Today we split, bundle and deliver a full basket of firewood bundles to one of my distributors. Follow along for the ride of our hobby firewood business
Hello I am enjoy very much to watch your channel, but I have a question about what are you doing with part the small parts of the trees like the branches
Adam you have really got your process down very impressive. All the hard work you have put in your wood business shows and makes this old guy feel like I’m getting lazy. Take care brother
Okay, for starters you care and do a great job! Sometimes you have to call it like you see it. When you see garbage it's just garbage there's no other way to sugarcoat it. Really appreciate these videos and looking to get into the firewood business myself here in Ohio. Me and my father-in-law have been looking into it. You have the best Channel! Keep the videos coming!
I’ve been cutting and splitting firewood for myself all my life I’m 50 years old. I cut split and stack about 15 cord a year.I have a skid steer with a splitter I built for it,Pallet forks, a log grapple. A Ventrac with various attachments,A 7 x 14 14 K dump trailer , 2 pick up trucks A 2020 F150 Maxtow and an old 2001 GMC 2500HD, An older tires Ford tractor with a backhoe and loader.5 chainsaws , a pole saw, including a pair of 372 XP’s. I also own a small 27hp Vermeer chipper. I’ve bought this stuff over the years to make the work go easier and for use in my snowplow,landscape , lawn care business . I own 22 acres ,and have access to a lot of areas with tons of dead standing and blowing down trees . Your videos and friends have convinced me to finally start selling firewood for extra money. I have probably 30-40 cord of logs on my property now, they will rot faster than I can use them. I don’t have a regular splitter ,just the skid steer one so I just picked up a Hudson Badger that needs a little work ( I’m a Ft mechanic and bought a lot of my stuff “needing a little work” ) ....Hoping to get a lot done this winter so I’ll have a sellable product next fall...most of my logs have been down 2-6 months . Most of my equipment is on my channel.... best wishes to you going forward. Love your new splitter.
@@HometownAcres Sont be afraid it’s all just nuts and bolts . I wish I had the patience to to stay in college like you did lol. I got my AAS in automotive tech and I couldn’t take anymore classes lol . 2 years was as much as I could take ... I have 2 saws I bought new the rest were basket cases.... or failed the pull rope test so they needed rebuilding ...
I’ve been selling $1500+ worth of firewood per week all summer long. I have to laugh whenever people say “what do you do during the summer when sales are slow”. Traditionally my slowest sales period is from early March to Early April.
Adam, like they always say quality and presentation are key hence the reason you’re outselling the competition. Glad to see the little man, he’s sure growing. Does he enjoy watching all the machinery ? I hope the new truck is working out for you and just so you know.....it’s crazy hot (usually 100 or more) north of the border as well for most of the last month. Take care and stay safe.
Presentation is very important, for any business. I value not using plastics as much as possible. In everything i do within reason that makes sense for my situation. That being said, when I do this firewood stand strategy I’d like to make a bundler that will use twine but allow you to put tension on the twine as you wrap so you get the performance of the shrink wrap. It’s been in the back of my mind for a while. Thank you for sharing all your efforts.
You can tell looking at the two stacks of firewood. The competition wood is more weathered, been there a while. Your wood is fresh, more turns. Presentation is important and paying attention to those details mark a savvy business.
Hi Adam, nice to see your dad and the little one having some quality time together, that 12-22 Easton made splitter and box wedge is some serious power it does a nice job on that bundling wood. P S. I'd buy your bundles for sure so much nicer 👍
Whole heartily agree with your assessment between your firewood and the competitors. Scraps vs. Firewood. First impressions on your packaging is first class as well.
Looks good. I used to sell pickup loads of wood but no one buys wood to heat there homes anymore, with all the subdivisions I have started selling smaller amounts of wood and kindling bundles, it’s all I can do to keep up.
ahhh yeah, no comparison between your product display and the other guy's...nice work there for sure! I think I see you digging out a part of your field to make almost a 'loading dock' so your side-by-side can park a couple feet under the end of the Eastonmade...hahahaha....split & load 'er right up! Stay cool Straight Cash Wood Hound!! 😀 👍 🍻
That’s not a bad idea. Bundling in the garage is ideal for 2 reasons. It’s in the shade but more importantly it’s right next to the beer fridge haha cheers 🍻
G'day HTA, old mate should probably split his bandsaw mill degrade into kindling . If your loader is struggling to lift something and you're stuck for time drive it down hill then drive back up hill over bumps holding the raise lever open it will go up an inch with every bump 👍.
Presentation is everything. It's as simple as a dealer would you buy from a place where the product with a great display or a place were thing were broke down in the front of the store.
That’s the way I see it. This beer distributor originally told me “I already have a wood supplier, but I’ll give you a shot”. That’s all I needed to get my foot in the door. Glad he gave me a chance to prove myself
Adam, My brother owned a shrink film business years ago. Try a bright red tinted stretch wrap film to catch the customers eyes. Patrick ps I really enjoy the videos. I'm a retired tax attorney who uses a wheelchair since a teenager so I get to live vicariously through your videos,lol. Hopefully soon you can point to the new kitchen and laughingly say that's what all the man-gadgets produced,lol.
