Firewood

[NYSawBoss]

How would one get in the business of firewood on the side. Should I speak to a couple of tree services in my area and ask them to call me whenever a customer wants the leftover logs wacked up and stacked? Just looking to do something for a little extra bread...and with how cold it's getting I am sure I can make some money.

Tony

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

All the people i know who do firewood on the side do it because they burn thier own and have the time and space to do extra for people near by.

The biggest problem is delivery cost, you end up spending more then you make on a load.

The best setups do it roadside, and charge extra for delivery. Build a set of facecord ricks and stack the wood in it with a sign for "load your own, $XX a cord" .

Say your getting $175/cord delivered, you split, load, unload, sometimes stack it too.

How much will your truck cary, 1 - 16 inch face? half that? that makes $30-60 a load. Will it cover, gas, a chain and a six pack.

 

[treeman82]

I don't know where you are going to put the wood, however up here if a homeowner wants wood, they just find a tree company and tell them to bring by any wood they might have. Get it dumped in the driveway, or somewhere else and just process it right there. Try splitting with a maul first, it's cheap, and also makes for a good workout. Otherwise, splitters start around $1,000 for a basic one. Down on the island though, you should look into selling bundles at stores. Find some way to wrap up a couple pieces of wood, and sell them (along with a card packed in) at a convenience store, gas station, supermarket, etc. That should be your best bet down there.

 

[okietreedude1]

we bring our wood back to the shop and whoever wants to take his time to do it gets to. our price usually includes delivery and stacking. sometimes we get a way with dumping it. The price goes down for 'u-haul' sales.

we have a log splitter. 22 ton. works a lot faster than a maul, especially on knotty wood.

if you want to sell, get yourself some wood, a splitter and put up an add in the paper. have fun!

 

[tnttreeman]

You can try calling the tree services. Most of the bigger guys don't want to deal with firewood and are looking to give it away. Some of the smaller ones like my business don't. I keep all the logs I can during the summer, process them, then sell firewood during the winter. Without a doubt, you'll need a splitter if you do any amount of volume. I sell by the face cord(4'x8'x18"logs) and I deliver and stack. I sell mixed hardwoods and also all cherry, which goes for more than the mix. We deliver and stack. The key to delivery is getting several loads to one area at one time. Depending on what vehicle setup I use, I can take between 3 and 6 loads in a trip this translates from $240 at the lowest up to $630 at the highest. I also sell a couple hundred face cord of wood a winter. When I run out of my own stuff, I look for a place that has been logged out and see if I can cut wood from the tops.
The key for the firewood business is getting the wood for free or low cost and having minimal transport time.
Advertise in the local paper and you should have no problem selling.

 

[tshanefreeman]

With my business, I have to typically haul all logs from a removal to the dump, so to me I would rather save, process, and sell as firewood in the slower winter months than to pay to dump. Plus I really think that it is wasteful to have the dump burn this wood, when there is no reason that it can't be salvaged as excellent firewood.

If you can salvage the wood from various live removals, it makes great firewood once seasoned. You will be able to sell for more money than already dead wood that you can find in the bush somewhere.

There are many people in warmer climates that couldn't be bothered with the time and effort required to process firewood, but if you live in a colder environment where the work load slows down, then I look at firewood as a way to pay the bills. It is better to get some money in than to sit on the couch all day!

 

[SteveBullman]

most people will tell you theres no money in firewood, which is true to a point.
ive had a lot of success over the past few years in my log business, however this is only because ive spent a lot of time in the evenings and weekends after ive made a days money climbing.
do it in the summer, forget about the hours you've put in, then come winter you're be raking in the cash for seemingly little work. i did it by hand for 4 years, about 80ton a year, then bought a processor last year, now its easy as pie from start to finish.
oh, the other thing is, you need to be getting the wood in for free.

 

[Greg]

I have tried to make money off of fire wood this year. We split about 6-7 cords and have sold about $300.00 and have given the majority away. I have too much family around and neighbors that all like to burn fires. I no longer look at it as a money making proposition but as a PR tool. Those people I give it to are loyal to me, and really appreciate it. I have had a full trailer sitting on a high traffic road with a sign for 3 weeks now. In that 3 weeks it brought in $40.00 -- only 2 customers. This weekend I am pulling the trailer load off the market. Half will go in my wood shed, the other half my brother in law will use in a big smoker that he is setting up for the week that the superbowl is in town. My free wood will get me all the BBQ and beer I want and an awesome location to hang in right in the middle of all the superbowl madness.
Greg

 

[spacemule]

I have tried to make money off of fire wood this year. We split about 6-7 cords and have sold about $300.00 and have given the majority away. I have too much family around and neighbors that all like to burn fires. I no longer look at it as a money making proposition but as a PR tool. Those people I give it to are loyal to me, and really appreciate it. I have had a full trailer sitting on a high traffic road with a sign for 3 weeks now. In that 3 weeks it brought in $40.00 -- only 2 customers. This weekend I am pulling the trailer load off the market. Half will go in my wood shed, the other half my brother in law will use in a big smoker that he is setting up for the week that the superbowl is in town. My free wood will get me all the BBQ and beer I want and an awesome location to hang in right in the middle of all the superbowl madness.
Greg

I didn't know anyone used firewood in Florida.

 

[Greg]

Who does not love to burn one? We just had some brutal weather last weekend, I think Sunday got down to 29. Today however a beautiful 68. Our weather is very fickle, up and down all winter. I don't know how you guys make it in the northern states with the sustained cold temps.
--I know of a local guy here who fills up a cargo container once a month, it is picked up from his yard and put on a ship to the Bahamas. The resorts there need wood for their campfires and for cooking, but have no local supply of wood, it must all be shipped in.
Greg

Wanna hear a joke??
A baby seal walks into a club...

 

[ray benson]

I didn't know anyone used firewood in Florida.

Probably to heat water for their swimming pools.
Ray

 

[spacemule]

Who does not love to burn one? We just had some brutal weather last weekend, I think Sunday got down to 29.

OOohhh, 29. lol Cold weather isn't too bad if the humidity is low and no wind. I don't know how you Florideans take the heat. Of course, AR isn't exactly a northern state either.

 

[jamie]

scotland

come here its cold, moist and windy.

all the ******* time,

i lie we get a couple of weeks of sun come july

jamie

 

[OutOnaLimb]

I am starting to sell the wood that I remove. I have a good sized back yard, but Im only keeping the hardwoods. Pine, spruce, cottonwood and aspen gets chipped. I only keep the maple, ash, and elm, which I sell for $300.00 a cord. the only thing is that it needs to be split and cured, so the wood I take down now cant be sold untill next year. I made the mistake of trying to partner up with some one because she had 3 acres to store the wood, but since we started she has only sold 2 cords of wood in the last 2 month. Yeah right. So now every thing comes to my house and I leave the partner out of the deal.

Kenn

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Do you get 300 a cord in your area, or is that up in the "hills" where they only have pine and a few poplars?

 

[sedanman]

The local apple orchard here has quite a firewood business going. They bought a firewood processor and have the tree companies selling them truckloads of straight stems for $200.00 a load. After a trip though the processor, the wood is bundled for sale in plastic wrap with a handle stapled on. The bundles get sold to wholesale for $3.00 each, $5.00 retail. It took them less than a year to pay off the machines (one to process, one to bundle).

 

[DDM]

Wow I had an acre of logs this morning Till i got a little Pyro I just push the last 30 logs into the fire.....