Anyone using bulk (1/3rd cord) firewood bags?

[sevensandeights]

Considering using firewood bags to get away from stacking. I produce about 30 cords a year currently but would like to get to 50. I do a combination of stacking on pallets and IBC totes now. Totes aren't easy to find but I can usually get 12-20 per year for $35 each. I have 36 or so now so most of my wood is stacked on pallets. Totes work great but wood needs to be stacked to make them worthwhile in my opinion.

Most likely buying a cheap conveyor this weekend. Have a tractor with forks that can easily pick up a 1/3rd of a cord at a time. Looking to avoid stacking but I deliver with a dump trailer also need to be able to dump whatever container I switch to into the dump trailer.

I watched lots of YouTube videos on the bags and read a few threads here. Avaliable bags seem to be Dino and Log Lift. There is a company in Canada (big-bags.ca) but not sure if they ship to the US. Also saw multiple bags at hotasswood.com

Anyone have have experience with a particular brand? Anyone tried the bag system and didn't like it?

 

[CaseyForrest]

I tried it.... Heres what I found.

Production speeds up. For me, that's where it ends.

Storing them takes up more room than stacking.

The loops on the bottom of the bags aren't strong enough to dump after sitting out for a season. They work when the bags are new, but that doesn't help. Even pushing them over on their side and attempting to use the loops ended up ruining the bag.

If you want to get away from stacking, buy a conveyor and build rows.

 

[sevensandeights]

Thanks for the reply. Really struggling with what to do next. I want a conveyor regardless but don't want to just split onto the ground - concerned about proper seasoning of the entire pile. Even if I did split on to the ground then I would have to stack in some way when it is time to sell in order to ensure face cord vs full cord volumes.

Did you use the bags with the unloading loops on the corners like the Log Lift or on the sides like the Dino? Log Lift bags seem like a better option although they are more expensive.

Been looking everywhere for a conveyor. Thought I was on to something with the Ebersol but they only come standard with electric motor or hydraulic that requires a power source (splitter/processor/tractor). Can get one with gas engine and pump but the dealer told me it's $7k extra! Local guy has a near new 16' Hudson chain model but I'm wary of the narrow trough. Plan to look at the Range-Road. Definitely not a long term solution but might allow me to try a new system before I get too deep into this.

 

[sevensandeights]

Got to see the range-road conveyor in person on Saturday. Nice unit for the price and I think it will do what I need. Unfortunately he didn't have any others in stock to sell. He "sold" 2 that week - found out later he is actually the US distributor for range-road. He sent the conveyors to 2 of his dealers. Nice guy and knowledgeable about the products. I'm on a wait list for a conveyor once he gets some more in.

I'm out of town for a week. When I get back I'm going to check out a 16' chain driven Hud-son conveyor. Unfortunately it's almost double the price of the RR.

 

[kyle1!]

What about making a grid/platform out of heavy duty plastic pallets that you could dump onto with the conveyor? As you remove wood you pullet the pallets up. It would be tough to turn the pile with the plastic pallets though.

 

[sevensandeights]

I only have 4-5 plastic pallets. I do have a bunch of wooden ones and people are always giving them away. Chris from In the Wood Yard on YouTube is doing exactly what you are suggesting. He's making cribs out of pallets and dumping wood into them. Could be an option for me. Leaning towards the bags though so I can fill them and know it's 1/3rd. Won't have to touch it again. I can get a sample pack of bags for $250ish - I think you get 12 fo3 that price. Once I get a conveyor I'll probably give them a try.

 

[rancher2]

sevensandeights Years ago I had a guy give me some bulk seed bags. If I remember right they held 1000 pounds of seed. I just didn't like bags for firewood. I have enough big trailers that hold 3-4 cord of wood stacked that I store my wood on trailers in the shed. I burn 10-15 cord a year in a Garn boiler. As far as conveyors go I found a old gravel belt conveyer and that is what I use. Its hyd drive from the top and hyd raise. Works great I did have to tow it about five hundred mile home. I have had it around ten years.

 

[woodchuckcanuck]

No bags here. We crate right off of the splitter. Totes sell here for $150 to $200 so we build our own.

 

[sevensandeights]

Those look nice. One man operation to split and stack or do you have 2 guys working? How do you unload/deliver the crates?

 

[woodchuckcanuck]

Those look nice. One man operation to split and stack or do you have 2 guys working? How do you unload/deliver the crates?

Just the wife and I. We deliver loose to the client. Load like this

 

[nathan4104]

I've been through this thought loop a while too.....
Almost decided to conveyor into big pile on ground, and buy a rock/manure/skeleton type bucket for the tractor and turn the pile every so often.
What's easier is to just cut/coveyor right into the trailer and deliver it. I just tell people to order it early and don't promise seasoned wood anymore. The good customers are learning to be a year ahead. Among the complaints i get is the bark/ dirt. Even with 2 trash racks in the stream, some of the bark still makes its way. Maybe a wheelbarrow worth per cord. Reloading makes that issue go away..... so dumping into bags with conveyor may also yield the same bit of mess..... something to think about.

 

[Seachaser]

The only way I would use bags is if I sell them as grab and go. Or from another vendor.

 

[sevensandeights]

Going to check out a 16' Hudson chain conveyor on Wednesday. Wish it was a little longer but has a max height of 9'6". Should be enough to fill the bags or my dump trailer. I think I'm going to try the bags and see how they work. The sample pack is $275ish for 12 bags. IBC totes are getting more expensive and I still have to stack them. I can make a lot of wood fast with this splitter but stopping to stack or move the splitter away from the pile really kills momentum.

