Firewood vs. Sawmill?

[Bearcat22lr]

haven't read through this entire thread so If I missed something forgive me.

Buy a chainsaw 50-60cc chainsaw and have fun. if your able enough to split it, your able enough to run a saw. I bought an old farmhouse and started with a Poulan pro 42cc chainsaw.

 

[LBF]

I would highly recommend a log splitter if you’re going to do it. Growing up, that was usually one of my spring tasks, dad would bring home a dump truck load or two of rounds he cut, usually from a new housing plan, and I had a hatchet, ax, four sledgehammers (4#, 8#, 10# and 12# - escalation of force, lol, and the 4# was small enough to fit in the split a wedge started) and a half dozen splitting wedges. Split usually around 2 cords of wood a year. We didn’t heat with it, but we liked having fires in the wood burner in the basement.

Then my parents got to build their dream home with dad and myself as the contractors. We ended up building it out of ICF block (Insulated Concrete Form) which proved to be ridiculously well insulated, but at any rate, we put a Heatalator style fireplace in where you can turn on a fan to blow heat into the room and figured it could be used for supplemental heat. So we went out and bought a 22 ton log splitter. Well, everything worked better than advertised. The log splitter was a huge help, you can split a huge pile of wood in a day and the firewood processing machines are even fast (and more expensive). The fireplace proved to be a little too effective for the house, a box of wood (about 14”x18” and about 10” high) will burn for an entire evening, heat the entire house without turning the blower on. With the blower on, you have to open all the doors and windows, it will quickly take the house over 100* and it’s a 2,000 SF Ranch. In contrast the old house was about a 1,100 SF Ranch and the wood burner would require 2-3 boxes per evening and the only way to get over 100* would be to stuff it to the gills after it was burning a bit. Hooray efficiency.

At any rate, better tools cost more money but make you more efficient. Dad has two saws (16” and 20”) and the log splitter. I have two saws as well (16” and 20”) plus recently picked up a third that needs some work (it was free, sans bar and top cover). The sledges and wedges are still at dad’s because they make a good back-up. Dad has a Cant Hook and it’s on my list to get one or two, helps with log handling, those and Peavys.

I still have work to do for my own place, but my goal is to build my house with ICF and incorporate a central stone fireplace through the house. Don’t think it’s a practical solution for everyone, but done right, it should work well for heat. By no means is it going to be my only source of heat, but I think it would work well for an efficient way to heat with wood, the stone will soak up the heat and radiate it to the surroundings and since the exterior walls will essentially be a hunk of stone wrapped with insulation, well, it should be nice. Although my parent’s house has proved to have a huge advantage off the top, with no heat it still won’t get below freezing in the winter inside. My house is going to be a different design, but similar construction so I should net the same advantage.

My parents burn roughly a cord a year at most, for evening enjoyment. We try to keep at least a year ahead if not two with split and stacked firewood. We were about 3-4 years ahead then things happened health wise for all of us. Logs don’t dry, actually if they are in contact with the ground especially they will tend to take on water. Rounds can dry some. Best way to dry and season is to split and stack under cover or a roof. Keep the bottom layer off the ground, keep the sides open for air flow, but cover the top. Good dry seasoned wood has a distinctive sound when you bang two pieces together. If I did have to buy split wood at some point, I’d probably get it, get it stacked and covered, and wait at least a year since almost all of the locals selling it around here don’t bother to cover it or leave it sit a year or two.

 

[ValleyForge]

I would highly recommend a log splitter if you’re going to do it. Growing up, that was usually one of my spring tasks, dad would bring home a dump truck load or two of rounds he cut, usually from a new housing plan, and I had a hatchet, ax, four sledgehammers (4#, 8#, 10# and 12# - escalation of force, lol, and the 4# was small enough to fit in the split a wedge started) and a half dozen splitting wedges. Split usually around 2 cords of wood a year. We didn’t heat with it, but we liked having fires in the wood burner in the basement.

Then my parents got to build their dream home with dad and myself as the contractors. We ended up building it out of ICF block (Insulated Concrete Form) which proved to be ridiculously well insulated, but at any rate, we put a Heatalator style fireplace in where you can turn on a fan to blow heat into the room and figured it could be used for supplemental heat. So we went out and bought a 22 ton log splitter. Well, everything worked better than advertised. The log splitter was a huge help, you can split a huge pile of wood in a day and the firewood processing machines are even fast (and more expensive). The fireplace proved to be a little too effective for the house, a box of wood (about 14”x18” and about 10” high) will burn for an entire evening, heat the entire house without turning the blower on. With the blower on, you have to open all the doors and windows, it will quickly take the house over 100* and it’s a 2,000 SF Ranch. In contrast the old house was about a 1,100 SF Ranch and the wood burner would require 2-3 boxes per evening and the only way to get over 100* would be to stuff it to the gills after it was burning a bit. Hooray efficiency.

