Wood Scrounge Update

[Roospike]

Stopped over to Mom and Dad's this evening. Dad told me he picked up some wood from the guy next door.

good Grief dad...It's a full cord of cut and split wood. Cherry, Maple, cedar and apple. All around 18" lenghts and dry as a bone.

Oh darn...Gotta go get more pallets.

Awe................... Another cord , Thats too bad. Cut and split to boot. Whats guy to do.

 

[elkimmeg]

Awe................... Another cord , Thats too bad. Cut and split to boot. Whats guy to do.

Grin and bare it, But polite and not smile too often till you can drive home the last pieces. Thats like finding a Franklin or two

Roo I even have had people drop of ther split dry unwanted wood pipes here. Scrounging the DPW wood dump, when a guy
pulls in pk truck loaded. Next to mine and starts passing over seasoned oak logs. He then asked me how far a way I live. Turns out my home is closer to him, than the dump We stop loading and he follows me to my yard. He returned with 3 more full size pk truck loads all split and seasoned.
A landscaper tree cutter calls me when his pille is getting out of hand and ask me to come over there and remove some. Usually I load the pk up to the top of the tool boxes , stacking the logs in, about 3/4 of a cord. When I drive that short distance the old pk lets me know there is a load in there.. I have been doing this for years and many know it and call me.

 

[wg_bent]

I am wondering how long this will continue. My wife thinks I'm obsessed since there's like 12 cords in the back yard now. (Eric's wife must have the Department of Mental health number handy) but I figure at some point there will be a year when I'm not as lucky. So the stock pile will be like money in the bank those years.

 

[Roospike]

Money in the bank is correct Warren ........... I also see Elk is getting good hits with wood . To me it seems the longer you burn wood for heat and are looking the "wood that is looking for you" end up finding the paths we cross . We are always looking for wood and somebody always has wood thay want to get rid of . When we meet up it makes everybody happy . I just had a call from my daughters - friends - grandma that cuts grass for people local and stated of some people that had over grown trees , downed trees , needed tree work and such . I went and talked to all the different people that she had names for and they all wanted "tree service" They had all call a pro tree service and had quotes from $1800 - $5600. for tree removal . I went and quoted my prices to help them out and what it would cost for me to do the work and expenses and pay two others to help . ( my son and nephue ) We got all three jobs and the owners ended up saving 60% off what it would of cost the pro service to do the job. We made a little over $3,200. in a week and a half of work and ended up with 10 cords of wood and took over 28 loads of brush to the brush pit here local. He(( , I wasn't even looking for the work and don't normally do urban tree felling . I guess this time the trees and work were looking for me harder than i was looking for it. I already had 11 cords of wood stacked and split for this coming winter so out of the 10 cords we ended up getting i kept 3 cords for the start of next year and found of 2 family's that were not very well off & had wood stoves and gave the 7 cords to them ( 3.5 cords of wood to each family ) Just one of those weeks when everybodys paths crossed at the right time .

 

[Roospike]

I am wondering how long this will continue. My wife thinks I'm obsessed since there's like 12 cords in the back yard now. (Eric's wife must have the Department of Mental health number handy) but I figure at some point there will be a year when I'm not as lucky. So the stock pile will be like money in the bank those years.

O' Yeah by the way Warren ............. Yep , obsessed . She is right . But we all know its O.K. Others call it obsessed , we call it just gathering wood .

 

[wg_bent]

LOL!! I still say it beats a Gym membership.

 

[Mo Heat]

... and found of 2 family's that were not very well off & had wood stoves and gave the 7 cords to them ( 3.5 cords of wood to each family )

Wow Spike, If you delivered or split any of that donated wood to those two families, you are a generous man. I wish you were my neighbor. Either you, or elk. Heck, I'd have come along and helped just to hang out (maybe argue about cat stoves and hopefully take home some or that wood. Not having a pickup truck or trailer (like Mo) is a real handicap for some of us wood burners.

Moving and splitting wood is down-right hard work. To give that sweat-labor away (in my thinking) is more generous than writing a check to a charity (although there's nothing wrong with that, either). Kind of like an old fashioned barn raising where you get some face time with people. This is the sort of thing that makes me less cynical about people. I commend you.

 

[jabush]

Tree companies are more expensive because they have to carry the big insurance to cover a "terrible accident". Like a tree going the wrong way and landing on the house, or a big limb falling and injuring one of the crew.

That being said...I'm glad it worked out for you Roo and it was thoughtful of you to hook those people up with wood. I would just be very careful when doing tree work for compensation. The nice people who hired you (because you cost less) would be looking for you to "pony up" if something went wrong.

As an aside...in MD, in order to perform tree work for compensation you must be licensed by the State and show proof of adequate insurance to be issued that license.

Definitely a good scrounge though!!

 

[elkimmeg]

scrounge update: filled my small pk truck to spilling out today, all processed and split. A nice problem, I have 4 more to go before I finish up removing the wood given to be. Work involved I have 2 16' by greater than 30 " thick oak logs remaining to cut up and remove My wife thinks I am obsessive, I am working on a supply 5 years in advance.. If I stacked the wood here on 4/4 pallets, I would need 80 pallets, and the pile would run 160' long, 12 cords are ready to burn now.


Roo i comend you on your generiosity

 

[Roospike]

scrounge update: filled my small pk truck to spilling out today, all processed and split. A nice problem, I have 4 more to go before I finish up removing the wood given to be. Work involved I have 2 16' by greater than 30 " thick oak logs remaining to cut up and remove My wife thinks I am obsessive, I am working on a supply 5 years in advance.. If I stacked the wood here on 4/4 pallets, I would need 80 pallets, and the pile would run 160' long, 12 cords are ready to burn now.

