selling firewood

[GottaCut]

Is there any money in firewood? My employer tells me he'd rather just let people take the stuff thats too big to chip, says he'd end up selling it just to pay his guys. We've got probably 100-150 cu. yards any given time just sitting there rotting away. Granted we'd have to cut it down to size and split it but i would still think it'd be worth it.
Thanks

 

[dwinch53]

Is there any money in firewood? My employer tells me he'd rather just let people take the stuff thats too big to chip, says he'd end up selling it just to pay his guys. We've got probably 100-150 cu. yards any given time just sitting there rotting away. Granted we'd have to cut it down to size and split it but i would still think it'd be worth it.
Thanks

If it is free and you have time you can make a few bucks...in mi hard wood is selling dry for 60.00 a face cord ( 16 wide 4 ft high and 8' long ) why not...what kind of wood is it? DWopcorn:

 

[Moss Man]

Just keep it simple and keep your overhead to a minimum and you can make a buck or two. Be sure to set some aside for the disk surgery for your lower back!

 

[GottaCut]

If it is free and you have time you can make a few bucks...in mi hard wood is selling dry for 60.00 a face cord ( 16 wide 4 ft high and 8' long ) why not...what kind of wood is it? DWopcorn:

all kinds....
various oaks, shagbark hickory, honey locust, ash, apple?, hedge, white pine, spruce, ornamental pear.....probably some more I'm not sure exactly. I'm thinking about buying a 24-32 ton splitter when I've got the money if I would make my money back in a couple years. I've also got a couple of my own customers who have me come split their own piles every fall. What does a cord translate into yards? Oh and whats an average time for preparing a cord. Thanks guys!

 

[Rowan]

a yard is 27 cuft.. a full cord is 128 cuft... so 4.74 yards to a cord. There's a thread posted a few days ago about time per cord..... lots of variables. 1 guy, 4 - 10 hrs depending on method, species, straight/ugly, distance to wood, etc.

 

[willsaw4beer]

Ideally you would want a cheap 3/4 ton pickup and start by splitting by hand and seeing what the market is like. Once you get a feel for the market/ get an idea of the amount of time you'll have to dedicate make a decision from there- to invest more money or decide it isn't worth your time. It would seem to me that it would be smart to start small and if it works out grow it bigger. Or use the profits as an excuse to buy more nicer equipment, like MORE SAWS, a nice splitter, a dump truck, a wood processor (OK maybe gettin' a little carried away...) you get the idea. Firewood sales are also a great beer money fund...

 

[hutch3912]

time

a yard is 27 cuft.. a full cord is 128 cuft... so 4.74 yards to a cord. There's a thread posted a few days ago about time per cord..... lots of variables. 1 guy, 4 - 10 hrs depending on method, species, straight/ugly, distance to wood, etc.

I can confidently say that from stump to delivery spot I can do a cord in 4-5 hours, depending on my haul out of the woods. But I don't deliver more than 10 miles away from my yard. Up here were getting anywhere from $225-275 a cord so if you have a strong back good saw and some time its worth. You aint going to get rich but you could make some xmas gift money.

 

[tomtrees58]

we make app 25.000.00 a year on wood but dont tell ex wife he he tom trees:jawdrop:

 

[dnf0929]

I had some extra wood for the 1st time this year. I put an ad on craigslist for face cords - sold 25 @ $100 delivered in a little over a month. Unfortunately I had to remove the ad because I ran out. So far my only investment was an $1100 splitter from Tractor Supply. My BIL gave me the MS310 for helping him build a retaining wall and I had a truck. I sold the spiltter on craigslist for $900 and ordered a Super Split which should be here next week. I'm looking forward to next year and hope to have a lot more to sell. Like the others have said, start small and take baby steps financially to test the waters and to see if it's really something you want to do. That way if you get to a point where it's not working out you can hopefully get out without too much difficulty.

 

[KsWoodsMan]

Having the wood to sell is only one part of it. There has to be a market for your service that will justify offering it.

If I was going to go into the firewood business FT I would need a very cheap supply of raw material ( logs and tops ), a large area for staging and processing and a secure area for the processed wood.

I have considedred buying a 5 acre plot from the city in the old business district just off an abandoned set of rail track that was once the heart of town. Then offering free dumping for the tree services right in town making it easier to acess than them taking it to the county site 8 miles away and having to pay to dispose of it. The logs and tops would be free and delivered at no cost to me as well.

The brush/chips could be processed and gassified to power a generator to produce electricity on site. Any surplus electricity sold to the local Utility Company for a profit and the ashes hauled and dumped at the county site.

The firewood could then be stacked or palletised and sold locally by the 1/3 or 1/2 cord. If it had to be trucked out it would need to be "kiln dried" to kill any pests that may have taken up residence. A couple of 40' insulated containers with a roller floor end to end should work. Feeding the excess heat from the generator in one end blowing through the 80 feet of kiln and taking the wood out the same end should get it hot enough for sterilization.

