Best seasoning/handling/delivery methods

[Michael C]

Someone said on here recently that in efficient firewood production you ideally wouldnt have to touch the split firewood at all. I thought this made a lot of sense.

 

So what are the best ways to keep handling the firewood to a minimum?

 

I spoke to a guy the other day that processes a lot of spruce for firewood. His preferred method is stacking the lengths of timber in an open yard, leaving gaps at regular intervals to allow airflow and covering the top with plastic. He then leaves them for 14 to 18 months and processes straight in to bags or trailer as the orders come in.

Is this satisfactory? or will it still be wet in the middle?

[Alycidon]

Wet/rotton maybe, certainly not as dry as they could be.

 

I am processing softwood logs felled 2 years ago, still in the round. MC on processing is about 25%. Stuff felled last autumn was about 30%, down to 27% after a week.

 

I am processing and storing in bulk in a barn, loading with a 2 cu meter loading shovel. use a wall of filled arb bags to seperate soft from hard.

 

A

[18 stoner]

Processed green straight into bulk bags, greenhouse seasoned, loaded with loader and tipped out of bag at clients.

[Chris Sheppard]

Least amount of handling would be:

 

Stack in round straight off lorry, load onto processor deck with machine, fire through processor into delivery truck and away.

 

Down side of that would be amount of time to dry the wood to anything like decent takes a long time in the round.

 

Next would be as above but process into cages etc for drying , btu then requires loadign into delivery truck.

 

Fastest way of drying - billet and stack, then saw to length and into delivery truck

 

Down side is more handling of the timber during splitting, and can be a bit slower, but is a faster turn around from the timber being delivered into the yard.

Edited June 11, 2011 by Chris Sheppard

[Rob D]

I have to handle once when splitting into vented bags.

 

Then stacked in poly tunnel and delivered using swing crane/tipped from bag onto drive.

 

The advantage is you can dry stuff down to 20% in 4 months.

 

Fast turnaround and minimal handling.

 

Logs in the round in anything past 8" is going to take a while to dry (2 years?) and it must be a bit time consuming stacking them so there's air gaps in between.

 

Also you're messing about int he winter trying to uncover and recover them. + what happens if it's pouring with rain while you're trying to split them into back of truck?

 

Customers don't like or trust the "it's only cause it's been raining it looks like freshly split wood". It may be seasoned and only be surface water but it still looks bad.

 

I drop a covered bag off in the rain and briefly uncover it to reveal dry logs and they loves it!

 

I also take a £5 deposit if they keep the bag and they then have to return the bag themselves to get the deposit back. If you can find a business open 9 to 5 to do the back reclaiming for you this is better for you and the customer.

[Michael C]

Thanks for the replies so far

 

Rob, what do you use for delivering and how many 1m3? bags can you take at a time?

My problem is any sheds I have are just open on one side. I presume you would need a pretty open shed (preferably roof only) to dry them?

[Alycidon]

I use a shed closed on three sides OK.

 

A

[Fahrenheit]

The guy i buy mine from leaves it stacked in rounds around 15 foot long. He leaves them for a year or so and then processes them into a pile in a barn......he then scoops them up with a bucket and drops them in your truck. They range between 15% and 25% moisture content.

 

I have a Nissan Cabstar with the back split in 3 with mesh sides which will take 3.6 cubic metres at a time. Can do 6 loads before 12:00 on a Saturday. Works a treat and fits down narrow drives. Only problem is that your talking 60mph all the way.

 

Once we're properly sorted and processing our own firewood i'd look at a VW Transporter with a dropside back. Still nice and narrow and will do 120mph!

[Michael C]

The guy i buy mine from leaves it stacked in rounds around 15 foot long. He leaves them for a year or so and then processes them into a pile in a barn......he then scoops them up with a bucket and drops them in your truck. They range between 15% and 25% moisture content.

 

I have a Nissan Cabstar with the back split in 3 with mesh sides which will take 3.6 cubic metres at a time. Can do 6 loads before 12:00 on a Saturday. Works a treat and fits down narrow drives. Only problem is that your talking 60mph all the way.

 

Once we're properly sorted and processing our own firewood i'd look at a VW Transporter with a dropside back. Still nice and narrow and will do 120mph!

 

I presume your cabstar is a tipper?

[Fahrenheit]

Nah didn't bother with a tipper. There wasn't any point really as i wanted to take 3 loads at a time so a tipper would have been no use. I also spoke to a few firewood guys and they said customers didn't like all the bark and crap they end up with when people tip them so i handball them off. Only takes 5 mins or so.