So I'm not sure how to process this...nor write it, nor what I'm asking for. We have in front of us, the possibility of a BIG score....for us anyway. Near my folks place I have been cutting wood off the side of the road, that tree companies left there after the August 2020 storm. Ive been eyeballing that wood, and have a cord or two already. I hope to speak to a landowner who has much more of this wood on his land by the road. If he gives us cartblanch (sp), we would be looking at 6 cord coming home. Maybe way more. My folks won't let me use their back acreage again as a drop point, meaning I'll drive all the way home with each load, rather than dropping it at their place and then getting it on my regular trips through their area. The reason: " this sounds a little compulsive". Ouch. By way of reasoning, we have next winter's wood on hand, c/s/s & covered, seasoned 2 years, perhaps with a couple cord leftover. What we're putting up now, will be seasoned maybe a year and a half by the time we need it, and so far, we dont have enough for that second year (but are getting close). Now, my folks also ran a smoke dragon for years, and I suspect burned green or less than fully seasoned wood. It stands to reason from that mindset, that having two or three years' supply of wood is overkill. This is the same mindset that there's no need for a storm-shelf, that the govt will step in and take care of us (their words). So maybe im just bummed that this will increase my time and costs to take advantage of a golden opportunity.....which I aim to take full advantage of with or without a drop point. (damm my lack of a bigger trailer!!!) Anyone been in a similar spot? Sca
My sister has told me that I need an intervention, but she was joking..I think. The only place that I've staged firewood not on my property, is on the property where the wood originated. And that's never been a concern. Besides, it has never been staged there for very long. Good luck!
You gotta do what ya gotta do.... Don't sweat the extra staging are. Waste of positive energy Bring home what you can as often as you can. Repeat.
Is your tow vehicle big enough that you could rent a bigger trailer for a weekend? A decent sized dump trailer would speed things up considerably. How far are you from this score?
Good luck. I say get it. I do not understand when some folk are against putting up extra and wonder if they are of the same train of thought about money. Don't they put some of that away for the future? Or for a rainy day? We put up wood for that plus the drying time to make the firewood the best there is.
Thats a thought....20 minutes away. Hadnt thought of that....cut all day, then a days worth of trips. Ram 1500. The staging area would be 5 minutes away....but also looking for another staging area. Maybe I should find frinds with trailers and work that way. We're an anomoly here, not many people burn (wood), and certainly not more than open hearth. Sca
One year early on in my wood burning experience I worked a area 10 minutes away empty. 20 minutes away loaded. Did it with a Chevy Venture minivanIt all came home. Slowly! The elderly couple who asked for help with that clearing job has had me back whenever they need some assistance. It worked out well all around. Poor van
I cut dead and down trees from the woods at work...I don't think they know I have rounds bucked/stacked all over the woods yet... I also vote for getting a larger trailer, especially a dump trailer! My longest scrounge run was about 40 minutes from here, I came home with a monster load stacked on the truck and trailer...took the back roads and drove slow, as I was probably a bit overloaded...took about an hour coming home.
Get it by any means necessary! In a couple years when you have your folks over for the holidays and they’re standing near your stove... Ask them if they can feel that “compulsive” heat filling your home. Sorry to hear they don’t “get it”. Rest assured, we all do! Get whatever you can, whenever you can get it. If the time comes and you need help, I’m sure the universe will arrange things and provide a helping hand. If you hit it hard now, you’ll have easier hoarding years down the road.
Somewhat close to that predicament but not really. My wood is all on my mothers property. Well except for the overflow of logs in my yard. We live next to each other. She’s fastidious about her property. Me not so much, Wasnt too keen on all this new wood arriving and my desire to collect even more. Yet mom is mom and she knows I could be doinG worse things with my time LOL. So in short, you didn’t raise your parents right if you had spent your youth building weapons of mass destruction in the basement your parents would be more amicable with a wood pile now. Doesn’t really matter tho. No real reason it needs to go on their property. Bring it to your house. Just scratch your parents house off the list and recompute. Thank God neither of my parents would ever expect or consider a helping hand from the government.
WELCOME TO MY WORLD! My advice: If you cant take it all take the primo straight grained wood and your favorite species. Basically cherry pick the score...no pun intended! What is your normal hoarding MO? Can you buck and split on site? Prep a stacking area at home and bring splits from site to stack? Lately ive been so busy my hoarding has gone by the wayside. Have three cord of rounds to split and hate to have that many on hand to process
Yes a larger trailer....someday for sure. That is a long scrounge run!! I do that also, but the trailer doesn't go, just what fits in the bed, as I'm already out there on business. At some point the cost to getting free wood exceeds its value. But, I like the adventure of it! Speaking of overloaded...was out scrounging roadside wood with the boy, and noticed the tongue on the trailer wasnt so straight anymore. Oops. Gotta.take.it easy till I can get something heavier. Sca
Eric, That is precisely my plan. We burned more than i thought we would, so my 3 year stash is really a (almost) 2 year stash. It would be nice to have 3 years on hand...ok, 5 years truth be told. To your point though, I have the energy and strength, so yeah pushing hard. My dad thinks he burned 13 cord a year (early 70's) and if it was wet that makes sense. But get this...he never owned a splitter. Even if he only burned 10, thats still a lot by hand! It is my compulsion....fueled by my less than sparkling opinion of big oil/gas/electric's ever increasing rates and no increase in service, those who tax my income, then tax my purchase of.oil to stay warm...... We.spent maybe $200 on heat this winter...down from $2500 ish. Good to know I'm in good company. Perhaps its just good to hear it. Sca
Sounds like a profitable job in other ways. If it needs to be slowly here....so be it. The wood's been there for a year...i dont see it vanishing overnight. Sca
Ive been stashing wood there..and it hasnt been outright prohibited yet. And it gets me there for a visit, which I love. But you're right, no need to push it, recompute. Sca
