When out scrounging for firewood do you use the word of mouth to find down free firewood, or do you place business cards at the local business bulletin boards.
I have used Craigslist mostly. I've also driven around after wind storms and ask homeowners if I can have the wood. My largest scrounges have all been Craigslist when it is 90 + degrees outside.
I'm in various stages of five different jobs that total just over 1000 acres, so I'm trying to dodge anymore "scrounges" right now. I need time & manpower if anybody's bored.
Most of my wood is scrounged roadside. State, town, tree service cut wood and left for the taking. A common site around here. Once in a while someone will stop and ask if im looking for more wood. Other times it a referral. Lots of friends/customers know i cut wood and will get in touch with me. Often leads to a "domino" effect for scores. Im not shy about knocking and asking. Did that Sunday and led to a paying job.
I check craigslist and marketplace at least once a day, it's like a drug. I must see it, must have it. If I see a good score, especially in the morning, right before I get out of work, I get all anxious and butterflies in my stomach, like a teenager getting with a girl, while I am driving home. It's like someone told me there is an envelope of money laying on the side of the road, just go get it. There are times I see a good score, and I know I must do other things before wood because I already have 6 to 8 cords that need to be split and stacked. You guys are bad peer pressure by the way. Lol. Or good, if you look at it the right way.
I check FB marketplace. I seriously am stunned at how many posts there are for free wood. A lot of them are in neighboring states that I won't be able to procure but I also will stop and knock if there is something I happen to see locally. My friends who know I chop wood also tell me about wood they see in their travels. And then if all else fails I'll always find something at the local organic dump. The tree services dump wood there all the time and so I'll just cherry pick the nicest ones.
Word of mouth is how I've gotten a majority of my wood. County park rangers, farmers, tree services, sawmill owners, etc. Farmers have been my biggest source this year.
The majority of my scrounges come from state and federal lands (permits are $25 per cord for state and $10 per cord for federal). The last couple years I have been lucky enough to have access to 126 acres through a neighbor. This year I have augmented my scrounges with deliveries from a local arborist and some roadside scrounging from the power line tree crew.
There are community Facebook groups for everything these days. My wife is a member of one in our town that is just for people looking to help out their neighbors. Can't buy or sell anything; just folks looking to help each other out. A woman posted one morning that a wheel on her lawn tractor fell off. I went over and fixed it for her for nothing. Catch my drift? Anyway, long story short: I posted that I'd be willing to cut up any downed trees for people on their property for them if I could take the wood. No felling or cutting down leaners or anything. I got so many responses I had to take the post down after one day.
Like the idea. A very good one. Even if folks keep the contact, there will be people with storm damage....throughout the year....once tree jobs dry up.. Have a good scrounge going presently (2 cord in, 2 or more left to haul), and a job after that (a cord of cherry, standing). But fb is a really cool idea....almost can pick and choose jobs based on time (i.e. convenience) of the scrounge. Very cool. Sca
I reach out to every Tree Service I see posting ad's on CL or FB Marketplace. I let them know my vicinity and that what wood I'll take. The worst thing they can say or do is ignore me. I've gotten around a dozen loads like this. 5-6 from the same one
Ive advertised for taking wood for free (not on FB) The calls i got were for stacks of rotting rounds/splits. After responding and checking out three responses i took the ad down. I even put specifics in the ad too. Seems folks cant read these days and like something for nothing.
Tossing the idea around here now...i agree with being specific, to include that this is a favor so they don't shell out big bucks just to have it chipped. If its inconvenient and marginally worth it...i might do it for a fee, and be willing to walk away. But, even then, if folks call after a storm, i bet I can haul it off for "cost" if it is good wood. Sca
