I know of only 2 local BL spots and they are on the small side. Maybe this summer I’ll take the 161 into bush to grab one. You have to get in the higher elevations to see the bigguns. Roadsides are lined with your favorite.
New customer said he wants 10 loads a year. I hope he’s serious. 99.9% red oak with .1% cherry and hickory.
Awesome when you land a large customer. Saves on fuel and time when delivering especially if you have a trailer. Get cutting and stacking on that red oak if you haven't already. It hates to give up the moisture. I cut, split and stacked a 1/2 cord of red oak yesterday that was timbered in August . With a hot summer, should be ready to sell this coming winter.
Crazy, but delivering a face cord of white oak later this morning to Lebanon, TN. 170 mile round trip. It is a rural area and always see cheap wood for sale nearby on CL; less than 1/2 what I charge.
Wow that’s a road trip. I’ve sold a lot of wood to rural locations. Not that far, but well outside the city I live in. You’d think it would be easy for them to get wood locally when they are surrounded by farms and forests. I’m sure you have heard some horror stories from folks experience with unethical and undependable suppliers.
Heavy burners want dry and quality firewood and are willing to pay up for it. Give them what they want and you have them for as long as you are producing. Firewood doesn't leave my yard if it isn't reading 15% or less moisture. And I deliver generous ricks--about 50cuft. along with a free bundle of kindling. Will be loading this up shortly for today's delivery.
Life is big beech hoarding and then you die. Today's pre-game cutting session. Have maybe one truck load remaining of the 56 logs I purchased about six weeks ago. Will turn $360 into about $5,500. Have already sold about half of this very dry 17 month aged wood.
I provide a free 1 cuft bundle of poplar kindling with each purchase. I write my name and number on the bags as my business card and it also ensures the customer can get their fire started easily. When you add taxes and shipping, the 1 cuft bags are costing me 92 cents a piece and that is buying 200 counts. Ordering my third box shortly. Guess that says how much firewood I've sold over the last 30 months or so.
Updated my corny firewood video on YouTube this afternoon. Improvement ideas readily accepted! https://youtu.be/8IX9pQGuEgc
Thanks a bunch. Thinking I need five times this amount for this coming Winter. As firewood sales slow, my cutting and splitting gets busier. I am dreading the ticks and chiggers that will be back out by late March.
I’d say you need 5x as much, or more to keep your current customers supplied with seasoned wood and have breathing room to expand. You definitely have the enthusiasm for it. Try to find a tree removal company that will dump at your place. That would cut down on your time and cost. I also agree with sticking with a core group of good customers, so your life doesn’t become unmanageable trying to keep up with demand. I love making firewood and the side hustle cash, but I also have a full time job and family to consider when it comes to time consumption and self preservation.
Nothing corny about that. Some gorgeous firewood. Kinda jealous of all the sunlight i see hitting the stacks. Plenty of air flow too. Perfect for drying any wood.
I pay close attention to the sun and wind for my woodyard. I keep a "ready to sell row" of about 15 pallets facing south. Receives a lot of sun year round and my wind usually comes out of the SW. As space opens up, I move younger wood to this area. I can see new cracks opening up big time on sunny windy days like today.
Being retired is a big plus for me. A lot of my customers tell me nobody gets back to them or gives them a delivery date out in the future. My phone never leaves me, so I answer texts, calls and emails instantly. I am spring-loaded every morning to either cut or deliver. And I like to do both in a single day.
Nice firewood bank account there EOD...in the video I heard you use the phrase "well seasoned" several times...I take it this is your "BBQ/smoker wood"...do you have a secret recipe, or is it something you'd be willing to share? Is it sprinkled on, or spray applied?
