how to price rounds of wood

[Kat Island]

Hi- new to the site. I just had a large Norwegian fir tree cut down and its currently lined up in rounds. I would like to give some of the wood to friends/neighbors but would also like to sell some.What is a fair way to price the rounds for sale instead of cutting it up? thank you

 

[Ryan'smilling]

I've heard of Norway spruce, maybe that's what you're talking about. Fresh cut rounds of coniferous wood except Doug fir really wouldn't be worth much, especially if it's knotty wood. If it's straight grain and decent size, maybe you could get $40-50 for a truckload. Maybe. Honestly, if you're not gonna use it, and your neighbors don't want all of it, you might be best just listing it for free to get it gone. Personally, I'd split it and burn it in the fire pit in the back yard, but that's just me.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

Not sure what you mean about selling it in rounds vs cutting it? Rounds are already cut to stove length.

You'd get more $$ by finishing the job and splitting it all up.

 

[johnnyballs]

Hi- new to the site. I just had a large Norwegian fir tree cut down and its currently lined up in rounds. I would like to give some of the wood to friends/neighbors but would also like to sell some.What is a fair way to price the rounds for sale instead of cutting it up? thank you

sometimes i use rounds for trade...for example i'll give my one buddy a load of rounds if i need the brakes done on my car,..works out for both of us...cheers!!!...

 

[Streblerm]

Around me you'd be hard pressed to get somebody to take them for free. There's not much value in unsplit firewood, even less if it is a softwood like pine or fir.

The only way I would pay for wood is if it were delivered to me. The labor to lift, transport, and split is most of the cost of firewood. The raw materials aren't worth a lot.

I live in the suburbs and scrounge all the wood I get for free. There are cords of unsplit pine/fir in several neighbors yards within sight of my house. Most of it will probably rot.

 

[rarefish383]

Many of the Tree Company trucks in our area have large lettering on the back "Wood For Free", that's Oak, Hickory, etc, Joe.

 

[muddstopper]

Many of the Tree Company trucks in our area have large lettering on the back "Wood For Free", that's Oak, Hickory, etc, Joe.

Interesting. The tree companies around here have huge piles of wood and a splitter, and I dont think they are giving anything away

 

[svk]

FWIW around here loggers charge about $100 per cord for "hardwood mix" delivered in log length that folks use for firewood. I would postulate that hardwood in rounds would go for similar value.

Unfortunately in your case many woodburning folks still believe the silly myth that burning evergreen/fir wood will cause chimney fires and burn down their house so the marketable value is significantly less. If you don't want any I would just try to give it away.

 

[Jere39]

Around here, pine in rounds is interesting to folks with OWB's, but there is no price. They pick it up for free, which is a good way to get rid of it. Otherwise, I used some from an ice storm a couple years ago to reinforce the back stop for my private shooting range.

 

[damato333]

Many of the Tree Company trucks in our area have large lettering on the back "Wood For Free", that's Oak, Hickory, etc, Joe.

Around me the tree companies keep the mulching companies very happy. Most of the time the tree companies act like your putting them out by willing to take their wood and not charging them.

 

[c5rulz]

Unsplit it is worth less than nothing. Hardwood dominates the market around here.

You might get someone to take it for free, maybe.

 

[lknchoppers]

It's hard to say. In my area hardwood is easy to come by so Pine has no value for resale. In other areas like the West, that is what they burn.

 

[cantoo]

Kat Island, google Swedish Candles. That will be your most bang for the buck.

 

[rarefish383]

Interesting. The tree companies around here have huge piles of wood and a splitter, and I dont think they are giving anything away

I guess it makes a difference how much work you have. My cousins company is booked a month or more out. They average $100 per man hour on a four man crew. If the guy 3 houses down wants the wood, dump it in his drive and get to the next job that pays money. I never see Asplundh, Davey, or Care of Trees selling wood, get rid of the crap as fast as you can. When my Dad was in business and we had Oak removals he would let me take it home. I split and sold it on my time for side money. Anything else we sold to a farm market for $50 a dump truck load, Ford F 600 with a 12 ' bed and 6' high chipper box. If we had Oak loaded and still had time to get another job in, or started, the wood went to the farm market. More men go out on comp fartin around with big heavy wood than on real work. You could put on a crew just to process firewood, but why put on a new crew to make a little money, when they could make a lot of money? Then you have the space. If you are bringing in several dump truck loads a day, plus several dump truck loads of chips, where does all the crap go. We had a 5 acre yard out in the country where there were no zoning laws on land use, but we paid a price in fuel to and from work. If you were just around the block, wood and chips free, If you were ten miles away, wood and chips $50 truck load. If you were more than ten miles away you went on the list for the next time we were in that area. Follow the money, do what pays more, get rid of the rest, Joe.

 

[rarefish383]

I guess another good example would be to go to our local landfill. You can dump all wood and brush free. They process it into pretty high grade mulch, giant tub grinder, giant machine that rides down over top of the piles turning the mulch. No logs. Many big companies are in there at lunch time dumping chips, and back at quitting time dumping wood. Clean trucks ready for tomorrow morning. Nice clean yard, no zoning issues. If you jump over the the Commercial Tree Care forum, you will probably get a very different opinion on firewood, Joe.