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OT/Getting in the Firewood Business

F

Fergienewbee

Well-known Member
I'm hoping to retire in November. I plan to work on a lot of wildlife projects/timber stand improvemnents. I thought I might try selling a little firewood to supplement my income and maybe pay for some new toys. I'd like to target the "urban fireplace crowd" because I think I can get more by the rick or the small bundle and the wives will like clean wood (I cut all green stuff and let it season.) I've thought about starting a small route with bundles, since I only have a half-ton pick up.

What are some of the drawbacks or things to watch for--besides bad checks?

Any thoughts, warnings, or help would be appreciated.

Larry in Michigan
 
Now I don"t know a lot about that business, but I have noticed that state parks with cabins and fireplaces in them. Do sale a bundle of fire wood like you say. I think I would try to get a few camp sites like that as customers. If any are close around. Maybe small stores will stock some for you, they will want a mark up.

Good Luck with it
we are all looking for a little get by money these days.
 
I have sold some in the past and it's kind of frustrating how fussy some people are, and then again some are happy with less than perfect. I guess if I was going to sell on a regular basis I would have it sorted out by quality and priced accordingly. In northern MN a fireplace cord (1/3 standard cord) was a common term for smaller quantities, but in St Cloud it confused some people, but then they were probably confused most of the time! Now we are going to be burning a lot ourselves so I probably won't be selling anymore.
 
I agree with Ispud. Take Ca$h only.

I have sold some firewood over the years, a couple of racks here and there, only a few hundred bucks in 6 years or so. I gave away more then I sold for sure. (I gave away 10 truck loads while I was clearing the land)

Be sure that you have enough to sell for long term.

You should get $50/face cord for hardwoods, Hickory, cherry, oak, maple.
My neighbor sells oak timbers that he gets for free, he cuts them to 16" sizes and delivers it if asked. He makes about $12-14K per year. He is out there in the bad weather stacking, cutting, hauling. (I wouldnt do it unless I really needed the extra money)

The best way to get started is to get a flyer at the hardware store posted, or get a flyer in at a local place that sells wood stoves.

As far as the Urban crowd, You may be able to only get suburb type people that will buy a face cord at a time. I couldnt see people buying just a bundle or 2 at a time. (anyone with a little storage capacity will buy a face cord at a time)

Good luck.
 
I dabble in firewood,boy,that's a big subject and there sure is a lot to learn.It is more of a hobby for me,I started out with a maul,sold 3 or 4 cord a year besides my own.Then I bought a used splitter ,kinda got ripped off,so I splurged and bought a Timberwolf TW6.Made in Vermont.Big bucks,plus associated costs bringing it into Canada. I can split close to a cord of blocked wood an hour by myself.By the way,I turned 61 today.The big problem is clearing away the split wood.I've got an old 20' New Idea hay or grain conveyor I'll likely try out.Firewood conveyors are just too pricy right now. So you can see it's all about equipment.I also have a 1982 Ford one ton with 11' tipping flatdeck that I put sides on.I stack my wood off the ground in one cord(4x4x8) stacks.I enjoy it. After a year of seasoning I sell it,backing my one ton into the pile and throwing it in. $200-$220 a cord of fir,delivered.Over the course of last winter I sold it all,about 24 cords. That's all I had time for as I'm still a working stiff.I had absolutely no problem selling it,mostly within a 3 mile circle.And with my fantastic splitter I can split small(3"to 5") no problem which a lot of folks like since they don't have to resplit.
 
In my neighborhood in Minneapolis, everybody has a fireplace and the fires are really only recreational. No one I know of here, uses wood for heat in the fireplaces or in more efficient units. Some have converted fireplaces to gas. Starting in late summer there are trucks driving the streets and alleys loaded with firewood. On a Saturday afternoon, if the door bell rings, unless you are expecting someone you probably do not answer the ring. Some homeowners post a small note on their doors that reads; “No Firewood Needed”. There have been instances I’ve seen, where the seller quotes a quantity by cord or fraction of cord, gives the dimensions of it, gets it priced and the stacks it cross-hatch, i.e., each layer at 90 degrees to the next layer. The number of people out there trying to sell has dropped off a lot from what it was five years ago but no one I know is concerned about not having a source.
 
My cousin has a firewood processor, elevator, and a trucking business. apparently they're doing better hauling sticks than any other commodity with the walking floor trailers.
 
The money is in the add ons, extras, and special arrangements. Commodity wood, like commodity hay is a cheapest price market. I like the idea of small bundles, retail markups, and specialty sales. But, that takes more effort on marketing than on production. Here, at Speedway, 3-12 inch sticks split into 8ths is 7.99 tied with pretty red plastic tape. Sure beats selling a big load at bargain basement prices.
 
i used to sell fire wood. i just ran an add in the local paper starting around thanks giving, and then ran it until i ran out of wood which was some time in january or febuary. I priced it around 75 dollars a half cord (1 1/2 face cord) delivered. i took cash or check, but they had to pay before i left.

once i had set up a payment plan with one guy, with the aggreement that he would send a check once a month for the 3 or 4 loads that i delievered. needless to say, i had to send a bill in order to get paid.

