Who is cutting wood?

Found an incredibly sweet stash yesterday. Cord after cord of down and dry lodgepole, within 30' of the road.. Apparently it's an area where those geniuses at the FS decided they'd go in a cut a bunch of trees so the lynx would have somewhere to hide, but the lynx never materialized, so the whole program was basically shitcanned and forgotten about. Scored 4 cords in 6 hours with a buddy of mine yesterday. So easy, I wasn't even sore playing golf today. All 10" - 20" diameter, up hill from the road. Much of it cut to less tha 10' already. Almost chainsaw optional. If I had a 16' trailer, it'd just be roll and load. Will keep going back to that until it runs out. No, I won't tell you where it is.

Yeah and it burns great.

Most of that pile pictured above is lodgepole.

Shed crammed full of it.

My 8 year old can split it with a 4# maul.

.........

Hey. Thanks for the idea. I bet he can run the saw and buck those logs up with a bit of help.

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Originally Posted by the Cock

It must suck for you western fucks to have to cut and burn lodgepole. That shit is childs play.

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Or...it's kind of nice because we can get it done than go do other shit.

Central California. Just north of Yosemite same elevation. 2000 square foot 2 story house.

I use 2-3 cords of soft wood and 1-2 of hard wood depending on the winter. I only heat with wood except for heating the house after a road trip. I keep the house warm.

I cut on FS land a lot. Mostly lodgepole. A bit of oak. I hunt for it. I also buy oak here and there from friends. Also almond from the orchards. And I scrounge free wood.

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Originally Posted by the Cock

Serious question. How many cords of wood does it take to heat a 2000 sq. ft. home exclusively from wood out there?

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Our living space is about 1800 square feet. The house is pretty ideally designed for a wood stove. The main level is open and has a vaulted celiling/ceiling fans that deliver the heat straight into the rooms on the 2nd floor. We heat only with wood until it gets down to about -15, then we turn on a small propane stove to assist. We burn about 8 cords of pine/spruce and about a cord of oak (overnight). Probably less this year after the sheathing/siding/doors project.

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Originally Posted by the Cock

It must suck for you western fucks to have to cut and burn lodgepole. That shit is childs play.

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What's not to like? Plentiful, easy to work, burns pretty hot. The MO oak we get here is more dense and lasts longer, but it doesn't burn much hotter.

Sarcasm brah

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Originally Posted by stfu&gbtw

...The MO oak we get here is more dense and lasts longer, but it doesn't burn much hotter.

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That's the deal about hardwoods - they make better coals and burn longer, but not hotter. Some good woodstove skillz and it works out fine.

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Originally Posted by telemike

Sarcasm brah

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Yeah, a little slow on the uptake.

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Originally Posted by the Cock

What is considered hardwood out there. Here in NH we are heating our 2000" sq ft. house primarily of of wood. Backup is electric which we don't use, too expensive. Burn 4 cord of eastern hardwood(oak, maple, ash, etc) in an efficient stove. Before that used to burn 7-8 cord in a old school stove.

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There are btu/cord charts easily found online. Off the top of my head, I couldn't tell you what the numbers are, but the midwestern hardwood doesn't seem very heavy or dense compared to what we used to have back home.

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Originally Posted by the Cock

What is considered hardwood out there.

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Depends on where 'there' is. But I'll give NE the edge in hardwood availability. You guys need something to be proud about. :eek:

Jus' fuckin' wit' ya.

Hard wood = oak, almond (and other fruit and nut tree wood), madrone (coastal only). You can buy your own almond wood from orchards for a reasonable price.

Soft wood = pine in it's various versions (lodgepole is best), cedar, fir.

I cut for soft wood cuz it's plentiful and easy. I sometimes have to buy hard wood. It's worth buying a cord of oak if I've cut 4 of pine

2-3/1 soft wood to hard wood. Get the fire HOT fast with pine, keep it hot all night with oak.

Heat 900 sq ft cabin and partially heat insulated part of barn 750 sq ft with 4.5 cords last winter. Lodge pole pine and aspen is 90% of wood with equal amounts of both. Aspen burns hot but not long and creates a lot of ash. Pine is the over night wood for me but unless its under -15C we wouldn't have a fire at night, its a very well insulated cabin. A fire in the morning then add a bit when we get back for skiing and that is it.

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Originally Posted by Woahnellie

Anyone here use an older Vermont castings vigilant?

I'm thinking about replacing mine with a more efficient steel wood stove. I'm heating a one story 1300 sq ft home.

Any ideas on what would be a good replacement would be much appreciated.

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Hard to go wrong with anything EPA approved these days. I would stay away from stoves that use a downdraft style secondary combustion system, they can be a pain. If you're on a budget it's hard to go wrong with some of the offerings from Englander or Drolet.

Stay away from new Vermont Castings, they're widely regarded for sucking. Where are you located?

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Originally Posted by glademaster

Hard to go wrong with anything EPA approved these days. I would stay away from stoves that use a downdraft style secondary combustion system, they can be a pain. If you're on a budget it's hard to go wrong with some of the offerings from Englander or Drolet.

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I installed a drolet fireplace insert this past jan and have been pretty happy with it, seems to be pretty well built, burn clean and cheap.

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Originally Posted by Woahnellie

Thank you. Just looked at some Englanders online and they look great at very reasonable prices. Only problem, or maybe not a problem is it uses a 6" pipe and my stove uses 8".

