# Time to cut one cord of wood



## 48rob

General question;

How long does it take the average person to cut/buck one cord of wood?

It seems obvious to me, after cutting several cords (5) that I'm really slow.
The reason, I believe, is because the trees I'm turning into rounds are very small, most 12" and less.
(when the branches get to less than 3" I stop cutting)

If I had trees 24"-36" across, I could turn out a cord fairly fast.

In the last two days, I spent 2 hours per day and cut about a half cord each day
 (total of 4 man hours in 2 days for 1 cord)

So how does it work for you guys/gals who scrounge, cut in your woodlot, whatever?

Rob


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## pen

There are many factors involved.  From 5 till 8 tonight I cut 1/2 cord of wood and split a full cord.  That includes a 15 minute drive and I didn't have to mess with tops much.

Now the caveats:

1.  It was locust that split w/out too much difficulty.
2.  My stove can take decent size splits so I don't have to keep re-standing up pieces of wood to get them smaller and smaller.
3.  I made a big mound and didn't stack them.

Now, I've had it take me the same amount of time to simply split a 1/2 cord of wood when it's something like a nasty twisted beech where I have to use a 10lb sledge and wedges (notice that's plural) the entire time.

Just plain lots of factors involved.

To me, it's not a race.  I'm always about 1.5 to 2 years ahead on my wood so I'm not in a huge rush to get things drying to be safe for winter.

I also learned a long time ago that the tortoise really does win many times.  If you get hurt that is going to slow things down far more than taking your time and actually enjoying what you are working at.  The quote in my signature line is a favorite of mine just for that reason.  I consider splitting wood therapeutic.   

pen


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## thewoodlands

This is a guess but for the years 2009 & 2010 a good 14 cord, thats working in the winter until the first week of February.





Zap


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## lukem

I can usually cut, split,and stack a half cord in 2 hours...give or tkae 15 minutes.  But I can;t maintain that pace all day...


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## smokinj

MMAUL or I (one cutter) can buck up 4-7 cords in hour hours. Thats a 460 and 2-361's Ready to go! Now thats not moving it. This will keep 3 guys on there toes.


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## Lumber-Jack

Going by my standard routine getting my firewood: to fall and limb the trees and buck up one cord takes me on average 2-3 hours  at a relaxed pace (Including snack break). That's lodgepole pine anywhere from 12"-20" in diameter. Add in driving and loading and unloading time and your up to about 5-6 hours. 
Usually do that 4-5 times a year.
Couldn't tell you how long it would take to split since I rarely do it all by myself or all at once, and never do it on the same day.
Yep, smaller stuff is gona take longer to cut up, but you'll save some time on the splitting.


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## remkel

We usually get a crew together to do my father's wood- usually two saws going, one person on the atv pulling the logs to a staging area, and two people on the 4 way splitter. We can do 5 cord on a good morning. We do not mess with the tops very much- anything less than 3-4" is left to play with later.


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## remkel

Now, If I am working by myself, it is usually a slower pace. i can drop, top and buck up 1/2 to 1 cord in a morning.


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## mbcijim

I've seen some incredible times on here.  I had a log load delivered in November. 

I cut it into rounds at the rate of 1 cord per 3 hours.  
I split it (not stacked) at a rate of 1 cord per 3-4 hours, that's by hand, no splitter. 

That isn't cutting down the trees or anything like that.   I did have some sh*tty wood that didn't split nice.


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## lobsta1

Well, I am definitely much slower than every one else here. Of course the bulk of the wood dropped off for me is 3 > 4' diameter. Or bigger! The city workers take the prime stuff that  they want & drop off the rest for me. These are city trees & there are a lot of crotches also. I also have a small NC13 stove so I cut & split probably a lot smaller than most of you. I was splitting a bunch of ash today & it was incredible how many old cut off branches were totally embedded inside the trunk with absolutely no outward sign. Some of these cut off interior stubs were up to 8" diameter. The splitter was definitely working today.
Al


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## nate379

Hard to say cause the wood size all depends.  Took me about a week of working 5-6hrs a day to clear a section out of my yard, about 1/4 acre.  I got about 3 cords out of that.  Biggest stuff was maybe 10" across and some was 20ft tall "trees" that were maybe 4" at the base.

My brother cuts wood to help his wife's uncle and the 2 of them will cut 9-10 cords on a Saturday without much trouble.  Dozer to skid the logs and Stihl 440 and 660 saws.


