my fire wood pile

Eric Frei

Hot enough even in winter here, sorry.

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newguy18

I have a heat pump.

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old schooler

Therrin

I've got a sizeable wood pile. I'll try to put pics up tomorow.

njpatriot

Managing my firewood has become my favorite "hobby". Here in Northwest New Jersey, I have an RSF woodburning insert with blower. Our furnace is oil-fired, baseboard and we have not needed an oil delivery in four years. Our water is heated via electric. I am looking into heating my hot water via solar in the summer. I really have been enjoying this forum. I have been learning alot, but this is the first discussion that I have took part in. I burn about 7-9 cords a year, mixture of oak, locust, hickory, maple and ash. I will burn most anything along the side of the road that i can pick-up (without bugs). Here are some pics. My wife tells me that its better to be addicted to managing your firewood, rather than being addicted to booze, drugs, other women, or gambling. So far firewood has not gotten me into any trouble! Keep posting those woodpile pics, here are mine.

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treevet

Nice pile NJ. Either you got a tractor/trailer load of logs or you re in the tree biz? Where you from in NJ. I used to operate a tree co in Flemington (near the Delaware).

njpatriot

Thanks treevet. I live up in Stillwater Twp. Sussex County. A little further north of Flemington. Unfortunately I am not in the tree business. I had a guy drop a load of lengths off this year, I am having a tough time hunting for wood this year without my old pick-up truck.

treevet

I may be giving you advice you already know, but this a great time to contact tree companies in your area and let them know you will take loads of wood (for free only) dumped easily on your property. A high percentage of removals come after trees are in leaf and people resign themselves to removal. Just call all of them, check them out with a brief interview and tell them you will only take their wood when you are home until you get to know them. This is so they don t give you debris and garbage wood or cement/nail filled logs.

Tree companies can get overwhelmed with wood and money made by firewood sales is a joke compared to what is made doing the skilled stuff. I give away a lot of good wood at this time of the year so I can move on to the next job.

hoot gibson

nj , thats just way to much wood . your gonna work yourself to death. i enjoy working with my wood pile , but have been to buisy latley to get into it . i think im going to take treevets advise and call some tree companies , wont hurt , i kinda like the idea of not having to haul it from the woods . h

njpatriot

I will certainly take treevets advise and call some "tree guys". Like I said, I get a little obsessive with the firewood. I like to keep at least two years worth on hand in case of an injury from work. I had a back injury some time ago and had a tough time managing my firewood, it cost me in oil. I would never let my wife run my saws, although she wanted to when I was on the bench for a couple of months. I tend to see the glass as half empty which in turns keeps me prepared. I wouldn't say that I work myself to death, I obtained a free splitter about three years ago. It keeps me busy and I burned out come fall. Right no I am trying to enjoy this nice weather here in NJ.

Eric Frei

Now that's a nice stack!



I like playing the imagine game.

Imagine you decide to cut some trees for wood and plant some for cutting in 5 years time etc.

Then along comes some govt guy and says no, trees are protected and are required for carbon credits and survival of the human race coz we cant live without trees apparently.

Imagine that, that would piss me off big time. But it does happen. Then you use oil to heat instead.

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treevet

It has already started in some areas over here.

TreeDimensional

Don't forget though, the tree will be topped, pruned or hacked IF it interferes with your neighbors solar panel. The debate over shade trees vs the environmentalists using solar power is a "6 of one a half dozen of the other" issue for me. Please let the scientists show me which is more environmentally friendly!

Most of the firewood is the by-product of unwanted, unsafe, diseased or dead trees. I imagine that there are people out there that propagate trees for wood down the road. I have never met one, but I am sure they are out there.

The carbon credit issue is a funny thing, in Canada the government considers the carbon to be released as soon as the tree is laying on the ground. It doesn't matter if it is going to be milled and end up standing in the form of a 2X6 in the wall of your house for 70 years.

Hats off to the folks that value-add to the use of the removed trees, using the wood to create heat is a far cry better than filing the landfills with it!

Therrin

This is what I've got left after having sold off the large majority of it this last winter.







This is the adjustable cutting rack I made. It's got a measuring stick along it and is set up to allow me to cut 16" sections alongside each set of vertical studs. Really saves my BACK from bending my 6'7" frame over all the time. Instead I break the groundy's back, as he has to set all the stuff up there.

The width of the opening is adjustable, as is the rise from the ground, seems to work nicely so far.

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TrevMcRev

This is my little woodpile in the carport. Have a heap more down the side of the house and more at the depot.

Mostly River Red Gum.

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treevet

Nice woodrack Therrin. Did you invent it?

Trev, Does that gum burn well? Do you guys have a btu/heat provided chart for your native woods like we do?

TrevMcRev

Redgum is a good hot clean burn.
Dont know ratings but is whats most commonly sold by woodyards here so whenever we remove one i keep it
Also a beautiful furniture timber. I have a couple of logs of it i slabbed up on a chainsaw mill.

Most of the Eucalypts are good firewood.

Therrin

I suppose you could say "invent". Yeah, I certainly didn't design it off of anything except for a very vague and fleeting memory of something used when I was much younger. Nothing as sturdy or adjustable as what I made though.

There's just under 6 feet of 1/2" all-thread acting as the axis for the studs. Every stud has a 1/2" nut and washer tightened down to keep it stiff, though moveable. The ends are countersunk with the nuts hidden on the inside to allow for close-in cutting without fear of hitting metal. Each side has a beam running lengthwise for stability of all the legs, and the horizontal legs are bored out in metered intervals to allow re-bolting at different widths. A wider width not only lowers the profile of the rack but also opens the upper arms to accept a larger diameter.

Designed it with the facing beam sticking out 16" as a guide, allowing a flush cut along the first outside face. The studs from there were measured to allow a cut along each inside face to give repeated uniform 16" cuts.
I gave clearance to finish a cut without coming into contact with the all-thread.

It works pretty good. I hire a groundy to "load" it, and turn logs when necessary. The whole process is faster and more uniform in the output than trying to do it myself with the stuff on the ground. My back doesn't complain at the end of the day either.

treevet

It is well designed but I am sure those adjustable cross members are made to take some repeated hits? I am guessing you burn 16 lgth in your stove?

Tom Bacon

Very interestig, Can you tell me where I can get more infor on the Woodburner.

Thanks

Tom Bacon
Cascade, Idaho

treevet

Go to United States Stove Company and hit on furnaces. I bought mine at a company called Tractor Supply Co. Don't know is they are out your way but you will find distributors on web site. If I can be of any more help let me know. Mine is a US Stove 1600 M and it says Clayton on the door.