neiln

Proof the tip site directory works. I've just had a phone call and have a load on coni on the way. Photos later. That's is the first time, although my a listing is a couple of years old. It'll be a new contact though and hopefully it's easy for the tree surgeon and I'll get more.

Yes sorry, I'm on the US Arboristsite more and it's a common acronym there.

Generally softwood dries faster then hardwood, a few woods are more extreme like Oak which can take a long time to dry, or ash which starts at a lower moisture content. Generally, softwood CSS by Easter will be ready for winter. Good drying conditions and it can be far faster then that. Split small, stack off the ground, cover the top but not the sides, a breezy and sunny spot, you'll have fine firewood.

There are many willow and some aren't so bad, I've been put off by some that was very tough to split, the axe bounced off like it was hitting a block of rubber

You're obviously keen Bethany, keep at it and you'll make some contacts. I suggest you contact lots of local tree surgeons, better if you see someone working nearby then speak to them. Speak to neighbours and let them know you are after wood if they are having trees down. Look on Gumtree,search facebook for adsor tip site directories, the one here isn't the only one. Once you've made a contact, if you're convenient for them you'll get lots of wood offered. Make yourself convenient. Tell people what access is like, and what you'll take...can you process 6 foot diameter rings, or 8 foot lengths for example or do you want/need smaller pieces? Take softwood. honestly, it burns, much of it burns great, some of it is far better firewood than some hardwoods. I read ads asking for Ash or other hardwood and think, rightly or wrongly, another newbie wood stove owner, doesn't really know what wood they need, nor how to process it, nor what is easy for the tree surgeon to provide. Put in the add that you have a saw, a splitter and room to stak and dry lots of wood. What trees are common near you? no....which trees are common near you in residential gardens or other places that tree surgeons are taking them down from? Take that....even if its willow (god help you if its willow!) Say which woods you're happy to take. Hope you find some of those suggestions useful, and best of luck.

I picked up a 4300 off Amazon of all places for a stunning price least summer. I paid £269.51 delivered with the 15" bar. It's only for home firewood use but I love it! It's a ripper! Haven't decatted it yet so more to come too. I understand parts/support is always slow on dolmakita and the discontinuation of petrol saws won't help, but it was a stunning price so I bought it, and haven't regretted it.

Perhaps spud can advise but my thought was, if the OPs cylinder can be salvaged, my B piston and the ops cylinder (both are av super) and rebuild the other saw with an AM magnum p+c. (I understand they fit after a little elongation of the bolt holes)

I know, I think they might be worth a try but I don't know anyone with the proper kit and I'm not buying the kit for one insert, it's not worth it. Given that it's been tapped for a helicoil I fear there may be a lack of material for a timecert

Can't though, someone has already, very badly and plug won't seal now as the top of the port, the surface for the plug to seal against, is chewed up. That's the annoying problem

I've just checked mine and it's a 'B'. My piston is good, my cylinder is not, it has a stripped thread at the spark plug. I was thinking if your cylinder is saveable we could marry it up with my piston but not so sure now.

Burley always get good comments here

I've a 5. Fitted with the smoke control kit. Burns well and throws plenty of heat but like many stoves with smoke control, it isn't controllable except by the logs. It's coming to the end of year 6 now and has been run hard, burning 40-45 m³ in that time. Mine is not as #£#*ed as will's sounds but has suffered. Log guard is bananad by the heat as was the baffle. 10 mins and a club hammer at the chopping block got the baffle semi straight again. A bolt on plate that is part of the smoke chamber bananad and burnt away.... Impressive for thick cast iron. On distorting it broke the top fire brick at each side. I tried removing it to replace but after 5 years the bolts are stuck firm. It matters not though, stove function isn't affected. In 6 years the stove has had one replacement door seal and replacements of the 2 broken bricks, v that's not bad. I'd say the stove owes me nothing, but then it was my£550 when I bought it iirc, o believe it's more like £850 now. Next time I buy, I'd pay a bit more and for for something else.

Doesn't look like they've had the cylinder off. They will have looked in the exhaust port and seen a scored piston, maybe the cylinder will just have transfer and could clean up. The air leak is likely the carb boot thingy, or if not then it's a crank shaft seal i guess. Those parts are cheap. An OEM jug and piston is not though. I know, I have one in a similar condition!

I've been burning some recently (may have already said that, can't be bothered to check page 1). It's giving more heat than I remembered but the ash it leaves is nuts. Yes it tries to grow for a while after cutting. 400?? I thought they were only brought to the UK about 100-120 years ago

I don't notice any problems running 99+, but I'm also not an expert.

Yes but will need to be split small. If you aren't desperate then it may be better for next winter. Pear is fairly dense.

I don't use E10 no. I use Esso synergy supreme 99+ as although it's marked e5 they guarantee its ethanol free over most of the country. I was chatting to a tree surgeon that I get a lot of arb waste from and he was still using E10, but I told him he might want to consider Esso to avoid the ethanol. He goes through mix so fast though, E10 won't be sitting around with him. £1.90! Lordy. I could see it going considerably higher though. I'll be putting Aspen in my car if it doesn't go up similarly!

How do you get £2.76? Husqvarna xp fully synthetic, £15 for a litre, mixed 50:1 costs 30p for a litre of fuel mix. Thankfully I've yet to need to fill my car since the Ukraine invasion started but I thought E10 was about £1.55/L, and super is probably about £1.70/L. So about £1.85-2 for a litre of mix. 5 litres of Aspen or motomix is £20, so about twice the price of pump fuel.

Estimates from Martin Lewis and on BBC of another ~50% rise in gas and electric prices come October. Wood will be cheaper than gas at current prices when that happens. I'm off to collect some scrounged ARB arisings

Firstly I'd agree with 'no heat means damp wood'. But.... Your flue thermometer looks to be near a corner of the stove top and up into the normal range despite being in probably a cool spot, plus they are cheap and not and always accurate. I've some of that same brand and they actually started out ok but now under read considerably. An IR thermometer is not much more and they seem to be better

With it kicking off in Ukraine I imagine gas and oil prices are going to spike up again and by in October the energy price cap could be up another massive increase. Logs will be cheap then.

Lots of good points Ved.

Ok yes it's not too hard to get a figure. Plenty of tables about giving energy content per cord or per kg (cord is easier as we buy/sell by volume but again tables have the density so can convert). Take a stove efficiency of say 70% and You can calculate a price for a kWh of heat from wood. Looking like wood is fairly close to mains gas price, maybe not cheaper, but fairly close.

Various calculations on line. Various tables for energy content. One I found, 3690 kWh per cord. A cord is ~3.5m³. So (3690 X 7p)/3.5 or £74 of gas to give the same heat as 1m³. I've ignored the lower efficiency of a wood stove Vs a combi boiler

Just found this Fuel Comparison Charts - Wood Fuel Co-operative WWW.WOODFUEL.COOP Fuel comparison charts, generally speaking, given similar moisture content, the more... looks to suggest seasoned logs are 7, 8p upwards per kWh. If we remember that gas has a standing charge too then logs could be compatible or even cheaper by a little.