Clousseau wrote:Burned 10 cords/year for 30 yrs+. Figuring 1 ton/cord green for hardwood, and moving each cord at least 5 times, BY HAND, to get it into the wood boiler in the basement from dropping the trees, limbing, bucking into 12' lengths, hauling those 12 footers by tractor to a header, bucking them at the header to 2' long pieces, splitting each piece, then stacking the split wood at the header. Let it dry for 8+ months, load it on a trailer to haul it to the basement, unload it at the basement, stack it in the basement, and then pick up each piece to put into the boiler. Summary :10 cords/year x 2,000 lbs/cord x 30 years =300 tons of wood moved! Great exercise when younger, a chore when your 61. Had the project down to 66 hrs/year, not bad, but moving 5 tons of bagged coal 10 feet is a LOT NICER!
Amen +1
Everybody ages differently but @ 67 years old I quit the wood.....for good! I was in my mid 20's when I started the woodburning and really felt like I was "beating the system" but in fact I was beating myself. Same as Clousseau, my wood did not come to me in tri-axle loads. Why should I pay someone for a minor convienience of having it dropped in my wood lot! I have a Kubota B7100, a 3 ton hydraulic splitter and 2 Stihl saws. Also surrounded by free wood. My wood was not used in a pretty fireplace for holidays and simple entertainment. I fed 2 woodstoves for whole-house heat 24/7 all winter long. I wish I had gone to coal many years ago and could re-purpose all those hours of messing with wood.
Need to find a new hobby.
