Burning Wood Pallets for Firewood

For most businesses wooden pallets are a menace. They add up quickly and are expensive to haul away. As such, you'll often see "free wood" signs close to factories with stacks and stacks free for the taking. Pallets are generally pine but you'll often find oak as well. Out of curiosity I took a few home for my stove. Let me tell you, it's a pain in the butt. The pallets are full of nails and by the time you saw away the un-nailed sections, you aren't left with much! It's like picking a scrawny chicken, not much meat. Don't get me wrong, the wood is extremely dry and burns nicely, but I question the time/effort to benefit ratio here. Unless you have a stove designed to burn the entire pallet nails and all (you can find these!) there's not much value. You can however use old pallets to keep your good firewood off the ground. Why use good split firewood as a base when you can use pallets? If you're really lucky you'll find some old pieces of plywood, these are great for covering the tops of your pile to keep the rain away.

Happy heating!

Prep for the Winter with Yard Sale's

Spring is upon us and so is yard selling season. This is an excellent opportunity to find some cheap gear, including firewood rings and firewood tools like shovels, brushes, pokers, etc. Never buy new unless you have to! People convert their fireplaces from wood to gas or buy a new home and have no intention of using the fireplace. One man's trash is another man's treasure.

Happy hunting!

Free Firewood, Bring a Chainsaw!

If you troll Craigslist with any regularity, you've likely come across listings for free firewood. But as the saying goes, is anything REALLY free?

The listings give me a chuckle every time I see them: "More free firewood than you can take. I have 10 oak trees in my backyard that need to be cut down. Bring a chainsaw and have at it!" I certainly can't fault the guys for trying, there's a sucker born every minute.

To fell a tree you're looking at $250-$1000 each from a professional tree trimmer.

Strike while the Firewood is wet!

If you're taking my advice and trying to FIND your firewood vs. pay for it, Spring time is usually rich with free wood. Make sure and check Craigslist or use the Twitter widget here, you'll find loads of free wood. You'll likely drive by many curbs with stacked wood as well. Obviously remember to split and dry the wood for at least 9 months before use. My next big purchase? A junker pick-up truck to cart this free wood home. The family mini-van is not cutting it!