LogPro - FREE Biomass Firewood Kiln

[Logsnstuff]

Certainly wood dry to 20% and so this is very much the same market. I agree that if you are happy to have two years of cash tied up in stock, and an inability to match supply to fluctuating demand then you don't need a kiln. Not everyone wants to grow their business or adapt to a changing market and so it follows that not everyone needs a kiln.

 

It's not the same market his logs are imports and my customers want locally grown.

 

my business grows year on year, I haven't missed an order yet for lack of stock, the cash tied up in stock appreciates in value far more than it would in the bank + read the forum how many people cant get stock now, I have the peace of mind that I have a stack ready for processing in the new year, the only change in market I see is you making an income off the backs of firewood merchants.

 

I look forward to 5 years time when all the people who take your kiln come back and tell us what planks we were not to take you up on the chance, I say we but I'm 5 -6 hrs too far north anyway. my main competitor tried kiln dried and he couldn't sell it because of the increased cost, I got a customer who was buying kiln dried from glasgow said the stuff is too damn expensive and burns in minutes and he would never buy kiln dried again some people might love it but I'm sure just as many will hate it.

[Steve Bullman]

my main competitor tried kiln dried and he couldn't sell it because of the increased cost

 

Or he couldn't sell it because his marketing was lacking

[Duffryn]

It's not the same market his logs are imports and my customers want locally grown.

 

my business grows year on year, I haven't missed an order yet for lack of stock, the cash tied up in stock appreciates in value far more than it would in the bank + read the forum how many people cant get stock now, I have the peace of mind that I have a stack ready for processing in the new year, the only change in market I see is you making an income off the backs of firewood merchants.

 

I look forward to 5 years time when all the people who take your kiln come back and tell us what planks we were not to take you up on the chance, I say we but I'm 5 -6 hrs too far north anyway. my main competitor tried kiln dried and he couldn't sell it because of the increased cost, I got a customer who was buying kiln dried from glasgow said the stuff is too damn expensive and burns in minutes and he would never buy kiln dried again some people might love it but I'm sure just as many will hate it.

 

I can assure you that a lot of their supply comes from the UK .

 

"the cash tied up in stock appreciates in value far more than it would in the bank" You invest the cash freed up in buying more wood with the kiln offering a greater throughput then !

 

Yes we make money off the backs of firewood merchants - we are a business ! Firewood merchants make money off our backs too - because they are businesses too !

 

It's up to the firewood processor if they market the wood as kiln dried or not. There is no real difference between a 20% m/c seasoned or a 20% m/c kiln dried log.

 

With Logpro a kiln dried log can actually cost the firewood merchant less than a seasoned log (subject to volume) because the RHI income is more than the cost of running the kiln.

Edited December 24, 2013 by Duffryn

[ash_smith123]

It's not the same market his logs are imports and my customers want locally grown.

 

my business grows year on year, I haven't missed an order yet for lack of stock, the cash tied up in stock appreciates in value far more than it would in the bank + read the forum how many people cant get stock now, I have the peace of mind that I have a stack ready for processing in the new year, the only change in market I see is you making an income off the backs of firewood merchants.

 

I look forward to 5 years time when all the people who take your kiln come back and tell us what planks we were not to take you up on the chance, I say we but I'm 5 -6 hrs too far north anyway. my main competitor tried kiln dried and he couldn't sell it because of the increased cost, I got a customer who was buying kiln dried from glasgow said the stuff is too damn expensive and burns in minutes and he would never buy kiln dried again some people might love it but I'm sure just as many will hate it.

 

Im almost certain they only sell 100% British wood now. They own most of the woodland around Hereford and with there sister company that puts poplar woodlands on farmlands with massive grants I'm sure they have more than enough wood.

 

I hadn't been asked for kiln dried once in the last 4 years, imported a container this year and sold it all for £130 a cube (my normal seasoned price is £100) in 2 months. no complaints! Everyone knew what they were buying.

Its obvious the kiln idea isn't for you but it sure is for others

[renewablejohn]

 

If it were possible to make a comparable RHI compliant kiln for anywhere near £5K why haven't you or anybody else done so ?

 

Thats the whole point people have made kilns for that sort of money the only new part to the equation is RHI which to comply you need specific ofgem approved meters which cost less than a grand and an approved heat source. Fortunately my solar heat source is approved however I believe no biomass source has been approved yet as DECC has screwed up the legislation with regard to biomass emissions for RHI.

[doobin]

It's not the same market his logs are imports and my customers want locally grown.

 

my business grows year on year, I haven't missed an order yet for lack of stock, the cash tied up in stock appreciates in value far more than it would in the bank + read the forum how many people cant get stock now, I have the peace of mind that I have a stack ready for processing in the new year, the only change in market I see is you making an income off the backs of firewood merchants.

 

Agree fully with the cash being better tied up in cordwood than in the bank. However, he's not 'making money off the backs of firewood merchants- quite the opposite. This will help some people, and at no cost to themselves.

 

He's making money off the ridiculous RHI. Which you and I are paying for anyway via excessive taxes. Blame the government, not the entrepreneur.

[Duffryn]

Thats the whole point people have made kilns for that sort of money the only new part to the equation is RHI which to comply you need specific ofgem approved meters which cost less than a grand and an approved heat source. Fortunately my solar heat source is approved however I believe no biomass source has been approved yet as DECC has screwed up the legislation with regard to biomass emissions for RHI.

 

The RHI element adds expense but not that much. Putting to one side the RHI element you could not make a kiln of this capacity, longevity or effectiveness for anywhere near £5K. For the avoidance of doubt our boiler has been approved under the new emissions regulations

[Duffryn]

Agree fully with the cash being better tied up in cordwood than in the bank. However, he's not 'making money off the backs of firewood merchants- quite the opposite. This will help some people, and at no cost to themselves.

 

He's making money off the ridiculous RHI. Which you and I are paying for anyway via excessive taxes. Blame the government, not the entrepreneur.

 

I can see where you are coming from but..... I think for a deal to be good and work long term it has to work for both parties. In this situation we make money and so does the firewood merchant. Some members may be loosing sight of this.

 

The RHI grant is there to encourage investment in using biomass as an alternative energy source. Kiln drying logs is not a new idea and there are plenty of examples out there of kilns being powered by electricity, gas and oil. Would we be able to offer the kiln free of charge if it were not for the RHI - the answer is no. If we were to sell LogPro without RHI would there be as a big an uptake - again the answer is no. All we are doing here is investing as the RHI scheme encourages us to do.

 

The chicken farming industry uses vast amounts of heat and RHI has transformed the way that this heat is generated. We are applying the same logic to the firewood market and solving some very real issues that the firewood industry has in the process.

 

Some may disagree with the concept of RHI but for a limited time it is here and once each LogPro is installed and signed off the income stream is there for both us and the firewood processor for the long term (if the RHI scheme stops the RHI income does not).

 

Agree or disagree with RHI. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity that has a short window for uptake.

 

Each of us is paying our tax and if we don't take the RHI opportunity someone else will. The cost to the country will be the same. £646 a week income, index linked and all the other benefits that Log Pro brings are in my opinion too much of an opportunity to turn down.

[FJMatt]

what would happen if the goverment drops the payment, like it has done with solar and wind turbines

[Duffryn]

what would happen if the goverment drops the payment, like it has done with solar and wind turbines

 

Good question. One, unlike Solar they have made a firm commitment that notice will be given before the scheme ends and two just like solar once the installation is approved the income stream is assured whether the scheme continues to run or not.

 

In my personal opinion there is less than an 18 month window here.