The best way to buy firewood

banjolin

I have been getting seasoned hard wood for a stove in sling bags which are about 47 cubic feet or 1.35 cubic metres. With about 2 bags of coal this will last me about a month in a 20kw stove running for an average 7hrs a day in winter. I pay €130 for a bag if I collect it myself. It works out at about €40 a week for fuel.

When stacked this timber is about 1.15 cubic metres (85%). By reducing this by another 15% I'm guessing this equates to about a cubic metre of solid timber (.97 cubic m).

Now when someone says they are selling an 8x4 trailer of firewood what are they selling? Generally speaking, how high is the load? One foot high is 32 cu.ft. Two feet high is 64 cu.ft and so on. But how do you know what you are getting? It all seems very arbitrary.

wayoutwest

Thinking in metric is the way to go. A cubic metre of 'loosethrown' split logs , when stacked, becomes •66 M3.
Someone delivering you a trailer load won't be stacking it, so you can be sure that it will be 'loosethrown' load.
When given imperial measurements of trailer, convert into M3 by multiplying dimensions by •3.
For example: 8'×4 trailer
8 x •3 = 2•4 M
4 x •3 = 1•2 M

1•2 x 2•4 M = 2•88 M2 (area)

So, to find volume an 8'x 4' trailer with 4' high sides.....

2•4 x 1•2 x 1•2 = 3•45 M3

......which , when stacked should be 2•77 M3 (3•45 x •66).

banjolin

That seems clear enough.

Any Idea of what the going rate is for loose thrown trailer of hard wood is?

I want to build a wood shed and fill it for next year. That way at least I know it will be dry enough. I reckon I need 6 or 8 cubic metres stacked for a winter.

wayoutwest

.......depends on size of trailer. What you need to know is - what is the going rate for a cubic metre of loosethrown chopped and split firewood?
This figure could range from €60 -€120, depending on species of wood, degree of seasoning and amount purchased.

Blackcurrants

1m3 of timber or 1 tonne of green timber, in lengths roughly equates to 2m3 in split blocks unless it is small diameter thinnings. A 5x8x1.5 trailer will take 1.3m3 of split timber and works out at about €110 for seasoned hardwood and €75 for softwood at around 20% moisture content. The timber is sold by volume by using a standardized loading bucket.

banjolin

Blackcurrants wrote: »

1m3 of timber or 1 tonne of green timber, in lengths roughly equates to 2m3 in split blocks unless it is small diameter thinnings. A 5x8x1.5 trailer will take 1.3m3 of split timber and works out at about €110 for seasoned hardwood and €75 for softwood at around 20% moisture content. The timber is sold by volume by using a standardized loading bucket.

You are bang on the nail. Just been given a gift of a book called Norwegian Wood (weird) which is all about chopping, stacking and drying firewood. A WHOLE book. A loose trailer equates to about 50% volume of solid wood. Stacked wood equates to about 75% at 12 inch lengths. Longer lengths tend to create more airspace (bumps, knots, bends) and therefore less mass. 2ft lengths stacked equate to about 65% of solid mass.

Based on this my bulk bag is approx. 0.66 cu. mtr. of solid wood, for which I pay €130. A 5x8x1.5 trailer for €110 seems like good value by comparison. Though having said that, a bag is not a rigid container, and the blocks are forced together and may not be the same as a loose filled trailer.

MickeyShtyles

banjolin wrote: »

You are bang on the nail. Just been given a gift of a book called Norwegian Wood (weird) which is all about chopping, stacking and drying firewood. A WHOLE book. A loose trailer equates to about 50% volume of solid wood. Stacked wood equates to about 75% at 12 inch lengths. Longer lengths tend to create more airspace (bumps, knots, bends) and therefore less mass. 2ft lengths stacked equate to about 65% of solid mass.

Based on this my bulk bag is approx. 0.66 cu. mtr. of solid wood, for which I pay €130. A 5x8x1.5 trailer for €110 seems like good value by comparison. Though having said that, a bag is not a rigid container, and the blocks are forced together and may not be the same as a loose filled trailer.

Very good book. Been reading it in drivs and drabs.

Green farmer

So when stacking timber, shorter lengths stack tighter and take up less room , then if they had been cut longer lengths ?

banjolin

Green farmer wrote: »

So when stacking timber, shorter lengths stack tighter and take up less room , then if they had been cut longer lengths ?

Apparently. Unless you have something as straight as fenceposts there will be airspace created by knots and bends in longer lengths. Having said that two foot lengths would be fairly standard in Scandinavia.