iDRY Vacuum Kilns

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Go Big or Go Home, Going Big

Started by SawyerTed, May 28, 2021, 12:10:28 PM

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SawyerTed

Right now I can't share too much about what we are doing, but making sure that the greatest amount of material possible is transported is a key factor to differentiating our operation from others.  If others are loading with blowers or with loaders, we will have a different method available for customers who want it.  
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

nativewolf

Big shaving mill auction, acadian wood shavings down in LA.  Just an FYI if you were looking for equipment 
Liking Walnut

Stephen1

I am cruising through the new posts and I came across this.
I'm thinking the last time I heard from SawerTed, he was going to get into a higher end profit line on his LT35. 
Well this definitly is a little bigger?
Good for you Ted, you were to young to really retire just yet.  8)
IDRY Vacum Kiln, LT40HDWide, BMS250 sharpener/setter 742b Bobcat, TCM forklift, Sthil 026,038, 461. 1952 TEA Fergusan Tractor

SawyerTed

Still doing portable jobs.  I've abandoned any sales of any lumber at this point.  My sawing has been focused on higher end hardwood like quarter sawn white oak, walnut and cherry for select customers.  I had to reduce advertising to focus on the higher end stuff.  Now most jobs are repeat customers, friends and word of mouth customers.  

I did do a farm festival demo on Saturday and cut mostly utility grade white oak and pine framing lumber. That was mainly to help out a young couple making a business in agribusiness and entertainment - "agritainment?"  They are doing corn mazes, old time molasses making, corn shuckings, sheep shearing demos, bee keeping demos, pumpkin picking, yarn making and so forth.

Between the new wood products venture and a few portable jobs a month, I stay out of trouble or maybe I stay in it all the time. :) 
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

SawyerTed

Things are hoping and rolling around here.  Our owner has purchased another business and I am integrating it with our operation.  

We are making bulk firewood as fast as we can and it is leaving here by the dump truck load, dump trailer load, pick up load and station wagon load.  One guy comes every week and purchases a Volvo station wagon load. :o  My best guess is we have sold over 350 cords of bulk firewood and have approximately 50 cords in our warehouse.  We expect to continue sales until April or so. 

Since October we have sold every wood shaving we could make.  We even tried to purchase shavings and resell them.  It didn't work out.  Trucking expense is our biggest limiting factor.  The second is capacity of our rebuilt shavings mill.  But we are making shavings every day.  Just got word we sold six 48' walking floor loads going out later this week and early next week.  

We have placed orders for a fence post merchandising line.  We will be making posts to 16', peeling them and pressure treating them.  We have been working with the manufacturer of a pressure treating system that is like a Ronco Oven - load it, set it and forget it.  Auto chemical mixing, automated cycling and chemical recovery.  We've got all the EPA, Div. of Environmental Quality stuff lined up.  The automated system will produce less than 100 pounds of hazardous waste annually.  

The company we have purchased has a retail firewood packaging operation.  We will be taking over operations and integrating them here to the tune of 800,000 retail bundles of wood annually.  That includes firewood processors, heat treating, bagging, palletizing and shipping.  All will be operational by June.

Our log concentration operation is getting ready to get a big boost as we have a Barko 495B knuckle boom on a six wheel carriage due to be here within a month.  We are pretty sure this piece of equipment is going to be the key to moving loads of prime and select white oak logs and poplar logs for other manufacturers.  

I go to work every day and get to work with logistics and planning, transportation which includes everything from trucks to railroads, sawmill and other wood processing machinery, boilers and kilns, heavy equipment and on and on.  
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

Hilltop366

Busy..... you would think this would keep you out of trouble, is it working?

Nebraska

When are you gonna have time to run the new mill when it gets here?

SawyerTed

Quote from: Hilltop366 on February 01, 2022, 06:31:53 PM
Busy..... you would think this would keep you out of trouble, is it working?
Not at all!  It's just another opportunity to go further astray farther than I could by myself!   :D
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

SawyerTed

It has been several weeks since my last update on this thread.

We have big changes coming!  

