You have done a great service to a lot of young people telling them what they need to do to be successful. Benefiting from your hard learned experience.
I have met a few that don't listen a simple advice and the worst thing is that they don't care about the quality of the firewood they offer. They have bought a ticket to failure
This is probably the best Firewood based video on the Internet. i’m not knocking any of the other guys, but you are right to the point and this made 100% sense to me. I like the way you think. This was a very well planned out video thank you. This just save me thousands of dollars. Actually you could apply this to many aspects of life. Luke
Just bought my first chainsaw and starting my business, and this information helps tremendously. Thank you for the wisdom,Chris. Greatly appreciated. 👍
I need more friends like you!! Goin to be 60 this year. Thinking of retiring early. You have inspired me to not just think about it anymore !! IM ON IT !! THANK YOU
Good information. I started my own Tree business last year and just about a month ago i started splitting firewood for another service my self. Thanks for this information it's a eye opener.
bless you Chris, you're a great guy full of knowledge you are more than happy to pass on and as with stacking not afraid to change your opinion. i wish I was young enough to start but I'm happy to dream of what could have been. thank you for all your good words
Thank you! So honest and all true. You are so good ! If there were more people like you in the world the world would be so much better . It would be a very good place . Thank you for your honest advice
I am going to be 17 in 16 days. Within 1 month I will have a DR Premier 22T log splitter. A 16 second cycle time but it is within my budget and WAY better than what I thought I’d be able to start off with when first started seeing these things (log splitters). I am confident that I will not have regret #1! Trying to start early! Love the videos! Keep up the fantastic work! Dang I should’ve kept watching, I won’t have regret #2 either! LOL!
A super split is quick. I used to have a 3 inch ram. 2.5 inch rod. I put a dump valve on it. 16 gpm pump. I made an attachment to ride along with the ram. It was about 18 wide by 3 ft long. Came back with ram so I could resplit the other side if needed. I used the 394 with a 16" bar. 16" bar takes the pressure off the back. I set up a rail on the the ram with an adjustable stop on it. I had that with a 4 way.... The dump valve made it come back 18 inches in about 1 second.
@@InTheWoodyard hey Chris you got that right although I quit being his boss ( mostly because he fired me), I have a hard time being the boss of a slacker....( Lol Greg) Greg actually is the hardest worker I know..... besides you.
Hi Chris ~ my first watch of your channel...thank you. I'm gray in the beard and moving forward with my operation....The "must have's...and start Earlier" hindsight's are letting me know I'm going in the right direction! I just got my 70cc saw this week. Thank you! Keith
That's excellent advice Chris. Top stuff, well done. Thanks for your effort and knowledge. That 592 will cut well for you. 1 Thing I would have added is spend good time on maintenance. I've got square ground chain now ..but it still gets blunt. Very few of my friends can sharpen a saw well, its an art ...you have to spend your time getting those chains sharp. Make up an extra chain as a spare ..so if you hit a rock ..which you will do, you reach inside your tool bag and change it out. You will know when your chain is sharp and you will know when it is not.
G’morning Chris. Thank you for the great info !! Where we live, I charge $150 per face cord (oak). I stole your delivery charge menu, I must admit. You inspire me to work harder and smarter. GoodNightIrene
You always have great things to contribute I appreciate that. 5 years making our own firewood and two before for a great inspirational American Man. This video was all information and accurate. I saw you at the firewood frenzy but we didnt meet one another. Looking forward to that moment. Back 40 wood hound
You are spot on with every one of those points, super great advice! I just do 3 cords a year for myself with a tractor with forks, 455 rancher, and troy bolt splitter.
This video is gold. Currently in the process of upgrading my small operation and will be taking this advice very serious. Very helpful. Thank you for this wisdom! ~ Will
Great video! This is my 3rd year and it's reassuring to know I'm on the right path from someone who had "been there done that", so to say. Keep up the good work. Very inspirational!
I have not yet, the problem with most people who are heating with wood is that they are trying to save money so they usually want cheap wood or to pay the least, so there is that.
Exceptional presentation, Not just content but also camera, audio, articulation and graphics. Top ten vid on your channel Easily . Great job So there is a point where the saying " You have to spend money to make money" Becomes very much a reality
This video Chris an similar ones like it you have made are literally my favs of your channel! I watched this one early on when I found your channel late last year but I’ve watched it a few more times since! I really appreciate your thoughts an honesty on this one and really all your videos for that fact! Really is the best channel on TH-cam! Thanks for all your hard work on both sides of the camera! See you soon! Andrew from NB :)
Chris, thank you for the great video. This is the first video I have seen of yours and you now have a new subscriber!!! Trying to get my brother who has the property to do this, to get going on a wood selling business. He sold all 12 facecords he had cut up and now he wishes he had more to sell. This is his first time selling. Thanks again!
A lot of good advice if you live in your environment....most in my area do not want to pay for wood. There are areas where your information is very valid. Again I like your channel and check it out with a cup of coffee each morning.
In my area, south of Des Moines, most of the “fireplace stores” only sell natural gas units. A lot of insurance companies are also not wanting to insure homes with indoor wood burning devices. Smoking wood and pizza wood does seem to be the hot sellers. 🤠👍
When I started I made sure I had 10 full cords dry and ready to go when the next winter came and that's the year we got 18 inches of snow. Don't snow much in North East SC. If you thinking about firewood it be best to start now so your wood will be dry by winter 2022 thru 2023. Contact a logger or land clearing company to get wood if you don't have land. I didn't have any land to cut from so I ask loggers I know or meet and started talking to land clearing companies to get there wood and some land clearing companies will bring it to you for free since you allowing them to dump cause landfill fees are outrageous. There are home owners will ask you to cut trees from there yard, charge them to cut tree then turn the wood into firewood. Make money both ways.Have a great day be safe.
