Backpain

Has anyone successfully sold their tree surgery/firewood/fencing (come what ever) business? If so how did you value it. Reading up on this it points towards 3-5 time profit + assets (to keep it simple) I've read a few threads and obviously if you're a sole trader, trading off you're reputation word of mouth etc. you have nothing to sell. But if you have a proper business who's income is generated by advertising and includes legitimate records of sales year on year. i.e. the phone rings for quotes because you have high prominance on Google etc. Is it worth anything or would you just close it down and move on. Where do you advertise it for sale?

What was the outcome? Did you manage to sell the business? Be interesting to know. The only critisism I would make is that you didn't state how you generated your leads. For example if you sell a product (lets say straws) and have a website which generates those sales you have a business which has a value. Its evidence of sales, not peoples phone numbers that really matter. Its like Amazon but smaller. You don't seem to state this, its like you're selling you word of mouth business or goodwill which is worthless to anyone else. Just wondering.

I'm wondering the same question. How much are circa 150 poplars at 2 tons per tree possible more worth for chip? So 300 tones. I'm starting to see farmers using wood chip for winter bedding. Makes sense when you consider straw is £110 p/t. So its not just biomass thats killing the firewood market. Also, I find it interesting that the same issues that are affecting other parts of the country are beginning to affect Scotland. I thought there was an abundance to timber up there.

I've often wondered what the likes of CPL and certainly wood are selling to people. My understanding of firewood and this comes from from growing up in Canada is that after the lumber is felled its left to rest from one season to the next. During this time the process of decomposition begins and fugi starts to breakdown the structure of the wood. It's not a process of drying in anyway what so every, in some ways its the oposite. Its about exposing the timber to the elements. When the time is right we begin the process of splitting and drying. This process isn't to be confused with seasonning, its about drying. This process varies for different types of timber as most artisan firewood producers will know. So my question is, how do the likes of CPL and Certainly wood produce their firewood. Are they kiln drying green wood? Are people actually burning kiln dryed green oak or birch. The reason I ask this is because I've bought some bags from Home Bargains and they look like kiln dryed green timber. Am I wrong in thinking that DFRA thinks we need MC below 20% because they've carried out a study using green wood. Do anyone have access to the source of information they've based their figures on?

Its mental because I used to pay £40 per ton no VAT and £200 to have it moved. At those rates we sold firewood at £70 a cubic meter and it made sense. Now I pay over £2k for a artic load and sell at £90 a cubic. There's no profit in it which every way you look at it, so that means no opportunity to invest in plant and expansion. I actually feel sorry for the loggers and forresters they do all the hard work and the hauliers end up with all the coin. And you are right, if you have all the kit to do tree work its very lucrative if you're willing to climb.

Once I see the first log burner shop close you'll know the end is coming. We know its already started but the customers haven't seen it yet. I'm going to stock pile every ounce of very wood I cut down because its going to be like gold dust eventually.

Is this sold?

Everyone I speak to wants minimum £70 a ton + vat roadside for processor ready. Its mental

To answer this question I typed "kiln dried logs" into Google and up popped my answer. Its obvious to see there's so many companies now offering nationwide delivery of imported kiln dried logs. However, not everybody wants to take a day off work to wait in for a kerbside delivery of extremely expensive wood that they've got to move from the street to their log store. This is one of our massive USP's. Many of my established customer drop me a text saying can you drop me some logs. I confirm delivery day, they leave the gate open, I deliver the logs and they pay me straight into the bank. I haven't even met some of my customers. When I put my price up to £90 a load (cubic meter approx) they didn't even sniff. I've actully sold more logs this year than ever.

Larch makes great firewood, I had loads in a few years back which were very well seasonned though. A few lengths came in last year which I milled up to clad the garage with. Its lovely stuff.

Its a worrying situation because like most log suppliers we're fairly small but it makes up nearly 50% of our income. So far this year we haven't managed to find any hardwood for sale. None of the local forestry businesses will sell because they have a logging business themselve. My only options are to buy imported logs or just find a regular job. Don't think I can climb tree's for much longer either, I keep injuring my knees. Another question on my mind is what happens when the cofired power station have to stop burning coal. Surely the situation can only get worse. At the least the suns shining hey.

Came across this on treebay. Just wondered if anyone else has dealings with them. There was a scam a couple of years ago which looked similar.ay uk.

Why has this not been on Panorama??? If you google Drax it's all positive PR and propagander in the Gardian and Telegraph. It's like effing Avatar. You could argue that I haven't got solar panels on my house but these guys are wholesale clearing Biodiverse woodlands across the US and presumably the UK to fuel this "inbetween" phasing out of Coal using pellets to boost the renewable figures. In the meantime hoovering all the stocks of hardwood for micro producer like me. It's effing mental, they don't give a shit the price of timber is because they're being subsidised to use it. Yes it all going to grow back but whats the cost to the ecosystems involved. Criky, it makes you want to be an activist.

Jesus, thats scandless! So essentially any timber felled around Lincolnshire/Nottinghamshire is going to end up in their chute? Where does the shortfall come from, abroard I assume.

An ever increasing demand for hardwood will eventually turn it into a luxury product no doudt and to be honest I didn't that coming, but it's not sustainable at this level so I see it going the same way as coal. I'm competing with small forestry businesses so sometimes when I buy the price has haulage on it twice. At £2500 for 26tons I've no chance of competeing with other local supplies who still sell at £90 cubic meter. I like to say its a way of life but it isn't, its boring, hard work in the cold and the heat. The point about it imploding is close but I think people are going to have to burn more softwood which used to cost next to nothing. I sell lots of mixed loads and people like them but at £60 + delivered the margins are slim.