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## CountryBoy19

I'm slow because most of what I can score within a couple miles of home is all tree tops left from logging. It's harder to cut tops, you have to calculate how each limb is going to fall when you cut it. It's like falling a bunch of little trees in a way. Bar pinches happen occasionally etc and those things slow you down too.

I've cut a full cord in less than 2 hours before, but I've also had a full cord take me 6 hours before. I would say around 3-4 hours is my average time to buck a full cord, load it in the truck, and haul it home.


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## woodchip

I have never cut or split anything like a cord in one go. I usually just bring back a few branches at a time and cut, split, and stack them. 

Yesterday I carried home a couple of cubic feet of wood, cut and split in less than 20 minutes, but I know some out there with big fireboxes who would call that a decent sized split

I enjoy what I'm doing, and like to spend my time out there. Now it's pleasantly mild outside during the daytime, I enjoy strolling along trails collecting small branches.


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## quads

48rob said:
			
		

> General question;
> 
> How long does it take the average person to cut/buck one cord of wood?
> 
> It seems obvious to me, after cutting several cords (5) that I'm really slow.
> The reason, I believe, is because the trees I'm turning into rounds are very small, most 12" and less.
> (when the branches get to less than 3" I stop cutting)
> 
> If I had trees 24"-36" across, I could turn out a cord fairly fast.
> 
> In the last two days, I spent 2 hours per day and cut about a half cord each day
> (total of 4 man hours in 2 days for 1 cord)
> 
> So how does it work for you guys/gals who scrounge, cut in your woodlot, whatever?
> 
> Rob


On average, most of the dead oak trees I cut are 12" diameter and produce about 1/6th of a cord of firewood.  Each tree takes approximately 10 minutes to cut down and cut up into rounds.  So, one hour is what it takes me to cut up a half dozen trees that size.

But that's not the way I do it.  I cut, split, haul, and stack one tree at a time, then move on to the next.  About 45 minutes+ per tree/sixth of a cord.


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## zzr7ky

Hi - 

I find that the trees make a big difference.  

Trees in a yard, field, fencerow are bushy, lots of slash, Lots of decisions.  Lots of small stuff to load.  Very slow.  3 or more hours per cord.  It's gotten to where I'm passing on these for now.

Trees in a woods.  One tree drops and leaves a place to fell another into.  Long, straight, largely branch free trunks.  A big saw will really make your day here.  1 - 1 1/2 hours per cord here. 

ATB, 
Mike


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## Thistle

For me it can vary quite a bit - 3 to 6hrs per cord.I do about 95% of the work myself now.If the stuff is deadfall,that goes quicker,if its standing & needs dropped, then skidded to flat areas next to wood shed -especially on the steep hills at parent's acreage - that takes a lot longer.If its a gentle slope that I can back up to within 10 ft & toss the chunks in,that really speeds up production.Also size of trees or logs makes a big difference too of course. 

When dropping any trees,I only do 1 at a time,buck it,split it if it needs to be lighter/ easier to carry & cleanup as I go before dropping next one.I try not to leave any bucked pieces scattered on the ground because I dont know when I'll get back to the woods next.


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## Shari

Way too many variables for this scrounger to give any specific amount of time or quantity.

Because: 

1.  I don't have to cut a lot of wood; some yes, most no.

2.  I live on a residential lot so I don't pile splits; I stack everything I split with the hydraulic splitter in a day during that same day.

3.  Size of rounds makes a big difference in accumulating a cord faster; I deal with a lot of 'large' rounds.

4.  Your request is for a 'day of work'; Hey!  We are retired!  Sometimes our 'day' is only 2 hours (depends how our body joints are working that day!).   

5.  We don't worry about 'how much' we get done in a day we only count the 'progress' we made to that day.  It's not a race around here.

Cutting/splitting/stacking wood is kind of like raising children:  Each day counts a little to the finished product.