On the firewood production side 
Two Multitek firewood processors arrive tomorrow morning
A firewood tumbler is being fabricated on site and will clean the wood before going in kiln baskets and the kilns.  We have 240 one cord baskets arriving over the next several days.  They were purchased from another firewood company.  A firewood bagging line is coming together with two bagging machines on order, pallet wrappers and two electric forklifts to service the bagging line and to load trucks.  I've got contractors coming to build our loading dock in the next week or so.

On the Shavings production side no real change but we have the machine fine tuned and it is rolling out the shavings - nice thin, fluffy shavings.

Our fence post merchandising and sorting line will be here in June.  We anticipate a fence post every 8 to 10 seconds will be milled, peeled and sorted.

The pressure treating vessel and treating system is being fabricated and is due here in October.  Presales on fence posts has been more than we expected.  Permits and registrations are all in place.  Even the state HazMat monitoring folks have blessed us.

Power, compressed air and material handling all are coming together. We expect to make our first bagged firewood in May, our first fence posts in August and charge the pressure treating system in October.

It is old news now but our biggest challenge is transportation and the costs involved.  But our philosophy is and has been "keep pounding, we aren't in this alone."

The following photos were taken this afternoon and are part of my album of before and after shots.  These are before the changes come.


 This is our bulk firewood storage.  The walls of this warehouse are 20' for perspective.  The post in the foreground to the back wall distance is 60' each purlin is 20' long.  So our pile here is about 35' wide, 80' feet long and about 10' high.  We've sold about three times this much this year.  All those sales have been local, within 50 miles.



This is our bulk firewood processor.  It is a shop modified Woodbine.  It is probably out for the season.  Keeping fuel in this thirsty beast requires around 250 gallons a week.

 We built a cab and work platform beside the log trough since the chain sometimes doesn't grab a log with a crook and the log needs adjustment with cant hooks.  You can see our 500 gallon fuel tank just to right.  Needless to say we have a little housekeeping to take care of but that's about a week's accumulation of sawdust and wood scraps.

The building the firewood processor is in will be the building for the two Multitek 2040 firewood processors.  The new to us processors will be electric.
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This is our shavings mill.  We are working it awfully hard for what it is.  It typically runs 10 hours a day.  I must say our operator is very good with housekeeping.  Housekeeping is a big part of our safety and fire prevention efforts.
 

 
After some fine tuning we have gotten our blade geometry right to make nice fluffy shavings.  


We sell every shaving we can make right now.  Today we sent two trucks out with around 14 tons of shavings each.  Shavings are pre sold (would that be shavings futures? :D :D) into the first week of April.

Every day presents new challenges, logistical puzzles and labor cyphers.  Fortunately, so far we've been able to have some choice in who and when we hire. 

Word has gotten out that we have logs.  Visits from guys like most of us looking for a few logs to fill an order or something unique to saw are increasing.
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

Stephen1

Thats an impressive pile of firewood! Is the firewood soft or hard? Do the shavings come from softwood? What are the Fence posts? 
Thanks for the update. 
IDRY Vacum Kiln, LT40HDWide, BMS250 sharpener/setter 742b Bobcat, TCM forklift, Sthil 026,038, 461. 1952 TEA Fergusan Tractor

hacknchop

Wonderful progress on all fronts,just curious as to what the kiln schedule for firewood is like, and do you sort for species on account of the different rate some hardwoods release moisture i imagine red oak is the worse.Red Oak usually takes 2 yrs to dry before its considered seasoned whereas Hard Maple be done in a yr or less. Thanks for the updates I find it's not only interesting but also encouraging to see some operations move ahead a midst these troubling times.
Often wrong never indoubt

moodnacreek

You are really making progress. In my opinion Multi Tech is a good choice. Thanks for the updates, I enjoy seeing somebody else do the things I once dreamed of.

WDH

Y'all will be using everything but the squeal.  
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

SawyerTed

Quote from: Stephen1 on March 10, 2022, 07:56:13 AM
Thats an impressive pile of firewood! Is the firewood soft or hard? Do the shavings come from softwood? What are the Fence posts?
Thanks for the update.
Our firewood is mostly white oak, red oak, maple and other species mixed at about 15%.  It is all hardwood.
The shavings are 85 to 90% pine with poplar making up the rest if we run any poplar at all.  
Fence posts will be pine.
Our whole business model is built around highly available lower price pulpwood.  While we are competing with the chip business for the logs, we are paying better for tree length per ton than chips pay.
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

SawyerTed

The firewood kiln schedule is still to be finalized.  The goal of the kiln is solely to heat treat the firewood for pests and pathogens additional drying is a benefit.  The universally accepted standard is an internal temperature of 160° for 75 minutes.  We have a 400 hp sawdust fired boiler to heat the kilns.  It used to run six kilns - 4 at 50 Mbft and 2 at 90 Mbft.  Meeting the USDA standards shouldn't be a problem.

