Daily Production With Huskee Splitter

[VT_Forestry]

With two (young-ish) guys working a 35-ton Huskee splitter, what kind of production could I expect to see?  I'm trying to get an idea of time involved in establishing an in-house firewood supply for a 188-site campground.  Any insight is always welcome!

[T Welsh]

VT, lots of variables to consider! do they have to skid,cut,split,stack? or just sit at splitter and throw into a pile. if the later I would say an easy 3 to 4 a day! also depends on if they are good workers or not. there,s one way to find out. get them to do a day and judge for yourself. any help that they can get,as in bucked wood,no big crazy over sized stuff,right close to splitter will help production. also do your self a favor and teach the guys how to be safe while using a splitter(where not to put your hands) wear gloves, and glasses. sounds overkill but we all know about today,s society! sue happy. good luck.Tim

[WH_Conley]

That is the same splitter I have. I would guess 4 tops. It is just too slow, plenty of power. That being said, I have not tried it with the 4 way wedge that I now have.

[Al_Smith]

I've got pile of red oak,out my back window about 200 from  where I'm typing .It was allready cut up before they started .There's aprox 5 cord  in that pile two young guys did in about 6 hours using a so called "28 ton " husky splitter .

Last fall with my splitter plus that one I mentioned and 5 guys,4 splitting one cutting up did 7 cords in about 6 hours give or take . Keep in mind on that ,myself and  one other guy was  over 60 years old ,plus it was a rather warm day and some of that stuff was 3 feet in diameter  .Realistically  two young  guys ,about a hour per cord or a little more time,depends .By myself I'd give it two hours per cord .I only do a couple a day if that much but then I'm on no time line either .

[Busy Beaver Lumber]

I have topped 6 cords in an 8 hour day with an assistant.

[clww]

I would think between 3 and 6 cords a day should be a goal. Lots of variables. I have a 28 ton Huskee, and can easily do 4 a day by myself in 8 hours.
Happy Birthday To You (yesterday)! 8)

[VT_Forestry]

Thanks for the replies!  It looks like my original estimations were pretty much inline with what everyone else is saying

And thanks for the Happy Birthday!

[Al_Smith]

Now you have to keep in mind that if you are doing something like straight grained oak 2 feet or less that will go pretty fast .Oak is about the easiest stuff in the world to split next to ash perhaps .

Now you compare that to perhaps big crotch wood from maple and the latter would take considerable more time .Fact some might be so gnarly it would be better to rip down to size before it were ever even split .

Some people get the stuff dropped off by trimmers and often it's stuff they don't want to fool with if they sell the firewood .There's a lot of good usable BTU's but you have to work a little harder to get it to a usable size .

[VT_Forestry]

Al - you're exactly right.  It really depends on the material coming in as to how production will move along.

A little backstory to my question:  In the property that I manage for the city, there is a campground that currently allows campers to bring in their own firewood, but doesn't really provide any wood there for them to purchase.  In an attempt to be proactive against wood-borne insects and disease, I am looking into the option of utilizing a lot of the firetrail blowdowns and other wood sources that are currently either left in the woods or hauled off to the landfill.  This would provide us with a local, sustainable firewood source, save some money in landfill dumping fees, protect the woods from foreign pests, etc.  It seems like a win-win for everyone involved, but there are a lot of unknowns in regards to how the program would work.  To start off, I'm beginning to stockpile a wood source and will probably get a Huskee splitter to do the bulk of the work.  In the summer months, we have typically hired some forest technicians to do a lot of the inventory work (which was my job before they hired me full-time after college).  These technicians would be the main muscle for the first few weeks to get the wood processed   

[Al_Smith]

Well yes it would be foolish not to use it .

I just caught that address of NewPort News .I spent about a year and a half there myself when I was in the navy .As I recall it was mostly pine trees of some sort .Fine for campfire wood though . That stuff should spllit rather easily if it's dry .I know green it isn't all that easy,kind of sticks together .

Fact I have some in my woodpile from a take down that I thought might be good for those who want campfires .Now let me tell you after wrestling a half dozen pieces of the that limby stuff ,anybody that wants it can split it themselves .If it isn't out of here in about 6 months it's going on my slash pile and up in smoke .

[VT_Forestry]

Al,
Yes, lots of Loblolly Pine, but also a fair amount of mature (and over-mature) hardwood stands.  I am willing to bet we have many years worth of campground firewood laying on the ground right now from Hurricane Irene...the majority of which is white oak and hickory. 

I've never had much luck splitting green pine, and most of the stuff I messed with ended in the same fate as you described  :D