My last dozen sales have all been repeat customers. Great that I am building a large customer base, but where are the newbies? I spend a lot of time posting new CL ads with pictures trying to get new customers.
Stacked all this hickory inside a back year storage shed. Had to go to .5 on my iPhone to capture the storage rack. Seems to always distort the real view.
I am in full on buying mode. Writing a check today to my local logger for 60 face cords of white oak and hickory. Have bought ten just this week. I offered to pay $10 more per face cord and that seemed to do the trick getting the Eastmade 60C up and running. I am trying to get all this purchased wood re-split and stacked before the end of the month since his woodyard gets crazy by mid September with trucks, trailers and even cars lined up by the dozen. I have been spot checking some of the loads and most of it is reading in the low 20% range so should be good to sell in a few months especially with the high 90s and full sun hitting TN starting Sunday. Picture below is a fresh load of hickory being processed for me.
The logger actually told me yesterday that he would deliver five face cords at a time with his large dump truck for free since I am only 4 miles away. However, I don't have a space big enough for that amount to be dumped all at once. And I would get a lot of shorts/longs and all the splitting debris. Also, the processor operator seems to have an issue with identifying wood types. I often find Sweetgum in the hickory pile and yesterday there was a lot of ash in the white oak pile. I am paying a premium price so I want 100% of the stated firewood type. I have an established method unloading from my truck onto the splitter that works good for me. I pick up one load at a time since here are three very steep and narrow hills that would make bringing my trailer difficult.
Received an order this afternoon for 10+ face cords from a customer that has two homes. Delivering four to his main home in the morning and another four to his lake home Sunday and another delivery Monday back to his main home. $2,700 plus an extra fee for his lake home which is 130 miles total outside of my free delivery range. Will put food on the table for a few weeks!
I was slightly questioning my decision to purchase 50 face cords at the beginning of this week. Now I think I need more!
Is supposed to be in the 50s here tomorrow morning and was looking forward to cutting and hauling out at least a cord, but deliveries always take priority.
Drove home with eleven Benjamins. A little research on the dude revealed both he and his wife have their own law firms. Delivering to his lake house tomorrow and then back to his main house again Monday. Picked up another delivery tomorrow which is awesome so I have three face cords headed out. Eleven in three days=3K+tips.
Something I have noticed the past two years making deliveries. Very wealthy people can have very trashy kept homes. In their defense, they are extremely busy in their professional and personal lives. Two large dogs had dozens of piles every where and the smell was very overwhelming. I really don’t want to go back there for another delivery.
My most hated thing about delivering firewood is the dog piles I have to traverse through. Bleach and soapy water for my shoes and floor mat is job number one upon returning home.
With that kind of money, but some extra shoes...lol... Here's a thought, get a pair of muck boots, put them on when you are traversing the dog poo yards. When done, change back to your other shoes, put those on the back of the truck.
Yep, need to bring extra shoes. I have a bag of extra shirts, shorts and socks I bring in the summer and a large bag of warm stuff during the winter months. I aim to crush the firewood business in Nashville at personal comfort costs.
Delivered four face cords Saturday, three today, and four more tomorrow. Raised my prices to $275 a face cord for every wood type. 75k might be doable this year. Was gone from 7:00-3:30 today. Took a :30 break and then split and stacked 1/2 a cord of white oak before dinner.
