Is "Cordwood" really a thing?

[MonsterMonster]

I've seen a few posts asking for cordwood. Is there such a thing or is it meaningless as when I've spoken with timber merchants they seem confused by the term or even say there's no such thing.

[gdh]

I haven't heard it used a lot, although most people know what you mean by it. A cord is a measurement so it doesn't actually make sense.

 

I think it's more common online like here because asking to buy logs gets confused with firewood so easily. 

[chuck norris]

Well a cord is a measurement of timber, and cord wood is a word for unprocessed logs

[flatyre]

I to originally thought Cord was cut to a specific length, plenty of youtube vids showing guys with dinky tape measures etc. but I think its used more as a general term for unprocessed firewood in manageable lengths rather than a specific length. A cord of wood could be 8" diameter or it could be two feet across, so can't be an accurate measurement of quantity?

[Khriss]

Nope it is a completely random concept from old forestry lore .. only acceptable quantity is an ISO unit measure ... I think a rusty spoon  is needed K

[Acer Forestry]

I agree, simply a frequently used term for firewood of no specific dimensions or length

[billpierce]

I think it means lengths rather Than unsplit discs. I would assume that it would be liftable lengths of timber no longer than 1m to 1.5m if someone asked me to cut a tree into cordwood.

[flatyre]

similar length to what we do so the customer can move them about by hand, but our work is mostly residential, a lot of guys on this forum and other media advertise cord roadside and its a lot bigger than that, maybe its just relevant to the customer and their means of transport?

[devon TWiG]

Cordwood refers to the sections of wood that were ( in woodland management ) traditionally put in to piles then measured in multiples of cords 8'x4'x4'  this was usually the branches from a tree left behind after the trunk / timber sections have been removed . Cordwood was usually straightish lengths cut to  about 4' long and under 1 foot dia for ease of handling etc .  It was used for firewood and charcoal making amongst other things and was a unit of measurement for negotiating sales / productivity or payment .  It has become a generic term for short lengths of small dia wood as opposed to "rings " or timber lengths . 

[Jimbo 76]

In simple terms yeah it's a thing. It's basically a bastadised term. Some old foresters will get stressed and say no such thing as it's "round wood for logs".

 

When cutting hardwoods we tend to cut anything over 14" to 6m as we sell these as "saw logs" for milling and they can command a premium.

 

4" to 12" into 3m lengths and this we sell for fire wood and term it "round wood for logs" or "cordwood"

 

Anything smaller can be processed as "kiln wood" but is usually cut to waste or chipped depending on spec.

 

Can say cordwood is used by a number of national bodies in tender documents. Not sure if this is technically correct but guess language evolves. 

 

Cheers,

James.