Stacking Firewood?

[flyboy553]

I know, it is a necessary evil, but I would rather kiss a pit bull with PMS than stack firewood!
Just sayin'...

Some one really needs to invent an automatic firewood stacker!!

Ted

 

[chucker]

" Some one really needs to invent an automatic firewood stacker!!

Ted" they already did!! there called my kids .... after school and weekends when needed, this is how they earned their spending money as well learned a good feeling of acomplishment they can see with their eyes to know what work does for you... lol

 

[flyboy553]

" Some one really needs to invent an automatic firewood stacker!!

Ted" they already did!! there called my kids .... after school and weekends when needed, this is how they earned their spending money as well learned a good feeling of acomplishment they can see with their eyes to know what work does for you... lol

Send 'em down this weekend! Lotsa good feelings of accomplishment available here! :msp_smile:

 

[chucker]

lol ?? maybe in a few years... the grandsons will help out now an then as their only 3.... thrown/stacked works for me these days, as the youngest son is 24 and gone !!!! now its just me, myself and eye dont want to stack any more....lol

 

[savageactor7]

I know, it is a necessary evil, but I would rather kiss a pit bull with PMS than stack firewood!
Just sayin'...Ted

I agree with Ted that's the worst chore EVER!

And to add insult to injury just about every pile I've stacked has fallen down or needed emergency attention.

Now I just throw wood up in a pile as I split it. It's not as neat looking but I can heave it up 10-12 feet and it's safer than when I stacked it.

 

[branchbuzzer]

I know, it is a necessary evil, but I would rather kiss a pit bull with PMS than stack firewood!
Just sayin'...

Some one really needs to invent an automatic firewood stacker!!

Ted

That's because your technique is all wrong.

You're not stacking firewood, you're stacking MONEY.

Now go try it again and report.

 

[Steve NW WI]

Call me wierd, but I kind of like stacking. (Note that I don't sell wood, and do not have to stack wood 400' from the truck, past an ankle shredding rat dog, next to the customer's prize petunias, etc.)

It's plain old mindless feel good work. You can take your time and enjoy being outside, or go like heck and watch the stacks get longer and taller. Sometimes I light a fire to burn up the splitter trash and bark that comes from splitting, sometimes beer is involved. I ran out of wood that needs stacking on Sunday. Guess I need to go cut and split more...see? More fun caused by stacking!

Finally gettin cold. I left the wood stove out yesterday because it was 75° upstairs and unbearable downstairs. It should stay lit through Friday now, but the weekend's supposed to get warm again. Wierd winter for sure.

 

[Circle B MN]

I have stacked a good bit of wood in my day. The end result is nice if you are an end user. If you are a seller, it is a PITA. For sale wood I'll make windrows. I then have X amount of racks that I will keep filled ahead of my orders. A couple of weeks in the racks insures the wood is well dried, not that I have had any problem drying in a pile. If I run short of room, I'll rack it on pallets.

 

[flyboy553]

Call me wierd, but I kind of like stacking. (Note that I don't sell wood, and do not have to stack wood 400' from the truck, past an ankle shredding rat dog, next to the customer's prize petunias, etc.)

I ran out of wood that needs stacking on Sunday. Guess I need to go cut and split more...see? More fun caused by stacking!

No, no need to go spend all that money cutting wood! Just come on down! It ISN'T mindless - I DO mind! lol And since you do not mind, you are welcome to come stack all day long! :hmm3grin2orange:

Ted

 

[ancy]

Wife and kids do it, but wife is 8 months pregnet and the kids have been good lately and there only 4 and 6 so! Looks like its me, 6 pack of high life, and the dam cat that sits right where the next piece goes. Got a load from Saturday to do now and the other Fiskars play pile.

 

[Steve NW WI]

No, no need to go spend all that money cutting wood! Just come on down! It ISN'T mindless - I DO mind! lol And since you do not mind, you are welcome to come stack all day long! :hmm3grin2orange:

Ted

I'd love to come over and stack for ya. I'll stack for free, but you have to cover my gas, food, and beverage expenses, and since I'm not getting any cutting done, I'll just take a load home with me...Come to think of it, it's probably not worth it to ya!

 

[flyboy553]

I'd love to come over and stack for ya. I'll stack for free, but you have to cover my gas, food, and beverage expenses, and since I'm not getting any cutting done, I'll just take a load home with me...Come to think of it, it's probably not worth it to ya!

I was good all the way to "beverage expenses"! Even good with you taking a load home! But those beverage expenses could be outta my financial range! lol

Ted

 

[Whitespider]

For me, stacking firewood is like painting the house; it’s not something I look forward to, but at the same time it’s not something I detest either. I’m good at either job, very quick and very neat, so that helps… I don’t need, or use drop cloths and masking tape when I paint, and my firewood stacks always stand nicely plumb and square, never falling over. I know it sounds kind’a silly comparing painting to stacking firewood, but those are two jobs I do really fast and really clean that most (or many) people hate, and therefore tend to do a sloppy, inefficient job of.

