Firewood heating vs virus

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Huskybill

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What’s the future of your heating with firewood?

I’m at the crossroads again. Enough for the coming season but the future I’m thinking about. Should I go buy split/ seasoned wood by the cord or get bunk truck loads. Options?
 
bought 5 semi loads last fall for an over run on sales for a predicted colder winter and have 2 left after selling out of my usual 100 cord plus stock pile! extra wood is always a good thing! not having to turn a client away makes for a better years sales coming up again! natural gas i will use in a pinch, but have not felt that at this time with spring knocking at the door early .... future is looking good in some aspects! good blessings to all!....
 
What’s the future of your heating with firewood?

I’m at the crossroads again. Enough for the coming season but the future I’m thinking about. Should I go buy split/ seasoned wood by the cord or get bunk truck loads. Options?
The coming season should be enough for now. Depends how energetic you feel I would want it split.
 
What’s the future of your heating with firewood?

I’m at the crossroads again. Enough for the coming season but the future I’m thinking about. Should I go buy split/ seasoned wood by the cord or get bunk truck loads. Options?

@Huskybill, You have two posts on this. I haven't figured out the virus part as yet?

As far as your wood question, it seems a pretty simple financial decision. 1. What does split/seasoned wood cost per cord? 2. What does a bunk truck load cost and yield? 3. Is the difference enough for you to be willing to do the work to convert the bunk truck load to split/seasoned.
 
I guess i don’t understand

Just keep on keepin on. Hell . You may have MORE time to get wood now.[emoji2373]

My wife just asked me to stop going to the gym for a few weeks (to stay away from peopoe).

Not going to argue with her. It’s not worth it so i will do some push-ups and sit ups at home to get a little bit in and then use the spare time for work around the house/prepping.

Bottom line if heat is a concern to the point where the power company or gas company will not provide then you have to figure it out anyways.

Gas stations will continue to sell. But if not....Sharpen your axe.


Sent while firmly grasping my redline lubed RAM [emoji231]
 
@Huskybill, You have two posts on this. I haven't figured out the virus part as yet?

Maybe it has to do with the run on TP lately. You could ostensibly turn your firewood into toilet paper! Now, I do not know what good TP is or hoarding TP has against an airporn virus that affects your lungs, but that logic has not stopped a massive run on TP in the US this week. Maybe we should be hoarding firewood too! And that will mean a run on chinasaws! And gas! Oops, there is already a run on gasoline here. People are panicking.

Why think? HOARD EVERYTHING NOW! Right NOW! The END IS HERE!
 
At least three full cords in the yard near the end of the burning season (probably four or more, but I haven't measured). Dropped two sick maples for something to do to get ahead in this time of "social distancing" and to keep my 13-year-old busy with the splitter (let's not talk about the one I misjudged the canopy, hung in an oak, destroyed two come-a-longs winching out of the oak, then stuck it between two white pines...but it came down on its own this morning!!! Yay!!!!).

This afternoon my neighbor calls and says he just dropped an oak and do I want the wood? Went down with the trailer and got at least 1/3 cord of WET oak on the trailer...and couldn't yank it out of the yard with the Volvo 850, even after offloading half the weight. Unhooked, ran home and got the AWD Sienna, reloaded and pulled it right out.

I also have two standing offers of cutting along the edges of fields.
 
At least three full cords in the yard near the end of the burning season (probably four or more, but I haven't measured). Dropped two sick maples for something to do to get ahead in this time of "social distancing" and to keep my 13-year-old busy with the splitter (let's not talk about the one I misjudged the canopy, hung in an oak, destroyed two come-a-longs winching out of the oak, then stuck it between two white pines...but it came down on its own this morning!!! Yay!!!!).

This afternoon my neighbor calls and says he just dropped an oak and do I want the wood? Went down with the trailer and got at least 1/3 cord of WET oak on the trailer...and couldn't yank it out of the yard with the Volvo 850, even after offloading half the weight. Unhooked, ran home and got the AWD Sienna, reloaded and pulled it right out.

I also have two standing offers of cutting along the edges of fields.
I don't usually think of Volvo 850's (or Sienna's) as my choice of firewood getters. I do understand using what you've got so congratulations on that! I make do in other arenas.
 
bought 5 semi loads last fall for an over run on sales for a predicted colder winter and have 2 left after selling out of my usual 100 cord plus stock pile! extra wood is always a good thing! not having to turn a client away makes for a better years sales coming up again! natural gas i will use in a pinch, but have not felt that at this time with spring knocking at the door early .... future is looking good in some aspects! good blessings to all!....
One of the worst thing is business is to run out of inventory and have to turn clients down. Especially your regulars. If there forced to buy elsewhere, they may never come bac in the following years. If you have a good dry place to store it, firewood has a long shelf life so you could sit on it for several years and it will still be good.
My moto is you can't sell what you don't have. .

