Sean emails:
I have a house with a fireplace, but I'm not a lumberjack and we don't back-up to any forests. I wince at the sight of $5 for 3 twigs of firewood being sold at local grocery stores. Does anyone know where I could buy decent firewood in bulk and have it delivered for a reasonable price?
Sean's not a lumberjack and he's OK. So, got a suggestion for him? Please share!
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Comments
Please note that because of the spread of invasive species, there are some important restrictions on transport of firewood that must be observed:
http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/28722.html
So whoever you buy from, ensure they're following the rules.
... said Carl on Nov 29, 2012 at 11:18 AM | link
This past weekend I purchased a bag of firewood at Price Chopper in Latham, I paid about $7 and it had about 7-8 good size logs. I've also purchased the same size bag of firewood at Stewart's convenience stores and Lowe's in the past, although the price is usually $1-$2 higher.
... said Lori on Nov 29, 2012 at 11:19 AM | link
Check the classifieds of your local paper/Penny Saver or whatever. Make sure you're buying "Seasoned" and not green firewood. I would expect to pay $80-$100 for a "face" or "fire-place" cord delivered, which is about 1/3 of a full cord, and is probably enough for weekend fires.
If you want to make a trip out of it, there's a place just outside of Manchester, VT that kiln dries firewood, meaning you can take it more than 50 miles (the limit is prevent the spread of the Emerald Ash Borer and other pests). While a hike, you get amazing wood (higher BTU rate and less gunk lining your chimney), and it's a nice drice. We pay $100 to fill the bed of a small pick-up (approx. a face-cord), but his prices are going up on Jan 1. It's probably cheaper to fill the trunk of your average sedan. The name of the place is Rising Sun Maintenance, and the number is 802-362-2648. FYI, a lot of the shrink-wrapped fire wood sold locally is actually his.
... said AddiesDad on Nov 29, 2012 at 11:23 AM | link
Paid $300 for a full cord (delivered, unstacked) last fall from George's Market & Nursery in Latham. You can get less than a full cord. A face cord is 1/3rd of a full cord, but if you're going to buy at least two faces, it's usually pretty cheap to just get the 3rd face.
Prices vary significantly from season to season, as well as availability. $300 is on the very high end. Some years, seasoned wood is sold out early in the Fall. You may have to call a few places. If everybody is out, then it's retail bags for you this year.
You can pay extra to have the delivery guy stack it for you, but it's pretty expensive compared to the price of the wood and the time it would take an able-bodied person to do it. There are a lot of stacking patterns (google "how to stack wood") but since you're already buying seasoned wood, it doesn't have to be too fancy.
... said Sandor on Nov 29, 2012 at 11:44 AM | link
When I lived in Averill Park, my apt was wood heated. I always had good luck in the Advertiser or on Craiglist buying full cords of wood.
... said Cmaxby on Nov 29, 2012 at 11:50 AM | link
I heat my house with wood. I have a reliable source now, but when I first starting shopping around, I checked out Craigslist. That, and the local MyShopper/PennySaver. That is where you will find the most listings. The closer the business to your house, the cheaper the price (typically).
Just be careful... some prices are for a full cord (sometimes that includes delivery, sometimes not), some are for a face cord (which is kind of like 1/2 of a regular cord of wood). A cord of wood is a stack of wood that measures 4' deep by 4' high by 8' long.
You also have to be careful of the type of wood. For something indoor, buy only seasoned hardwood (meaning, it's void of most of it's moisture, so it burns faster, and doesn't create the same smoke/creosote levels that soft wood (pine, basically) would). Look for words like "split," "seasoned," "no limbs," "no logs," and "no rounds." That's the best you can find. A good supplier will be able to tell you what kind of wood it will deliver (hickory, maple, oak, locust, etc).
For what you need, you could probably manage with a cord/cord and a half of wood to get your through the winter. And one last thing... think about buying unseasoned, split firewood in the spring, then stack and cover it yourself... it should be seasoned enough for use next winter, and you'll pay 25%-50% less for it than seasoned wood.
And that's all you'll ever need to know about firewood. Good luck!
... said Deanna (Silly Goose Farm) on Nov 29, 2012 at 11:55 AM | link
We've gotten our firewood each year from exit 13S seasoned gourmet firewood. It also came recommended by the guy that cleans our fireplace. It burns really well and they'll deliver and stack it for you.
http://www.exit13s.com/
... said Lisa on Nov 29, 2012 at 12:00 PM | link
craigslist always has firewood for sale or free firewood if you are able to haul and split it yourself (even though you're not a lumberjack, it might be a fun, useful skill to learn)
... said colleen on Nov 29, 2012 at 12:01 PM | link
Does Sean have buttered scones for tea?