Our firewood will air dry somewhat prior to heat treating, get heat treated, then stockpiled indoors for a time before packaging.  After packaging, the bundles will be warehoused for a time prior to shipping.  So there will be considerable drying done in the kilns, and additional drying prior to heat treating and afterward as well.

We will still produce air dried bulk firewood for local sales.
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

longtime lurker

 What I love about this thread is watching things get done right the first time, which is a luxury I've never had on my own account. I've done it tough for years building my own thing and it hasn't been for want of sweat, lack of skill or a master plan: just lack of capital to invest knowing that once it was all up and running it'd pay itself off.

No matter how good you are or how keen, there's just no substitute for the power of a big cheque book. Makes me happy to see it all coming together for you guys.
The quickest way to make a million dollars with a sawmill is to start with two million.

SawyerTed

"Doing it right the first time."  We do everything we can to educate ourselves as we go.  Having a skilled and talented operations manager in the yard and having a handful of steady employees is what has made this whole thing get this far.  It takes all of us and then a lot of help from our network of vendors and friends.

My role has been mainly being out in front anticipating the next 10 or 100 things we need to do and lining up the logistics, vendors and trades to get them done.  

We developed a really good business plan and we are working that plan.  There have a couple of minor variations.  One being the acquisition of a firewood company that has been producing 1.2 million bags of firewood annually.   

We go to work everyday and try to stay focused on the goals.  
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

SawyerTed

We have purchased two Mulitek firewood processors.  This is one being unloaded with a Taylor Big Red forklift.  The processor weighs about 15,000 pound. Big Red didn't even make a peep. Unfortunately the owner sent for it today so it's is gone. 

The processors are used but were running Monday before my crew disassembled them for transport. 

They need some attention but we bought both for much less than $200k


 
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

Walnut Beast

Looking good and sounds like your working your plan 💪👍

NE Woodburner

Quote from: SawyerTed on March 09, 2022, 04:53:58 PMWe have 240 one cord baskets arriving over the next several days.


Would you mind posting some photos of your one cord baskets when they arrive? I've been thinking of fabricating something like this. My thought is to throw or stack into a basket/rack right off the splitter and move from there by forks to save handling. I stack on pallets and air dry for a year then move it into a woodshed the following year (2 yrs seasoned before I burn) which ends up being a fair amount of stacking and handling by the time I burn it. I may not be able to handle a full cord with my tractor FEL, but your baskets may give me an idea for something slightly smaller that may work.

SawyerTed

@NE Woodburner , it may be a week before we get any baskets assembled.  I sent you PM with links to SII Dry Kilns firewood baskets and to Kiln Direct firewood baskets.  I like the Kiln Direct basket frames.  The SII baskets use expanded metal which I like better than the welded wire.  Whatever you do, know that baskets take a beating and anything you can do to minimize that is a plus.
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

SawyerTed

Today was a major milestone for our operation.  We fired the 400 HP English Boiler and tested the two 90 MBFT kilns.  

While we have a few repairs to do, the tests went well.  The boiler is sound as are the feed water system and the condensation tank.  Our issues are mostly valves, traps and unions.  It probably isn't more than 2 days work.  

This is the 400 HP boiler



 The gentleman in the green plaid used to operate the boiler and kilns here.  
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

Walnut Beast

Congratulations! That's pretty handy asking the guy that used to operate things some questions that you have

WDH

Experience speaks.  You guys are doing things right. 
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

SawyerTed

We have one employee who also operated the boiler and monitored the kilns.  

While we had both men here we also had a local mechanical contractor with extensive boiler operation and repair experience here to ensure our procedures are correct.  His crew will do the repairs.  
Woodmizer LT50, WM BMS 250, WM BMT 250, Kubota MX5100, IH McCormick Farmall 140, Husqvarna 372XP, Husqvarna 455 Rancher

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