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## Wood Duck

I agree it varies a lot. Some of the factors are:

- Size and shape of the tree. Straight trunks the right size for the saw go a lot faster than small trees, branches, or really big trees
- length of the logs. when I cut the last couple of rounds from a log it always takes extra time to secure the wood. Therefore cutting rounds from long logs is more efficient than cutting rounds from short logs. This assumes i don't have to move the logs, in which case long ones are harder.
- felling versus only bucking. Felling takes me a long time.
- Location and position of the trees. Cutting a load of logs that are firmly stacked off the ground on the level, dry lawn next to my wood pile goes a lot faster than wood laying on the ground on a hill in the woods
- Hauling or moving the wood. Maybe the original question assumed moving the wood isn't included, but I always seem to have to move the wood, which takes longer than cutting
- Stacking or tossing into a pile. I alternate cutting and stacking, which slows me down a lot.
- Hassles with equipment. Sharpening chains, adding gas and oil, finding my lost file, trailer hitch is jammed, flat tire, etc. I can't separate this crap from the actual cutting, so I have no idea how long cutting would take if the operation went smoothly.
- It always gets dark before I finish.


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## Backwoods Savage

zzr7ky said:
			
		

> Hi -
> 
> I find that the trees make a big difference.
> 
> Trees in a yard, field, fencerow are bushy, lots of slash, Lots of decisions.  Lots of small stuff to load.  Very slow.  3 or more hours per cord.  It's gotten to where I'm passing on these for now.
> 
> Trees in a woods.  One tree drops and leaves a place to fell another into.  Long, straight, largely branch free trunks.  A big saw will really make your day here.  1 - 1 1/2 hours per cord here.
> 
> ATB,
> Mike



Nice post Mike.

It definitely depends upon the size of the tree, they type of wood, tree in open vs. tree in woods or even tree on edge of woods vs. center of woods. 

One good example is that pin oak I just cut up. I cut an ash of that size in probably half the amount of time but the ash did not have much for limbs and was easy cutting. No so on a pin oak! Lots and lots of trimming. 

Then there is the wood factor. Your saw will go through popple a lot faster than it will an oak. 

Two other big factors are the saw and the worker. It takes me probably 4 times longer to do the job now vs how long it took me 30 years ago. It probably takes me six times longer than it does other guys on this forum.


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## billb3

A cord in an afternoon sounds pretty good to me.

I have a young woodlot that I'm slowly "weeding" and I'll spend a lot of frustrating time  just trying to get a tree on the ground, they're growing that close together.
I've spent an afternoon and  only gotten a 1/5 of a cord.

Small stuff, much only needs to be split in half at most.


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## PapaDave

Mostly log loads here, so that means no limbing or trudging through the woods (although I recently did 3 Spruce in the woods). I've been out the last few days getting 12-13 wood finished, and I'm only able to buck up about 2/3 cord/day. That takes about 1.5 to 2 hours.
I figure it takes me about 2.5-3 hours to buck, split, stack a cord. I don't usually do that much in a day. 
After bucking, the wood gets split and thrown into the trailer instead of on the ground. That eliminates a step (a backbreaking step, at that). The trailer holds 1/3 cord, which is then taken to my stacking area. 
Sometimes, I'll buck a 1/3, then split and stack. Sometimes buck and split only, then come back and stack that one, then buck up another 1/3. Varies quite a bit.
Seems like I get about 1/3 cord per tank of fuel/oil in about 95-98% oak.
Pretty long winded post to tell you it takes me almost 3 hours to buck a cord.  :cheese:


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## muncybob

I don't set any speed records that's for sure! Slow & steady...lots of breaks to enjoy the surroundings since I'm normally in the woods somewhere. I guess I cut & buck around 3/4 cord in about 2 to 3 hours on average...this includes getting the rounds out of the woods and into the truck. I think my truck holds about 3/4 cord with the side rails installed and the rounds well stacked.
Now, splitting and stacking by myself is much more time consuming for me.....but at least I get to enjoy an enhanced beverage or two when doing this.


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## orionrogue

I have no idea, but with where I'm pulling from right now, its a snail's pace (southern MA wetland).  Unless it hasn't rained for weeks I feel like I'm in an episode of "Swamp Loggers", without all the heavy equipment to actually make it easy.

If I had wood delivered by the truckload as whole logs, I could probably b/s/s a cord in an afternoon.  With that said, I think I'd rather buck it all in a day, then split and stack as I go.  I'll let you know how it goes if I do this this year.


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## 48rob

Thanks for all the responses!

I'm not in a race, or trying to set any records.
I was just talking out loud trying to better understand the reality of making a profit, or just breaking even selling firewood.

The further I get into this, the easier it becomes to understand why so many firewood sellers sell green wood, cut split and delivered the same day.
There is so little money to be made, it seems that many decide they must shave costs, and in that business, labor is the easiest thing to reduce.

While cutting, splitting, transporting and stacking, and then drying for a year or more is the best way to deliver a product I can be proud of, it sure drains the profit right out of the bowl.

