Yes, if one of them is driving a forklift.:hmm3grin2orange:
Selling wood for profit
- Thread starter IchWarriorMkII
- Start date
Help Support Arborist Forum:
Yes, if one of them is driving a forklift.:hmm3grin2orange:
:hmm3grin2orange: If you can find two guys who can lift a cord of wood,a real cord, any kind of wood, send 'em out here! I'd put guys like that to work real quick. Hell, they probably wouldn't even need saws...just push the trees over and buck 'em with their teeth.
Mr. Firewood
ArboristSite Operative
- Joined
- Jan 21, 2001
- Messages
- 415
- Reaction score
- 39
he said 2 hours to "split" a cord, it takes me 45 minutes to "split" a cord, the wood is already cut into rounds and is loaded on the feed conveyor with a bobcat
stumpjumper83
ArboristSite Operative
When I was doing it I ended up making like $10 and hour. But out of that 10 came gas, chains, files... etc for the saw, diesel for the tractor. Now the wood was free. It was better than working at Mcdonnalds but I didn't get rich. If I remember right I made just enough to rebuild my 86 suziki savage and keep gas in my car. It was fun though.
A friend of mine sells wood in the fall. Just a Stihl, a splitter, and a 1 ton with a dump bed. He makes about $20 an hour after maintenance costs, and buying the hardwood. Someone mentioned filler wood. I wouldn't if I were you. Word of mouth works both ways, and if people don't think they are getting what they paid for, look out. Wood goes for $1000 for 8 cords tree length dropped in his yard. I think he sells it for $215 cord seasoned, split, delivered. good luck with your venture.
Finnbear
ArboristSite Operative
Have to have some excuse to own a bunch of saws, a 4x4 truck, a Cushman Truckster (actually 3 of them), a splitter, a tractor, a log arch, etc., etc., etc.
Log Splitter
ArboristSite Guru
Around Dallas / Fort Worth, seasoned oak firewood sells for about $250 / cord (face cord 4 x 8 x fireplace length) delivered and stacked. Before I started cutting my own wood, I'd go through 2 face cords per year. The wood was not well seasoned, and it was often dirty. At the end of the year, all I had for my $500 was a pile of ashes.
I started cutting my own firewood, and now burn about 6 face cords per year. It is all seasoned hickory and oak, cut to the length of my Lopi stove and never dirty. At at the end of the year, I have cool new tools that I've bought with all the money I've 'saved' by doing the cutting, splitting, and stacking myself.
Husky137
Addicted to ArboristSite
Thanks,Rb.
Husky137
Addicted to ArboristSite
There is plenty of money to be made in selling firewood. If you spend too much time dicking around with it you will get no where fast. You also have to sell a good product and charge accordingly. Too many guys don't make money at it becasue they grossly undervalue their time and sell their product too cheap as a result.
I can have a cord, cut,split and delivered in 3 hours on average. Free wood, cord sold for $175, avg. expenses of $20 per cord for fuel and maintainence, that's over $50 an hour for my labor. Paying for wood can kill you if you can't work a good deal.
I can have a cord, cut,split and delivered in 3 hours on average. Free wood, cord sold for $175, avg. expenses of $20 per cord for fuel and maintainence, that's over $50 an hour for my labor. Paying for wood can kill you if you can't work a good deal.
I had free 130 acres adjoining land the butchers left the tops on i agreed to clean up.
So i sold firewood for 2 seasons yrs ago, I had an exc customers, 450 dozer (arch & winch) 2 F350 4x4 dumps 2 decent saws 1 homemade splitter.
I didnt kill myself for 8hrs a day in the woods
I sold a cord a day throughout the winter (avg) some days 0 other days we delivered 3 cords, we avg $120 cord (10+ yrs ago)
As stated, the proc'r & delivered logs is fastest most overhead / quantity / w/ profit dictated by the cost of the load of logs.
Close to home, easy xass, recently logged lots that are 100% free are decent to grab if you have skidder/dozer & are not afraid of work
Logs delivered is again dictated by the price of the tri ax load & the quality of the wood, softwood isnt worth anything to sell, so you better factor that in, we burn it so its not wasted.
running around the woods trying to drag logs with a pickup is always good for :hmm3grin2orange:
And personally i wouldnt carry wood, tossing it in the back of a dump trk or in a bucket od a loader is about as far i go w/ carrying wood.
