Selling firewood

[Homelitenut]

Hello y'all thinking about selling some firewood for some side money here in central Missouri totally new to selling firewood. Heat our home with wood but never sold any. need to know some general info : good size, how long does it need to season, good price per cord 1/2 cord, how much to charge delivered, what species sells best, best way to store it, advertising, ect. ect.
thanks in advanced!

 

[TeeMan]

There are various threads on this that you should be able to find in the search bar. I don't sell any myself but the best way is to stack off the ground (get some wooden pallets that you can probably find for free), season at least a year, check your local competition (craigslist) and market it on craigslist as well. I would look at hardwoods (various oaks, pecan, sugarberry, whatever you have access to perhaps a little poplar mixed in for camp fires). Sell starter kindling bags (pine and your scraps from splitting the firewood), various sizes for people needing a bundle or campfire wood, and I have even heard of people selling all the saw dust from cutting to horse barns and selling the chips to people for BBQ. Get a magnet with your number to put on your vehicle. Good Luck!

 

[svk]

I agree with TeeMan there are many good threads on this subject. Get to know the local laws also as one issue can gobble up a lot of profit.

 

[Homelitenut]

There are various threads on this that you should be able to find in the search bar. I don't sell any myself but the best way is to stack off the ground (get some wooden pallets that you can probably find for free), season at least a year, check your local competition (craigslist) and market it on craigslist as well. I would look at hardwoods (various oaks, pecan, sugarberry, whatever you have access to perhaps a little poplar mixed in for camp fires). Sell starter kindling bags (pine and your scraps from splitting the firewood), various sizes for people needing a bundle or campfire wood, and I have even heard of people selling all the saw dust from cutting to horse barns and selling the chips to people for BBQ. Get a magnet with your number to put on your vehicle. Good Luck!

Thank you for the tips! I did search but didn't find anything recent enough as far as price wise. Its hard to tell how much a cord based on my local CL because everybody around here sells by the pickup load. Thank you again hadn't thought about a lot of the little stuff you mentioned.

 

[Homelitenut]

I agree with TeeMan there are many good threads on this subject. Get to know the local laws also as one issue can gobble up a lot of profit.

Are you talking about the moving firewood law?

 

[svk]

Figure a pickup load is 1/3-1/2 cord depending on how it is stacked...price accordingly. If your stuff is seasoned state how long it has been drying. To some sellers, seasoned means it was split in august and sold in november...not really seasoned at all.

State that you are selling full cords (some people use the term logger cords as hacks use the term cords as face cords).

 

[svk]

Are you talking about the moving firewood law?

Moving firewood xx miles regulations, county by county restrictions, is DOT certification needed for vehicles, etc. If you are selling to campgrounds there can be regulations there too. If you are moving a reasonable amount of wood theres a chance your competition may even turn you in if you are taking shortcuts.

 

[Homelitenut]

Figure a pickup load is 1/3-1/2 cord depending on how it is stacked...price accordingly. If your stuff is seasoned state how long it has been drying. To some sellers, seasoned means it was split in august and sold in november...not really seasoned at all.

State that you are selling full cords (some people use the term logger cords as hacks use the term cords as face cords).

That helps. what is a good price for a cord?

Moving firewood xx miles regulations, county by county restrictions, is DOT certification needed for vehicles, etc. If you are selling to campgrounds there can be regulations there too. If you are moving a reasonable amount of wood theres a chance your competition may even turn you in if you are taking shortcuts.

I'll have to check into it. One good thing is there's not really a lot competition. But honestly theres not a lot of trees out here either. we have a lot of flat farm land around here.

 

[svk]

That helps. what is a good price for a cord?

I'll have to check into it. One good thing is there's not really a lot competition. But honestly theres not a lot of trees out here either. we have a lot of flat farm land around here.

All depends on your local market and time of year.

The one bigger guy by me sells birch (which I would classify as green) for $300 a cord plus delivery and sells a lot of it (he lives next to a major highway so gets a lot of drop ins and customers from his other business. Most of the time hardwood goes for around 200 and softwood 100-130 a cord. If someone holds out until december they can sell all of the seasoned hardwood they have as the people buying then need it.

Then there are hacks selling tossed pickup loads of green wood for $135 but advertised as seasoned. Not a good deal!

 

[Homelitenut]

All depends on your local market and time of year.

The one bigger guy by me sells birch (which I would classify as green) for $300 a cord plus delivery and sells a lot of it (he lives next to a major highway so gets a lot of drop ins and customers from his other business. Most of the time hardwood goes for around 200 and softwood 100-130 a cord. If someone holds out until december they can sell all of the seasoned hardwood they have as the people buying then need it.

Then there are hacks selling tossed pickup loads of green wood for $135 but advertised as seasoned. Not a good deal!

Thank you. I want to be honest and build a good reputation as I do small engine work also. I live right on a hwy also.

 

[TeeMan]

We know what a true cord is, 128 cu ft, and is normally stacked three rows of 16" cut lengths (4' deep) stacked 4' high and 8' long. However, I've seen numerous people selling "half cords" that are really just a face cord or one row of a true cord for $125. This is basically one pick-up load of wood delivered. And $250 seems to be the going price of a "cord" even though these seem to be two pick-up loads or two rows of a true cord. There are various terms such as ricks as well that some people market firewood volume by. Again, I don't buy or sell firewood, but do follow the craigslist postings around here. What I cut I just consume for myself.

