charged a buck a foot to run power up mine 500 foot drive way.    And the worst part was if I would of done it about 3 weeks ealier,this was the 3rd week in Jan,I could of had it done for just the price of the poles.

[mf40diesel]

Thanks for all the input.  Actually CFarm, I am in your state... haha.  Western Maine,  I live in Harrison, east of Fryeburg a little south of Bethel.  The job is in Casco, couple towns south of me.

I have been thinking more, and I imagine that we will end up burning all the tops.  Again,  I would likely limb everything in one area and keep trying to push it all up.  Skid logs to the road/landing.  Except the firewood.  He can clean the pile up with the excavator after I am gone I suspect. 

Appreciate the comment about the stump heights.

Any idea how to charge? 

Thanks

[thecfarm]

I missed the state part somehow.  :
Oh yea,he better check CMP. No charge for them to come out and do a estimate on power. Unless they changed that too. If I would of had them come out in Dec,I could of had 500 feet of wire free. We knew we was going to build. Just did not get CMP there to to the job.
No idea about cost,but I do know it will be slow. Probably he want 4-6 inch trees cut too? Maybe smaller. I am thinking 2 cord a day would be good. Slow fooling around with the small stuff and the brush too.

[mf40diesel]

Can't worry about it too much I suppose, until I can actually go look at the job.  The guy owns a pretty big excavator, and I believe he also has a bulldozer.  I'm hoping that we will establish a diameter, say anything bigger than 6 inches I take to the landing or pile, everything else he can later push up with a dozer.   

You mentioned the "intent to harvest,"  do I need to have anything official to get one of those?

[thecfarm]

Last I knew,15 years ago,you need an intent to havest to move the logs. Call up the foresty dept in Augusta. Very simple,I did it. Might be more online now? A person just doing thier winter firewood is fine. It's when the logs need to go to a sawmill or pulp to a paper mill,is when the havest numbers are needed.