There are easier way to make a living, besides a hernia or other medical expenses amatuer wood butchers may endure on top of the tranny they tore out of their old pickup and the profit just turned to defecit fast
Just my opinion for what little its worth.
So i sold firewood for 2 seasons yrs ago, I had an exc customers, 450 dozer (arch & winch) 2 F350 4x4 dumps 2 decent saws 1 homemade splitter.
I didnt kill myself for 8hrs a day in the woods
I sold a cord a day throughout the winter (avg) some days 0 other days we delivered 3 cords, we avg $120 cord (10+ yrs ago)
As stated, the proc'r & delivered logs is fastest
most overhead / quantity / w/ profit dictated by the cost of the load of logs.Close to home, easy xass, recently logged lots that are 100% free are decent to grab if you have skidder/dozer & are not afraid of work
Logs delivered is again dictated by the price of the tri ax load & the quality of the wood, softwood isnt worth anything to sell, so you better factor that in, we burn it so its not wasted.
running around the woods trying to drag logs with a pickup is always good for :hmm3grin2orange:
And personally i wouldnt carry wood, tossing it in the back of a dump trk or in a bucket od a loader is about as far i go w/ carrying wood.
There are easier way to make a living, besides a hernia or other medical expenses amatuer wood butchers may endure on top of the tranny they tore out of their old pickup and the profit just turned to defecit fast
Just my opinion for what little its worth.
Sam Turner2
New Member
firewood for profit
I began cutting firewood to sell whne i was in 8th grade.... You can make a ton of money if you have a good work ethic and the right tools. I make naer $50 perhour when it is all said and done...I cut split, stack, and deliver mesquete firewood.
Here is how it goes
1. buy a strong, lasting chainsaw I like stihl MS 361
2. Split your wood by maul or splitting ax (if it isn't too hard, i understand some woods can't be split by hand) hydro splitters are slow compared to a human once you get seasoned for it
3. buy a chainsharpener and some cool grind
4. buy chain in bulk and use hardnose bars, i like stihl duromatic
5. try your best to get the wood free
6. don't ever cheat a customer (I have stolen tons of business because people got tired of getting a 3.5' by 16' cord instaed of 4'X16"
7. you can limp on a truck and trialor that won't quite do the job untill you earn the $$ to buy the right truck and trailor, old chevys work nice, i run over lotsa trees with mine, it saves time clearing trails
If you don't have the right tools youw ill get discouraged quick, i saw lots of kids that saw my new truck and all the money I was making, goto wallmart and buy a elcheapo saw that blew up quick and was too slow, none of them lasted to even load a trailor....
I go to the school during the week and cut 6 cords on staurday and sunday. It takes me 2 hrs a cord to cut, split and stack a cord for the first 2 and then 3hrs to split and stack the 3rd I never cut more than 3 a day (if i can avoid it), because i can't do it again the next day...... I cut about 7 cords per gallon of superuleaded and oil, also cut about 14 cords pergallon of b&C oil, I never cut a whole cord with a single chain, because it does bad thing to them to cut dull with them. I probably get 4 or 5 cords per chain before I trash it, I also like to grind the riders down so they cut faster, you want to have to hold the saw back a little to get the fastest cut. Mechanics will tell you that will ruin a saw, but it has never ruined one of mine.
thats my .02 good luck
I began cutting firewood to sell whne i was in 8th grade.... You can make a ton of money if you have a good work ethic and the right tools. I make naer $50 perhour when it is all said and done...I cut split, stack, and deliver mesquete firewood.