 

[TeeMan]

Thank you for the tips! I did search but didn't find anything recent enough as far as price wise. Its hard to tell how much a cord based on my local CL because everybody around here sells by the pickup load. Thank you again hadn't thought about a lot of the little stuff you mentioned.

So you can sell by the 'pick-up' and then various sizes from bundles (usually 0.75 cuft) maybe $4 or $5 for say 8-10 pieces?, wheel barrel loads, 1/8, 1/4, 1/2, full cords, and even in bulk if you have the means.

 

[svk]

I'd recommend cords or fractions thereof unless he's doing bundles. Getting a bundles contract with a storefront is the ticket though.

 

[jrider]

I've been selling firewood for 19 years now and sell more wood each and every year. There is no one answer with advertising as you have to change as the times change. First couple years I actually paid a small amount to advertise in the local paper. Then craigslist was the answer for me before it even became popular. A problem with CL though is too much riff raff with guys selling cheap green short loads but advertising as full and seasoned. Next thing you know people are asking why you are so expensive compared to them (easy answer is buy a cord from both and find out for yourself but its really not worth the hassle) Recently, I have used community facebook pages to either put an ad up on or respond to a person looking to buy wood. This exploded on me in a good way this past fall. I had a waiting list just to deliver wood 2 to 3 weeks long and people were still lining up. When someone put up a new post asking about firewood, half a dozen people who recommend me before I even logged on to see the thread.
You have to start with quality, it has to be clean, seasoned, and should all be cut to the same length (16" works best for my market). If you are selling oak, it better all be oak, not some sort of hardwood mix. If you sell hardwood mix, no pine, no exceptions. Be picky about pieces that have rot or are punky. Customers don't want to pay top dollar for that. Get to know your market for split sizes. My people like it split fairly small so even though larger splits decrease my time, they will also decrease my customer base. I have a lot of women and older folks who don't like handling the big splits. They aren't going to be happy if they have to resplit pieces. Show up on time for delivery. I can't stress this one enough. If I'm going to miss my delivery time by more than 10 minutes, I'm calling or texting them to let them know. Deliver full cords or fractions of, never short someone.
So basically, treat your customers like you would treat your mom if you were bringing her firewood and you will have a great customer base before you know it.

 

[SteveSS]

Around here, I see full cords advertised on CL for $160. You can usually buy a pickup load (tossed) for anywhere between $40 and $60. In the dead of winter, those prices go up according to how low the temp goes.

 

[Homelitenut]

I've been selling firewood for 19 years now and sell more wood each and every year. There is no one answer with advertising as you have to change as the times change. First couple years I actually paid a small amount to advertise in the local paper. Then craigslist was the answer for me before it even became popular. A problem with CL though is too much riff raff with guys selling cheap green short loads but advertising as full and seasoned. Next thing you know people are asking why you are so expensive compared to them (easy answer is buy a cord from both and find out for yourself but its really not worth the hassle) Recently, I have used community facebook pages to either put an ad up on or respond to a person looking to buy wood. This exploded on me in a good way this past fall. I had a waiting list just to deliver wood 2 to 3 weeks long and people were still lining up. When someone put up a new post asking about firewood, half a dozen people who recommend me before I even logged on to see the thread.
You have to start with quality, it has to be clean, seasoned, and should all be cut to the same length (16" works best for my market). If you are selling oak, it better all be oak, not some sort of hardwood mix. If you sell hardwood mix, no pine, no exceptions. Be picky about pieces that have rot or are punky. Customers don't want to pay top dollar for that. Get to know your market for split sizes. My people like it split fairly small so even though larger splits decrease my time, they will also decrease my customer base. I have a lot of women and older folks who don't like handling the big splits. They aren't going to be happy if they have to resplit pieces. Show up on time for delivery. I can't stress this one enough. If I'm going to miss my delivery time by more than 10 minutes, I'm calling or texting them to let them know. Deliver full cords or fractions of, never short someone.
So basically, treat your customers like you would treat your mom if you were bringing her firewood and you will have a great customer base before you know it.

Thank you very much! do you charge for delivery by the mile?

 

[Homelitenut]

So you can sell by the 'pick-up' and then various sizes from bundles (usually 0.75 cuft) maybe $4 or $5 for say 8-10 pieces?, wheel barrel loads, 1/8, 1/4, 1/2, full cords, and even in bulk if you have the means.

What is the best way to bundle firewood say if I was able to get a contract with a gas station? I've seen shrink wrap but that wouldn't be very cost efective for me unless there's a better way to do it than what I'm thinking.

 

[jrider]

Thank you very much! do you charge for delivery by the mile?

I deliver within 10 miles for free. After that they pay more and not necessarily by the mile, but by the number of traffic lights and congestion.

 

[jrider]

Thank you very much! do you charge for delivery by the mile?

I deliver within 10 miles for free. After that they pay more and not necessarily by the mile, but by the number of traffic lights and congestion.

 

[TeeMan]

What is the best way to bundle firewood say if I was able to get a contract with a gas station? I've seen shrink wrap but that wouldn't be very cost efective for me unless there's a better way to do it than what I'm thinking.

Shrink wrap is probably the most common. If you are selling bundles to individuals try using twine. Also, if you could supply restaurants that need firewood for pizza cooking, smoking, BBQ, etc. that would be repeat business year-round for you. Go big.