What did you buy to ease back ache processing fiewood

[cessna]

I am wishing to try and take some of the strain off my back while processing firewood,as like many of you our back is my weakest point!!

I have a firewood processor,hycrack splitter for real knotty wood and a 75hp tractor with front end loader. Like the rest of you, wood I buy in is any thing from 2"inches round to 2ft round so much chainsaw work involved.

As a 62yr old one man band how would you suggest making things easier???

I know you young smart guys will say retire:thumbup:

Serious suggestions please,£25,000 would be max I would want to try and borrow to make life bearable to over 65.

[Stephen Blair]

£25k!! Now there's an invitation to the world to come get your money!

 

is it viable, spend £25k on gadget machine, then you will need maintenance , repairs, insurances so there's £5k. So that's now £30k

You might find you spend your life getting in and out of a cab, so not as practical as you think.

With firewood you can't beat human beings when it comes to processing. 2 guys will do 5x more in a day for half the effort as 1 guy.( rough estimate for effect)

You could make your life easier by only processing small diameter timber.

[Woodworks]

I am just starting to find ways to save the back.

 

Today got large beech rings to deal with. Usual practice is just hoick them straight into the trailer but now using loader to get them in trailer. It takes a bit longer but no damage done. Park trailer beside splitter which is set at same height as trailer then slide the rings straight onto the splitter. At no time do I have to fully lift them.

 

My only suggestion is to look at each element to see how things can be made easier. The above cost me nothing other than stopping and thinking about it.

 

Sorry probably no help but thought I would share

[Gray git]

Ideal set up is something like a palax prosessor for the smaller timber, easy load cut split load and a 30ton horizontal splitter with lift Arm to brake down the big stuff then xcut With the palax.

[Steve Bullman]

Without spending any money....try to work smarter. I would often go through my piles cutting the easy stuff then have a whole day cross cutting and messing around with larger stuff. I eventually started to mix it up a little but getting stuck into the heavy stuff as i came to it, so I might have an hour or so with big stuff then move on to whacking small cord through the processor for an hour, and so on.

[Tomatin Firewood]

I am in my 30s and have a bad back get that nerve pain coming up my leg. I keep it all mechanised as much as possible. I forward logs from stack with bobcat, roll logs onto lifting deck (I know I need a log deck - they are much quicker!) then process into heaps or vented bags. I sit down while I process. I use bobcat to either tip my vented bags into trailer or bucket the logs in, if from piles, at the other end I tip. I would like a timber trailer and a funky log deck but they will have to wait until I have done a few other projects I have on the go first!

 

Most of what I process is softwood which is so much easier to deal with.

 

I would say invest in good handling equipment like a good 2nd hand skid steer, bang together a log deck. I really think you should try getting a bit of help as well.

 

In the last few months have had casual help who have done most the processing whilst I go backwards and forwards tipping loads! If you do not have the capabilites to do enough business for that extra bit of help by the age of 65 I would seriously be considering doing something else. No need to be suffering.

[nepia]

In the short term - are you stretching your back before and after work? It's the equivalent of warming up and cooling down for a sportsman and it makes a difference. Take regular breaks too.

Now for the £25k...

[cessna]

£25k!! Now there's an invitation to the world to come get your money!

 

is it viable, spend £25k on gadget machine, then you will need maintenance , repairs, insurances so there's £5k. So that's now £30k

You might find you spend your life getting in and out of a cab, so not as practical as you think.

With firewood you can't beat human beings when it comes to processing. 2 guys will do 5x more in a day for half the effort as 1 guy.( rough estimate for effect)

You could make your life easier by only processing small diameter timber.

 

 

Hi Steve,

Many thanks for the advice,I quite agree with what you are saying. Very easy to spend money but hard to get it BACK especially with firewood.

Always concerned about health and safety issues with extra help,UNLESS,I know there background,especially with chainsaws.

[gensetsteve]

The thing that saved our backs the most was a homemade log deck which we could make into a big table. We used to ring 5-10 tonnes of timber then scoop them up with the bobcat bucket. The table had gaps to let the bark and dirt fall through. We then parked the vertical splitter next to it and dragged the rings on with a hookeroon. I would spend 4k on loading shovel and some forks for it. I would pay someone to help you as steve says the job is easier with two especially big rings. If your worried about chainsaw side get them on the splitter while you ring up and load.

[Stephen Blair]

Spot on Steve, love the gap in the table idea for the bark and saw dust:thumbup1: