Increasing unseasoned timber sales discussion

[trigger_andy]

28 minutes ago, skyhuck said:

You want the customer to carry out the part of the task you detest, but seem surprised they don't want to.

Well in all fairness the task of the recipient is still the same. Stack Firewood when its delivered. But as they have to wait before they can burn the wood they can save 20-30% of the cost. They have no exta work to do, 

[skyhuck]

4 minutes ago, trigger_andy said:

Well in all fairness the task of the recipient is still the same. Stack Firewood when its delivered. But as they have to wait before they can burn the wood they can save 20-30% of the cost. They have no exta work to do, 

Depends, they may need to dry their timber in one place and then move it to another area before burning.

[Big J]

39 minutes ago, skyhuck said:

You want the customer to carry out the part of the task you detest, but seem surprised they don't want to.

The point is that in Europe I think we're alone in that dried log sales dominate. Elsewhere, it's cut and delivered fresh, and then stacked to dry where it will be used. It doesn't really make sense to cut it, store it, rehandle it to deliver it to then stack and store again. I don't hate storing firewood (I quite enjoy stacking to be honest), I just hated the inefficiency of it. 

 

I would guess that more than half of customers have the space to store enough to be able to buy green. A 3m wide, 1.5m deep and 2m high store will accommodate 9 stack cube (about 13.5 loose cube) which is the size of a garden shed and I reckon as much as 90% of domestic log customers use over two seasons. Have one full of timber you're drying, the other timber you're using. 

 

I have firewood stacked at home to take me to 2021 now, which makes me happy

Edited January 1, 2019 by Big J

[trigger_andy]

17 minutes ago, skyhuck said:

Depends, they may need to dry their timber in one place and then move it to another area before burning.

Well that is a possibility, but not a necessary one. As I mentioned, many have a limited storage space. They will tent to buy dry for the simple reason they have no additional storage space. So buying and storing at the end of the seasons burning would allow the spring, summer and Autumn to allow the green wood to be ready for burning the following season. They save cash and  only stack the once. 

[Big J]

12 minutes ago, trigger_andy said:

Well that is a possibility, but not a necessary one. As I mentioned, many have a limited storage space. They will tent to buy dry for the simple reason they have no additional storage space. So buying and storing at the end of the seasons burning would allow the spring, summer and Autumn to allow the green wood to be ready for burning the following season. They save cash and  only stack the once. 

Even if they only had space for a single year's storage, just buy the logs in April/May and they'll be ready by October. Just not on sodding Christmas eve! ?

[trigger_andy]

3 minutes ago, Big J said:

Even if they only had space for a single year's storage, just buy the logs in April/May and they'll be ready by October. Just not on sodding Christmas eve! ?

Well I think thats what I implied, if not wrote.  

[Big J]

Just now, trigger_andy said:

Well I think thats what I implied, if not wrote.  

For most customers, that would make too much sense.

 

I for one like to sit in my garden over summer and admire my log stacks, thinking "I'll be toasty come winter". Nothing uglier than an empty woodstore! ?

[spuddog0507]

Happy new year to you all, at last something of interest to me that i can comment on, been selling firewood for over 30 years now, some years only small volumes and other years much larger amounts, there is one thing i have found is that you will never educate joe public in to buying either green/part seasoned timber in lengths for them to self process in to logs or in logs all ready processed outside the log buying season, the summer just gone i have adds out since April selling dead dry softwood in 8ft lengths for self processing, on average i have sold one load per month from April - October and then after the first cold snap about one every 2 week and then when the second cold snap came 2 or 3 load per week after that we come to silly season the 3 week run up to christmas when i am here there and every where delivering seasoned split logs every day up to christmas eve, i have tried my best over the years to sell part seasoned split logs to no great success as of yet whether that will change i dont know ? it may do as timber demand is rising, tried discounting it to tempt sales but it still dont work, i will try and push it much harder this year as i have a lot of hardwood to process this year and have not got the room to store the amount i have, the way i see it is the average log buyer will hang on to there cash until they really need the logs and just pay the going rate for split logs,

[bankhouse builder]

I am going to try some of my customers with a season yourself offer this spring. I split throw into some timber crates then have to bag and deliver would be much simpler to just split into a bag and deliver. It would also help me as you could do some deliveries summer evenings than trying to get everything done at weekends in the autumn. From end of September I seem to be doing 7 days a week with my regular work and logs. Things always seem easier when the sun is shining. The other benefit to me would be I have less logs to store in my yard. 

[Woodworks]

7 hours ago, Big J said:

 

 

I for one like to sit in my garden over summer and admire my log stacks, 

 

I think this might be an angle. Had many friends come here and comment on how nice the log stacks look. So don't just sell green logs but sell an attractive garden feature that happens to heat them come the winter.