Even though we have not turned on the furnace yet this year, it is time to start focusing on collecting the firewood. And stack the wood by the central wood boiler for when its time to turn it on. We have also been stacking more firewood in the barn as we collect it, but now it is time to start producing a constant supply of it to keep the homes and workshop warm.
The leaves are changing and about to fall off most trees, the mornings are getting chilly but have barely got below freezing yet. So it is too early to turn on the wood furnace, with day time temperatures expected to be in the 70-80s I will wait awhile. I think last year we had the furnace already going by this time, so it seems we are having a warm autumn.
I bought a new chainsaw, broke my old one. I messed up and was not adding enough oil to the gas, I thought I was reading the instructions correctly but was not. But now with the new chainsaw I will make sure its better taken care.. it was a costly mistake. My foreman helps me cut up logs, and I load them up in the UTV and haul them over to the wood boiler and the storage area.
We have another giant tree to cut up that fell a few years ago. It was an Oak tree and should be good if we ever need to cut into it. But for now my foreman likes climbing on it so we will leave it...lol priorities.
Two oak trees were felled before my workshop was built, they were leaning over and at risk of falling on the building. So we cut them down and use them for firewood. One of the trunks can be seen above.
Cannot make those cuts with the sawzall, got to break out the 20" chainsaw.
The chainsaw worked great, this was its first day on the farm with us.
Had to refuel it a few times and went through bar oil pretty quick.
We are trying to avoid those 6x6 posts, wanting to keep those for building material. They are pressure treated so should hold up outside for a bit. Should probably store them in the workshop long term though.
Just moving this huge log took both of us.
While driving back and forth moving firewood, I really enjoyed seeing all the changing colors around me.
Soon all the leaves will fall though, and the trees will be bare.
Getting through that big log, still another to cut up though.
Load after load of firewood, I think I moved about 4 or 5 of them.
Lastly we cut up the remaining log into small pieces, any bigger and I cannot pick them up. Around that size I think they are well over 50 pounds, so you got to know how big of a log you can handle. A few he cut I had to ask him to cut them in half again as I could barely move them. I guess oak is really heavy.
So we will keep stacking more wood, even if the central wood boiler is not active yet. As once it is, we fly through wood. So stacking as much as we can now will give us a month or so head start. But by end of season I expect to be completely out of cut firewood. Probably that is the best, if I let those logs lay around too long the ants and such eat them away. Rather go to use in the fire, so best to cut for one season at a time it would seem.
Being my second year collecting firewood, this is pretty new to me. But I am enjoying the process, and it keeps me busy in the winter time.
Good day brother. At the moment i have a wood burner in the living room to heat my house, but i have a Walker Stoves Masonry cookstove (using #rocketstove principles) in progress to replace the #woodstove. Brickwork is done, just need to get ironwork made now, and counter-top. It's been 5 years since i bought the plans. Should use 70% less wood than the woodstove.
My wood is all cut and seasoned and ready to feed the fire. i've been lighting the stove for over a month now most days, once or twice a day for a while.
Sat Nam
Oh very nice, I took a look at the Walker Stoves Masonry cookstoves.. they look really nice. Hope the install goes well and they work good to save you firewood.
Thanks.
Is this a dangerous area to be? The dude cutting wood has a gun :)
You never know when the chain saw will turn on you.. you gotta have a gun to protect yourself.
Lol I guessing it has something to do with protecting certain crops nearby ;)
@seattlea We have bear around here, packs of stray dogs and coyotes. So we always carry when we are on the homestead.
@tipu curate
Upvoted 👌 (Mana: 29/49) Liquid rewards.
Yeah I also feel like the weather has changed.
yeah the mornings are getting chilly and the winds are picking back up.. winter is on the way
But it has probably delayed this time. Isn't it?
Yeah seems like it was already cold by this time last year
Yes
How are you, dear friend @solominer
I love the landscape you have there, the presence of autumn makes the treetops colorful
What a shame that you didn't add enough oil to your chainsaw, and that it ended up broken, luckily you were able to replace it with a new one, and it worked very well
It's good to have help to cut the firewood, that's great, and you have enough firewood stored to face the winter
Beautiful photographs
Me too, I really love it out here.. the nature is just so amazing.
Yeah its a shame, at least I know what I did wrong.
