Mesh bulk bags vs airstripe bulk bags

[marlon]

Hi guys, after moving away from delivering logs in loose loads in favour of bulk bags last year I was wondering what experiences peoples have had with processing straight into bulk bags and leave to season. The bags which have 2 sides mesh and 2 sides airstripes are a pound more expensive than the 4 sides airstripes. Do the full airstripes bags allow the moisture to exit the bag without the wood going mouldy sufficiently enough? Cheers

[hardtop110]

Whether or not you keep the top open, where you store them and how you stack them is probably more important tbh, but if the difference is only a pound, it's probably worth paying it.

[marlon]

I will be stacking them on pallets at ground level, then brick pattern on level 2 & 3 again on pallets to allow maximum airflow. They are stored in a barn, my thinking is with all the pluses in my seasoning process are the mesh bags just a luxury. I have a great rotation all my wood has been cut 2 years ago and in log form in a barn for at least a year. I'm just trying to remove the re handling process from loose logs in a barn to the bag. I'm paying £1.75 for my solid 900mm bags where the airstripe bags are £2.80 so I'm already jumping up a pound a bag so to go to mesh bags at £3.90 it starts getting expensive.

[Busy Daddy]

Did you find that you have a better profit margin when you changed over or is it just ease of handling as i am thinking of the same

 

A local guy is doing logs by the dumpy at £10 more than my loose loads he is advertising a lot , and getting the customers

He is advertising them as 1 cube , as we know that isnt so

 

What do you recon swap over or stay put ?

[elfinwood saws]

use solid bags and melt vent holes in them with a blow torch, just bought another hundred solids for 40p each, they will be filled and blow torched!

[marlon]

Did you find that you have a better profit margin when you changed over or is it just ease of handling as i am thinking of the same

 

A local guy is doing logs by the dumpy at £10 more than my loose loads he is advertising a lot , and getting the customers

He is advertising them as 1 cube , as we know that isnt so

 

What do you recon swap over or stay put ?

 

I've gone from 100% loose loads to 85% bulk bags and 15% loose loads in less than a year, I was apprehensive at first but I just explained the obvious if the customer orders a "loose load" they can't be sure of value for money with the bags I tell them the measurements and m3. New customers especially appreciate it they know exactly what they are getting so there's no mis understandings, for the die hard existing loose load customers I still do loose loads. From my side I managed to raise the price in the change over to cover the increasing cord prices so I should be able to freeze my prices for this year and hopefully next.

 

So does anyone use the airstripe bags? Most of my timber is ash so the moisture content is reasonably low to start with.

[Rob D]

use solid bags and melt vent holes in them with a blow torch, just bought another hundred solids for 40p each, they will be filled and blow torched!

 

 

I did this with my bulk bags a few years ago. Still not as good as the fully vented/mesh bags IMO.

 

I bought 300 vented/mesh sided bags, swallowed hard at paying out £1500...

 

 

... and have never looked back since.

 

Easy to handle, reusable, easy to deliver in bags or loose (using a small jib crane), looks good for the customers as you can explain how the bags are very expensive because they are designed to dry logs in.

[farmer_ben]

I did this with my bulk bags a few years ago. Still not as good as the fully vented/mesh bags IMO.

 

I bought 300 vented/mesh sided bags, swallowed hard at paying out £1500...

 

 

... and have never looked back since.

 

Easy to handle, reusable, easy to deliver in bags or loose (using a small jib crane), looks good for the customers as you can explain how the bags are very expensive because they are designed to dry logs in.

 

Rob, where did you buy your bags from?

[hardtop110]

If you process straight into the fully vented bags, then it's probably worth doing and paying the extra. If you are still going to handle from barn to bag then I can't see the point on using anything other than unvented bags - unless you want to use it from a marketing angle.

[gensetsteve]

I use airstripe 1.5 cu metre bags. i have so far processed into them during the summer. I have the feeling as we process through the winter for next year we may get some mould problems. Someone told me to only put 3 a breast into the wind which we have done. I also do brick pattern rather than in line. Those mesh sided bags dont look very robust to me. Some of my bags have been tipped 3 times and still look new.