Haha that was more user error than anything. I think it would have lifted it if I kept the center of gravity of the basket towards the tractor. When I dropped the front end it went a little too far and made the basket much heavier
Yup alot of weight for a tailgate,the hilo driver should have just moved it out to the edge of the truck bed.then went in with the forks,or just take off the tailgating all together,no hassle and no dents.
Adam, I just found your channel and have been really enjoying it. We do a lot of the same things, I’ve got 31 acres in southern Indiana. Get yourself a 3 point receiver for moving the splitter, I’ve got 3 little kids running around, and try to do as little backing up as possible.
Yeah I bought the hitch for the pallet forks and it works ok but having it that far out in front of the loader creates a fulcrum effect and it’s hard to keep the splitter level. It would be nice to get a trailer mover for the 3 point arms. It would be a lot better for moving the splitter around
@@HometownAcres the 3 point trailer mover is nice, but I also have a quick attach plate with a hitch receiver mounted to it that is nice too. I got mine a few years back from palletforks.com for less than 200.00 to my door. If I have an attachment on the 3 pth that I'm still using it's way simpler to pull two levers and drop my forks and grab the plate. I got it for pushing hay wagons into tight spots, way nicer than trying to back them in.
As for your "competition " I'd say they are more of the "back up plan". I'm sure your customer has had some unreliable suppliers in the past so he feels he needs to keep two suppliers. I will say if I was looking to throw together some cheap birdhouses I'd buy the other guys bundles :)
Adam,Put a small bundle of scraps from splitting in each wood bundle for fire starting. Another feature to distinguish your product. I have some cousins in your hometown who recommended your channel. Keep the videos coming. Patrick
@@HometownAcres GREAT video... I live in Wisconsin. May I ask "roughly" how much do you sell each bundle for to the retailer? I would love to get into this..
It may be, but presentation is everything. I would talk to the owner to see if you can put small signage. Even something simple like saying its cord wood for a longer burn.
I think your bundles not only look more professional but they look (and I'm sure they do) like they will burn longer and hotter than the scrap wood in the other guy's display. His wood looks more like kindling than fire wood. You do a good job and take pride in your wood and how it appears to the customer. It make a difference.
Find yourself a box around the size of one of the pieces of wood that you put in the bundles and fill it with the splinters from the splitting, wrap that bundle of splinters into a kindling bundle and replace one of the cord wood in the bundle with it to both save you wood in the bundle and turn a normal waste product into something the customer will see as a time saver. Box blades are known for producing lots of splinters so you should have lots to turn into kindling bundles to include or sell right next to the wood bundle. To get a little back pressure on the plastic wrap section put a few rubber bands around the spindle before you put the roll on as they will reduce how well it spins on the metal creating some back pressure and you can play around with the number on it to get just what you need.
You competing against Joe at that beer distributor?...;-) Few things... 1) Your tractor will lift that full tote just keep the forks angled back until you get it into bead of truck. This keeps weight closer to fulcrum. To reestablish lift set back on ground and start over. Sandwich or fasten a piece of plywood or osb between headache rack and tote opening to guard against wood bundles falling out on to tractor hood. 2) I think you may want to look at popping off your tailgate when doing totes. That dragging of the full tote on the box bed is gonna reak havoc soon. And less chance of damaging the tailgate from you or you buyer. Use cargo bar or straps to keep totes in place, mainly empty one. But yeah in this day appearance is everything and your setup is night and day different...and they sell for the same price!! No question. Nice work!
Haha it does look an awful lot like his bundles. And yeah I knew as soon as I tilted forward a little too much it wasn’t gonna go anymore. Problem was I was already too high up in the air. If I started to set it back down the basket would have tipped forward and slid off the forks. So my only option was to take a few bundles out and keep on keepin on
@@HometownAcres "keep on keepin on" great motto just found your channel well I got in the truck and took off 5 or 6 bundles now it's good. But if you did this or that you could have put it in your truck|o| Say the arm chair Quarterback|o|
You are starting off great one day someone will drive up in a Truck you think he only wants a cord but it will be more. Started splitting for extra spending money then it went full time. A good tip is some times you may have extremely had wood it's not worth damage any splitter better to toss out.
When I need firewood I will grab yours, nicely bundled so it looks much better. So keep it up Adam. Your on the path to get lots more customers.👍🏻👍🏻 Ones I bought wat was with one piece of twine around. Before I was at the car it fall on the ground. Plus slivers in my hand.😡
I split over 250 cords of more a year I do like your wood splitter. My job has three the home made one is good with a winch. The other two one was good lasted about eight years. Needed improvements the last needed a new engine in 3 months. Let say it was painted yellow.