At any rate, better tools cost more money but make you more efficient. Dad has two saws (16” and 20”) and the log splitter. I have two saws as well (16” and 20”) plus recently picked up a third that needs some work (it was free, sans bar and top cover). The sledges and wedges are still at dad’s because they make a good back-up. Dad has a Cant Hook and it’s on my list to get one or two, helps with log handling, those and Peavys.

I still have work to do for my own place, but my goal is to build my house with ICF and incorporate a central stone fireplace through the house. Don’t think it’s a practical solution for everyone, but done right, it should work well for heat. By no means is it going to be my only source of heat, but I think it would work well for an efficient way to heat with wood, the stone will soak up the heat and radiate it to the surroundings and since the exterior walls will essentially be a hunk of stone wrapped with insulation, well, it should be nice. Although my parent’s house has proved to have a huge advantage off the top, with no heat it still won’t get below freezing in the winter inside. My house is going to be a different design, but similar construction so I should net the same advantage.

My parents burn roughly a cord a year at most, for evening enjoyment. We try to keep at least a year ahead if not two with split and stacked firewood. We were about 3-4 years ahead then things happened health wise for all of us. Logs don’t dry, actually if they are in contact with the ground especially they will tend to take on water. Rounds can dry some. Best way to dry and season is to split and stack under cover or a roof. Keep the bottom layer off the ground, keep the sides open for air flow, but cover the top. Good dry seasoned wood has a distinctive sound when you bang two pieces together. If I did have to buy split wood at some point, I’d probably get it, get it stacked and covered, and wait at least a year since almost all of the locals selling it around here don’t bother to cover it or leave it sit a year or two.

I like my can’t hooks on the sawmill…I like peaveys in the log pile and out in the woods, the point makes a big difference handling logs.

www.logrite.com is my recommendation, made in USA and indestructible….

 

[blades]

i have moved a lot big logs , hook or eye bolts than can be screwed to the log , come-a-longs( manual winch) ( i have moved 3 ton machines with a come a long and a few pieces of pipe or wood rounds and some wedges - to get the unit up to slip pipe under) and something to anchor come a long to- like a 4 ft stake that won't bend, truck , some other tree. heck even used heavy duty 3" ratchet straps. Block and tackle, Hint dig a small trench under log wrap what ever a couple time around log anchor end - other end goes to what ever is providing pulling power get you further in one set. just have to go back to old school sans electric or gas power units. another hint double pull force add a snatch block in the set. An old farm jack is a handy tool also. The off road guys know about these. add some big lag bolts and you can lift an end enough get under it , jam a small sappling under theree ditto for other end -gets off the soft ground makes things easier to roll. Just some thoughts from an old guy working alone most of time. Not much that I can't make move

 

[HansFranz]

Unlike white oak, red oak rots FAST, particularly when it's not split, and particularly when it's on the ground. In 2-3 years, most of that wood is going to be compost.

 

[Mad Professor]

Unlike white oak, red oak rots FAST, particularly when it's not split, and particularly when it's on the ground. In 2-3 years, most of that wood is going to be compost.

Mostly the sapwood rots with red, but yes white lasts longer

 

[HansFranz]

If you look at the end grain on red oak, even the heartwood, it looks like a bundle of soda straws. This causes it to wick up moisture like the end of a paper towel roll immersed in a fish tank, through capillary action. That, combined with the low pH of red oak (which promotes fungal growth that follows those capillaries deep into the heartwood) causes it to melt down into mush almost fast enough to watch. Left on the ground, red oak logs are generally worthless for woodworking within months, and worthless for firewood within 2 yrs.

If you want to get any value out of it, you need to get it off the ground, and cut up so it dries, ASAP.

White oak heartwood will last for years and years, even on the ground.

You asked about the numbers. As a rule of thumb, most dry firewood contains about 16-20 million BTUs per ton (with resinous woods like pine near the top, and non-resinous woods like oak near the bottom). There are log weight calculators online that you can consult for weight. You want firewood to be dried to a max of around 20% water by weight, otherwise it won't burn that well, much of your heat will be consumed boiling off the water, and your stack temperatures will be depressed enough to cause faster creosote condensation in your stack, which is a fire hazard. Next you'll need to factor in a) combustion efficiency and b) how efficient your heat extraction from the system is. Unlike oil burners, which can be made to be 100% efficient in this regard (they actually condense the water vapor in the exhaust), wood burning systems need to sacrifice much of the heat up the stack to keep exhaust gas temperatures high enough to reduce creosote condensation. A rule of thumb for a long time was that you wanted the top of your stack to be 400°F but you can get away with quite a bit less than that if you clean your stack once or twice a year. (Yes, there are catalytic stoves that help improve combustion efficiency, allowing you also to extract more heat without as much creosote buildup, but in my experience they are very finicky to keep running at their advertised efficiency...there are simply too many variables involved in burning wood. If I were to buy a new stove today, I would probably go with one of the more efficient non-cat stoves, rather than a cat.) If you want to get into a discussion of all these efficiencies and the engineering involved in improving them, I'd recommend the hearth dot com forum. Good luck.