But with oil prices being so low and if that continues, Heating oil and natural gas may be cheaper then wood heat.
 
One of the worst thing is business is to run out of inventory and have to turn clients down. Especially your regulars. If there forced to buy elsewhere, they may never come bac in the following years. If you have a good dry place to store it, firewood has a long shelf life so you could sit on it for several years and it will still be good.
My moto is you can't sell what you don't have. .

But with oil prices being so low and if that continues, Heating oil and natural gas may be cheaper then wood heat.
you sir are correct. there will always be a threat/competition towards sales and supply! then again, there will always be customers/clients that will and only heat with wood! easy street of delivered oil/gas will win over for a time is a given! people that burn wood and stock pile with the known that "its there" is a peace of mind! kind of like having a well stocked pantry or "TP"..... never give up! never give in! and never refuse life's adventure's!
 
you sir are correct. there will always be a threat/competition towards sales and supply! then again, there will always be customers/clients that will and only heat with wood! easy street of delivered oil/gas will win over for a time is a given! people that burn wood and stock pile with the known that "its there" is a peace of mind! kind of like having a well stocked pantry or "TP"..... never give up! never give in! and never refuse life's adventure's!


Yes having your own stock pile of wood guaranty's you will stay worm and you don't have to depend on having heating oil delivered.
 
Wood is a resource so if you have access I'd continue with it unless time is of the essence or back is feeling years of abuse, like mine.

The Virus don't bother me, it'll pass early summer, just like China.

The TP gluttony scares the hell out of me that I live in a country of psycho's.
 
I'll just throw it out there. I go into different homes every day doing my job but I come home and work hard cutting and moving firewood. Soon I'll be splitting. Currently I'm cutting for 3 years from now because I have so many ash trees. Living in NY where everything is shut down and all jobs are shut down except for essential workers like me. I'm hoping the hard work helps fight off the virus. You just have too keep going to stay "alive". I dont have a choice but to keep working and keep doing what I do to stay ahead of life. I have a family so I have to be a man.
 
Hmmm... I'm a little confused. I typically stock up on everything, all the time. It's just my nature and benefits my household during situations like this. The virus hysteria notwithstanding, I'd just buy the truckload, then cut and split it myself and stack em' deep.

My only concern right now is being able to continue to work and therefore draw a paycheck every two weeks to pay the bills. We're good on everything else.
 
Regarding the TP, it is a luxury taken for granted by everyone in the western world. Someone earlier mentioned prepping; Who wants to clean their bottom with their hand or a recently used cotton towel- or a corn cobb?
I think the virus woke many up from their false sense of security that our tomorrows will always be the same. Now, I think, many see a storm rather than the usual far-off conspiracy theory. I think the TP is a primal response, but water, shelter, and food are more important. Many have the water and shelter even though they may not own it, and hopefully they will think about getting more supplies than the usual daily 4 or 5 times a week to the grocery.
I cannot stay long since our cupboards are bare. I'm off to the grocery for supplies and toilet paper.
 
Firewood and coronavirus.
What now seems a lot of years ago, our son who was then in eighth grade, and I crossed the Atlantic Ocean from Los Palmas, Grand Cannery to Barbados on friends 44' sloop. They wanted another adult to help, and our son and their daughter were the same age.
There is a lot of stuff on a boat that you hope you will never have to use. Bilge pumps, stand alone back up pump, life raft, emergency bag with gps sender, flair guns, radios, weapons, handcuffs, etc.
That was my thinking these past few days, that culminated in ordering a Honda eu7000 generator today for back up power. Something to supply water from a well, refrigeration, power a radio, and charging phones/computers. Something to run an hour or two a day if needed. Probably will not cover the electric hot water heater, but maybe, if dedicated to only that before showers. I'll be needing a transfer switch as well.
I also canceled insurance on my large truck used for deliveries ($580. refund), and failed to renew the $590. license plates the end of February. I did pay $850. to service the truck, annual DOT inspection, fix the emergency brake and a couple things last week. Oh well...
I have no use for the generator other than backup, and hope we will never need it.
The thought of not having potable water available made the choice real enough.
I don't think anyone thought our country and life style was this vulnerable.
I'm feeling vulnerable.
Regardless of the reasons, it is a huge expense and deviation, from doing firewood.
 
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