Here is how it goes
1. buy a strong, lasting chainsaw I like stihl MS 361
2. Split your wood by maul or splitting ax (if it isn't too hard, i understand some woods can't be split by hand) hydro splitters are slow compared to a human once you get seasoned for it
3. buy a chainsharpener and some cool grind
4. buy chain in bulk and use hardnose bars, i like stihl duromatic
5. try your best to get the wood free
6. don't ever cheat a customer (I have stolen tons of business because people got tired of getting a 3.5' by 16' cord instaed of 4'X16"
7. you can limp on a truck and trialor that won't quite do the job untill you earn the $$ to buy the right truck and trailor, old chevys work nice, i run over lotsa trees with mine, it saves time clearing trails
If you don't have the right tools youw ill get discouraged quick, i saw lots of kids that saw my new truck and all the money I was making, goto wallmart and buy a elcheapo saw that blew up quick and was too slow, none of them lasted to even load a trailor....
I go to the school during the week and cut 6 cords on staurday and sunday. It takes me 2 hrs a cord to cut, split and stack a cord for the first 2 and then 3hrs to split and stack the 3rd I never cut more than 3 a day (if i can avoid it), because i can't do it again the next day...... I cut about 7 cords per gallon of superuleaded and oil, also cut about 14 cords pergallon of b&C oil, I never cut a whole cord with a single chain, because it does bad thing to them to cut dull with them. I probably get 4 or 5 cords per chain before I trash it, I also like to grind the riders down so they cut faster, you want to have to hold the saw back a little to get the fastest cut. Mechanics will tell you that will ruin a saw, but it has never ruined one of mine.
thats my .02 good luck
Sam Turner2
New Member
firewood for profit
I began cutting firewood to sell whne i was in 8th grade.... You can make a ton of money if you have a good work ethic and the right tools. I make naer $50 perhour when it is all said and done...I cut split, stack, and deliver mesquete firewood.
Here is how it goes
1. buy a strong, lasting chainsaw I like stihl MS 361
2. Split your wood by maul or splitting ax (if it isn't too hard, i understand some woods can't be split by hand) hydro splitters are slow compared to a human once you get seasoned for it
3. buy a chainsharpener and some cool grind
4. buy chain in bulk and use hardnose bars, i like stihl duromatic
5. try your best to get the wood free
6. don't ever cheat a customer (I have stolen tons of business because people got tired of getting a 3.5' by 16' cord instaed of 4'X16"
7. you can limp on a truck and trialor that won't quite do the job untill you earn the $$ to buy the right truck and trailor, old chevys work nice, i run over lotsa trees with mine, it saves time clearing trails
If you don't have the right tools youw ill get discouraged quick, i saw lots of kids that saw my new truck and all the money I was making, goto wallmart and buy a elcheapo saw that blew up quick and was too slow, none of them lasted to even load a trailor....
I go to the school during the week and cut 6 cords on staurday and sunday. It takes me 2 hrs a cord to cut, split and stack a cord for the first 2 and then 3hrs to split and stack the 3rd I never cut more than 3 a day (if i can avoid it), because i can't do it again the next day...... I cut about 7 cords per gallon of superuleaded and oil, also cut about 14 cords pergallon of b&C oil, I never cut a whole cord with a single chain, because it does bad thing to them to cut dull with them. I probably get 4 or 5 cords per chain before I trash it, I also like to grind the riders down so they cut faster, you want to have to hold the saw back a little to get the fastest cut. Mechanics will tell you that will ruin a saw, but it has never ruined one of mine.
thats my .02 good luck
I began cutting firewood to sell whne i was in 8th grade.... You can make a ton of money if you have a good work ethic and the right tools. I make naer $50 perhour when it is all said and done...I cut split, stack, and deliver mesquete firewood.
Here is how it goes
1. buy a strong, lasting chainsaw I like stihl MS 361
2. Split your wood by maul or splitting ax (if it isn't too hard, i understand some woods can't be split by hand) hydro splitters are slow compared to a human once you get seasoned for it
3. buy a chainsharpener and some cool grind
4. buy chain in bulk and use hardnose bars, i like stihl duromatic
5. try your best to get the wood free
6. don't ever cheat a customer (I have stolen tons of business because people got tired of getting a 3.5' by 16' cord instaed of 4'X16"
7. you can limp on a truck and trialor that won't quite do the job untill you earn the $$ to buy the right truck and trailor, old chevys work nice, i run over lotsa trees with mine, it saves time clearing trails
If you don't have the right tools youw ill get discouraged quick, i saw lots of kids that saw my new truck and all the money I was making, goto wallmart and buy a elcheapo saw that blew up quick and was too slow, none of them lasted to even load a trailor....