Great advice Chris. I’ve had people tell me my prices are too low, but I feel like I want to get established and known for a good product. Then gradually raise them
Chris Awesome video, you were spot on about smaller pieces, my wife just likes the ambiance of a crackling fire in our fire place, and the other half goes out the chimney. But we are defiantly blessed living out here in the sticks :) My neighbor Dewey about ten houses down owns 112 acres of nothing but trees, and he delivers a cord of wood for 60 bucks! its mostly ash oak etc.. but its the most dry and best fuel ready to burn, since then he has expanded and has minimum of 60 to 80 cords ready for delivery or pick up, he charges 1.50 per mile regardless of were you reside. we reside up here in Upstate NY where the winters can get brutal, but again there is plenty of trees to go around. I really enjoy watching your videos like you said depending on where you reside, my friend enzo lives in NYC and pays 150 per cord have a blessed day and keep selling make that paper 100% Respect Chris
Incredibly great advice. I did cut and sell wood just south of the Des Moines area, when I was younger. This was before anyone was using wood for recreational purposes. It was mostly for heat, and to people looking for cheaper ways to heat. The going prices were half of what you are selling wood for, today. It is looking like now is the time to get back into firewood production and with a better splitter than my old tractor powered Brave splitter. I still love my buzzsaw for anything under 10 inches across. Thank you so much Chris for your knowledge and experience. 🤠👍
Great video! Been thinking about selling firewood for a bit now. You've convinced me to try it. Great advice! And thanks for telling me how "wimpy" my 455 rancher is.... lol
Nice tips. I like videos with lists like this. Just learning how people navigate business is fascinating. Got my bigger saw yesterday. :) Trailer shopping this summer. Gotta square away working space too… oh there are lists!
This is great advice. I'm just starting out myself and trying to figure it out. I rhink my biggest struggle is wffort and inventory. I'll definitely be putting more effort into it and inventory should follow.
I just got my log splitter on credit. It has a 12 second cycle time. I can process roughly a face cord per hour. I will have to get a new one next year for sure. Watching your videos I see the need for a larger saw tho. I cannot believe the demand for fire wood!
Glad it was helpful! You might want to go back to the beginning of my videos on my channel, there is a bunch of stuff on there that would help you. Thanks for watching!
Very good advice Chris, here’s some for you. Not sure your age but you look to be in very good shape and healthy. I’m 70 and have been cutting wood since I was 14, besides heavy construction work. My back is shot and have had two surgeries, one the fuse three vertebrae, I’m still cutting wood, but I do it easier. I had to make it easier and be smarter since I love cutting wood. My point is utilize you trailer and tractor. My wood , once I pick it up (with the loader bucket) it never touches the ground.It goes directly to the splitter and then into a mobil wood rack thats a measured face cord. Our wood is cut 24” so thats a half cord. Then the tractor moves the rack too the drying area. Since you have a trailer you could throw all of your split wood in it and then move it to your storage area. That is if its available., I also use my tractor bucket for that as well. Just some ideas for you , and helpfully saving your back. Have a Great Day
That is my plan going forward for wood I have to move, but I do not want to move it at all, just cut, split and stack all right where the logs are put.
Hi Chris, I really enjoy your videos and, in my opinion, your spot on advice. My first saw was a "Sears Best" lol. It would never start after putting gas in it. One time I was cutting with a friend in the woods. The saw pulled its no start trick and I threw it over the hill. I told my buddy I was going to buy the best saw I could find. I bought a Husqvarna 380 CD. Never regretted it. That was 1976. I still have that saw and ir runs like the day I bought it. I liked the saw so much I became a Husqvarna dealer for 8 1/2 years. I have four of them and I am thinking about a 592 XP. Shalom/gw
Log trucker John just left my woodyard. A really nice load of small logs. There is nothing in the pile bigger than what an 18in bar can handle. Basswood, Ash, a few maple and cherry logs. Hoping this drizzle garbage stops soon so can split to restock and get cutting!
PS. In 1993 I bought a Stihl 044. The next year, I bought a second Stihl 044. Those saws cut a lot of wood using 28" bars. I still have those saws and they still cut wood today.
All good advice. I only cut wood for myself my dad and my brother. Seem keep me busy in the fall. Thanks for the videos. Just got me a 35 ton glacier splitter should help with big nasty stuff.
Oh man I feel you. In 2016 my wife and I started our wood business. That year I split twenty five full cords and sold it. I would split it up in the woods before loading. I agreed about only being able to split wood for a couple of hours.
Charge more and they will STILL come! Customers are willing to pay for a quality product and convenience. 1/2 cord is our most popular order. We just increased from $250 to 300. Accept credit cards and stack the wood where the customer wants wether they are home or not. Works for us
This video just popped up I have seen it before. You definitely got some good points. I have enough wood to start selling next year. I really got get faster splitter. I need a log lift I get big nasty stuff.
Thanks Chris, great advice. My current log splitter is painfully slow!Fast reliable equipment is key.My chainsaw is under powered also. I make do with what I have for now. Thanks for your honesty you’re 100% on the money.
Chris, thank you as always. I've watched this video at least 3 times. I have a question, in the early stages of building inventory..of "being relentless".. can I afford to be picky about species? I worry about gathering lower quality of wood that nobody wants.
If you can sell it cut it. I now stay away from willow, cottonwood, spruce. Even though I can sell some of it I would rather put effort into better/ more desirable wood.
I honestly learned a thing or two! Thanks for that. Only problem I have is space. I live in the Netherlands where it is hard to get a place to store. And hard to get truckloads aswell. But we'll figure it out.
Good advice as always. Except for the part of giving up stuff like coffee as I was taking my first sip of the morning!!😂 Getting out cuttin this AM if the weather holds. 👍🏻👍🏻GNI
Three years ago I started selling a face cord for $100.00. Last year I sold a face cord for $120.00. For 2022 I raised my prices for a face cord to $125.00 and $335.00 for a full solid cord. This is hard work for sure and I want to be paid accordingly. (Well you know what I mean) I also raised my delivery fee from $1.00 a mile outside of my home town (10 mile radios) to $1.50. My increase in pricing for 2021 didn't affect my sales at all or in the least. Thank you Chris for your channel. I have learned so much by listening. Keep posting! Brycat Firewood!