Your idea of shrink-wrapping wood bundles and using IBC totes as a display rack at resellers are excellent ones. Have you considered removing the manufacturer’s labels from the tote and putting a sign on bottom of the front, displaying your logo, name, Homemade Acres Firewood, and a domain name like, homemadeacresfirewood.com? You can set up a simple website on Wix, Weebly or another DIY website builder. Then, prospective resellers could find your information and you could sell more bundles.
It's nice to see an equipment operator that cares about your truck. Before the days of backup camera's I would always remove my tailgate before I let someone put material in or out of my truck. I still think I would drill a hole in both forks and mount the trailer ball in there. Just carry the ball on the tractor and get rid of the attachment you use. Do you strap the IBC tote in the truck. Have you thought of putting the opening facing your rear window instead of the tailgate?
With the opening facing the tailgate It makes it easier for them to unload and put right up against the building. If I did it the other way around they would have to pick it up to take it out of the truck, drop it and then grab it from the other side to put it against the building
Drilling a hole in the fork is a huge no-no regarding the fork’s manufacturer being liable for any defects or damage. As a heavy equipment mechanic who has been to countless training classes on all kinds of cranes lifts and dozers... I’m up to speed on all the dumbest rules.
4 peices at a time!!! 😮. That's insane!!!!!! 😂. I bet that splitter is expensive?! I will check on those. I am wanting to sell firewood but i am not going to build it very big. Just to help a little before and during retirement. I want to grow and sell Juniper because the " cedar" smells good. Same with pine.
For tensioning the shrink wrap on your bundler, maybe a small diameter piece of wood dowel rod, just enough to add some friction and keep the roll of wrap from spinning freely?
Just found the trailer, maybe it has been mentioned before, A cheap flat bed trailer, avoids the high lift with the tractor, and the abuse on the ford? Just a thought, good luck to you and yours, Keep up the hard work!!! Great channel
I suggest you fabricate a short length of chain to go round the bottom middle of your ibc tote that can attach to the forklift, since it is a repeat customer. It will help protect your truck and make it easier on the forklift operator.
Hometown Acres I owned a business for 30 years. I operated as if there was a similar business next door. Of course there wasn’t. I had a similar operator in my city. He had a different business model. I chose not to dignify him by calling him a competitor. He just happened to be in a similar line of work.
Role the forks back then lift it. Then when you’re over the bed you can level it. Your might raise the ass end of your tractor up a little bit. But fluid in the tires will correct that
Four to one makes sense. His wood looked like it would make for some nice kindling to get your oak started. What’s the break down for time vs money? Investment.. how you find clients etc. I just watched a few more of your videos and saw you answered a lot of those questions. Love your content. Thanks
I think Bill Gates said “If you can’t make it good, at least make it look good.” That’s how important presentation is! Is there going to be that much difference, and are people really going to think about which wood burns the longest and with the most heat output etc for a camp fire? So how will the customer decide which wood to buy? The only factor is presentation, assuming the price is the same. Another great vid, thanks Adam. I’m not sure if I’m going soft in my old age but you seem to bend your back a lot, the wood handling courses in the UK encourage us to use our knees.
Couldn't agree more. I live in a very touristy campground town in Southern Maine. My firewood bundle sales in my road side stand have doubled ever since I switched from plastic wrap to mesh bags. Way easier to carry, neater looking, and way faster for me to bundle. I sold almost 300 on 4th of July weekend at $5 a pop! Love it
It's quite obvious Adam...you're taller. 😉 Your wood does look better, I wonder if there really is a difference between the burn of your wood vs. your competitors wood. Great video, thumbs up.
PS Nelson sells Orange stretch film and Red stretch film. Orange for fall and Red for the Holidays,lol. They and GlobalIndustrial.com sell hooked stretch film cutters for $22.00 per 6. They have holes on the handles for lanyards to hang them from work stations. Check them out if your interested. Patrick from Pittsburgh.
Anyone who's burned wood would know by looking that you get a longer burn from your wood than the slab wood. That and your presentation is why you sell more i believe.
Easy to see why you are selling more Professional, clean, uniform, attractive presentation. Have you though about having a few of the cardboard, political type signs to attach to the totes in some way with your contact info? Might attract some more bulk customers. Love the channel!!
Hometown Acres agreed. Certainly don’t want to bite the hand that feeds you. Maybe it’s a stick on label for the bundles with your name and info. Not really all that different than Coca-Cola having a label on their bottles.
Maybe a small trailer like the ones Lowe’s sells would help with wear and tear of your truck, and since it is lower the tractor would be able to load easily. Another great video, thanks
You need to buy an old heavy duty 2 axle trailer instead of tearing up your truck. Also put a branded sticker sign on your firewood bundles for free advertising.
Just make few hundred copies of your logo/slash info on copy paper and put it under the last wrap of shrinkfilm. Good advertising plus tinder for the wood burner
I think your bundles are less messy in addition to what you already mentioned. People buying your product probably don’t want the mess of bark and wood pieces left in their vehicles as with the other vendor.
