Need advice....family members looking at getting a rural retreat outside of Geelong, Victoria. Around 150 acres. I am thinking if it's worth allocating 5 acres of it to a little firewood plantation. Should I bother? Can't see the harm in giving it a crack, what trees should I consider
the all aussie dribble thread!
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Stihlman would know the viability payback timeframe and species choice. your tax man may help with the $ inputs. Watch out for state gov controls on clearing native bush they will hinder and cost much so cleared paddocks best.
chippy
Addicted to ArboristSite
You'd make more money growing blue gum and selling it for pulp. Got a mate I went to skool with and he has 300 acres on the coast down past you,.he grows blue gum on about 200 of that and all it does is pay the rates which are 10G a year....you will get less for firewood once you factor in your costs....firewood is next to giving it away if youre trying to run it as a small business.
Just drove poowong to port Albert via grand ridge road very nice county need to explore a bit more... mums Hyundai chewed it up easy
huntingrob
ArboristSite Guru
Just keep ya eye out for a block with a bit of neglected native hardwood on it. We've got 40 acres that hasn't been tended to for a long while and I reckon if I started selling wood off it tomorrow I'd still be going in 5 seasons time and hardly make a dent. There's that many dead trees on it both still standing and on the deck. If it wasn't so far from home or I could work out how to get it here economically I'd have a crack myself. [emoji2]
chippy
Addicted to ArboristSite
It's lovely country and we are looking at buying some acreage over the next yr or 2 and that is one area we love.....other options Inc Neerim area if we need to be closer to melbourne Inc Drouin and been looking at areas in Tassie also.....w I'll be our final move and setting up to retire I hope, could be wishful thinking....lol
Stihlman441
Addicted to ArboristSite
rogue661
ArboristSite Operative
Interesting pop up on this older little two stroke going off the size of the piston Id say its about 25cc and its a very strong runner! can't find anything about it on google its got a Mitsubishi ignition and is to well made so am thinking made in japan?, also has a steel liner and hand done ports from the factory, the upper transfers are very interesting will definitely copy it the next hack port job I do lol...
Its a backpack blower mister I've converted it to just a blower to do odd jobs like blow the bloody gum leaves out of my gutters...Only thing wrong was it must of have had a big knock to the carby and the intake manifold was broken clean in half I just made a new one to easy I don't mind tinkering and fixing one man's trash.... Not bad for 2 bucks from the tip..
Its a backpack blower mister I've converted it to just a blower to do odd jobs like blow the bloody gum leaves out of my gutters...Only thing wrong was it must of have had a big knock to the carby and the intake manifold was broken clean in half I just made a new one to easy I don't mind tinkering and fixing one man's trash.... Not bad for 2 bucks from the tip..
huntingrob
ArboristSite Guru
Not jealous at all. [emoji22] [emoji22] [emoji22] [emoji22] [emoji22]
huntingrob
ArboristSite Guru
Tecumseh maybe?Interesting pop up on this older little two stroke going off the size of the piston Id say its about 25cc and its a very strong runner! can't find anything about it on google its got a Mitsubishi ignition and is to well made so am thinking made in japan?, also has a steel liner and hand done ports from the factory, the upper transfers are very interesting will definitely copy it the next hack port job I do lol...
Its a backpack blower mister I've converted it to just a blower to do odd jobs like blow the bloody gum leaves out of my gutters.... Not bad for 2 bucks from the tip..
View attachment 433848 View attachment 433849 View attachment 433850
rogue661
ArboristSite Operative
Not sure never worked on a Tecumseh, it had Japanese or Chinese writing on it and I can't tell the difference between the two lol...All I had to go off was one sticker that said BlowerMic?...
huntingrob
ArboristSite Guru
Ha ha. Nah, either have I but everyone I've spoken to that has reckons they were pretty well put together. Can't complain for the price, good find! [emoji2]
rogue661
ArboristSite Operative
Good stuff good on em! Where does one find a wifey that can run a chainsaw?... The few wifeys I've had the misfortune of being in house lock down with would erupt like a volcano if the word chainsaw were ever spoken! like it was a swear word or something
haha..Cool to see the difference in techniques as in women can't lock their wrist as we can, something to do with us chucking rocks and sticks over a million years or some crap but yeah it really stands out in your vids...
Lucky buggers how cool the drive home talking about how well each other went and what needs working on for next time!
Stihlman441
Addicted to ArboristSite
A couple of Barra from the Gulf area
My family's originally from neerim South moved to Geelong when I was young. Love going back there. Really wanted to go back but the other half won't leave the city. Seams to be a massive attraction for bike riders now. Dad used to work in and around the noojee and toorongo areas.
As for the firewood plantation. It's not really a business thing more of my own supply of wood, there's 30 acres cleared already so I'd plant in there. Going on Sunday to suss it out. Just not sure we're to begin.
billyj
ArboristSite Operative
whats everyone think of this saw, got a mate eying it off and asking me questions
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/281739702254
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/281739702254
There is a fellow by the name of Rowan Reid down that way that is growing a number of species which have useful end uses & good growth rates for that region. Australian red cedar grows really good as well with no tip moth problems
Thansk
MCW
Somebody's talking crap here & it ain't the tree!
They're a tough old saw. Lots of torque though and the same as the Dolmar PS9000 just in a different colour scheme. Old design and will beat you up a bit compared to a more modern 90cc saw. I've only run one and was really surprised at just how much torque it had.
billyj
ArboristSite Operative
rogue661
ArboristSite Operative
I've used plenty of Red Cedar as firewood and can't say it's any better than Black Cypress pine, I'd call it a softwood myself dries out like balsa wood I only use it as a fire starter same with Black Cypress and add the hardwood when its cranking thanks to the faster burning softwoods... In my parts Red Cedar is slow growing and one would be better off if looking to grow a fast growing firewood something like Radiata/Slash/Taeda pine as a firewood but yes true is all softwood and no one uses softwood in AU for firewood! lol.... Well best I know of as far as hardwood goes are a few gums and such but one would still be looking at 20+ years before it would be worth getting stuck into for firewood...The wattle's are great firewood but still looking at 10 years + if not longer to get any kind of size to them around here anyways and then that's about 5in to 8in max and not much in the way of height...
Is all very interesting and food for thought am sure there has been many before us thinking the same thing (how to grow firewood fast?).....Cheers