This really takes me back to my youth. We used to have a wood stove in the house. Back before all those wood boilers were the big thing. I remember they would haul the logs in with a crane truck and set them in our back property. Then my dad would have to cut them all down and split them with a splitting maul. Then us kids would have to stack it all. My buddy has a fire wood side business and he said he is getting close to running out of trees soon. I absolutely respect every bit of work you put into this!
Ah yeah that sounds like quite the routine. I have tried splitting with a axe, and using a hydraulic wood splitter and never really got the hang of it. So I tend not to split my wood now, it worked fine last year that way so hopefully it will be fine again this year.
thanks man, it is quite a lot of work.
Yeah, as long as it fits through the door it shouldn't really matter I guess!
It’s been years since I did firewood - hated it at the time - loved it when I burned it, miss it now!!
Hah yeah I know what you mean, once I got the fire going its such a good feeling. the warmth is due to my hard work... I like it.
100% - survived many a cold Canadian winter on wood - love to warmth, the smell and the feeling!!!
@solominer The first day at the farm wood collection was good and some happy moments were spent here. And I came to know this by reading your blog. It was nice to see the wood cut into small pieces in the picture. The leaves are falling in autumn and it is the perfect time to collect wood. Have a nice day.
Sure was a good time, lots to collect. Will be doing this most of the winter now to keep up with the demand.
thanks, hope you do too.
It's good to plan ahead and stack firewood before winter comes. You're right to keep those sticks that can be used as fencing. As long as you have dry trees to cut, keep them.
It's good that you were able to replace the chainsaw that broke down.
Have a great afternoon @solominer
Yeah sure is to get ahead of the season a little bit. Ah yeah I could.
I plan on keeping all the big trees, and only cutting down the smaller scrub trees.. this big one we were cutting up was cut down years ago.
Sure is, glad I got a new one. Thanks, you too.
That will make awesome firewood, but it is a shame such a large tree had to come down.
Your 6x6 posts should at least be off the ground, maybe bricks under them, even though they are pressure treated they will still rot over time.
Yeah should be good, and I feel ya. I never want to cut down 100+ year old trees but it was at risk of falling on my building. So I had to cut it down otherwise I could not build there.
Good point, that would help. I plan on moving them into my workshop soon..
!PIZZA
$PIZZA slices delivered:
@danzocal(10/10) tipped @solominer
So I guess you own a big farm, right?😁
Yep, many acres.
Buen trabajo de poda de árboles 🌳@solominer, en mi país ahora mismo estamos por la pasada de un ciclón 🌀 y se que será devastador cuando amanezca, es mucho los árboles que caerán!! Bonitas imágenes de tu enseñanza
Saludos desde cuba 🇨🇺 Bro !!! 🙏🏻
Ah thanks, yeah I know what you mean. When storms come through around here, its a good time to go down the forest roads and look for downed trees to cut up and use for future firewood.
Glad you liked the pictures.
Stihl and Husqvarna are the ultimate chainsaws, and it will probably remain that way. However, I'm not quite sure whether the chain of the Stihl saw is particularly fond of being guided in the longitudinal direction with the grain of the wood? A wedge or a splitting axe would most likely be a much better choice for this purpose. A nice side effect is that the chain stays sharp for a longer time! 😮😉
Yeah sure are, I hope to take better care of my new Stihl so it lasts a life time.
Oh did not realize that is hard on the blade. Makes sense. Cutting it in the right direction would minimize wear. Oops.. I will try to pay more attention to that.
I get really frustrated splitting wood. So I tend not to do it, just cut them into rounds and toss them in the fire. Seems to work fine.
Hah yeah we are constantly sharping our chainsaw blades.
With the wood, it is like with meat — you should never cut it with the grain. Always cut against the grain. If you do not, you will end up with a tough piece of meat in the pan / on the plate.😮
I cant afford buying those machines so i used to hire people now we have entered dry season so firewood can be made and reserved.
Oh cool, best of luck with your firewood collection.
Your place surely has lots of big trees.😊
It sure does, I love it here :-)
Enjoy your stay more.😊😊
Some of the trees that you cut, the wood looks very good, why don't you make some boards like good, I see your foreman so enthusiastic in cutting some parts of the tree that have been cut, by the way I am very afraid of one of the wild animals like a bear they are very dangerous my friend.
Firewood for the upcoming Winter season, you have quite a lot of them.
Those trees weigh so much and I can see the much hardwork going into it.
Stacking firewood for the winter must require a lot of hardwork.
Well done 👍