Witterings

I'll give it a year and try again then ?

Funny I should read this as I picked up some freebie willow and whilst it's not been seasoned I thought I'd try a bit to see if it burns as there's a load more I can go and get ..... It's on the burner as I read / am typing this and everyhing else in there's burning nicely and the willow's just sitting there taking up space .... don't think I'll bother picking up the rest.

As gorgeous as they are they're powerful beasts .... years ago I was getting towards being in need of a hip replacement and our old lab (unfortunately not with us anymore) was playing and ran into me full tilt at the of a walk ... the pain was unbelievable, .... absolutely excruciating and my head started spinning badly and my vision going .... I know for sure if I hadn't of been standing next to a gate which I collapsed over to support myself I would have hit the deck. We've also looked after Canine Partners dogs at the weekends for 3 years and a couple of months ago The Mrs was playing with one in the garden that got excited and literally took her feet out from underneath her tossing her up in the air like a rag doll ... always seems funny to witness when you're not on the receiving end of it ? They're beautiful animals but strong and powerful for sure ... good luck with the recovery and sure you can find the appropriate medicine to aid your recovery and is best taken whilst sitting in front of a log burner on these cold evenings ?

Cheers for everyone's input ... seems like there's no definate answer so guess I'll probbly keep doing what I have which is putting on 2 smaller one's with one bigger .... the smaller produce more flame and possibly help the bigger burn as well and seems to be a happy medium.

In the end I bought a Makita Smart Log Sawhorse which arrived yesterday and I tried out today and I have to say what a brilliant piece of kit. I rang a seller as I'd seen such mixed reviews on the Draper ones and he instantly said they're made to "a budget" ... get the Makita as it's much better / stronger build quality and whislt I've not seen the Drapers I'm really pleased with what I've got, how easy it makes it and I think is much safer than having to try and cut them on the ground which ws my biggest priority!

It's gas central heating although we're a bungalow and whilst we haven't had any really cold weather since having it installed a few weeks ago, when we light the stove I switch the heating off and it provides enough heat throughout the property. Can certainly get 3 logs in at a time if they're not all bigger ones.

Imported Oak ? That's a good point though actually ?

Is it me or do big logs burn slower and therefore more efficiently??? Mine are all cut to about the same length ... about 9/10" is ideal for our smallish stove ... but they vary quite a lot in how much they've been split / the diameter so I tend to use more of the smaller smaller diameter whilst heating up the stove which produces a more flame and embers as a bed then switch to larger diameter to keep it "ticking over". Say for example you had a 10" diameter log and split it in half OR split it in quarters which would burn for longer the 2 larger pieces or the 4 smaller pieces?? Don't know if anyone has a definitive answer to this but be interested in hearing people's opinions.

Don't softwoods damage your flue???

If people want wheels Beach or Festival Carts is another alternative, some are heavy duty canvass and some are hard plastic which would last longer for chucking logs in. beach+cart - Google Search WWW.GOOGLE.COM

I do agree they look good just from watching the videos but at the moment a lot of the wood I have access to is more like 9 / 10" diameter .... would I fit one those in on it's own???? In the future I can see possibly having one system for bigger logs and one where you can load several smaller ones just because of the time saving to cut several together.

I've just built quite a large log store in between the chimney breast and wall which will take a few trips to refill and as much as I like the trolley idea when I take the mud / wheels into account that probably knocks it on the head. The link I provided earlier to Homebase log bag I really like and you can get a lot of logs in especially as my cut size they go in width ways .... I've found literally the last few logs though is where it very quickly goes from easily manageable with one hand to weighing an awful lot and straining, I think I may just get a 2nd one and not load them up so much so I'm then moving a reasonable amount in one trip. Sad part of it is as the crow flies the indoor log area is literally only a few feet from the outdoor log store but unfortunately there's a wall in the way and it's a long walk round to get to it.

