Thread: Question for Tree Services-How do you dispose of the wood?

I am asking because I need a huge amount of firewood and have heard that some tree services give it away, and some cut and split it to sell as firewood. I heat my barn/greenhouses and it takes a lot of fuel. I occasionally see ads on craigslist for free firewood left in someones yard by a tree service. I know that many pay to dump it somewhere, so I was just curious if it would be worth it for you guys to pay someone like me a small amount (maybe equal to the disposal fee) to pick up all the wood and clean up the site. I would take everything including the brush. I am interested in hearing from you guys, especially those in Michigan. I know nothing about your business so excuse me if I'm way off. Thanks.

I give it away on CL if I'm far from the yard or multiple loads. We leave a lot at the job site because around here everyone knows someone who burns. That's between the HO and their friends. When the weather breaks I have to go to a job I did 2 years ago to get some big rounds that the guy's brother in law was going to take. He saved a little money back then and now he'll have to pay me to come and get it. That's the way it works. No way I'd ever let someone I knew pick it up from the job site. Not ever. If you need wood contact the tree services around you, tell them you have a good place to dump. Don't be picky about what they bring you and don't act like you're doing them a favor. You should have all the wood you need.
Phil

Originally Posted by Small Wood

I give it away on CL if I'm far from the yard or multiple loads. We leave a lot at the job site because around here everyone knows someone who burns. That's between the HO and their friends. When the weather breaks I have to go to a job I did 2 years ago to get some big rounds that the guy's brother in law was going to take. He saved a little money back then and now he'll have to pay me to come and get it. That's the way it works. No way I'd ever let someone I knew pick it up from the job site. Not ever. If you need wood contact the tree services around you, tell them you have a good place to dump. Don't be picky about what they bring you and don't act like you're doing them a favor. You should have all the wood you need.
Phil

I'm with you there -- even if the homeowner says its OK for me to tell people about he wood, I don't go there; too much liability. My crew completes the work under contract, HO inspects the site, we leave. The people that show up may or not be known to me, and they may start a saw on the property. My butt on the line if someone is injured or does property damage. The HO contracted with me, not these unknown characters; I do not have the right to invite person's known or unknown to a client's property, period.

OTH, I had a HO have me cut two big pines into rounds, and then he used his own system of word of mouth and the wood was cleaned out in 2 or 3 days. He had people cut 3 ft. rounds into quarters on his property, but I had NOTHING to do with it.

Just me, others here may be comfortable being loosey goosey. Its the same old same old -- no one needs a license, insurance, PPE, until something goes wrong and the HO, his dependents, or lawyer are looking for someone to pay.

I am not a full time tree man, but I do some removals, but as a contractor I agree with the above, wood is either left period or cleaned up period, no in between for me.
I don't have a problem hauling it away as long as its priced that way.

Well I can't blame you guys there, I wouldn't want that liability either. I would love to have it dropped at my place but I'm a ways out and I don't know if it would be worth the drive for them. I guess I'll have to make some calls and find out. I do have a large field on a main road. So what's the story when it gets to the yard? Do you let people pick it up there? Thanks for the replies

well we grind everything in a big tub grinder about a 60-80 cords of logs a week in the summer and thats what our removal crew produces alone we also accept material from other contractors... its a wood burners worst nightmare!

You! No jk lol. Woodchips would work great for heating fuel if the price was right. I can move them with an auger and they don't have to be split. I just hope my local tree services aren't in the firewood business.

Originally Posted by dl3250

You! No jk lol. Woodchips would work great for heating fuel if the price was right. I can move them with an auger and they don't have to be split. I just hope my local tree services aren't in the firewood business.

you should see our log pile now the tub hasn't run in the last couple months.

the thing about wood chips though is its hard to get them to dry. the pile will catch on fire before they dry

we have about 8-10K yards of chips from the chippers, you can have if you want them lol there garbage to us. we hide them in or mulch loads we mix in 1 bucket of chips to every 3 of the first run of tub shreds as its going through the second run in the tub to produce a finished product, that way it don't reduce quality to bad

Originally Posted by no tree to big

you should see our log pile now the tub hasn't run in the last couple months.

the thing about wood chips though is its hard to get them to dry. the pile will catch on fire before they dry

we have about 8-10K yards of chips from the chippers, you can have if you want them lol there garbage to us. we hide them in or mulch loads we mix in 1 bucket of chips to every 3 of the first run of tub shreds as its going through the second run in the tub to produce a finished product, that way it don't reduce quality to bad

Don't they make oriented strand board out of wood chips? Seems you could send them off to a wood products manufacturer to be turned into 4' x 8' sheets of OSB.

Originally Posted by Carburetorless

Don't they make oriented strand board out of wood chips? Seems you could send them off to a wood products manufacturer to be turned into 4' x 8' sheets of OSB.

Most of them places buy whole logs and chip themselves so they can control chip quality... And it would cost more to truck the chips there then we would get

Originally Posted by dl3250

I am asking because I need a huge amount of firewood and have heard that some tree services give it away, and some cut and split it to sell as firewood. I heat my barn/greenhouses and it takes a lot of fuel. I occasionally see ads on craigslist for free firewood left in someones yard by a tree service. I know that many pay to dump it somewhere, so I was just curious if it would be worth it for you guys to pay someone like me a small amount (maybe equal to the disposal fee) to pick up all the wood and clean up the site. I would take everything including the brush. I am interested in hearing from you guys, especially those in Michigan. I know nothing about your business so excuse me if I'm way off. Thanks.

Your best bet is to contact a few tree services in your area. I sometimes haul the good stuff for myself and my firewood operation but most of the time if there is a dumpsite closer than my yard, well, I dump there. It is all a matter of what's closer and cheaper to dispose of the byproduct.
When I lived in Milwaukee free dumps were few and far between. There was is a guy on the south side who put in a wood boiler for his warehouse and ran an ad "free wood dump" and now the guy does not pay to heat his 100k+sq/ft building and has wood stock piled for the next two years.

Originally Posted by no tree to big

you should see our log pile now the tub hasn't run in the last couple months.

the thing about wood chips though is its hard to get them to dry. the pile will catch on fire before they dry

we have about 8-10K yards of chips from the chippers, you can have if you want them lol there garbage to us. we hide them in or mulch loads we mix in 1 bucket of chips to every 3 of the first run of tub shreds as its going through the second run in the tub to produce a finished product, that way it don't reduce quality to bad

If you were a little closer or offered few delivery I would take that offer lol. At around 3 billion supposed BTUs for every thousands yards I think that would be plenty.