Would a seasonal change to your pricing make sense in your business model? I offer my customers a 10% off-season discount to help balance workload in my canvas business. You might offer a early bird seasonal discount for something like April - August to move more deliveries to the hot weather and relieve stress during heating season. Just a thought since you’ve got a good base of established customers. Or a peak season up charge if you prefer.
My point was in some businesses a seasonal discount can be used to balance the workload and free up time for more profitable work or past times. For my primary business, sewing repairs on awnings or boat canvas often are better accomplished in the off season. I get a more balanced workload and my customers get the work at a reduced price and don’t have their boat out of service.
Great business advice. The one place I might differ is in stacking once a business grows to the point yours has (maybe even before that point), you waste too much time and effort stacking, handling pallets. I'd move to a deal like Outdoors with the Morgans, or Senior Firewood Larry and dump on a concrete slab with side walls that allow you to run a tractor bucket in and dump in the trailer. You know from years of throwing what a face cord or whatever looks like, so throw in another bit extra to be sure the customer gets what they pay for, and quit all that hand work. Just like moving to a bigger saw, or buying logs rather that going to the woods cutting.....save time and labor where you can. A 30x50 concrete slab with side walls would cost you 6-8k, but as you say...you have to invest to make money. You spent more on a splitter than that, certainly more on a tractor than that, so now take advantage of the tractor and stop handling so much by hand.
Thanks Ed, scooped up wood is very messy wood and not very dry or measured correctly either. With hundreds of cords I would need dozens of cement bins to hold it all. High stacked wood cones on hard pack stone is how the big producers do it. Watch my video from last fall called ...FIREWOOD HEAVEN.
Great info great video! If I’m in the city and looking for product near the city what are you ideas on how to find people who would let me cut trees at no cost to them?
Totally rookie here. Thought I was doing okay with a 455 Rancher. Didn't know that was a weenie saw. I thought that was my 14" Milwaukee battery powered weenie saw. First time I tried cutting with that I knew that was not gonna cut it. Maybe some bush trimming. Thanks for sharing your experiences. I wish I started watching your videos before I started this journey. Then again, no better way to learn than thru experience. But I have a feeling your videos might just save me a few hours and maybe some wear and tear on me.
Thanks for watching and keep cuttin' ....lots of videos here for you get free tips and advice on starting and growing a firewood business or being a more productive firewood cutter.
I did all my firewood the 1st 2 years by hand.. Than i got Oak as a surprise and was like nope not doing that by hand so that started me down the path of hydraulics.. My 1st chainsaw was a Sthil ms311 and I learned quickly I was killing it (over working it) doing what I was doing,g with it. So than I stepped up and got a Sthil 461 next to my truck and trailer. The 2 splitters and I big chainsaw i have is my best equipment to date.. Don't know if I would have started sooner but every thing else you are spot on..
So you are saying I need to get a faster splitter and a dump trailer..sign me up!! Nice video! I listened to every word. My biggest issue is quantity. Too many irons in the fire. I need to make more firewood. I need more time.
Well fortunately I am doing many of the early things you mentioned. Wood splitter , dump trailer, buying log loads, making the wood medium sized, now I live in area with a pretty good resource of wood so quite a few people sell that cheap here and there but there are only a few guys that sell it as a business that I can see. I’m at 70 a face this year but come the fall I’m going up to 75. I feel like adding 5 bucks a year is an ok increase.
Wow I am just getting started this past year in the firewood game and this video is spot on. I have already upgraded my saw to a larger one (not a 70-80cc yet) but we’re gaining. I’ve upgraded my splitter already and am looking at bigger ones too. I’ve also been talking to some dump trailer dealers too. It definitely makes it easier and faster to have some equipment. Unfortunately there is just no way to buy loads of logs where I’m at. The freight cost makes it too costly. Anyway, great video and advise! Thanks!!
It took me 40 years to buy a splitter. I started splitting firewood when I was 9 years old. My parents brought a house with a wood stove and I split firewood after school. Over the years we had different homes with wood stove and always with a splitting maul and hammers and axes. When I turned 49 I sprung for a wood splitter boy the hours I wasted. Great exercise but as they say work smarter not harder.
@@InTheWoodyard I just bought a cheap 22 ton huskee wood splitter at an auction and the boy and I are making firewood. Huge Game changer. I love your channel and want to sell firewood. I am currently selling eggs. I use a lot of free tree service wood chips for my chicken bedding and use the compost in the garden and orchard. I have 35 acres that has 20 acres of wood with a lot of fallen trees and mature black locust. Same auction I got a grapple bucket for my john deer utility tractor. Also just bought a used Dodge 3500 cummins. After I get all of the initial bugs worked out, My next purchase is a dump trailer. I plan to get one that has ramps to move the john deere. Your $200 wood processor has inspired me to use an older broken chop saw to cut up limb wood. Keep the ideas coming. thanks for sharing.
Wow fire wood here is around 300 and up, us dollars for a full cord delivered and stacked 500 for kiln dry restaurant grade. 120 bucks will be less than minum wage if you were hand splitting. I have sold some wood in the past and should have turned it into a bigger deal. Just moved to a piece of land and plan on going back to it.
Similar journey to me. Bigger saw was a total game changer as was getting a decent splitter. There’s a fine line between getting something good enough and spending money you don’t have yet. I would add one more to the list that I think is key. Find your niche in the market, where I am there are a lot of people who don’t have the space to store a lot of firewood, they only have the stove for supplementary heat or as a focal point. They have tiny or odd size stoves that don’t take what I would call a decent size log. This is my niche. I supply the firewood at a size that suits the individual customer, I rarely deliver huge loads and have my firewood in nets, people tend to buy between 2 and 6 nets (10 nets is roughly a face cord) I charge delivery on every run unless it’s within 5 miles. Because no one else supplies the way I do, I can charge a premium, but I am still cheaper than the bundled packs that are sold in the forecourts. All my wood is waste from tree surgery wood, so I get it in odd sizes. As I split I throw the wood in different piles based on the size of the round. This saves a huge amount of time as it’s then stacked with like sized pieces so I don’t have to hunt through the stack for the appropriate size for the customer.
