How many times do you handle your wood? (Burning wood I mean)

[Backwoods Savage]

1. Cut the tree.
2. Load the trailer
3. Empty trailer
4. Split
5. Stack
6. Move to barn in fall
7. Move to porch rack
8. Load stove.
9. Empty ashes.

 

[remkel]

Many people look a lifetime to find a group of people who have shared their experiences...I just had to go to Hearth.com!

 

[JP11]

1 Cut Tree to 10' lengths, bring back on forks to cutting area. (is that 1, haven't picked it up yet)
2. Rounds onto splitter
3. Splits onto pallets
4. Into Vigas.

 

[Dix]

Being a one woman operation most of the time, I've opted for delivery of cords @ $100 a drop.Been known to scrounge, and waiting to process that stuff with a borrowed/rented splitter (I've STILL got those 2 huge oak trees to process that came down last year !!). The $100 a cord stuff is usually pretty green, but one of my guys took pity on me (batted eye lashes a few times ) and is bringing me the driest stuff he's got, which is pretty freaking seasoned ..go me !!

1. Load to wheel barrow and move to pallets.(I can stack a cord in about 3-4 days, depending on weather, doin 3-4 loads in the AM & PM)
2. Stack and season with a touch of air & sun (seasoning wood is like cooking, I have come to that conclusion)
3. Load in wheel barrow to bring to back door
4. Load in manure/vortex totes totes
5. Lug totes up deck stairs (6 of 'em) and bring into den (this is for the PE, I pay little mind to the wood process for the 13)
6. Place in indoor wood ring (larger hoop)
7. Move & stack near stove
8. Load stove

Nope, no gym time needed here

When the weather is going to be bad, I'll load the ring to the max, stack enough for a day near the PE on the hearth, and load the totes and bring them into the house. With 4 totes, I'm good for 3-4 days before I have to worry about more fire wood into the house. More than enough time to shovel out the piles if need be.

We love Count De Numbers

 

[weatherguy]

I got a really good deal on 2 cords of well seasoned wood but I had to rent a uhaul to go get it.
My wife thought I would just come home and dump it off of the truck onto our driveway to stack later. There was no way I was going to go to the trouble of loading this stuff into a wheelbarrow just to dump it on my driveway and pick it up again later to stack it! I got the truck at about 4pm, loaded it by 6pm and had it all unloaded and stacked by 10pm.

So I guess my answer would be as few times as humanly possible.

Did I mention that I was up at 5 am that day and worked for 9 hours before picking up the truck? What was I thinking?

I got a great deal on 4 cords of seasoned wood, I rented a uhaul but didnt have time to stack it when I unloaded since I had my brother helping and he had somewhere to go. We just threw the splits onto the truck and then tossed them into a pile, I stacked them in my racks the following week. Its still going to be only 5 times to get those splits into the stove, could have made it four.

 

[PapaDave]

"Its still going to be only 5 times to get those splits into the stove, could have made it four."

Nice.
I may break down and order about 3 cord of cut and split wood next year to get myself back on track. It won't be dry, so it'll still have to be put in the drying stacks out back.
Perhaps a bunch of Ash........
That would save me a couple steps.

 

[Cross Cut Saw]

I got a great deal on 4 cords of seasoned wood, I rented a uhaul

You fit 4 cords into a uhaul?! Holy crap, 2 cords put me at the weight limit for the 26' truck, and filled it front to back knee deep! How high was it stacked? I just dumped wheelbarrow loads and didn't do much piling up above that.

 

[PapaDave]

Yeah, what's the # of that U-Haul equipment. I'll make it a point to not rent it.

Does U-Haul have semi's?

 

[Mr A]

Every time one round gets put up to the splitting block, it get handles several times, did you count that? Sometimes a split gets split again a few times for kindling. I don't want to count how many times it is handled, it is more than I would like for sure. Can'beat it for burning some calories. I swing a 10 pound sledge onto my wedge, and can do it right or left stance. I worked up a good sweat splitting knotted oak scrounge I got a while back for about 3 hours this afternoon.

 

[mywaynow]

One thing I have found that helps is to take the bucked log from ground to splitter to trailer/truck, or ground to trailer/truck to splitter. Removing one back bending/breaking move by going directly between the splitter and the trailer makes a difference. Both are at similar levels off the ground. I have been taking the splitter to the bucking area and that limits the number of times I must handle a round log vs a split.

So-
1 Buck
2 Split direct to trailer
3 unload at stacks
4 stack (dreaded step for me- back breaking)
5 take to house
6 load in stove

 

[PapaDave]

Learned that one real quick MWN.
I split straight into the trailer.

 

[Flatbedford]

1. Cut round
2. Roll round to truck
3. (a) Split to manageable pieces, if needed
3. (b) Lift onto truck
3. (c) Stack neatly on truck
4. Unload directly to splitting block
5. Split
6. Load to tractor cart
7. Stack
8. Load to tractor cart
9. Load to wheel barrow
10. Stack on front porch
11. Carry to small stack near stove
12. Load stove
13. Remove ash

Yup, Lots of work in our "free" heat. Over the years, I have developed a fairly efficient system and collected some good tools that have taken a lot of the harder work out of the process.

I haven't handled any firewood since April this year and don't plan to start again until October or so. I have been making very good use of the time, but I miss it.

 

[firefighterjake]

I've never been know for my Type A personality or for being very efficient . . . I do know I should be a lot thinner than I am.

1. Cut the tree down.
2. Buck into rounds.
3. Load the rounds into ATV trailer.
4. Unload the rounds from the ATV trailer to truck or trailer.
5. Unload the rounds at the house.
6. Pick up the round to split it.
7. Load the splits into the wheelbarrow.
8. Unload the splits from the wheelbarrow to the outside stack . . . let rest for a year or two.
9. Load the seasoned split from the stack into wheelbarrow or ATV cart.
10. Unload the seasoned split into the woodshed where it is stacked . . . and let it think that it is yet again safe from my woodstove.
11. Load up my canvas tote with seasoned split a year later.
12. Unload the split on to my porch stack.
13. Load up the tote and bring split inside..
14. Unload the split in woodbox inside near stove . . . let split worry about his fate as he stares at the woodstove.
15. Unload the split and place in stove.
---

16. Unload ash pan with remains of split . . . carry outside and dump in ash pan . . . say a few words of remembrance and then unceremoniously spread ashes on driveway or out in the woods.