Firewood prices???

[jasoutside]

Hey Fellas, how about a little advise?

I have a small lot that I have cleared and am thinking about selling the wood this coming fall. I not big time like you guys but I thought I could make a little pocket change.

I'll sell by the face cord rather than the full cord as I'll be working with people who are just looking for fireplace wood for the holidays. It'll be dried, split and delivered to their driveway - maybe a few extra bucks to stack it.

I am wondering what a guy might sell for here in the Middle of Michigan??

Most of what I have is Maple (soft) and some Oak. I also have a bunch of Poplar, can I sell it, for how much ya think??? Just looking for a ball park idea of what I can get to see if it is worth it...

Thanks in advance!

 

[computeruser]

If you cut the stuff down this year, I'd be surprised if it is dry enough to call *seasoned* by the fall unless it is split very small and very carefully dried.

Still, you should be able to get $55/face cord for nearly-dry hardwood, and probably $40/face for the poplar and other lower-BTU woods, cut/split/delivered. This assumes a suburban, non-wood-heat clientelle.

Around here (Lansing) the going rate for truly seasoned hardwood is $65-70/face cord delivered, and maybe ten or fifteen bucks less per face cord for lower-BTU wood. I knew a guy who was selling a maple-cherry-walnut mix that was cut and split in the early summer and stored in a huge heap covered with a tarp for $45/face cord.

 

[jasoutside]

Yah, actually the trees were down last year so they should be in good shape for this fall/winter. Thanks for your thoughts!

 

[Deebo]

Bought a house late last year w/wood burner so had to buy all my wood for last season. First of all I find that no matter what they say it is not truly dry wood. It may be "seasoned" as some people consider wood seasoned after 6 months. This may be fine for a boiler unit, but is not even close to efficient in a little radiant heat stove. I tried about every schmo advertising in the area from big outfits to people trying to make an extra buck. I purchased good hardwood(mainly oak and chery) for 50-55 a face cord. Always $55 if delivered and usually had to buy more than one to get delivery. I live in Battle Creek. Hope this helps.

 

[ropensaddle]

Careful; face cord is not recognized as valid
measure for firewood it must be sold as a cord or
fraction of a cord or cubic ft.,meter, yard etc.
Around here the bureau of standards is looking for
people selling any deviance of measure. A cord of
firewood measures 128 cubic feet or four by four by
eight and sells for 150.00 and is more work than you
are paid for. I started cutting my wood 24 inch as it
is twice the work to sell small 16 inch wood and the
cutter is the one suffering splitting more for the same$.
If I get someone asking for small wood I explain what
it means in work terms and tell them they can cut in half
or pay me extra for custom cuts.

 

[jasoutside]

Well, like I said, I am way small potatoes compared to you fellas. I would be selling to just friends and colleges and hardly any of them use more than (therefore buy more than) one face cord per year.

 

[ropensaddle]

What are you guys calling a face cord that is not
a measure. I live in the south and burned over five cords
last year as wife cant stand cold and had not got around
to underpinning trailer yet, and moved the trailer right before
cold season hope to be done by this winter.

 

[Deebo]

Around here face cord is sold as 4'x8'x16"-18".

 

[ropensaddle]

Ok that is one half cord if it was 24 inch wood
or a rick as some call it, but rest assured you are not
selling a true measure of wood and can get the bureau
after you for doing so. I don't want to bring this news
but just trying to inform you of what can happen if you
are selling wood at improper measure.

 

[ropensaddle]

I don't like the **** anymore than you but I would
stack 4#8#2 and call it half cord and sell 75 to 80
for hardwood.

 

[jasoutside]

So if I call it a 1/3 of a cord is that ok?

 

[ropensaddle]

So if I call it a 1/3 of a cord is that ok?

Yeah but you probably have more than that
in what you are calling face cord if you are
good at math sell by cubic feet

 

[ropensaddle]

I spooked this year and started selling the
stuff the way the bureau printed in the news
paper. What probably occurs is some a?? hole
thinks he got shorted and complains and then
the bureau gets involved and as a business
I decided better do it the way they wanted.
So to be fair to myself the part they aren't
getting,I cut it two foot so have less splitting
and they aren't shorted if they want special
cuts they will pay me for it!!!!!! As the bureau
doesn't control price just amount. I hope this
helped you .

 

[ropensaddle]

I know of a guy in town that just measured
cubic feet of his truck bed and sells by cubic feet
and that will work but has to be advertised and sold
that way. The thing is more splitting on short wood
is like splitting a cord and a half and the bureau does
not care about your added work so explain to customer
and charge for it!!

 

[ericjeeper]

we sell it by the rick

Indiana no one knows what a face cord is.. so a rick is 4 feet high and eight feet long by whatever length you cut it.. I cut mine 18-20 inches.. So it is more than a face cord but less than half a cord.. It is a RICK.. I am not sure about the alcohol and firewood bureau. But around here if they feel cheated they either tell you about it.. Or worse yet, all their wood buying friends.

 

[Firewood Guy USA]

Well, like I said, I am way small potatoes compared to you fellas. I would be selling to just friends and colleges and hardly any of them use more than (therefore buy more than) one face cord per year.

Hummm, If you are just selling your firewood to your friends, why don't you just give your friends the firewood, that would be a great xmas gift. What U think ??

 

[Mr. Firewood]

Indiana no one knows what a face cord is.. so a rick is 4 feet high and eight feet long by whatever length you cut it.. I cut mine 18-20 inches.. So it is more than a face cord but less than half a cord.. It is a RICK.. I am not sure about the alcohol and firewood bureau. But around here if they feel cheated they either tell you about it.. Or worse yet, all their wood buying friends.

rick/rank/stack/face cord/st. louis cord/ full size truck bed / 3 bobcat scoops = one rick or 1/3 cord :chainsawguy:

be careful with 24" wood, you might have a hell of a time selling it, I have 12-15 people that want 24" wood and that is all, nothing smaller then 2' long. I burn 24" wood for the most part but I have a huge fireplace that is 5' wide.....people with inserts and small stoves sometimes have problems with 16" wood

 

[ropensaddle]

Bureau of standards. That is their name
and they put ad in newspaper in firewood section
explaining how firewood is to be sold. I don't sell
firewood for a living but sometimes sell to my tree
customers and as a business don't want to be sued over
the fk n stuff, and they do not have a rick in definitions.
If you think the feds wont fine you keep selling it your
way as for me I will sell cords and half cords 4-8-2 or
4-8-4 or 128 cubic ft

 

[jasoutside]

Hummm, If you are just selling your firewood to your friends, why don't you just give your friends the firewood, that would be a great xmas gift. What U think ??

Yup, friends and family get free but I am thinking I'll still have a bunch left over. I sure did a lot of sweating to give it all away - besides the fact that I am running a way tight budget these days. Cheers!

 

[jasoutside]

So does anybody have any other ideas on how much this might be worth?? By the way I'll certainly sell it as a face cord. Why? Because folks that I'll be dealing with know what a face cord is and and don't really care about the debate over what to call a 1/3 cord, they just want a little wood for their fireplace on Thanksgiving and Christmas. That seems logical, eh!