I just picked up a 592xp and man does it cut. It has twice the HP than my 460 rancher. I just cut for my own personal use, I have six chainsaws LOL. Never thought about cutting and selling.
Logger here, great video! Tho i don't agree you need a big saw, a 50 cc will work fine, what people need is to learn to sharpen the chain, that's the big difference
Worth more than bit coin. Thanks Chris. Try my new 2nd hand 550xp tomorrow just been rebuilt got it cheap. My 261 isn't idling. Hopefully just solinoid
Also, when buying log length wood, there are two ways. Tree companies and land clearing/ loggers companies. Be careful with tree companies, they are most likely going to bring you logs of every size. The logs could be twisted, have metal in them and be larger than your saw can handle. When the logs in the truck are all the same size, preferably smaller you get more cords per load. Chris gets logs at an ideal diameter, easier to cut, lift and split.
This is all solid advice, I sell in in northern New mexico, pro saws, pro splitter, dry wood, and quality you won't go wrong, we don't do 1/3 cords or face cords here, just cords or half cords but either way it's not easy work but it's work👍
I was in norther New Mexico last year and we stopped in at a firewood seller in Cimerron, do you know who that was or is it you??? We where hunting on the Elk valley ranch in old Dawson.
Yes a splitter is better. But I do have to say i split 120 face cord in a month everyday for 8 to 10 hours and I wasn't too tired. I just ran out of daylight. I get more tired bucking up trees. Anyway... That doesn't change your point being correct. 👍A good splitter is faster.
I don’t have land to store firewood. I’m the few truckload/wheelbarrow guy. Trying to save for a splitter too. Had to turndown 6 truckloads as I sold out fast. Love using my axes but it takes a ton of time.
You have done a great service to a lot of young people telling them what they need to do to be successful. Benefiting from your hard learned experience.
Thanks David, the problem is most won't listen.
I have met a few that don't listen a simple advice and the worst thing is that they don't care about the quality of the firewood they offer. They have bought a ticket to failure
I'm three years in the business and I got to say u gave the best tips, greetings from greece
Thanks for watching!
I made every single one of these mistakes my self!! Didn’t start selling till I was 55 looking back lot of regrets!! REALLY enjoyed this video Chris!!
Thanks Mark!
Wouldn't it be cool to go back to our early 20s and know what we know now?
That would be a superpower haha
Tom. My Dad tells me this all the time..
Yup, youth is wasted on the youth!!!!!!
That would be awesome!
Mine too!
This is probably the best Firewood based video on the Internet. i’m not knocking any of the other guys, but you are right to the point and this made 100% sense to me. I like the way you think. This was a very well planned out video thank you. This just save me thousands of dollars.
Actually you could apply this to many aspects of life.
Luke
Thanks for watching and the kind words Luke!
Just bought my first chainsaw and starting my business, and this information helps tremendously. Thank you for the wisdom,Chris. Greatly appreciated. 👍
Fantastic! Get cutting, there are 1600 more videos on my channel for you to watch!
number one is a reflection of your age. at 65 i realize i can probably continue doing what i love for not much longer. rock on brother.
Look at it this way, doing firewood now will help you be healtjier and stronger later.
Just keep moving James!
I need more friends like you!! Goin to be 60 this year. Thinking of retiring early. You have inspired me to not just think about it anymore !! IM ON IT !! THANK YOU
I am 60 also!
We split wood at the ranch in Montana by hand from 1910 to 1978 when My Dad built a splitter which I still use today.
Nice!
I love how your so laid back and a good enough person to go and throw ur tips online. All good stuff man.
Glad you enjoyed!
Good information.
I started my own Tree business last year and just about a month ago i started splitting firewood for another service my self. Thanks for this information it's a eye opener.
Best of luck!Thanks for watching!
Thank you Sir!!!
I love this. I sold firewood for years. I've been a crane operator for 15 years but I'm just now starting up again. I really enjoy it.
That is awesome! Thanks for watching Shane!
Dry , seasoned and ready to burn. Best advice, not the customers job.
Agreed
bless you Chris, you're a great guy full of knowledge you are more than happy to pass on and as with stacking not afraid to change your opinion. i wish I was young enough to start but I'm happy to dream of what could have been. thank you for all your good words
Thanks so much for watching Mark. You can do what every you put your mind to...just keep moving!
Thank you! So honest and all true. You are so good ! If there were more people like you in the world the world would be so much better . It would be a very good place . Thank you for your honest advice
Wow, thank you!
I am going to be 17 in 16 days. Within 1 month I will have a DR Premier 22T log splitter. A 16 second cycle time but it is within my budget and WAY better than what I thought I’d be able to start off with when first started seeing these things (log splitters). I am confident that I will not have regret #1! Trying to start early! Love the videos! Keep up the fantastic work! Dang I should’ve kept watching, I won’t have regret #2 either! LOL!
Thanks for watching Dom!
A super split is quick. I used to have a 3 inch ram. 2.5 inch rod. I put a dump valve on it. 16 gpm pump. I made an attachment to ride along with the ram. It was about 18 wide by 3 ft long. Came back with ram so I could resplit the other side if needed. I used the 394 with a 16" bar. 16" bar takes the pressure off the back. I set up a rail on the the ram with an adjustable stop on it.
I had that with a 4 way.... The dump valve made it come back 18 inches in about 1 second.
Morning Chris
Excellent ideas on the firewood business. Thanks. Appreciate all you do for us👍
No coffee over logs. That’s a tough one☹️
Thanks for watching Greg!
Ask your boss, she is on my side! More production and less coffee breaks!
@@InTheWoodyard lol. Funny stuff Chris😃
@@InTheWoodyard hey Chris you got that right although I quit being his boss ( mostly because he fired me), I have a hard time being the boss of a slacker....( Lol Greg) Greg actually is the hardest worker I know..... besides you.
I'm going back and trying to watch older videos as I'm beginning my firewood business. I found this one extremely helpful! Thanks so much, Chris! 👍
Thanks for watching, there are over 500 waiting for you on the channel!
