Marko

My brother and his wife runs a cottage B&B in Wales which has recently been converted to be heated entirely by wood fuel. He uses around 30 cubic meters a year (a mix of around 50/50 oak and fir) which he processes himself to keep the outgoing cash to a minimum. All this was known and planned for. It might sound daft but what was the real surprise was just how much room 30 cubic meters of wood takes up. The even bigger surprise was the realisation that, as they are processing freshly felled wood, they actually need space for the 3-4 years worth of wood which is drying out at any one time. Yep....120 cubic meters. You will need to be really sure you have the supply channels, space, tools and enthusiasm to handle the actual quantities you will need to process before making the committment. A pellet boiler will look very cheap compared to going down this path without all your ducks in a row. If your interested, please see http://www.coedcae.co.uk/light_my_fire.html for the whole story.

Did he offer any solution to "safe" coppicing? I am always eager to learn!

Some really good points raised in this thread and real food for thought. The current surge in using wood fuel may very well tail off when gas prices eventually drop back but I think this autumn we have just had a glimps of a future where wood fuel becomes a more mainstream product. If this is the case then the Arb industry may well need to seriously consider that firewood may no longer be seen as just a nice little earner from a by-product but be a viable stand alone business that requires a consistent supply. How each individual wants to position themselves in the new marketplace will be up to them. I can assure you that I will not be quoting for any arb work. I have no wish to climb 12ft let alone 120ft poplars! I will however continue to volunteer to clear felled, fallen and hung trees for firewood. I do resent the implication that if I do it for the firewood I must be a cowboy. I have the kit, the experience and the qualifications but my days of pure arb work are over and I am very happy to concentrate on firewood. If you guys don't want the wood - I do. You can call me a subcontractor (or anything else) but I would be very happy to work along side you if it was mutually beneficial and I am sure there will be many more like me all over the country who would do the same.

I find that the worst bit about splitting by hand is picking up the wood which seems to feel it is its duty to fly away as far as possible. Have a lok at the simple invention near the bottom of the page http://www.coedcae.co.uk/light_my_fire.html. Now why did I not think of that years ago!

Next time you get a new yellow pages delivered just take a look what is put out for the recycling collection the following week.... tons and tons of paper directories still in their vacuum sealed wrapper!!!. Whether we like it or not people are using the internet as the first port of call for finding the contact details even for businesses that they are familiar with. I long since stopped paying for any newspaper ads, paper flyers or paper based "directories" as I suspect most go straight into the bin and the cost is astronomical compared to the web. I do however pay (very very small sums) for weblinks on the sensible "on topic" directories which give me two benefits - 1) Conventional business leads and 2) an increased google ranking for my own website as the crawlers see high ranking 'on topic' websites are linking to my pages.

I used saturn for 2 sets of blades now. As most will know, chipper blades are not cheap but Saturn were competitive and did a very good job. The difficult bit I find is getting hold of the correct standard of bolts to hold the blades in.

Looks great. Font size is absolutely fine on my display. A little darker would help my rapidly deteriorating eyes though! Good Work.

I was talked into doing the CS30/CS31 course and felt it a bit expensive for someone who had been regularly using a chainsaw for well over 25 years. In the end I have to admit to learning an awfull lot and really wish I had done it years ago. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing - never a truer word when applied to a chainsaw. Do the course!

Andy, if you are happy to process the wood you should be able to make a few quid even if you have to buy in a bit of better grade wood to get started. Look after your regulars and they will look after you! Also you might try http://www.carbonneutralfuel.com/logs.html for a cheap advert which will cover your immediate geographic area.