I usually use a Husky brand 8.5 lb maul with a go devil 4 way splitting wedge. Works great unless wood has more than 3 knots in it. Great all around workout.
How do you split your firewood?
- Thread starter 53' Stude
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Huskee 22 Ton log-splitter I picked up for cheap and re-powered it with a brand new Honda GCV190. My dad and I both burn wood and I put this splitter together as a Christmas present for him one year since he had talked about going to buy one.
I split by hand with a maul sometimes for the workout, but usually when I need to split wood it's a race with daylight so I prefer the log-splitter.
I split by hand with a maul sometimes for the workout, but usually when I need to split wood it's a race with daylight so I prefer the log-splitter.
8lb maul and splitter depending on size
Idiot question from a suburbia guy: what do people use firewood for? Isn't central heating more cost-effective?
There are central heating units that are wood fired. House I grew up in had one.
Could also be for a garage heater or supplemental heater.
Depending if you live where brother does like Cumberland Mountains and not much natural gas. Some friends of mine back in Pittsburgh have wood boilers that heat their house and garage/shop.
I've got an 8lb generic maul, a Collins Axe 6lb maul, and a Fiskars 36" ~4lb maul. The 6lb Collins has a pull through fiberglass/plastic handle that doesn't break, and the fiskars is a hollow plastic composite which seems very tough. I don't overstrike too often but I still found wooden handles would get loose, same with the non pull through plastic handles.
I split on the ground, so the fiskars can really get moving fast, so for small stuff under 16-18" I use that most often, and the 6lb'r does the rest. Any real ugly rounds gets left in the woods, or I'll "noodle" cut it with the 372. Only American elm is tough to split by hand around here, but I don't have many of those and under 12" they aren't too bad.
I split on the ground, so the fiskars can really get moving fast, so for small stuff under 16-18" I use that most often, and the 6lb'r does the rest. Any real ugly rounds gets left in the woods, or I'll "noodle" cut it with the 372. Only American elm is tough to split by hand around here, but I don't have many of those and under 12" they aren't too bad.
If you are buying split wood delivered then often the fuel cost is more with a wood stove, especially in suburbia. Natural gas is cheap!
Compared to propane or electricity sometimes wood can win, even delivered, depending on your location.
Most of the wood we burn is from our land, or from urban friends who get a tree taken down, so its kind of free, and I'm still using the same saw, Atv, and trailer that we got 23 years ago.
Our wood stove and chimney was about $3k installed 20 years ago, and maintenance has been $50 in fire brick and a $30 in new rope seals. I inspect and clean the chimney every year, and that's about it. If we had a gas furnace it would be due for replacement soon, plus actually buying propane for it every year....
We have an open concept house and the wood stove does all the living areas pretty well, so it is our central heating for most of the winter. If you want to have a warmer bedroom, leave the door open a crack, or a bit colder, close the door, or a lot cooler, crack open the window a little... And if the power goes out, nothing really changes.
Gransfors-Bruk large splitting axe.
www.gransforsbruk.com
Splitting axes | Gränsfors Bruk Sweden
Gränsfors Splitting Axes are, as the name suggests, made to split wood. The axes have a large and heavy head that is forged and ground into a concave shape with a relatively thin edge.
www.gransforsbruk.com
The nature of wood heat is that it's often possible to heat your home almost entirely for the tradeoff of your own labor vs spending money on utilities.
Wood and scraps can often be collected for free during the year, and can fully cover heating in a well designed home with an efficient fireplace/ woodstock
(of course you have to have seasoned wood, so to do this right , you are always provisioning for multiple seasons)
If you pay for wood to be delivered and stacked the gap closes with other forms of heat.
I don't use it anymore but I have an adler super splitter from duluth trading co.
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If its a couple pieces I have an all metal 12lb maul. also have a 6# but the handle needs tightening/fixed.
If its a pile I have a gas powered log splitter. Nowadays with one gimpy shoulder I have better things to do than split wood for hours and hurt for next week
(rotator cuff, click click pop click) I can lift the wood all day its just the overhead motion that kills it..
Still plenty of workout rebuilding a pile out of a couple trees.
If I want exercise I'll go pick up sticks for an hour etc. I walked 37000 steps yesterday so sometimes I dont need more exercise
If its a pile I have a gas powered log splitter. Nowadays with one gimpy shoulder I have better things to do than split wood for hours and hurt for next week
(rotator cuff, click click pop click) I can lift the wood all day its just the overhead motion that kills it..
Still plenty of workout rebuilding a pile out of a couple trees.
If I want exercise I'll go pick up sticks for an hour etc. I walked 37000 steps yesterday so sometimes I dont need more exercise
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We burn wood at the cabin for a couple of reasons... No natural gas service. Electricity is not the cheapest. Also, what do you do in the winter when the electricity goes out? (which is a relatively common happening in the north woods). Propane is spendy. An endless supply of dead and dying or storm damaged trees that have to be dealt with anyways... In the process we get the firewood as fruits of our labor... And that disposes of our dead and dying trees... Essentially a use of a product we have to get rid of anyways, and the land grows more, and the cycle continues.
Oh, and to answer the OP's question - we use an old log splitter that was repowered about a decade ago with a Briggs engine. NOt fancy, does the job! And way easier on the body to do versus hand splitting.
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You guys can burn wood for heat? I gotta move!
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Wood stove heat is something else - for me, it's not about heating but about the experience. Also... Splitting logs is a very good cardio workout.
In my home we leave thermostat at 66F however a wood stove in living room heats my office, living room and kitchen to 75F at least that is very warming.
Wife bought our wood stove. My wife is a NH girl from family with 5 sisters who lived below poverty line but happy/well eating who grew up with tiny wood stove(burned found limbs people leave out/oak furniture factory scraps) that kept their house warm because they could not afford oil heat above 55F.
Hire a dude.
I have an outdoor wood boiler. Used to have a load of logs delivered and split them with a gas wood splitter. Now I’m too ole and write checks to a local guy who cuts, splits and delivers. Only time wood saves you money if you have your own wood to cut. Lots of people in WV heat with wood. More and more pellet stoves in use.
Makes sense wood is cheap if you have woods
Propane is $$$$$$
natural gas not always available.
and electric is terrible for heat until heat pump recently.
Discounting the large initial outlay heat pump beats pellet stove until 0f or so.
which may vary with prices locally.
Of course 5k buys alot of pellets
It would be interesting to see how a medium size stand alone heat pump would work in a situation like that.
Maybe a 2 zone or 2 smaller 1 zone.