Hi Chris ~ my first watch of your channel...thank you. I'm gray in the beard and moving forward with my operation....The "must have's...and start Earlier" hindsight's are letting me know I'm going in the right direction! I just got my 70cc saw this week. Thank you! Keith
That is awesome, get cuttin'!
All these helpful tips are nicely condensed into one video. Thanks.
I did it just for you John!
That's excellent advice Chris. Top stuff, well done. Thanks for your effort and knowledge. That 592 will cut well for you. 1 Thing I would have added is spend good time on maintenance. I've got square ground chain now ..but it still gets blunt. Very few of my friends can sharpen a saw well, its an art ...you have to spend your time getting those chains sharp. Make up an extra chain as a spare ..so if you hit a rock ..which you will do, you reach inside your tool bag and change it out. You will know when your chain is sharp and you will know when it is not.
Yes I agree!
G’morning Chris. Thank you for the great info !! Where we live, I charge $150 per face cord (oak). I stole your delivery charge menu, I must admit. You inspire me to work harder and smarter. GoodNightIrene
Good for you Corey, that is great!
Me too
You always have great things to contribute I appreciate that. 5 years making our own firewood and two before for a great inspirational American Man. This video was all information and accurate. I saw you at the firewood frenzy but we didnt meet one another. Looking forward to that moment. Back 40 wood hound
I appreciate that! Thanks for watching!
Words of wisdom ! Along with the pro saws , learn the preventive maintainer on the saw . Do it Everytime you use it . Proper sharping is the key !
Yes ans Yes Bruce!
Absolutely, I have to see chunks flying, no powder!!
Wow!! This is the rare youtube video.......all meat and potatoes! No cheap filler entertainment crap. I subbed.
I do try to have more meat when I can, thanks! There is 1200 videos on my channel and a new one every morning!
You are spot on with every one of those points, super great advice!
I just do 3 cords a year for myself with a tractor with forks, 455 rancher, and troy bolt splitter.
For personal use that is great! Thanks for watching Ken!
This video is gold. Currently in the process of upgrading my small operation and will be taking this advice very serious. Very helpful. Thank you for this wisdom!
~ Will
Thanks for watching Will!
Great video! This is my 3rd year and it's reassuring to know I'm on the right path from someone who had "been there done that", so to say. Keep up the good work. Very inspirational!
Glad it was helpful! Thanks Dan!
I have not yet, the problem with most people who are heating with wood is that they are trying to save money so they usually want cheap wood or to pay the least, so there is that.
Exceptional presentation,
Not just content but also camera, audio, articulation and graphics.
Top ten vid on your channel
Easily .
Great job
So there is a point where the saying
" You have to spend money to make money"
Becomes very much a reality
Thanks so much Jean, I make the videos just for you!
This video Chris an similar ones like it you have made are literally my favs of your channel! I watched this one early on when I found your channel late last year but I’ve watched it a few more times since! I really appreciate your thoughts an honesty on this one and really all your videos for that fact! Really is the best channel on TH-cam! Thanks for all your hard work on both sides of the camera! See you soon! Andrew from NB :)
Glad you like them!
Chris, thank you for the great video. This is the first video I have seen of yours and you now have a new subscriber!!! Trying to get my brother who has the property to do this, to get going on a wood selling business. He sold all 12 facecords he had cut up and now he wishes he had more to sell. This is his first time selling. Thanks again!
Awesome! Thank you! I have 1300+ videos on my channel and I will make a new one every morning here just for you!
Chris you're a real inspiration, thank you
Thanks for watching!!
One of your best video Chris. Thank you.
Glad you enjoyed Tom!
A lot of good advice if you live in your environment....most in my area do not want to pay for wood. There are areas where your information is very valid. Again I like your channel and check it out with a cup of coffee each morning.
In my area, south of Des Moines, most of the “fireplace stores” only sell natural gas units. A lot of insurance companies are also not wanting to insure homes with indoor wood burning devices. Smoking wood and pizza wood does seem to be the hot sellers. 🤠👍
Thanks for having coffee with me every day Tom!
I call the gas "fireplaces" Flameplaces"
When I started I made sure I had 10 full cords dry and ready to go when the next winter came and that's the year we got 18 inches of snow. Don't snow much in North East SC. If you thinking about firewood it be best to start now so your wood will be dry by winter 2022 thru 2023. Contact a logger or land clearing company to get wood if you don't have land. I didn't have any land to cut from so I ask loggers I know or meet and started talking to land clearing companies to get there wood and some land clearing companies will bring it to you for free since you allowing them to dump cause landfill fees are outrageous. There are home owners will ask you to cut trees from there yard, charge them to cut tree then turn the wood into firewood. Make money both ways.Have a great day be safe.
Yup, all good ideas!
Excellent advice. Watched to the end.
Thanks for watching Louis!
Great advice Chris. I’ve had people tell me my prices are too low, but I feel like I want to get established and known for a good product. Then gradually raise them
That is what I did too, good luck Mr. Retirement!
Chris Awesome video, you were spot on about smaller pieces, my wife just likes the ambiance of a crackling fire in our fire place, and the other half goes out the chimney. But we are defiantly blessed living out here in the sticks :) My neighbor Dewey about ten houses down owns 112 acres of nothing but trees, and he delivers a cord of wood for 60 bucks! its mostly ash oak etc.. but its the most dry and best fuel ready to burn, since then he has expanded and has minimum of 60 to 80 cords ready for delivery or pick up, he charges 1.50 per mile regardless of were you reside. we reside up here in Upstate NY where the winters can get brutal, but again there is plenty of trees to go around. I really enjoy watching your videos like you said depending on where you reside, my friend enzo lives in NYC and pays 150 per cord have a blessed day and keep selling make that paper 100% Respect Chris
Thanks for watching!!
Incredibly great advice. I did cut and sell wood just south of the Des Moines area, when I was younger. This was before anyone was using wood for recreational purposes. It was mostly for heat, and to people looking for cheaper ways to heat. The going prices were half of what you are selling wood for, today. It is looking like now is the time to get back into firewood production and with a better splitter than my old tractor powered Brave splitter. I still love my buzzsaw for anything under 10 inches across. Thank you so much Chris for your knowledge and experience. 🤠👍
Thanks Craig!
