For those of you that have turned the firewood hustle into a business, are you pulling 3/4-1 cord loads locally or buying logs by the semi-load? In Wyoming, it's 40 miles each way to get 1 cord of firewood from private properties. ORRR you can get 7 cords for $900 in log form. What would you do? Do you find it's easier to sell 1/2 cords at a higher cost than the equivalent 1 cord?
I buy it by the truck load. I’m in the “firewood business”. Not the “tree cutting business”. just one opportunity cost for me really.
I get most of my wood from tree companies so our situations are different. Personally, I think you have to think in terms of $ per hour you can make instead of total profit per cord. Only you will be able to figure that out based on your situation.
If selling firewood is your only or majority source of income, what you net per hour should be your biggest concern when deciding how to source your wood. If I purchased a more productive splitter and a dump trailer, I would do better with buying in my area. I don't depend on firewood for income, just a fun challenge for me. So cutting free and awesome quality trees is what I mainly do. I only purchase to insure I don't ever run out of seasoned firewood.
Gross income - COGS = net profit. In its simplest form. so long as your business model has a black net profit, all that matters.
I agree with Jrider more than this model If your net profit is $50 and it took you 50 hours to achieve that.. while profitable; your only making $1 an hour unless your paying yourself a wage in COGS
Agree 100%; most people don’t know how to depreciate equipment and tools in that number; much less required maintenance.. Real cost of goods sold… is a master level finance class in all good schools (Wharton and Tuck anyway)
I had six semesters of accounting for my industrial management degree. From accounting 101 to cost accounting and managerial accounting. It’s amazing how much is ignored or applied incorrectly. Simply saying “opportunity costs” is often misunderstood.
Most of my customers are casual burners and with just a 8' bed PU i sell half cords as thats all i can deliver at once. I scrounge all my wood, but being in a large state i can see why you need to buy it to resell. In your case do you have the time to travel and cut? If not buy it. Id assume most burners are for heat, not ambiance out there? You could try the half cord for a higher price and see what happens.
If I recall Jrider, you just use a normal gas splitter? No fancy conveyor systems/etc. How are you then loading your truck/dump truck? I'm going to try the 1/2 cord method for now at a higher price. The local competitor requires a 2 cord minimum.
There are things you can invest in that are significantly better ROI than a capital expense like a splitter. My $70 4-way wedge is saving me 40 hours of splitting time on 6 cord of cherry wood alone. Sixty cord annually, that’s going to be well north of 250-300 hours of splitting time. not sure there’s many splitters that can make that kind of a return. a bigger chain saw can show a similar Return on investment. And that’s just pre and post processing. I personally don’t have time to scrounge or cut wood because I’m gone 2-3 weeks a month driving semi. A “better” splitter is way down on my priorities especially when there’s so many cheap things like a bucking table, wedge etc can improve the process first. having someone bring me wood is another one.
What's the rules on BLM land? I am under the impression that wood can be cut there? When I was in the Little Bighorns my mind was blown several times by the 'campers'. Oh I see...can only cut what you use while on the land.
Zack323 Jrider has a timber wolf 5 or 6 not an ordinary splitter splits into wind rows and loads in truck By hand
I have two splitters, one with a 4 way wedge and one with an adjustable 6 way and 4 way as well as log lift. The second one mentioned I would consider a commercial size splitter but I do not have a conveyor....yet. I hand load into my dump truck which holds 2 cords. Just tossing the wood in there and stacking the back, I can load 2 cords myself in 35 minutes or so but I usually have help so that number is cut significantly. Selling smaller amounts can be very profitable when done right. You don't have to move hundreds of cords to be successful financially.
If the 4 way is saving you 40 hours on 6 cords, may I ask how long it used to take to split that much wood and how long it takes now?
I think in the transition from seconds to minutes to hours to minutes to… I think I screwed up. I’m home now so I’ll pull an Adam and make a spreadsheet. My head can’t follow it without putting it to paper now.