Jared
 
Too hard of work to sell it! My Dad used to say one thing about burning wood it warms you up more than once-when you cut the tree-when you cut and split the wood-when you pile it-when you fill the wood box up-and even when you take the ashes out!
 
Those people had it good. Here in eastern NY a cord sells for $250.00, cut split delivered seasoned. Green cord $175.00.
 
Location, Location, Location. If you are near a big city and could sell it to the old hippies and yuppies, it might work.

Here in rural central MO. You can have it delivered and stacked for $50 a cord at times. My time is worth more than that. I have 300 acres, with timber running out my ears, and I buy firewood.

Around here too many good ole boys with a Pickum up truck and lightweight McCullough chainsaw to try to compete with them.
 
I sold firewood in 1979 to 1982. My parents helped and thats how I paid my way through trade school. We sold around 350 pickup loads a year. Back then we were getting $35 aload. A big farm up the road was clearing some land and we could buy a tractor trailer load of oak and hickory for a $100. We split every piece of wood by hand. We got 3 loads in 1982 that were nothing but big hickory logs full of knots, and since it was at the end of the season, I told my dad that when that wood was gone, I would never sell firewood again.
 
I have a neighbor who splits wood for a guy to sell. The guy drops off the logs (most of which he gets free), then the neighbor cuts and splits them. He has a couple teenagers help him. Once it dries, it is bundled into 6 stick piles, shrink wrapped, and a cloth handle stapled to it. The boss has a contract with just about every convenience and grocery store in two large cities (200,000 plus population). He sells THOUSANDS of bundles every year. He hauls them on a flatbed trailer behind his F-350. Delivers 5000+ bundles at a time.
My neighbor isn't getting "rich" over splitting, but he has made pretty good money. Right now, he has an old concrete pit silo that is 120' long, 30' wide and 20' deep over half full of split and piled wood, ready to wrap.
 
You must reallize that it is the ones "without" those said brains that you will make the money from. It is a known fact that people with common sense and brains are bad for the economy. At least what is commonly known as "economy" now-a-days.
 
You're probably better off staying small at it and not getting into a big investment if you just want to pick at it.
Bundles might work. I dunno.... but it's not a big thing around here.
We sell firewood by the tandem load. 6 cords in one shot at 155/cord, but that's getting into perhaps more investment than you want. Get a decent Honda powered splitter and have at it.
We also sell some by the half ton load for those that want to haul their own... but that's more for a select few people. We generally don't want people knowing where the wood pile is at. It tends to lead to self serve when we're not around.
We've never had any trouble with cheques, yet... Credit is the thing to stay clear of.
We also have to charge sales tax and we include that in the price since we've been burnt on that more than once, so I'd suggest that you do that, IF you are allowed to and required to charge tax..........
You may also find it easier to sell wood by the load or bundle rather than a cord. It's amazing how many people have no idea what a cord of wood is in terms of measurement and who are readily willing to argue the subject because they think you shorted them. Beware of the old guys that 'cut wood all their life'..........

Rod
 
Hey O2,
Where sre you on Vancouver Island?
I have noticed the price of fire wood up a lot the last couple years. I paid $ 100 / cord pick up and $125 deliver a few years ago. The cheapest I"ve seen it lately is $ 175 - but more in the $200 + range.

I cut my own now. Grant
Yellow Point Cranberries
 
A friend and I started selling last year. He has prime spot on the hiway right down the road from a state park. We sell a lot to campers and keep lots of small piles just for them. Park charges something like $11 for a pile half as large as ours. we charge $10 but some people just give us $15. We get about 10-12 "camper piles out of every 4x8 rick. Not bad money that way! It kept all my bills paid and had a bit left over for a few beers! Every weekend we were cleaned out! A lot of those people saw our sign but didn't stop and found out what the park was charging for there couple sticks and they came back to us. We started selling by the load early last year and I put a stop to that as there are too many variables in bed sizes. We also sell by the 4x8 rick and get $65 for those. We also charge $80 a rick for oak, locust or Hedge apple because those are the best BTU woods. We were sold out completly by December last year. We get the wood for free here in town from an old fellow who wants a small woods on his place cleared for more grass yard. Clean wood is nice, but when I stack it up to season, I get lots of spiders! I also have old sheets of plywood cut in half lenght ways and cover the stacks, keeps the rain off and helps it dry faster. As far as seasoning goes, figure two years for oak and one full summer at the very least for most everything else. Tossing it up in a heap isn't seasoning! Stack it so the air can pass through. Dead trees aren't seasoned either unless the tree was sitting up totally off the ground for over a year. Standing Dead trees will still pull water up as high as 10 feet in the trunks. Be very careful cutting standing dead. Watch out for falling limbs or even the whole top to come crashing down while you are cutting, it can and does happen! With the economy the way it is, I would only take cash. Too much work to risk a rubber check.
 