Yup, higher gas prices and inflation will do that!
Great video! Been thinking about selling firewood for a bit now. You've convinced me to try it. Great advice! And thanks for telling me how "wimpy" my 455 rancher is.... lol
Sounds great Nick, get outside and get cuttin'!!!
Excellent business planning simply explained. No smoke and mirrors just the facts. Keep it simple there is no magic formula.
Yup....K.I.S.S.
Nice tips. I like videos with lists like this. Just learning how people navigate business is fascinating. Got my bigger saw yesterday. :) Trailer shopping this summer. Gotta square away working space too… oh there are lists!
Glad it was helpful! Start getting wood as you can find it that is the most important part...besides customers!
This is great advice. I'm just starting out myself and trying to figure it out. I rhink my biggest struggle is wffort and inventory. I'll definitely be putting more effort into it and inventory should follow.
Yup, just keep cuttin'!
I just got my log splitter on credit. It has a 12 second cycle time. I can process roughly a face cord per hour. I will have to get a new one next year for sure. Watching your videos I see the need for a larger saw tho. I cannot believe the demand for fire wood!
Good for you! Yes, you will be amazed at the demand! A faster splitter and a bigger saw(s) are a must!! Keep cuttin'!
I admire your editing skills, Chris!
I appreciate that Chip, I am learning but I have a long way to go!
I checked with my local dealer on the 592xp, January is when it should ship.
Yup, they told me February!
Thanks for sharing your wisdom and experience Chris. Cheers!
Thanks, same to you Gord!
Good one Chris. One of my favorites so far. We’re just starting out so a lot of those pointers are good lessons. Thanks for sharing!
Glad it was helpful! You might want to go back to the beginning of my videos on my channel, there is a bunch of stuff on there that would help you. Thanks for watching!
@@InTheWoodyard we’re just starting our hobby firewood business…I’m completely caught up on your videos!!
Best advice video yet brother! Thanks
Thanks so much for watching!
Gotta love your integrity and honesty, Chris. It's simply priceless! Been wanting to ask for weeks, how is your father doing?
Thanks Terrence, my dad is doing great, I am going to see him in a few days.
Very good advice Chris, here’s some for you. Not sure your age but you look to be in very good shape and healthy. I’m 70 and have been cutting wood since I was 14, besides heavy construction work. My back is shot and have had two surgeries, one the fuse three vertebrae, I’m still cutting wood, but I do it easier. I had to make it easier and be smarter since I love cutting wood. My point is utilize you trailer and tractor. My wood , once I pick it up (with the loader bucket) it never touches the ground.It goes directly to the splitter and then into a mobil wood rack thats a measured face cord. Our wood is cut 24” so thats a half cord. Then the tractor moves the rack too the drying area. Since you have a trailer you could throw all of your split wood in it and then move it to your storage area. That is if its available., I also use my tractor bucket for that as well. Just some ideas for you , and helpfully saving your back. Have a Great Day
That is my plan going forward for wood I have to move, but I do not want to move it at all, just cut, split and stack all right where the logs are put.
Hi Chris, I really enjoy your videos and, in my opinion, your spot on advice. My first saw was a "Sears Best" lol. It would never start after putting gas in it. One time I was cutting with a friend in the woods. The saw pulled its no start trick and I threw it over the hill. I told my buddy I was going to buy the best saw I could find. I bought a Husqvarna 380 CD. Never regretted it. That was 1976. I still have that saw and ir runs like the day I bought it. I liked the saw so much I became a Husqvarna dealer for 8 1/2 years. I have four of them and I am thinking about a 592 XP. Shalom/gw
Thanks for the story GA! You will love the 592 it is a awesome saw!
Log trucker John just left my woodyard. A really nice load of small logs. There is nothing in the pile bigger than what an 18in bar can handle. Basswood, Ash, a few maple and cherry logs. Hoping this drizzle garbage stops soon so can split to restock and get cutting!
Like a kid at Christmas! Get cuttin"!
@@InTheWoodyard, going to get stocked up before winter on logs so have plenty to do before selling season ramps up again in the spring.
Good morning Chris!!😀😀
Great advice as usual!!😀👍👍
TTYL!!
Hello Mr. Dredske! How are you doing this dreary day? Thanks!
@@InTheWoodyard Today was a better day than yesterday was. I sure hope it doesn't snow this winter like it has rained this summer.
PS. In 1993 I bought a Stihl 044. The next year, I bought a second Stihl 044. Those saws cut a lot of wood using 28" bars. I still have those saws and they still cut wood today.
Great!
All good advice. I only cut wood for myself my dad and my brother. Seem keep me busy in the fall. Thanks for the videos. Just got me a 35 ton glacier splitter should help with big nasty stuff.
@@jakebredthauer5100 I got fairly fast horizontal splitter but for the real big rounds this help out a lot.
That is great to hear, any splitter is better than any man! Get cuttin!
Oh man I feel you. In 2016 my wife and I started our wood business. That year I split twenty five full cords and sold it. I would split it up in the woods before loading. I agreed about only being able to split wood for a couple of hours.
So do you have a splitter now and how much do you do a year now?
Yes I do, I am trying to stay around seventy five cords a year. Any more than that and I work myself to death.
Thank you for this video! Starting this year!!
You're so welcome!
Excellent video, rich and relevant content. Thank you. Subscribed.
Thanks and welcome!
Charge more and they will STILL come! Customers are willing to pay for a quality product and convenience. 1/2 cord is our most popular order. We just increased from $250 to 300. Accept credit cards and stack the wood where the customer wants wether they are home or not. Works for us
That sounds great! You are doing it right!
This video just popped up I have seen it before. You definitely got some good points. I have enough wood to start selling next year. I really got get faster splitter. I need a log lift I get big nasty stuff.
Glad it was helpful! Just keep cutting, you will need all the wood you can cut and more!
Thanks Chris, great advice. My current log splitter is painfully slow!Fast reliable equipment is key.My chainsaw is under powered also. I make do with what I have for now. Thanks for your honesty you’re 100% on the money.