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Any modern stove that uses an 8'' exhaust will be much too big for a 1300 square foot home unless it has literally zero insulation. You could run 6 inch stove pipe inside the house, and then used an expander/reducer to transition to the chimney. This shouldn't be a problem unless your chimney is also extremely short. I have an Englander NC-30 and am very happy with it. Next time I buy a stove it will definitely be a catalytic model and not a tube stove, but the thing is well built, burns extremely cleanly and throws a lot of heat for under $1000.

I've been getting at some oak that came down during a ice storm last winter. Here is my splitting set up.

Attachment 157197

has anybody built one of these modular woodsheds? http://epa.gov/burnwise/bestburn.html#plans. how have they been working out, did you wrap the walls with a tarp or other siding during winter?

I was planning on building a few but using some pallets for part of it to reduce cost a little.

tia

I haven't done that plan but I would think those would blow over in wind if not held down by weight of wood, so if use pallets to keep wood off ground then would still have to attach pallets to legs so it doesn't blow over.

One way to save cost would be to use tin for roof if you can get it for free rather than ply. I was thinking around here everyone has tin left over from building projects as they always ship offcuts from the roll to protect the sold amount. If you can find some just use 2x4s for structure under tin.

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Originally Posted by bodywhomper

has anybody built one of these modular woodsheds? http://epa.gov/burnwise/bestburn.html#plans. how have they been working out, did you wrap the walls with a tarp or other siding during winter?

I was planning on building a few but using some pallets for part of it to reduce cost a little.

tia

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SOP in Japan. I'm surprised you're asking.

Hauled and stacked 2 cords yesterday, 4 more to go for wintah.

Totally psyched about the jotul kenebeck we bought on Craigslist last year. It should well outperform our basement wood stove and open fireplace combo of years past.

From Feb 1 - May 1 we burned less than a cord (cooold winter). We put up three cords this year and I expect the house to be warmer than ever through the whole winter.

Son of a bitch, We have had 8 mills close in the last couple of years and all my logger contacts are out of business. They all went to work for the railroad/mines/pipeline companies. Shit, I find myself having to buy from firewood companies at twice the price. This sucks. FL Oct.-Aprl. is lookin better every year.

Man that sucks. Can't get truckloads like your first post anymore? With as much as you burn, that's got to make a difference. Hope you find a new source.

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Originally Posted by bodywhomper

has anybody built one of these modular woodsheds? http://epa.gov/burnwise/bestburn.html#plans. how have they been working out, did you wrap the walls with a tarp or other siding during winter?

I was planning on building a few but using some pallets for part of it to reduce cost a little.

tia

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I use T posts and pallets. Place pallets on ground. Ram in T posts, then slide pallets over them for back and sides. Cover the whole thing with plastic in winter.

Attachment 158318

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Originally Posted by telemike

I use T posts and pallets. Place pallets on ground. Ram in T posts, then slide pallets over them for back and sides. Cover the whole thing with plastic in winter.

Attachment 158318

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Thanks. Do you find need to wrap the sides in plastic tarp here in the lower sierra come winter? ... assuming its actually a more normal winter.

Yes. I wrap the whole thing in plastic over winter and tack it down with a staple gun. Keeps the cold rain and snow off it.

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Originally Posted by telemike

Attachment 122724

shed is filled with tamarack for next 2 winters + tarped stacks of oak, tamarack and cedar for now

first burn a couple night ago

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Looks like this.

Inside storage with kindling and paper slots.

Attachment 158332

thanks. those are your seasoning stacks (wrapped/tacked)? and your current (seasoned) winter pile is in the shed? i'm still figuring out a system at our new place.

It sorta changes. That's an old pic. Your piles will change.


Currently: Shed is all seasoned tamarack. Right side is next year's oak. Left side is two year's from now oak. I have a bunch stored under the eaves right outside the door for immediate use.

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Originally Posted by telemike

Yes. I wrap the whole thing in plastic over winter and tack it down with a staple gun. Keeps the cold rain and snow off it.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7qkbF8PbtE

You caught that....

mags thoughts on husqvarna 450 rancher for a home/yard level chain saw?
$379 @ my local Coastal Farm & Ranch
http://www.husqvarna.com/us/products...s/450-rancher/

i've been advised to buy as much motor as possible and then adjust chain/bar as required
I'd originally thought $300 for a budget, but am thinking this is a reasonable balance of value/quality/durability

recently moved...property is surrounded by forest (park, actually...can't harvest firewood, but will need to deal with widowmakers & blowdown)
we are going through a certain amount of yard demo that would make owning a chainsaw useful. Some junk fruit trees w/ 12" or so trunks; and 70' of a pretty old lilac hedge with 3" bases

opinions appreciated, thx

I run a 455 Rancher and I love it.

There is a chainsaw thread.

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Originally Posted by telemike

I use T posts and pallets. Place pallets on ground. Ram in T posts, then slide pallets over them for back and sides. Cover the whole thing with plastic in winter.

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Great minds crib alike. But I just tack 2 pallets at right angles together with a diagonal 2x4.

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Originally Posted by telemike

I run a 455 Rancher and I love it.

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Me too. Cutting mostly piñon and juniper, occasionally bigger stuff plus homeowner type jobs. Very reliable.

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Originally Posted by telemike

There is a chainsaw thread.

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Ha, I should have known. This was the first thread I thought of...sorry about that! (looks like there's a fair bit of reading there)

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Originally Posted by telemike

I run a 455 Rancher and I love it.

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Originally Posted by Meadow Skipper

Me too. Cutting mostly piñon and juniper, occasionally bigger stuff plus homeowner type jobs. Very reliable.

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Thanks! Very helpful to hear y'all use/like them.
I'd seen a couple of online reviews where some folks had experienced difficulty starting theirs (very low percentage of reviewers)

+3 on the 55 Rancher.