Thats a lot of wood there brother man ! Its time to kick the feet up and pop the tops of a few cold ones . The only time my wife tells me I am obsessed is in the Summer ........... does any bodys wife tell them they are obsessed during the winter ? No , How about in the winter when the the fuel bills come in? no again ? HA .

Roo i comend you on your generiosity

The whole "donate a stove to the less fortunate" topic that came up last year on here is what got me thinking , I can be proud of all the wood i cut and have for supply but would feel better if some of the supply was where somebody that could really use it in there yard too. You wouldnt happen to remember that topic whould you Elk ? I thought you might .

 

[BrotherBart]

"Per doctor's orders, poor old tired woodburner in Virginia requires a fireplace insert transplant (Pacific Energy Summit insert meets type match) and ten cords of hardwood to sustain life."

"If patient does not receive a transplant within the next year he risks heart failure from viewing current stove dealer pricing"

 

[Roospike]

"Per doctor's orders, poor old tired woodburner in Virginia requires a fireplace insert transplant (Pacific Energy Summit insert meets type match) and ten cords of hardwood to sustain life."

"If patient does not receive a transplant within the next year he risks heart failure from viewing current stove dealer pricing"

HA , Ye ole' BrotherBart . LMAO Wow its getting thick in here ........somebody open the door. Ha >...

 

[elkimmeg]

Roo the donor program is not dead. Tomorrow in a neighboring town,I am going to inspect and scope out a potential reciever.
The current owner has an old 70's VC stove and a modern one is not in the budget. Nobody want the stigma of being needy or looked upon as less fortunate. So the new emphasis is replacing old poluting stoves to cleaner modern technology.
If I had the contacts at PE I would be dialing them to participate. VC vollenteered. If sucessfull, I hope other manufactures want to get in in the program. If good will and positive publicity results I hope to tap Jotul on the shoulder to participate. I have contacts there as well, But no the head honch of opperations. If pieces come together, I will keep all informed here

 

[DriftWood]

I am wondering how long this will continue. My wife thinks I'm obsessed since there's like 12 cords in the back yard now. (Eric's wife must have the Department of Mental health number handy) but I figure at some point there will be a year when I'm not as lucky. So the stock pile will be like money in the bank those years.

O' Yeah by the way Warren ............. Yep , obsessed . She is right . But we all know its O.K. Others call it obsessed , we call it just gathering wood .

Gathering wood may be a genetic survival instinct. You can not turn off your genetic drive to survive. Wood burners with ancestors in cold winter climates, who used wood for life giving heat and cooking in cold winter climates, may have a strong wood gathering drive, (larger wood pile) because their ancestors did and lived.

 

[suematteva]

Money in the bank is correct Warren ........... I also see Elk is getting good hits with wood . To me it seems the longer you burn wood for heat and are looking the "wood that is looking for you" end up finding the paths we cross . We are always looking for wood and somebody always has wood thay want to get rid of . When we meet up it makes everybody happy . I just had a call from my daughters - friends - grandma that cuts grass for people local and stated of some people that had over grown trees , downed trees , needed tree work and such . I went and talked to all the different people that she had names for and they all wanted "tree service" They had all call a pro tree service and had quotes from $1800 - $5600. for tree removal . I went and quoted my prices to help them out and what it would cost for me to do the work and expenses and pay two others to help . ( my son and nephue ) We got all three jobs and the owners ended up saving 60% off what it would of cost the pro service to do the job. We made a little over $3,200. in a week and a half of work and ended up with 10 cords of wood and took over 28 loads of brush to the brush pit here local. He(( , I wasn't even looking for the work and don't normally do urban tree felling . I guess this time the trees and work were looking for me harder than i was looking for it. I already had 11 cords of wood stacked and split for this coming winter so out of the 10 cords we ended up getting i kept 3 cords for the start of next year and found of 2 family's that were not very well off & had wood stoves and gave the 7 cords to them ( 3.5 cords of wood to each family ) Just one of those weeks when everybodys paths crossed at the right time .

Nice Move ROOSpikeman..

A couple weeks ago scored some big sugar maple rounds that a tree service left at the dump had to cut the with the saw then split with maul just to get them in the truck...In the summer it is tough..On the second day the pooch hopped out the door and went right under the truck for the shade...like 97 and wicked high humidity...The summer takes extra but after first frost or two and the scramble for everyone else starts in the fall.....The cold ones tastes even better when walking by the woodpile...

 

[Roospike]

Nice Move ROOSpikeman..

A couple weeks ago scored some big sugar maple rounds that a tree service left at the dump had to cut the with the saw then split with maul just to get them in the truck...In the summer it is tough..On the second day the pooch hopped out the door and went right under the truck for the shade...like 97 and wicked high humidity...The summer takes extra but after first frost or two and the scramble for everyone else starts in the fall.

.....The cold ones tastes even better when walking by the woodpile..

True that brotherman, that heat is a killer. Normally no problem in the spring / fall / winter but that summer work is bad stuff with wood work . I couldn't agree more on the "cold one" and the "wood pile walk by" . Cheers there Vintage .

 

[Roospike]

Roo the donor program is not dead. Tomorrow in a neighboring town,I am going to inspect and scope out a potential reciever.
The current owner has an old 70's VC stove and a modern one is not in the budget. If I had the contacts at PE I would be dialing them to participate. VC vollenteered. If sucessfull, I hope other manufactures want to get in in the program. If good will and positive publicity results I hope to tap Jotul on the shoulder to participate. I have contacts there as well, But no the head honch of opperations. If pieces come together, I will keep all informed here

Good to hear , keep us updated there Elk .

Nobody want the stigma of being needy or looked upon as less fortunate. So the new emphasis is replacing old poluting stoves to cleaner modern technology.

Thinking outside of the box ....... great approach .