I'm thinking of putting a stack of pallets behind the dump trailer so I can set the firewood bags even with the height of the trailer. Then use the lower lifting loops to tip the bag into the trailer with tractor pallet forks. Could also do that from each side but fenders would keep the bags away from the trailer sides a bit.

Firewood is in ample supply around me so selling green wood isn't really a good option. People keep coming back to me specifically because my wood burns well and is split into nice sized pieces.

 

[T. Mainus]

We've been using the Dino 1/3 cord bags for about 6 years now. We get them from Northern Woodsman. We do about 200-300 cord a year. We set ours on plastic pallets. We only use the straps to hold the bag in the stand while filling. They get moved by the pallet and then we use the rotating forks too empty the bag into our dump truck for delivery. We are getting about 5 years out of our bags before they degrade and rip from the sun.

 

[sevensandeights]

That's good to hear. I remember seeing your Pallax swing and thought it was cool - pallet rotator is even better!

I bought the Hud-son conveyor yesterday. Not exactly what I wanted but made in the USA and built solid. I think it was worth paying a little more to avoid issues with the cheaper belt conveyor I was looking at. Will be nice to be able to move the conveyor and not worry about being on perfectly level ground that can twist the belt conveyor frame and affect alignment. I also ordered the sample pack of bags. Just in time as I am out of totes!

 

[sevensandeights]

Update on the conveyor. I'm taking it back tomorrow. Just doesn't work well for my set up. The wood coming off the box wedge jams up in the hopper and the narrow, single chain design doesn't take the wood away. Also, the box wedge creates lots of scrap - twice in one cords' worth of splitting a piece of scrap got caught between the chain and drive cog ending up in a stalled conveyor. The unit is heavy duty and built in the USA but it's not for me. Would perhaps work better with splitter that doesn't generate as much wood all at once. The dealer had no issues take it back with less than a weeks worth of run time.

 

[woodchuckcanuck]

Update on the conveyor. I'm taking it back tomorrow. Just doesn't work well for my set up. The wood coming off the box wedge jams up in the hopper and the narrow, single chain design doesn't take the wood away. Also, the box wedge creates lots of scrap - twice in one cords' worth of splitting a piece of scrap got caught between the chain and drive cog ending up in a stalled conveyor. The unit is heavy duty and built in the USA but it's not for me. Would perhaps work better with splitter that doesn't generate as much wood all at once. The dealer had no issues take it back with less than a weeks worth of run time.

I've never seen a box wedge that didn't produce a lot of waste. We sold ours too and went with a single wedge vertical splitter.

 

[cantoo]

Update on the conveyor. I'm taking it back tomorrow. Just doesn't work well for my set up. The wood coming off the box wedge jams up in the hopper and the narrow, single chain design doesn't take the wood away. Also, the box wedge creates lots of scrap - twice in one cords' worth of splitting a piece of scrap got caught between the chain and drive cog ending up in a stalled conveyor. The unit is heavy duty and built in the USA but it's not for me. Would perhaps work better with splitter that doesn't generate as much wood all at once. The dealer had no issues take it back with less than a weeks worth of run time.

I have a dozen conveyors, several are grain/ hay ones converted to wood use and several factory built firewood conveyors. I converted some of them from electric to gas, I change the pulleys and drive sprockets to slow them down and I have a couple my gear boxes on them. There is nothing wrong with the Ebersol firewood conveyors they are built 1 1/2 hours away from me, just around the corner from Wallenstein factories. You can just buy the electric one and power it with a 2500 watt gas gennie for a lot less money that hydraulic. I dump all my splits off the conveyors into tall stacks. Never have a mold issue but I only process ash. I'm in a nice windy spot on a gravel hill, I look out my kitchen window at 28 Industrial windmills. I hand load everything so that I have very little trash or bark on my loads. The dump trailer I use for deliveries is filled the same height each time which is a measured ( stacked it multiple times to be accurate) full cord, I sell this as a load you can call it whatever you want. I'm selling this load of splits for $x, take it or leave it. The single chain conveyors are a problem with wood that produces bark or splitter trash. That is the reason that I use grain elevators the most. My Wallenstein processor has a single chain and my Blackscreek conveyor is also a single chain. Jams happen once in awhile, trick is to keep chains tight and use oil on the chains so things are slippery and hopefully the trash slips out of the way. Hudson also sells a belt conveyor which I assume would have been a better fit for your splitter.

 

[sevensandeights]

Thanks for the feedback to those that have replied. I lucked out this past weekend and picked up a 12' belt drive electric conveyor for $100! Don't think it was intended for outside use but it should work for the time being and price was right! Will be able to fill bags and possibly load my dump trailer. Need to fab up a hopper for it and likely will change the wheels out for pneumatic tires.

I've filled 5 bags so far without issue. I had my son hand toss off the splitter and it only takes 20-25 minutes per bag. Time will tell about seasoning and ease of unloading into my dump trailer. Shaver Specialties has a good youtube video of his process using hooks welded on the inside of his pallet forks.

 

[sevensandeights]

Just a little update. My $100 conveyor is closer to 16' than 12"! It was used to help unload semi's and box trucks in a warehouse so it had tiny solid rubber wheels. I made a new axle with trailer spindles and hubs. Also made a hitch and added two stabilizer jacks. Had a local fab shop make a hopper and guide rails based off of my wooden temple. Turned out great and can't wait to use it. Runs fine on a 100' extension cord but will likely get a small gas generator. Bags are working well so far, I just ordered some more. Time will tell how the wood seasons and how easy they are to dump into my trailer for delivery.