Finished the 'wooding' season

[turnkey4099]

Got 5" snow the other day so went out to burn the brush piles. Finished that today marking the official end of the 2007 firwood cutting.

Burned 3 huge piles (10' high, 20' around), 6 medium (8'x10') and one small. Took 3 days but should hae been 2. I couldn't get the last three piles started yesterday - used up my 2 gal of diesel and all my kindling. went out this morning and remembered to take the leaf blower with me, that did it.

Nothing to look forward to for at least 3 months now except that dratted 'excericise'. Have to get back on that daily hike or the hour on the treadmill tomorrow.

Harry K

 

[aandabooks]

My season is just getting started. I cut on the edges of fields and I have to wait for the crops to be out. Also deer season is before and after Thanksgiving. I should be able to cut until early April then shut it down until November. Prefer to cut in the cold weather anyway.

Matt

 

[jeffmalvern]

I guess I'm one of the lucky ones.... I cut almost year round, just not in the hottest part of the summer. I try to hold off splitting till fall though, as I do it all by hand.

 

[cjcocn]

Because of mud and muskeg I do most of my hauling in the winter, but already had a years supply before the first snow fell.

Last summer I took about 6 cords of poplar out of my front yard and, although I do not usually burn poplar, I am burning it this year. I hope to burn it all this season, which shouldn't be a problem since I can also burn some in my garage.

I also have about 5 or 6 cords of jack pine (what I usually burn), which by itself is almost enough to get me through the year. If I get into some good birch stands I will bring that home too as it has a higher Btu rating (about the highest of the available wood in this area).

Hauling will continue throughout the winter tho and if I end up with a 3 or more year supply, then all the better! I sit on a little 40 acre patch of land so I have enough storage for a multi-year supply.

This is my first year with my bigger truck. It is an F250 diesel 4x4 with an 8' box, whereas prior to that I just had the F150 4x4 gasser with a 6 1/2' box and a 5' x 10' single (3,500#) axle. I just bought a 14' dual axle trailer and after I put new (5,200#) axles on it I should be able to bring home 3 cords per trip.

Luckily for me I can keep on hauling!

 

[Wood Scrounge]

Because of mud and muskeg I do most of my hauling in the winter, but already had a years supply before the first snow fell.

Last summer I took about 6 cords of poplar out of my front yard and, although I do not usually burn poplar, I am burning it this year. I hope to burn it all this season, which shouldn't be a problem since I can also burn some in my garage.

I also have about 5 or 6 cords of jack pine (what I usually burn), which by itself is almost enough to get me through the year. If I get into some good birch stands I will bring that home too as it has a higher Btu rating (about the highest of the available wood in this area).

Hauling will continue throughout the winter tho and if I end up with a 3 or more year supply, then all the better! I sit on a little 40 acre patch of land so I have enough storage for a multi-year supply.

This is my first year with my bigger truck. It is an F250 diesel 4x4 with an 8' box, whereas prior to that I just had the F150 4x4 gasser with a 6 1/2' box and a 5' x 10' single (3,500#) axle. I just bought a 14' dual axle trailer and after I put new (5,200#) axles on it I should be able to bring home 3 cords per trip.

Luckily for me I can keep on hauling!

CJcocn, Just curious how does that diesel treat you way up in the cold there?

 

[cjcocn]

It has to be plugged in or it will not start, but other than that it has been 100% for me and I really like the added power that I have with it.

I just pulled home an old Case Model S that I either couldn't find neutral in or it was just froze up. I ending up dragging it rather than towing it as the tractor's rear wheels would not turn, but that diesel dragged it through the field, through the ditch, and down the road to my house. Overall it was a relatively short pull, but I doubt that my '99 F150 gasser would have done the job.

Other than plugging it in, the only other thing I do for winter operation is add some anti-gelling solution to every tank of fuel.

There are quite a few diesels running around here from every major manufacturer, and I see them out and about just as much in the winter as in the summer.

The only issue is winter traveling and staying in a hotel without an outdoor receptacle. I put a remote starter in mine which allows me to have it start every two hours and run for 20 minutes. If it wasn't for that I would have to be very careful about which hotel I stayed in during one of my rare trips out of town.

HTH.

 

[YCSTEVE]

Start of Season

I have a 5 month old at home so I didn't go play in the woods all fall like I usually do. I'm actually behind. I've tried to get a couple years ahead but I will burn every stick of wood I have (15-20 rik) by the end of February.

I need to become more efficient. The saw needs to run more and I need to spend less time splitting by hand. Splitting with mauls and wedges seem to be my bottle neck.

I prefer to cut in cooler weather. Once the ticks,mosquito's, biting flys, poison ivy and poison oak show up I'm done. I to cut around the field edge so I have to wait until the crops are out

 

[Kenora]

cj.... I burn lots birch and jack pine (and every other local species of pine/spruce) but have a real hard time with the poplar, are you burning black or white?
The black poplar (and to a lesser degree the white poplar) around here seems to be rotten before I even cut it down and just turns punky when I try to season it...
I have tres beaucoup poplar (I'm not really french but I play one on TV ) and would like to know the trick to getting "useful" firewood from that species...any tricks of the trade you can share?

 

[cjcocn]

cj.... I burn lots birch and jack pine (and every other local species of pine/spruce) but have a real hard time with the poplar, are you burning black or white?
The black poplar (and to a lesser degree the white poplar) around here seems to be rotten before I even cut it down and just turns punky when I try to season it...
I have tres beaucoup poplar (I'm not really french but I play one on TV ) and would like to know the trick to getting "useful" firewood from that species...any tricks of the trade you can share?

Kenora

The poplar that I am burning is white poplar. I have some that is punky as well, but I either throw those on once the fire is good and hot or just put them aside to burn in the garage.

The poplar that I am burning was felled in the spring of 2006, but was not bucked and split (I just piled it all in a row). I cut it up this fall and stacked it in the woodshed. If I was going to burn poplar again I would pay more attention to the seasoning aspect of it.

I used to help a friend and his dad cut poplar every spring. We would fall trees, de-limb, buck into stove length, and then split it all. After the wood was split we would haul it back to their place and stack it in a row along their fence. I remember that they had to clean out the ashes more often, but I don't remember any punky wood in their pile.

If I was to purposely burn poplar again I would fall it, buck it, split it, and stack it immediately. I know that a lot of folks like open stacks or just a cover over the top of the stack, but with poplar I would put it under a woodshed with a roof that extended a few feet beyond the edges of the stack. This way it could still get air and dry thoroughly, but would not get directly hit with rain and/or snow as much.

I may even go so far as to put up a few well spaced slabs on the sides of the woodshed to reduce moisture in the wood stack, but still allow for airflow.

HTH

 

[thenorth]

we were out today, and split about 3 face cord, stacked into the pallets,,,,and it snowed ALL day.....
the splitter is under cover *s*....

 

[Blazin]

I'll be back at it here shortly again now that deer season is over. I like to do my cuttin and skiddin in the winter..Cleaner wood and less disturbance to the land. The only down side is deep snow..Draggin winch cables and diggin for tree butts. Still better than dealing with skeeters and blistering heat though!