How much would I pay for a standing (or fallen) hardwood tree for firewood

jeffwode

I know this is like a piece of string question but does anyone know approximately how much you would expect to pay for a good big hardwood tree, either standing or on the ground? Preferably ash, oak or beech.

I want to get some firewood in for next winter and now is the time to fell trees, before the sap starts to rise again in the spring. I can fell the tree, cut it up and transport it away. Has anyone ever bought or sold hardwood trees for firewood? I'd love to know the going rate. Thanks

reilig

jeffwode wrote: »

I know this is like a piece of string question but does anyone know approximately how much you would expect to pay for a good big hardwood tree, either standing or on the ground? Preferably ash, oak or beech.

I want to get some firewood in for next winter and now is the time to fell trees, before the sap starts to rise again in the spring. I can fell the tree, cut it up and transport it away. Has anyone ever bought or sold hardwood trees for firewood? I'd love to know the going rate. Thanks

€30 to €40 per m3 for ash or beech. €60 to €80 per m3 for oak. Both prices are on the ground.

Biggest problem with a landowner letting someone onto their property to fell or saw up a tree is insurance (moreso for felling). Its a dangerous activity. Have you got insurance?

jeffwode

I have no insurance, but a decent amount of felling and logging experience. Is insurance strictly necessary? I mean will most farmers refuse point blank if you haven't got it? I'm a pretty sensible, competent sort of fella. Wouldn't most people be happy to get a few quid for a tree that they don't want?

Two of my cousins have bought standing trees and felled and cut them up. I'm pretty certain they haven't got insurance either.

reilig

I wouldn't let anyone onto my farm to saw a tree unless they had insurance. I don't know if many farmers on boards would?? One small slip could see a claim against me that could see me having to sell the farm to pay the compensation.

Username John

Its not really worth the risk - to get maybe a hundred, or a few hundred quid, and risk losing a few hundred thousand...

You could well be very competent and able, but if you got injured, maybe not through any fault of yer own, just bad luck - what happens then?

There are prob some lads will let you in and chance it away, but I wouldnt be one of em. Chainsaws are dangerous, if something goes wrong, it can go very wrong...

jeffwode

Ok, I can see why insurance is important. I'll look into it. Will probably mean doing a chainsaw course which wouldn't be a bad thing anyway.

But my question remains. What's the going rate for a good sized tree? Supposing I was a firewood dealer with insurance and was buying it to sell the firewood. What would I expect to pay? Thanks.

Dupont

i sell firewood and it usually costs 1 euro a bag to buy so if you get a tree that would fill 20 bags it would cost about 20 euro but then the question of how many bags in a tree?????

jeffwode

Dupont wrote: »

i sell firewood and it usually costs 1 euro a bag to buy so if you get a tree that would fill 20 bags it would cost about 20 euro but then the question of how many bags in a tree?????

Thanks Dupont. Is that 1 euro per bag for hardwood or for softwood? It's a good ready reckoner. Good margin on firewood, btw, if that's the cost price. Selling price for a bag is around 3 euro, isn't it? Good for you!

Dupont

hardwood ash yeah sell them for 3 and even 4 delivered but when you take out price of chain for chainsaw,oil,petrol,taking the tree home price for diesel and time to ring it and get it home then diesel and wear on tractor for splitting and the cost of log splitter and then diesel in van to go out and sell it i do wonder is it worth it

reilig

jeffwode wrote: »

But my question remains. What's the going rate for a good sized tree? Supposing I was a firewood dealer with insurance and was buying it to sell the firewood. What would I expect to pay? Thanks.

€30 to €40 per m3 for ash or beech. €60 to €80 per m3 for oak. Both prices are on the ground. As per my original reply. Processed hardwood is selling at about €120 per m3 bag on donedeal. How many m3 bags would be in the tree???

jeffwode

reilig wrote: »

€30 to €40 per m3 for ash or beech. €60 to €80 per m3 for oak. Both prices are on the ground. As per my original reply. Processed hardwood is selling at about €120 per m3 bag on donedeal. How many m3 bags would be in the tree???

Thanks Reilig

Is that a price you've sold (or bought) wood at? I haven't a clue how to measure the volume of a tree. I could have a fair stab at estimating the dimensions and volume of the trunk, but that's about all. Is it usually measured in trailer loads or bags or what?

reilig

jeffwode wrote: »

Thanks Reilig

Is that a price you've sold (or bought) wood at? I haven't a clue how to measure the volume of a tree. I could have a fair stab at estimating the dimensions and volume of the trunk, but that's about all. Is it usually measured in trailer loads or bags or what?

I just know someone who had tree surgeons in before christmas. They left the wood in 6ft lengths for him. They would have bought it off him for €40 per m3. It was good quality beech. To estimate m3, think of the big bags that stone or chip normally come in 1m wide x 1m long by 1m deep. The full of that is 1m3.

By measuring the mid-diameter and the length of a piece of
timber, the volume of a log can be calculated in cubic
metres (m3). An approximation of this volume can be found
by using the formula:
(0,25*π*D2*L) = V m3 s
where D is the diameter in m (over bark), L is the length in
m and V is the volume. π can be approximated by dividing
22/7, in which case the formula can be expressed as:
(0.7857*D2*L) = V m3 s

Thanks to coford

whelan1

Username John wrote: »

Its not really worth the risk - to get maybe a hundred, or a few hundred quid, and risk losing a few hundred thousand...

You could well be very competent and able, but if you got injured, maybe not through any fault of yer own, just bad luck - what happens then?

There are prob some lads will let you in and chance it away, but I wouldnt be one of em. Chainsaws are dangerous, if something goes wrong, it can go very wrong...

a neighbour of mine who was competent with a chainsaw was killed while falling a Tree on his own farm before christmas

jeffwode

There's no doubt about it, chainsaws are dangerous. But so are cars, and tractors, and so is riding a bike and so is going for a swim. You can get killed doing nearly anything. I'm not trying to be facetious and I'm sorry to hear about your neighbour but plenty of things we all do every day are inherently dangerous yet we still do them.

bbam

I couldn't see us letting anyone in to use a chainsaw on the land, insurance or not. Just because someone has insurance doesnt mean they know what they are doing, there is just too much to go wrong to be allowing some joe soap in even insured.

Specifically there are few things I do each day that are as dangerous as some gombeen with no training or insurance handling a chainsaw and knocking large trees.