Larger trees to start with, the ability to cut split and deliver green wood all in the sale day, and large scale operations in general seem to be the answer.

Granted, I'm still learning, but with 6 cords put up in racks drying, I have enough value in the wood, if sold at the local going rate of $225 a cord to pay the wages it took to get to this point and maybe just a little extra.
Delivery, when the wood is dry, is going to put me even or just slightly in the hole.
Breaking even in the long run is the goal, this project/experiment is intended to help pay wages for a man during the slow time of winter.
Making a profit would be nice, but just covering wages would be great.
The two areas I see for improvement are hiring much cheaper labor, say $10 an hour instead of $15, though that only saves a hundred or so dollars, and the other is selling it green, to save the labor required to stack the wood, but then the selling price would be lower too...

Rob


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## woodsmaster

I'll guess about 8 to 10 hr. to cut, load, unload, split, and stack a full cord. At $120 a cord around here I won't be selling any firewood. It would be like getting paid $12/hr for time
and giving the wood away.  I enjoy doing it to an extent so I'll keep cutting my own.


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## Lumber-Jack

Rob youâ€™ve clearly revealed some of the realities of trying to make a viable business from selling firewood on a small scale, although if you start taking into account vehicle and equipment maintenance and depreciation the prospects look even bleaker. 
For all intents and purposes the only way I think one could make decent profit selling firewood would be to go big. Have wood delivered to a yard by the truck load, invest in one of those large machines where you feed the logs and it bucks and splits it all the same time, and have a conveyer belt that dumps it into a large delivery truck.
Of course by the time you invest in all that equipment and spend a few months of hard work trying to figure out how to run it all efficiently as possible with the minimum number of break downs, all the while trying to build up the huge customer base youâ€™ll need to support such a large scale operation, youâ€™ll probably start feeling a little burned out and start asking yourself why you got into this in the first place.  hh: 

Iâ€™ll stick with cutting wood just for personal use a few times a year.  ;-P


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## snowleopard

So here I was enjoying a leisurely Saturday morning hanging out on the forums and waiting for the sun to get a little higher before I went out to work on that pile of rounds that needs splitting and stacking.  

Thanks. Thanks a lot. 

This is me gettin' dressed to go out and get some work done. . .


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## Backwoods Savage

Carbon_Liberator said:
			
		

> Rob youâ€™ve clearly revealed some of the realities of trying to make a viable business from selling firewood on a small scale, although if you start taking into account vehicle and equipment maintenance and depreciation the prospects look even bleaker.
> For all intents and purposes the only way I think one could make decent profit selling firewood would be to go big. Have wood delivered to a yard by the truck load, invest in one of those large machines where you feed the logs and it bucks and splits it all the same time, and have a conveyer belt that dumps it into a large delivery truck.
> Of course by the time you invest in all that equipment and spend a few months of hard work trying to figure out how to run it all efficiently as possible with the minimum number of break downs, all the while trying to build up the huge customer base youâ€™ll need to support such a large scale operation, youâ€™ll probably start feeling a little burned out and start asking yourself why you got into this in the first place.  hh:
> 
> Iâ€™ll stick with cutting wood just for personal use a few times a year.  ;-P



On the other hand, if you just want to bring in a few hundred dollars every year then a processor would not be the way to go. For example, I cut very slow. Well, I do everything pretty darned slow any more; not by choice but by necessity. I do sell a bit every year and a few hundred dollars can come in handy, especially when paying the land taxes. I do not have much wrapped up in equipment with just a small saw and a small splitter and haul the wood with a small trailer behind the atv. The atv and trailer get used for much more than hauling wood but the saw and splitter are just for the wood. Not much investment but then, I do not plan on selling a lot of wood either. It just all depends on what your needs are I guess.