I go to the school during the week and cut 6 cords on staurday and sunday. It takes me 2 hrs a cord to cut, split and stack a cord for the first 2 and then 3hrs to split and stack the 3rd I never cut more than 3 a day (if i can avoid it), because i can't do it again the next day...... I cut about 7 cords per gallon of superuleaded and oil, also cut about 14 cords pergallon of b&C oil, I never cut a whole cord with a single chain, because it does bad thing to them to cut dull with them. I probably get 4 or 5 cords per chain before I trash it, I also like to grind the riders down so they cut faster, you want to have to hold the saw back a little to get the fastest cut. Mechanics will tell you that will ruin a saw, but it has never ruined one of mine.
thats my .02 good luck
jaytee
ArboristSite Lurker
Looks to me like unless you've made a significant investment in the right equipment, it just aint very profitable. Save your money, go to med school, become a chiopractor and work on all those poor woodcuters who've worked thereselves to death!! Or buy some lawn equipment and start cuttin grass. Done this myself for around 10 years now and trust me there is a much larger profit margin in cutting grass then there is in cutting wood!!
Exactly what I'm looking at. I guess I cut about 4-7 cords last summer for free, helping my buddy keep himself and his parents in wood. What I decided to do this year is sell a little to offset some of the cost of the hobby.. you know, chains, gas, bar oil and such, not necessarily to make a profit. I figured out that I can comfortably carry a "by definition" rick on my F150 and 5x8 trailer combined and I'd charge $75-80 for that amount of mixed hardwood split and delivered but not stacked. It normally goes for $40 per pickup load around here, and that's a thrown-in load, not a stacked load. Volume would be very small since I scrounge free wood and hand split, maybe 3 or 4 cords total, but that would be $450-$600 for the piggy. That's a lot of gas and oil, but of course doesn't cover wear and tear on truck, trailer, and chainsaw. It's a sight better than nothing for my efforts tho. I'll still be helping my buddy out too, so I probably have a busy summer ahead of me IF I can scrounge enough wood.
Ian
Last edited:
At least you don't have to go hunting down the grass. It's in the same place every time, right?
KMB
Addicted to ArboristSite
Me too, except I'd like to get find my wood in the next few month's before it gets WAAAAAYYYYYY to hot here during the summer
. I have tentatively 5 full cords (4' x 8' x 4') to get for folks for the next burning season, plus to resupply myself.kevin
punky wood
How long will wood last mixed, in full lingth on the groung not covered in michigan,?. 2nd question If cut split and piled on concrete with no cover,?... 3rd ?, cut split piled on concrete and under a clear plastic tarp/ Green house ,? does letting sun hit the wood help or hurt , I assume it will dry faster but will It go bad quicker,?... Thanks E J
How long will wood last mixed, in full lingth on the groung not covered in michigan,?. 2nd question If cut split and piled on concrete with no cover,?... 3rd ?, cut split piled on concrete and under a clear plastic tarp/ Green house ,? does letting sun hit the wood help or hurt , I assume it will dry faster but will It go bad quicker,?... Thanks E J
Me too, except I'd like to get find my wood in the next few month's before it gets WAAAAAYYYYYY to hot here during the summer
I'd like to do that too, but my buddy puts it off till late summer every time, so I end up cutting in August. I'm going to be cutting early for my little business. I might even go as far as to get a business license so that all my miles and chainsaw/accessory purchases would be tax deductions.
Steelhead, I really have very little experience with firewood since I don't burn, but I've been told that when you stack, you should try to keep the bark side up as much as possible since the bark is naturally waterproof and will act sorta like an umbrella for the wood underneath. As far as how long it will last on the ground, I was cutting some 12" oak logs late last year that I know were on the ground for 2 years (I felled them), and they showed about 1/2 to 1" of punky rot on the outside. That's laying on the forest floor tho, not stacked.
Ian
If it is green wood I would leave it uncovered to season. And it would likely get less bugs in it if it is sitting on concrete.
Similar threads