Thanks John, speed is good, get yourself some!
Chris, thank you as always. I've watched this video at least 3 times. I have a question, in the early stages of building inventory..of "being relentless".. can I afford to be picky about species? I worry about gathering lower quality of wood that nobody wants.
If you can sell it cut it. I now stay away from willow, cottonwood, spruce. Even though I can sell some of it I would rather put effort into better/ more desirable wood.
I honestly learned a thing or two! Thanks for that. Only problem I have is space. I live in the Netherlands where it is hard to get a place to store. And hard to get truckloads aswell. But we'll figure it out.
Thanks for watching and good luck with the firewood!
Great advice.. thanks for sharing
Thanks for watching!!
Thanks for the valuable advices!!
Glad it was helpful Martin, thanks for watching!
Amazing tips. Our lumber mill nearby need to hear it. They split wood by hand for 3 years😂
Glad it was helpful!
Good advice as always. Except for the part of giving up stuff like coffee as I was taking my first sip of the morning!!😂 Getting out cuttin this AM if the weather holds. 👍🏻👍🏻GNI
Thanks for having coffee with me again today!
Three years ago I started selling a face cord for $100.00. Last year I sold a face cord for $120.00. For 2022 I raised my prices for a face cord to $125.00 and $335.00 for a full solid cord. This is hard work for sure and I want to be paid accordingly. (Well you know what I mean) I also raised my delivery fee from $1.00 a mile outside of my home town (10 mile radios) to $1.50. My increase in pricing for 2021 didn't affect my sales at all or in the least. Thank you Chris for your channel. I have learned so much by listening. Keep posting! Brycat Firewood!
That is great, way to go! Just keep cuttin' and thanks for watching!
Great tips for me, thanks Chris! -Brad
Thanks for always watching Brad, I appreciate it!
Thanks Chris - Sage advice from a guy who walks the talk.
Would a seasonal change to your pricing make sense in your business model? I offer my customers a 10% off-season discount to help balance workload in my canvas business. You might offer a early bird seasonal discount for something like April - August to move more deliveries to the hot weather and relieve stress during heating season. Just a thought since you’ve got a good base of established customers. Or a peak season up charge if you prefer.
@@jakebredthauer5100 Sorry, should I have said peak aesthetic fireplace firewood delivery season?
My point was in some businesses a seasonal discount can be used to balance the workload and free up time for more profitable work or past times. For my primary business, sewing repairs on awnings or boat canvas often are better accomplished in the off season. I get a more balanced workload and my customers get the work at a reduced price and don’t have their boat out of service.
I try!
Yes, I have been thinking of doing just that!
This is such great advice! Thanks Chris. I started this year and I got some things right but I learn from you.
Great to hear! Get cuttin'!
Great business advice. The one place I might differ is in stacking once a business grows to the point yours has (maybe even before that point), you waste too much time and effort stacking, handling pallets. I'd move to a deal like Outdoors with the Morgans, or Senior Firewood Larry and dump on a concrete slab with side walls that allow you to run a tractor bucket in and dump in the trailer.
You know from years of throwing what a face cord or whatever looks like, so throw in another bit extra to be sure the customer gets what they pay for, and quit all that hand work. Just like moving to a bigger saw, or buying logs rather that going to the woods cutting.....save time and labor where you can.
A 30x50 concrete slab with side walls would cost you 6-8k, but as you say...you have to invest to make money. You spent more on a splitter than that, certainly more on a tractor than that, so now take advantage of the tractor and stop handling so much by hand.
Thanks Ed, scooped up wood is very messy wood and not very dry or measured correctly either. With hundreds of cords I would need dozens of cement bins to hold it all. High stacked wood cones on hard pack stone is how the big producers do it. Watch my video from last fall called ...FIREWOOD HEAVEN.
Great Video, I appreciate all the tips!
Glad it was helpful!
Great info great video! If I’m in the city and looking for product near the city what are you ideas on how to find people who would let me cut trees at no cost to them?
I do not know, maybe a add on marketplace???
Totally rookie here. Thought I was doing okay with a 455 Rancher. Didn't know that was a weenie saw. I thought that was my 14" Milwaukee battery powered weenie saw. First time I tried cutting with that I knew that was not gonna cut it. Maybe some bush trimming. Thanks for sharing your experiences. I wish I started watching your videos before I started this journey. Then again, no better way to learn than thru experience. But I have a feeling your videos might just save me a few hours and maybe some wear and tear on me.
Thanks for watching and keep cuttin' ....lots of videos here for you get free tips and advice on starting and growing a firewood business or being a more productive firewood cutter.
I did all my firewood the 1st 2 years by hand.. Than i got Oak as a surprise and was like nope not doing that by hand so that started me down the path of hydraulics..
My 1st chainsaw was a Sthil ms311 and I learned quickly I was killing it (over working it) doing what I was doing,g with it. So than I stepped up and got a Sthil 461 next to my truck and trailer. The 2 splitters and I big chainsaw i have is my best equipment to date..
Don't know if I would have started sooner but every thing else you are spot on..
Thanks Daniel, good equipment make work more fun and easier!
Very imformative video...Thanks.
Glad it was helpful!
OK thanks for the video.. I believe I would have started sooner in my business also. Take care my friend
Yes, life is short and now is all you have so ya gotta do it NOW! Thanks John!
So you are saying I need to get a faster splitter and a dump trailer..sign me up!!
Nice video! I listened to every word. My biggest issue is quantity. Too many irons in the fire. I need to make more firewood. I need more time.
Yup firewood eats time steady!
Great video I enjoyed it good advice
Glad it was helpful!
Well fortunately I am doing many of the early things you mentioned. Wood splitter , dump trailer, buying log loads, making the wood medium sized, now I live in area with a pretty good resource of wood so quite a few people sell that cheap here and there but there are only a few guys that sell it as a business that I can see. I’m at 70 a face this year but come the fall I’m going up to 75. I feel like adding 5 bucks a year is an ok increase.
$80 would be better! Just sayin'!!
Thanks for the tips Chris
You bet Josh!