It’s kind’a funny really… when I’m stacking firewood I’ll grab two splits out’a the trailer and instantly know how they’ll be orientated and where they’ll be placed on the stack, BEFORE I even turn to look at the stack! It’s like I keep a running map of the current top row in my memory. When I grab splits from the trailer I unconsciously spot two that will be placed close to each other on the stack, which saves time… so I just grab two, turn, plop… grab two, turn, plop… grab two, turn, plop… in a quick rhythm. Usually I’ll have some music blaring from the speakers mounted on the outside of the garage/shop (classic rock or honky-tonk depending on mood) and be singing along as I work.

Yeah, I know… I’m an alien.

 

[chucker]

hey spidie, lol !! sounds more like an animal that knows its trail even in the dark of things.... lol

 

[Bushmans]

I spent the better part of 20 years in the landscape business and boulder retaining walls were my specialty. People would actually use our company because I worked there and they wanted me to build there walls. I had a darn waiting list. After so many years of wall building you develop a knack for eyeballing the correct piece for the spot. Just like spidey's wood stack it is burned into your retina and you can see the stack or the wall even when you turn for another split/rock. I find myself stacking wood like I build walls. I have a pile of "weird" fits on one side that I can always pull from when I need a filler or oddball size piece. Then I remind myself " hey stupid you have to burn that next year stop stacking so tight and get some air in there". Next year will be funner when I can stack nice and tight. :biggrin:

 

[Iska3]

I agree somewhat with Steve NW Cutting, splitting and stacking is my excape from the real world. It's like my time out... If I thought of it as work, it would never get done.

Call me wierd, but I kind of like stacking.
It's plain old mindless feel good work. You can take your time and enjoy being outside, or go like heck and watch the stacks get longer and taller. Sometimes I light a fire to burn up the splitter trash and bark that comes from splitting, sometimes beer is involved.

 

[zogger]

I enjoy all aspects of firewood production, including the stacking. If I wasn't a generic farmhand, I would like to do it full time as a biz.

Deal is, when I start to stack, Gf takes over and will actually remove and replace what I stack. so I just let her do it for the most part now.

She wimps and won't stack as high as I want to go, so the last few layers is all I get to do. I also sneak over when she ain't looking and knock pieces in better, etc. She has a theoretical idea of vertical plumb and level with an inward leaning bias, but I'm a carpenter and she aint, so I have to assert gravitational awareness authority now and then.

But *mostly* she does it. Meh, don't care, I get the fun of cutting and splitting.

She has fun cooking, again, cool with me, I can cook, but it is a lot simpler food. She likes to make fancy stuff so it looks like the covers of cookbooks.

Anyway, stacks mean you are *done*, your wood deposit is safe, now to accrue interest as it seasons. It's either money in the bank for you, or helps to eliminate having to have paper money, or *both*. It's just nice to look at 'em when done. You've brought home the bacon, provided for the future, etc. To me it is an important part of my "stock" portfolio, along with stock that moos, stock that clucks, etc.

 

[jrider]

For me, stacking firewood is like painting the house; it’s not something I look forward to, but at the same time it’s not something I detest either. I’m good at either job, very quick and very neat, so that helps… I don’t need, or use drop cloths and masking tape when I paint, and my firewood stacks always stand nicely plumb and square, never falling over. I know it sounds kind’a silly comparing painting to stacking firewood, but those are two jobs I do really fast and really clean that most (or many) people hate, and therefore tend to do a sloppy, inefficient job of.

It’s kind’a funny really… when I’m stacking firewood I’ll grab two splits out’a the trailer and instantly know how they’ll be orientated and where they’ll be placed on the stack, BEFORE I even turn to look at the stack! It’s like I keep a running map of the current top row in my memory. When I grab splits from the trailer I unconsciously spot two that will be placed close to each other on the stack, which saves time… so I just grab two, turn, plop… grab two, turn, plop… grab two, turn, plop… in a quick rhythm. Usually I’ll have some music blaring from the speakers mounted on the outside of the garage/shop (classic rock or honky-tonk depending on mood) and be singing along as I work.

Yeah, I know… I’m an alien.

Honky-tonk - Maybe a little something from Hank Sr. Jr. or the III? Can never go wrong listening to that and drinking beer um I mean working.

 

[deerlakejens]

I'm with Bushman, I do a lot of stone work, mainly patios and retaining walls with natural stone. They are kind of like working with puzzles and give a certain satisfaction when completed. I feel the same way stacking wood.

 

[branchbuzzer]

It’s kind’a funny really… when I’m stacking firewood I’ll grab two splits out’a the trailer and instantly know how they’ll be orientated and where they’ll be placed on the stack, BEFORE I even turn to look at the stack! It’s like I keep a running map of the current top row in my memory. When I grab splits from the trailer I unconsciously spot two that will be placed close to each other on the stack

That's a good start to your stacking training, but you really need to strive beyond this. A good next step would be to remove those training poles you're using. From there, you should just be trusting your hands and doing it with your eyes closed. ( To see, one needs more than eyes. )


You'll need to move a burning wood stove with your bare forearms to complete your training.

Bamboo makes crummy firewood - Master Po