... said -S on Nov 29, 2012 at 12:01 PM | link
I love the AOA hive mind!
... said AddiesDad on Nov 29, 2012 at 1:53 PM | link
My wife and I usually score our yearly supply of firewood from craigslist. By we, I mean she finds, and sets up delivery, and I stack it in the garage, because it's my manly duty, etc. :)
Earlier comments about making sure it's seasoned, etc are good... We love our fireplace/stove insert. =D
... said Andy on Nov 29, 2012 at 4:28 PM | link
I got a cord of dried hardwood from Albany Rural Cemetary - big place with lots of trees that die from time to time.
... said Barold on Nov 29, 2012 at 6:46 PM | link
Here's a website that will give you the basics of wood, burning, sourcing and storing. http://www.woodburning.org/wood.htm
Craigslist can be a good source. Keep in mind the wood should be seasoned (http://www.wikihow.com/Season-Firewood) and you should have a dry place to stack and store it. Keep in mind: a cord of wood stacked takes up 4 feet deep by 4 feet high by 8 feet long.
Please make sure your chimney is clean and you're NOT burning any type of pine. If you burn pine, creosote can build up quickly and cause a fire in the chimney that could burn your house down. And you don't want that.
Good luck, have fun and keep toasty!
... said Jamie on Nov 30, 2012 at 10:02 AM | link
I went to Hewitts and their face cords were I think $100. I have a small car so I bought 3 trunkloads (8 trunkloads to the face cord) and paid more than $50 for those. Bah.
The wood seems to burn well but I can't help thinking Hewitts is for amateur lumberjacks only. Anyone else have an opinion?
... said MattC on Nov 30, 2012 at 10:18 AM | link
I probably wouldn't carry a trunk load of wood too far.
To figure out how much weight your car can carry, just read the driver’s door jamb. (For older vehicles, you might need to dig out the owner’s manual.) The first essential number to search for is payload capacity, which covers all occupants & cargo inside.
... said Jamie on Nov 30, 2012 at 2:22 PM | link
When I was out at Albany Rural Cemetery last week for some research, they had a sign by the office saying they had firewood available. No details, but the sign said to call or inquire at the office - 518 463-7017
... said Paula on Nov 30, 2012 at 3:52 PM | link
You can find good sources thru your local Advertiser/Pennysaver/etc, as noted already, but lots of guys who will rip you off if they can. Get one load first time, see if it is good, if so, buy the rest of what you need from that guy ASAP with the instruction "That last load was just what I was looking for, can I get x more cords?"
By good, consider:
Quantity - unless you pay more to get it stacked, the guy is going to dump the load where you tell him to and you won't really be able to tell how much is there until you stack it. The honest guys try to make you happy and you'll never have a short cord. Conversely, if the first load is short, don't ever buy from him again - that is his business model.
Wood Type - You want hardwoods, but different people like different species, and some may work better in some stoves/fireplaces than others. Around here you more oak than anything else, but plenty of maple and others as well. Experiment, find what works for you
Wood Quality - Again, you've got to find an honest supplier. A good guy will rarely give you a piece with dry rot, a water logged piece or one with tons of dry mud caked on it. Other guys, you can count on lots of it. Trial and error, but once you found the right guy, stick with him.
Bugs - not normally a problem, but check what you get pretty thoroughly, you don't want to be carrying a bunch of bugs into your house.
... said Kevin on Nov 30, 2012 at 4:38 PM | link
need fire wood seasoned for woodstove e mail if you can need delivery thank you
... said Elaine Webber on Oct 12, 2013 at 2:41 PM | link
need a cord of season fire wood mix hard wood
... said rich on Sep 17, 2014 at 3:23 PM | link
i would suggest Webb's Goldkrest Farm on rt. 9j in east greenbush i just had 1 cord of seasoned firewood delivered to my house for $249 and they said $100 delivered for a face cord
... said GEORGE on Sep 23, 2014 at 6:08 PM | link
We sell firewood and we are willing to deliver it to our neighbors in about a 20 mile radius around Watervliet, NY. All the wood has been felled locally so there are no issues with transporting any invasive insects from other areas. We our environment very seriously.
... said Dave on Sep 29, 2016 at 6:30 PM | link
The wood you can find from Price Chopper or Stewart's is usually kiln-dried but often in YUGE pieces not very useful for getting a fire started.
Echoing Colleen above, if you are able, you can get wood like that and split it yourself. As Henry Ford said, "chop your own wood, and it will warm you twice."
... said Tyler on Sep 30, 2016 at 9:57 AM | link