Agree making one would possibly be best but I'm just all DIY'd out at the moment ... it's all I've done for weeks with every spare moment I've had (finished the last of this batch last night) and fancy some me time for a while. I found some unspent B'day money in a drawer so decided I'd spend a bit more as the reviews on the budget ones were't great I did look this one and whilst there weren't complaints on how it worked there were lots saying incredibly hard to assemble with poor / non-existent instructions ..... how did you find it hard / easy??? Looked at the £20 Screwfix one and was tempted but the metal bar the whole length put me off in the end. I've also been looking at the Draper / Forest Master ones but their reviews seem to be inconsistent especially between the 2 names with a high percentage of the Forest Master ones saying the teeth bent rendering it useless and all the Draper of the same had 4 / 5 ** recommendations .... there was one review where someone suggested the Forest Master was made to an inferior spec which I find hard to believe ... they're probably out of the same factory just painted in different colours. If anyone's any experience with any of them any feedback would be really appreciated and have posted links to the ones I mean below. Forest Master Ltd Saw Horse, Orange: Amazon.co.uk: Garden & Outdoors WWW.AMAZON.CO.UK Forest Master Ltd Saw Horse, Orange: Amazon.co.uk: Garden & Outdoors Draper 32273 150Kg Log Stand/Saw Horse: Amazon.co.uk: Garden & Outdoors WWW.AMAZON.CO.UK Great prices on your favourite Gardening brands, and free delivery on eligible orders. Forest Master Ltd Sawhorse, Orange: Amazon.co.uk: Garden & Outdoors WWW.AMAZON.CO.UK Forest Master Ltd Sawhorse, Orange: Amazon.co.uk: Garden & Outdoors

That's a great idea for all the reason's you've mentioned ... only downside I can see is if the wheels get wet / muddy outside I have to go across a white carpet to get to the stove but could carry it the last bit. Where did you get it from or is that a daft question and I should be loitering outside my local Nisa waiting to pounce if someone leaves one outside ? ... that said the amount of beer money I've spent in there over the years I'm sure I've earnt one from loyalty points ?

I found one abandoned at an airport and nabbed it and stuck it in my bag (we were struggling for room) whilst my family took the mikey out of me ... went to try and find it the other day and guess what ... can't of been that embarassing as my daughter took it to Universirty with her!!!!

Might get myself one of these whilst they're on offer ? Conmoto Borsa Lato 45 Log Bag | Log Carriers & Log Bags WWW.FIREPLACEPRODUCTS.CO.UK Fireplace Products a premium UK outlet of stoves, fires, fireplaces and chimney liners. Offering more wood burning stoves than anyone else with...

I bought one of these last weekend .... haven't even taken it out of the packaging yet https://www.homebase.co.uk/mansion-heavy-duty-log-bag-jute_p383092

I keep forgetting to tick the box to notify me of replies so have only just seen the replies so thanks for that everyone!!

If anybody has any recommendations for a "budget" log saw horse for home use, I found the one in the link below which quite appeals, don't know if anyone's tried one and if for £22 they're complete junk or OK for home use and there don't seem to be any reviews of them. Interested in any other suggestions as well although I've got this feeling it's going to be you get what you pay for and I may have to increase the spend 150KG Galvanized Saw horse Serrated Chainsaw Aid Tool Log Trestle Steel Sawing WWW.EBAY.CO.UK It is ideal for chainsaws or for simple hand saws. 4 Parking Sensors Ultrasonic sensors Car Front&Rear Reverse Radar Aid Kit Black. - Non-slip, toothed bearing surface. Parking...

I concur ... probably part of the reason I even looked at them as alternatives ?

But do you agree ... or do you concur?

I'll try and use something other than a cricket ball to try and split it then ? Maybe I#ll try some before i go and pick up any more!!

Cheers again ... I will do, I was mainly asking as there's a load more of it I can get and if it wasn't a good burner (although from what I've read it's not the hottest) I wouldn't bother but if it is I'll go nab some more.

Cheers .. I will do, it was them I got the seasoned cut logs from ... nearly bought a beautiful piece of Yew from them as well to cut and use as a lintel above the stove but it would have taken a year to dry so didn't in the end. A mate of mine has a van and picks up unseasoned from them and keeps them for a year but he doesn't have a chain saw.

Totally agree with this ... if someone's giving you some cheap logs in essence they're doing you a favour, you should be thankful not critical!!