From there it is a matter of marketing. Nobody will buy any if they don't know you are there. Not everyone will have a way to haul it or handle that much wood at once so a delivery truck and PT/FT guy for this might be needed.

I can see myself and 1 other guy working this full time part of the year and picking up a couple more guys for deliveries during the burning season.

Any excess wood during the part of the year I'm not selling could go in the gassifier for electricity to be sold to the utility company.

It has to pay me every week/month or there isn't much point in it.

As soon as I start up though the city will probably wonder why they havent been doing the same thing and do it cheaper. Have to get a non competition clause in the sale of the land which could drive up the price. I might even offer the free sevice to them for dumping and put the guy that runs the city wood dump to work for me. Just 'cause I know him and don't want him to be out of work.

 

[dnf0929]

I find it interesting that in parts of the country tree services look for places to dump potential firewood. I guess it relates to the price of the commodity. In NY a cord averages $250 so unless you find someone who has no idea what firewood goes for every tree is either spoken for or has a price attached to it.

 

[KRS]

I think your boss is right; if he's got to pay the guys to do all of the work then it's not much of a money maker.

If a guy can do it on his own (expecially when it's there waiting for cutting & splitting like your stash is) then you can make money.... but start paying other guys a salary and I think it's a losing deal.

KRS

 

[Ohiowoodguy]

we make app 25.000.00 a year on wood but dont tell ex wife he he tom trees:jawdrop:

Is that net or gross? I'll bet once you figure up time, wages, fuel, equipment costs and upkeep, you'll loose a zero or two; unless you're doing very high volume.

 

[bigoak00]

Saw an ad today for a full cord of hardwood, cut, split, and delivered for $135. Another local fella is selling his for $30 a pickup load----pure foolishness!!

 

[BaldSawRunner]

Saw an ad today for a full cord of hardwood, cut, split, and delivered for $135. Another local fella is selling his for $30 a pickup load----pure foolishness!!

What, nowadays, would be defined as a "pickup load"? If it is one of those little Subaru Baja's, then I guess he is making good money. If it is one of those Ford Explorer Sport Trac or whatever it is called, he is probably making a little money. ( Ithink that is the one with the 4' bed) If it is a Ford F-150 with a 5' bed, probably breaking even, or losing a little. If it is a full 8' long bed on a 3/4 ton or bigger truck, then yes, he is stupid.

I am not dissing you Bigoak, just so many people have what they call a "truck" it is hard to know what a "pickup load" is nowadays.

 

[willsaw4beer]

Sellin 1/2 face cords for $35 and then charging $10 to $25 for delivery is a nice sweet spot for me, about all the more wood I'd want to put in my little Tacoma. I normally try to buck, split(by hand), and haul up enough wood to replenish the stack after each delivery, and I can get a half face cut and split in an hour without too much trouble. Two loads a day, a few days a week is doing arite, pays the bills, fills the tank and enough for a few Yuenglings or Molsons. Of course it wouldn't be so easy if the neighbor hadn't timbered his 15 acres last winter and let me clear out the tops. I make sure that my wood is always the nicest cherry, ash, red oak, and sugar maple and cater more to customers that have fireplaces or cook with the wood. I figure I have enough of a wood stash to heat the house for a few years and pay the bills till the economy picks up and I get my real job back...

 

[tomtrees58]

Is that net or gross? I'll bet once you figure up time, wages, fuel, equipment costs and upkeep, you'll loose a zero or two; unless you're doing very high volume.

wen we get don before 5 pm split wood 7 am to 8 am to gas 1.00 a day you have to pay the help any way if you climb or cut you have to do wood thats a day at old country tree or hit the road tom trees

 

[KsWoodsMan]

Saw an ad today for a full cord of hardwood, cut, split, and delivered for $135. Another local fella is selling his for $30 a pickup load----pure foolishness!!

At $30 a PU load he sure isn't making much for his time or investment. It sounds like a slow and painful bankruptsy. Maybe he should consider getting a bigger PU.

Doept ! That doesn't work !

 

[rx7145]

The brush/chips could be processed and gassified to power a generator to produce electricity on site. Any surplus electricity sold to the local Utility Company for a profit and the ashes hauled and dumped at the county site.

Let me know if you ever get this up and running. Woodchips are dumped like scrap here.

 

[STLfirewood]

I sold the spiltter on craigslist for $900 and ordered a Super Split which should be here next week.

This is the best move ANYONE running a small firewood operation can make. They are so cheap when you really compare things. My supplier cuts 400 cords a year and uses one. I have one also. No maintenance and cheap on fuel, Light easy to use and fast. You'll be glad you made the jump so quick. Next your going to want an elevator and a dump trailer.

Scott