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## smokinj

48rob said:
			
		

> Thanks for all the responses!
> 
> I'm not in a race, or trying to set any records.
> I was just talking out loud trying to better understand the reality of making a profit, or just breaking even selling firewood.
> 
> The further I get into this, the easier it becomes to understand why so many firewood sellers sell green wood, cut split and delivered the same day.
> There is so little money to be made, it seems that many decide they must shave costs, and in that business, labor is the easiest thing to reduce.
> 
> While cutting, splitting, transporting and stacking, and then drying for a year or more is the best way to deliver a product I can be proud of, it sure drains the profit right out of the bowl.
> 
> Larger trees to start with, the ability to cut split and deliver green wood all in the sale day, and large scale operations in general seem to be the answer.
> 
> Granted, I'm still learning, but with 6 cords put up in racks drying, I have enough value in the wood, if sold at the local going rate of $225 a cord to pay the wages it took to get to this point and maybe just a little extra.
> Delivery, when the wood is dry, is going to put me even or just slightly in the hole.
> Breaking even in the long run is the goal, this project/experiment is intended to help pay wages for a man during the slow time of winter.
> Making a profit would be nice, but just covering wages would be great.
> The two areas I see for improvement are hiring much cheaper labor, say $10 an hour instead of $15, though that only saves a hundred or so dollars, and the other is selling it green, to save the labor required to stack the wood, but then the selling price would be lower too...
> 
> Rob



Small piles would be much faster. Maybe lay down some gravle and pile it. You dont want to do monster piles but a couple cords high.


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## 48rob

> Small piles would be much faster. Maybe lay down some gravle and pile it. You dont want to do monster piles but a couple cords high.



Would it dry enough in the middle/bottom in 8-12 months, or would I be sitting on it for 1-1/2 years?

We started out doing ricks (8' x 4' x 16") and have 17 just in this pic, and several more cords waiting to be stacked.
Putting it in a pile would save a good bit of time...








Rob


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## smokinj

Running like you are is how a wood burner would do it! With that said you are not going to be perfect and think you can even break even. I would use a 100-200 foot of gravle pile 3-4 foot high 10 foot across. It will be fine unless it oak. Selling it I would be selling by the way I can haul it. (pick-up or trailer load) You will soon learn if you listen to the wood burner you will be paying them to burn your wood! lol


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## Lumber-Jack

Backwoods Savage said:
			
		

> Carbon_Liberator said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Rob youâ€™ve clearly revealed some of the realities of trying to make a viable business from selling firewood on a small scale, although if you start taking into account vehicle and equipment maintenance and depreciation the prospects look even bleaker.
> For all intents and purposes the only way I think one could make decent profit selling firewood would be to go big. Have wood delivered to a yard by the truck load, invest in one of those large machines where you feed the logs and it bucks and splits it all the same time, and have a conveyer belt that dumps it into a large delivery truck.
> Of course by the time you invest in all that equipment and spend a few months of hard work trying to figure out how to run it all efficiently as possible with the minimum number of break downs, all the while trying to build up the huge customer base youâ€™ll need to support such a large scale operation, youâ€™ll probably start feeling a little burned out and start asking yourself why you got into this in the first place.  hh:
> 
> Iâ€™ll stick with cutting wood just for personal use a few times a year.  ;-P
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On the other hand, if you just want to bring in a few hundred dollars every year then a processor would not be the way to go. For example, I cut very slow. Well, I do everything pretty darned slow any more; not by choice but by necessity. I do sell a bit every year and a few hundred dollars can come in handy, especially when paying the land taxes. I do not have much wrapped up in equipment with just a small saw and a small splitter and haul the wood with a small trailer behind the atv. The atv and trailer get used for much more than hauling wood but the saw and splitter are just for the wood. Not much investment but then, I do not plan on selling a lot of wood either. It just all depends on what your needs are I guess.
Click to expand...


It's a labor of love Dennis.   
However, including your atv and splitter in your list of equipment brings your overhead up substantially higher than mine. Personal use aside, how many cords of wood do you figure you would have to sell before you break even?


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## snowleopard

Backwoods Savage said:
			
		

> Well, I do everything pretty darned slow any more; not by choice but by necessity. I do sell a bit every year and a few hundred dollars can come in handy, especially when paying the land taxes.




Dennis, 

I don't mean to be presumptuous here, but this part of your post caught my eye.  In this area, there are several property tax exemptions available.  The ones listed below apply to this borough; whether they are typical or not, I do not know.   It might be worth looking into to see if you qualify.  Just sayin'. 

Senior Citizens 65years of age or older, up to $150,000 on residence
Disabled Veterans with a 50% or more disability
Military non-resident personnel residing in a mobile home 
Farm Use Lands actively engaged in agriculture 
2% exemption for approved fire protection systems 
Non-profit exemption on property used exclusively for religious, charitable, cemetery, hospital or educational purposes
Owner-occupied residential exemption, 20% or $20,000, whichever is less 
Additional residential exemption for Volunteer EMS/Firefighters



Pretty ricks, Rob.


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