Wow I am just getting started this past year in the firewood game and this video is spot on. I have already upgraded my saw to a larger one (not a 70-80cc yet) but we’re gaining. I’ve upgraded my splitter already and am looking at bigger ones too. I’ve also been talking to some dump trailer dealers too. It definitely makes it easier and faster to have some equipment. Unfortunately there is just no way to buy loads of logs where I’m at. The freight cost makes it too costly. Anyway, great video and advise! Thanks!!
Thanks so much for watching Frank!
It took me 40 years to buy a splitter. I started splitting firewood when I was 9 years old. My parents brought a house with a wood stove and I split firewood after school. Over the years we had different homes with wood stove and always with a splitting maul and hammers and axes. When I turned 49 I sprung for a wood splitter boy the hours I wasted. Great exercise but as they say work smarter not harder.
Yes, a splitter is a must! Thanks for watching!
fantastic video. splitter, dump trailer, bigger saw, stock up on wood initially, make more wood, buy-in 2 loads of logs, Charge more.
Great idea! Thanks!
@@InTheWoodyard I just bought a cheap 22 ton huskee wood splitter at an auction and the boy and I are making firewood. Huge Game changer. I love your channel and want to sell firewood. I am currently selling eggs. I use a lot of free tree service wood chips for my chicken bedding and use the compost in the garden and orchard. I have 35 acres that has 20 acres of wood with a lot of fallen trees and mature black locust.
Same auction I got a grapple bucket for my john deer utility tractor.
Also just bought a used Dodge 3500 cummins. After I get all of the initial bugs worked out, My next purchase is a dump trailer. I plan to get one that has ramps to move the john deere.
Your $200 wood processor has inspired me to use an older broken chop saw to cut up limb wood.
Keep the ideas coming. thanks for sharing.
Wow fire wood here is around 300 and up, us dollars for a full cord delivered and stacked 500 for kiln dry restaurant grade. 120 bucks will be less than minum wage if you were hand splitting. I have sold some wood in the past and should have turned it into a bigger deal. Just moved to a piece of land and plan on going back to it.
That is awesome! Keep cuttin'!
Great video Chris! In central PA you get $100 per face cord. Generally we don’t sell face cords. People here buy whole cords most of the time.
That is about the same a s here. Thanks for watching Denny!
Similar journey to me. Bigger saw was a total game changer as was getting a decent splitter. There’s a fine line between getting something good enough and spending money you don’t have yet.
I would add one more to the list that I think is key. Find your niche in the market, where I am there are a lot of people who don’t have the space to store a lot of firewood, they only have the stove for supplementary heat or as a focal point.
They have tiny or odd size stoves that don’t take what I would call a decent size log. This is my niche. I supply the firewood at a size that suits the individual customer, I rarely deliver huge loads and have my firewood in nets, people tend to buy between 2 and 6 nets (10 nets is roughly a face cord) I charge delivery on every run unless it’s within 5 miles. Because no one else supplies the way I do, I can charge a premium, but I am still cheaper than the bundled packs that are sold in the forecourts.
All my wood is waste from tree surgery wood, so I get it in odd sizes. As I split I throw the wood in different piles based on the size of the round. This saves a huge amount of time as it’s then stacked with like sized pieces so I don’t have to hunt through the stack for the appropriate size for the customer.
When you say “nets” do you mean you put your wood in bags instead of using shrink wrap?
@@ksw501 yes they are like fine mesh bags. Better than shrink wrap as the firewood can still breathe
I think you are doing it right! Way to go Wood MAN!
YUP!
I just picked up a 592xp and man does it cut. It has twice the HP than my 460 rancher. I just cut for my own personal use, I have six chainsaws LOL. Never thought about cutting and selling.
Yup, the 592 makes most all other saws afraid!
Logger here, great video! Tho i don't agree you need a big saw, a 50 cc will work fine, what people need is to learn to sharpen the chain, that's the big difference
Well said! BUT....I can cut TWICE as fast with my 592 vs a little small weeny saw like a 50cc saw ...time is money.
Hi a great video today 🤘👌
Glad you enjoyed it Marshall!
Worth more than bit coin. Thanks Chris. Try my new 2nd hand 550xp tomorrow just been rebuilt got it cheap. My 261 isn't idling. Hopefully just solinoid
Good luck! Keep cuttin'!
Also, when buying log length wood, there are two ways. Tree companies and land clearing/ loggers companies. Be careful with tree companies, they are most likely going to bring you logs of every size. The logs could be twisted, have metal in them and be larger than your saw can handle. When the logs in the truck are all the same size, preferably smaller you get more cords per load.
Chris gets logs at an ideal diameter, easier to cut, lift and split.
Yup, thanks Dennis!
Don’t matter buddy I’ll split it all up
True, barbed wire will reck a chain. Check and re-check those logs.
This is all solid advice, I sell in in northern New mexico, pro saws, pro splitter, dry wood, and quality you won't go wrong, we don't do 1/3 cords or face cords here, just cords or half cords but either way it's not easy work but it's work👍
I was in norther New Mexico last year and we stopped in at a firewood seller in Cimerron, do you know who that was or is it you??? We where hunting on the Elk valley ranch in old Dawson.
@@InTheWoodyard never been to Cimarron myself but great hunting here, I'm in the Los alamos to santa fe area🤘
Yes a splitter is better. But I do have to say i split 120 face cord in a month everyday for 8 to 10 hours and I wasn't too tired. I just ran out of daylight. I get more tired bucking up trees.
Anyway... That doesn't change your point being correct. 👍A good splitter is faster.
I don’t have land to store firewood. I’m the few truckload/wheelbarrow guy. Trying to save for a splitter too. Had to turndown 6 truckloads as I sold out fast. Love using my axes but it takes a ton of time.
Yup, get yourself a good used splitter and you will save a ton of time and make more wood!
I have alerts on FB Marketplace and Craigslist. Great videos!!
Such a good video. Thaknyou
Glad you enjoyed it!!
awesome advice. Thanks.
Thanks so much for watching Laurent!
Man so much good info! Thanks for this video! 👍🪵🔥
You bet!