No such thing as a bad check in California anymore. The author gets one chance to make it right and pay all penalties. If they decide not to do that it goes to the District Attourney. He has a diversion program, an 8 hour class that costs $250 to attend, plus restitution. Blow that off and bench warent for the writers arrest will be issued. The bouncers usually end up in county lockup on Thursday or Friday, and save bail(10% of $25000, $2500 gone forever), get to see the judge on Monday or Tuesday. It's a good thing. I have always been a big believer in debtors prisons and think the whole idea of bankruptcy should be abolished.
 
Last summer I bought 3 cords of dry pine blocked into 16" pieces & delivered for $130 a cord. Splitting & stacking was my job. Anybody that buys the little bundles must be nuts to pay the price, but I see it for sale everywhere around here, so somebody must buy it.
 
I live near Victoria.I like your website,it looks like a great life.
Rumour has it firewood in Whistler is $500 for a cord of fir.
 
Thanks for all the input. I got the idea for "smaller bundles" because the gas station I frequent sells out of a lot of junk--slab wood and scrap mostly--so somebody must be burning a fire for atmosphere once in a while. One guy that sells produce in the summer, has a pile for campers--20 pieces for $5.00. They pick the pieces. Since I'm cutting all green, I have a year to get my plan together.

Larry in Michigan
 
been awhile since i sold firewood, did it for about 3 years. sold small bundles mostly, averaged about 30-35 bundles on a pickup. sold for $7.00 bundle. did not do much splitting as what i was selling was from 3-6 inches in diameter. anything bigger i still didnt split as everyone would buy up to around 8" without being split. 8" and up, even 16-18" max was sold by the pickup load to regular customers that burned it in a fireplace (i would call it a regular fireplace) not a little apartment fireplace. sold pickup load for 150.00, never had the bigger pieces pile up on me. my costs were just the expense of cutting and hauling, most of the stuff i cut i even got paid to do.

cut oak, and hickory but mostly mesquite. always had alot sold around the holidays even during summer. would go up to the state park and sell it from the side of the road to people headed to the park. even made sells inside the park as they never had any there, nearest little store was 5 miles from the entrance.
just mumblin
larry cook
 
Off topic but thought you mind find it of interest.
I was reading old Revolutionary War era records on Friday and learned that firewood was being sold to the government at $3 per cord. No chainsaws in those day, good ol" axes and perhaps saws meaning very labor intensive.

Taxes on many was one nnalert each.
 
Nothing if you need a door stop. Too many BS engines here over the years, wouldn't give you $5 for another one.
 
Keep 2 lists, one of the people you liked doing business with and one of the rest. Give the first list a call every year to remind them.

I mostly sell mine local, within about 10 miles. Got a friend who used to sell into the cities (Toronto, Oshawa, Peterborough). He only lasted a year at that, only got paid for half of what he delivered between the bounced cheques, counterfeit cash, etc.

Got 9 cords of ash, elm and oak to deliver in the next 2-3 days.
 
Yes, HONDA powered.
Otherwise you'll be too tired to split wood by the time you get the damn thing running. It's a long time since I've seen a good Briggs engine.
For something of a serious nature I'd probably opt for a genuine Honda over a chink copy too. I don't have much faith that they'll stand up over the long haul.
We generally run our splitter off the boom hydraulics on the skid steer, but it's got a reasonably fast flow rate, as do the larger, newer tractors. I hate to see splitters run on old tractors that move 4 gpm at WOT.

Rod
 
Gotta agree. Briggs sux swamp water. Never saw a Briggs as good as my Honda, not in the past 20 years anyway.
 
Well dad had a 5hp briggs on a monky wards splitter for 20 years, wore out, just put on a briggs Intech couple years ago works great. Maybe for a easy job like running a splitter Honda are great,but, I had 2 Honda GX120 engines on vacume blowers called Trac vac, a 12 inch impeler for picking up grass and leaves and blowing it into a can,(like a mini silage blower) both hondas couldent stand up the work moving the matreial. One a valve guide fell out of it and the other had carb problems. Went back to 6.5 hp briggs, and only a carb problem with one of them, Hondas went to scrap last summer.
I alwasy heard how great honda was in construction, for concrete floats, water pumps, and generators, which they are, but really working them, they cant cut it. Just my experiance with them.
 
Neighbor uses one of these. He's put 200+ cord through it in a year. Only waek part about it is the bearing that the shaft rides on. Easy to fix it, though - couple of minutes and one bolt.He can split about 4 times as much in an afternoon, as he could with a hydraulic splitter.

http://www.supersplit.com/
 
I sell firewood to campers who go camping at state and county parks. Several customers have camp sites along the river here and spend every weekend there.
I mainly sell wood from trees that have died or have blown down.
Black Birch, Maple and some oak.
Built my log spliter from odds and ends and the only thing I had to buy was the valve and the pump, so I don't have alot of overhead
 
I can think of two things. The first is the Emerald Ash Borer. Some areas are under quarantine. The other is legal. In Indiana the only legal measurement for selling firewood is the cord. No ricks or face cords. Just two things to check on.
 
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