Firewood kindling idea

[Matt J Leppek]

Matt;

That stuff might be a good substitute for newspaper, but not for kindling wood. It's too small to produce the coals that would be needed to get an actual piece of firewood going if your burning oak and such.

I was wrong with what i called it, just should have said firestarter, for thats what its meant for. to start kindling to start logs. my bad there.

Remember, you are paying yourself, what is your time worth?

Shea

Thanks for the advice. And the noodes are a lot more flammable, dont need a wick, they act as a wick. might do a combo of both, always willing to try something new. As for time, not really a big deal. i do this to fill in on rainy days and nights after work.

noodleing is easy,but used to cut big rounds down to easy handling size,imho noodling just to get noodles is wasting firewood.look at it from a store owners view,do you want someone bringing in a bag of sawdust to try and sell(NO). will it sell? i dont know,go for it,personally i would give it away FREE to the people who BUY your firewood.you'd be surprised how much better you look .

You get a lot out of one 16" round, dont need to cut to many up, so not really wasting it. plus its popple/aspen so its of abundance in my grandfathers woods, good 40 acres of it and hes having me cut him a trail, i get to keep the wood as i go along.

I like the idea of giving it away to people who buy wood, ill start doing that from now on. thanks.

 

[Matt J Leppek]

We collect dry pine cones.The wife puts them in an old muffin tray and pours melted wax in each muffin spot were a pine cone is put.We get the wax from old candles that people almost give away at yard sales.

yes i heard of doing that. and im getting all the candles for free for now, if things work out and it sells, then ill look into buying wax online.

 

[Dale]

L L Bean sells fatwood fire starter and it is really expensive. Russ

Expensive and L.L. Bean = Synonomous. :frown:

 

[Dale]

Read the posts of using wax-coated material, and basically pitch from pine to start the burns. Undoubtedly two methods that work well, but........ Do these methods hold up well regarding Chimney's and Fireboxes ? Does the turpentine-like pitch from pine eventually build up on chimney walls creating a sticky surface that attracts soot ? Does the melting wax, over time, affect the inside of your woodburner, or even drip into the ashpan, causing potential rogue fire issues ? I'm just asking as I don't employ either method, but these potential negatives have crossed my mind.

 

[Matt J Leppek]

Read the posts of using wax-coated material, and basically pitch from pine to start the burns. Undoubtedly two methods that work well, but........ Do these methods hold up well regarding Chimney's and Fireboxes ? Does the turpentine-like pitch from pine eventually build up on chimney walls creating a sticky surface that attracts soot ? Does the melting wax, over time, affect the inside of your woodburner, or even drip into the ashpan, causing potential rogue fire issues ? I'm just asking as I don't employ either method, but these potential negatives have crossed my mind.

Dale I looked into that. I found the large pile of wax and amount of black smoke emitted unattractive for a product, so I found a noodle /wax ratio that completely burns up by itself and lasts 6-10 minutes. Plenty of time for an ill experienced person to start a fire...I hope. Also working on crunching the numbers to see my profit margin a cake, and seenif that margin is worth my labor.

 

[aaron]

Matt, Are you aware of this company?

Super Cedar Firestarters - Guaranteed To Start Your Fire Every Time! Fire Starter Manufacturers and Distributers

 

[nmurph]

I know we're kind of off topic, but what makes pine become fat wood? We have pine here but never heard of that. I'm just wondering if it has to be a certain species, certain age, grown in the hot south, aged in a creek, or what? What conditions cause what type of pine to produce it?

I have to take down some beetle kill pines on the golf course in town soon just wondering if I save some heart wood and age it, will I get fat wood?

I'm not sure what makes "fat wood." It can come from any of the pines we have in S Ga- Loblolly, Slash, or Longleaf. We have a few other species, but they are uncommon. Any of these will produce fat wood. Fatwood is usually the stump and the center of the lower portion of the tree. The larger and older the tree, the larger and higher up the fatwood strip runs. I have some fatwood centers laying in the creek that are 40-50" long and 6-8" at the tip. That would have come from huge trees, maybe 40-60" DBH. The sap collects in the center and becomes almost concrete. It is virtually impervious to water, don't rot, and will drag a saw down pretty well.

At the turn of the 19th century, turpentine became a popular industry in the the SE. It remained so through the mid-20th century. It was hard, hot, and nasty work. Imagine "dipping" tree sap with a flat-bladed paddle out of a rectanglar tin cup nailed to the side of a tree which has been gashed to inflict injury to the tree and produce sap. You then used an acid to keep the tree injured and flowing. You toted buckets around and laddled the sap into the bucket until it was full and then dumped it into a barrel on a wagon. The tar weighs nearly as much as cement!! You also had to dodge "bell cows" as the Eastern Diamondback rattler is known around these parts.

Here is a pic of my son with a piece he found in the creeek recently and just had to tote out. It is forked and about 3' long. To give you an idea, it probably weighs 25-30lbs. With a little care and a sharp hatchet, that piece will start dozens of fires.

 

[ShaneLogs]

belongs in the firewood thread. I think it may be difficult to market. you'd need a bag of it to get a decent fire going and still need an accelerator to keep it going. dont think it would get hot enough and stay hot enough to get a fire up and going. I use the little firewood starter blocks and a map gas torch in my woodstove in the winter, and diesel or kerosene out in my brush pit that is 5' wide 12' long surrounded by block.

This is the firewood thread, I think it is a good idea. If you have buyers all ready willing to buy it, I'd give it a try!

 

[Matt J Leppek]

Matt, Are you aware of this company?

Super Cedar Firestarters - Guaranteed To Start Your Fire Every Time! Fire Starter Manufacturers and Distributers

Yes I have seen the commercial ones, but I'm looking to sell these mainly at local campsites. I cant realistically compete with the quality of the commercial firestarters, but I can try to make a couple bucks in my downtime.

This is the firewood thread, I think it is a good idea. If you have buyers all ready willing to buy it, I'd give it a try!

Don't quite have them lined up, but if worse comes to worse and no one wants them, ive got a good Christmas present for some family and friends!

 

[Mac88]

Yes I have seen the commercial ones, but I'm looking to sell these mainly at local campsites.

Matt, you might try to find a way to hand a few of these out at your local campsites. Getting a feel for how the users like them might give you a better idea of how they would sell. I don't remember if you're involved in bundled camp wood, but if you are, you could include your starter product "free" to anyone who buys your bundles.

 

[Matt J Leppek]

Matt, you might try to find a way to hand a few of these out at your local campsites. Getting a feel for how the users like them might give you a better idea of how they would sell. I don't remember if you're involved in bundled camp wood, but if you are, you could include your starter product "free" to anyone who buys your bundles.

tried selling bundles at campsite, but all of the local ones have suppliers already, so im having to sell it by the facecord now. less money but i still make enough a little. atleast with cutting wood its a hobby that pays for itself...unlike golf or bowling etc. but i am going to give some out, and test some to get a feel for it before i try to sell it. will keep some around the house for people who buy wood off me to, thanks for the idea