Are logs worth doing anymore ?

[zeroluke]

I've read all your posts, and you're all right in one way or another. but one thing I haven't seen a single mention of, is that there is a recession in full swing, and comodity prices have shot up for one reason or another. Fuel alone is a big issue. As commercial/ making a living entities, everyone are all victims of the property boom and bust, and holding up artificially high prices that has now put prices up on rent and overheads. One industry boom and bust can have a tragic knock on effect on many others, some that don't even have any direct link with another. Licensing for vehicles and equipment has also been taxed with the apparent need for repeated training, testing or certification blah blah. It all adds up.

 

Something else that there is no easy answer to, other than close the borders, is that we live on an island, and there are too many people here, and can no longer support due to prefered business practice and government, and social trends. There needs to be a revolution, but the time isn't right just yet

[Albedo]

I took down a 60 foot pine yesterday (in the rain by the way) and the neighbour asked me for the wood.

 

I said 20 quid and its yours I’ll just cut it to length for you and chuck it over the fence. It was about 2 foot diameter at the base so there was a fair bit. He said no thanks. I used to give it away but now I try to get a bottle of wine or two out of it.

 

I carted it all up the back garden to the truck at the front and he saw the pile on the truck and changed his mind, even though he told me he doesn’t own an axe.

 

I said fine mate but it’s 30 quid now. Why, because the labour has begun, I just shifted it. He declined.

 

We had a good chat about firewood though and I learned what he’d been paying and for how much etc.

[thomashenry]

"It's just too much - only a limited number of people are going to be able/willing to pay that sort of price."

 

and only a limited number of people are going to have access to enough free/very cheap wood to do it for themselves - even fewer will actually want to do it!

 

Very true, but I think the result is that most people with stoves/fire places only use them occasionally for the cosy ambience, rather than for seriously heating their homes. At £80 for 1/2 a cubic metre, wood is a lot more expensive than gas and even coal.

Edited September 26, 2012 by thomashenry

[Steve Bullman]

there is a recession in full swing

 

We're not in a recession...people really need to start getting used to that fact!

[David Riding]

We're not in a recession...people really need to start getting used to that fact!

 

I feel logs are no different than tree surgery, if you do them yourself and even just use an axe you can split 3 builders bags a day and sell for £140+.

If you decide to get bigger and have machines, staff and storage etc you need to do 10 times as much!

 

No different than tree surgeon and groundy charging £400 a day, but if you become a manager and have staff doing all the work you need 3 teams out to probably earn the same.

 

Conclusion.... stay small or go big!!

[gensetsteve]

Very true, but I think the result is that most people with stoves/fire places only use them occasionally for the cosy ambience, rather than for seriously heating their homes. At £80 for 1/2 a cubic metre, wood is a lot more expensive than gas and even coal.

 

If we got £160 a metre the hourly rate would be £30 not £10 . I would say the average for metre of logs round here is about £80 andif you buy in cord its cost £60 in materials to get it to your door.

[Alycidon]

It's not really, just over 300 cube a month. It's only a 4 days on the processor a month. We are coming up to our busy time (beginning of summer) people buy it green for a bit cheaper. Saves having logs stuck in the yard all year.

 

We only make around $40 profit per cube (£20) so not a lot but when your turning over a large volume you can make a go of it. Also it's only a side line to coinside with our tree works.

 

80 cube a day, thats just a tidy processor you must have, any pics?.

 

A

[Alycidon]

If we got £160 a metre the hourly rate would be £30 not £10 . I would say the average for metre of logs round here is about £80 andif you buy in cord its cost £60 in materials to get it to your door.

 

Perhaps my maths is a bit wonky but, hard cord last time I bought some was £55 a ton (+ vat), as I understand it here you should get 1 1/3 to 1 1/2 bags to a green ton, so my cost of cord per cube bag is between £42 and £37 depending on how much I get. Then you have cost of processing which will depend on how large a set up you have, storage, delivery etc.

 

Maybe you are saying it costs £60 to get a cube to a customers door, I think that would be about right using a big processor. Using a more moderate processor it would be higher. My processing speed has dropped alarmingly processing 3m or so logs from the 1.5m logs I have been used to owing to the way the processor (japa 700) works hence I am looking at upgrading maybe next summer.

 

A

[teepeeat]

We're not in a recession...people really need to start getting used to that fact!

 

Hit the nail on the head Steve.

What we have had over the last few years is a 'market adjustment' towards reality after years of artificial control. Unfortunately there are probably some more adjustments to come as we are a bit off reality yet.

[gensetsteve]

Perhaps my maths is a bit wonky but, hard cord last time I bought some was £55 a ton (+ vat), as I understand it here you should get 1 1/3 to 1 1/2 bags to a green ton, so my cost of cord per cube bag is between £42 and £37 depending on how much I get. Then you have cost of processing which will depend on how large a set up you have, storage, delivery etc.

 

Maybe you are saying it costs £60 to get a cube to a customers door, I think that would be about right using a big processor. Using a more moderate processor it would be higher. My processing speed has dropped alarmingly processing 3m or so logs from the 1.5m logs I have been used to owing to the way the processor (japa 700) works hence I am looking at upgrading maybe next summer.

 

A

 

I did sit down years ago and work out best I could what the costs were per cubic metre on a machine similar to yours. Trying to work out chain wear and bar oil seems petty but on tight margins it all adds up. My feeling is costs have risen faster than sale price. The answer is sell in december and hope for a cold winter. The other problem is in my experience at least 20% of a load is too big for a sensible processor so you need to ring it and use a splitter. another 20% is under 4" so a waste of time and fuel on a processor.

Last year I did about 150 tonnes used 50 litres of bar oil, 3 chains, 2 bars and £300 in cherry and probably about the same in petrol. I am afraid to work it out these days.