 

[PithFreak]

I like my can’t hooks on the sawmill…I like peaveys in the log pile and out in the woods, the point makes a big difference handling logs.

www.logrite.com is my recommendation, made in USA and indestructible….

After getting a can’t hook I couldn’t go without now. Very simple but such a useful tool.

 

[Bill G]

Unlike white oak, red oak rots FAST, particularly when it's not split, and particularly when it's on the ground. In 2-3 years, most of that wood is going to be compost.

100% correct

 

[blades]

Another hint get the bark off, all will last longer in the round that way

 

[Lightning Performance]

Start cheap and learn to fix simple tools like 40-50cc saws not from the big three. Older stuff works just as well if it sat and you can revive most of it. The labor you add will be worth your time. Block up the bigger stuff into smaller chunks and notch cut the nasty crotchety bits asap to get them drying. Firewood is everywhere so finding dry limbs to burn this year won't be a problem if you get stacking now and cover the tops. My wife don't mind tossing chunks into a wood stove. I won't be giving away anymore firewood now. The market is ripe to sell green and stack the dry.

 

[Charlie Coyote]

Hello,
I'm new here doing a little research and learning a lot. My husband and I are not experienced with wood stoves or wood in general. I grew up having wood stoves, and he had a fireplace and chopped wood and started fires, I didn't participate in wood stove activities. We recently had some trees professionally taken down for our solar panels we installed, and also the safety of our house. These were monster red oaks, >100 years old. We decided to keep the logs since my dad has a splitter, and we have a lot of property we could store the wood, and we spent $600/month on oil this year for almost 6 months , so a wood burning stove is looking really nice in our future. We currently only have a fireplace that doesn't do much of anything. Said pile of logs is ~10' high, 20' long, and 10' deep. (see pictures below)

My question, these logs are huge, we're probably going to hire someone to at least cut them up so we can split them ourselves. We had one guy quote us a couple hundred to cut them up. Should we look into having a sawmill come and take them? I think i calculated something like $4000 worth of firewood doing a general volume calculation ($250/chord). I have no idea if they are valuable to a sawmill to make lumber out of, so i thought i could post the question here.

I'm also assuming we couldn't use this wood for another 2 years or so? From my reading, you should let fresh (cut in march and may 2022) oak season for ~1-2 years. Does that sound right? I know it depends on the moisture in the wood, so we would probably invest in a moisture meter. Also, i'm all about the numbers, so if you have any good methods of calculating cost savings of wood burning vs oil, or just how much it costs/year to burn wood, I would like to know what you use. Thank you for any information!

I see slabs, boards and firewood. My log pile is knotty pine, sigh.

 

[woodfarmer]

I would never cut up a good sawlog for firewood, there is always lots of firewood to be found.
I grew up with a wood furnace burning red oak and it took about 6-8 cord to heat a 3000 sf house.

I don’t want to carry wood inside anymore so when I built my new house I put a Garn gasification boiler ( don’t buy Garn, piece of **** rotted out in 5 years) in my shop. I use 4-5 cord of seasoned wood. Burning wood is a lifestyle but the way that fuel sources have skyrocketed some for of wood supplementary heat would be highly recommended.

 

[Woody912]

Hello,
I'm new here doing a little research and learning a lot. My husband and I are not experienced with wood stoves or wood in general. I grew up having wood stoves, and he had a fireplace and chopped wood and started fires, I didn't participate in wood stove activities. We recently had some trees professionally taken down for our solar panels we installed, and also the safety of our house. These were monster red oaks, >100 years old. We decided to keep the logs since my dad has a splitter, and we have a lot of property we could store the wood, and we spent $600/month on oil this year for almost 6 months , so a wood burning stove is looking really nice in our future. We currently only have a fireplace that doesn't do much of anything. Said pile of logs is ~10' high, 20' long, and 10' deep. (see pictures below)

My question, these logs are huge, we're probably going to hire someone to at least cut them up so we can split them ourselves. We had one guy quote us a couple hundred to cut them up. Should we look into having a sawmill come and take them? I think i calculated something like $4000 worth of firewood doing a general volume calculation ($250/chord). I have no idea if they are valuable to a sawmill to make lumber out of, so i thought i could post the question here.

I'm also assuming we couldn't use this wood for another 2 years or so? From my reading, you should let fresh (cut in march and may 2022) oak season for ~1-2 years. Does that sound right? I know it depends on the moisture in the wood, so we would probably invest in a moisture meter. Also, i'm all about the numbers, so if you have any good methods of calculating cost savings of wood burning vs oil, or just how much it costs/year to burn wood, I would like to know what you use. Thank you for any information!

I have the ability to load and haul my own so personally I would take the good ones to local sawmill. If you have a local logger might ask them to drop by and see if they are interested in any of it. Have not sold any red oak lately but would think $.70 per board foot when delivered. Logger might give you half since they are already cut?