Need advice.

[roujesky]

I have a bunch of questions concerning what to do with wood. Specifically, several large oak trees (30" dia at base). I see several folks post that they split the logs for burning. How long do you cut them before splitting? Can I rent a splitter for a few days? Who do you sell the wood to? I really do not burn wood for myself. It is long straight oak. Assuming I don't split it, I would think someone would want it for plank wood (furniture?). Who can I contact to come get it? My place is outside Houston. I read here that most folks cannot find a sawyer (just read that here) to come cut and take the wood. Because of that some have bought/built their own mills and cut the wood themselves. That sounds really cool, but what what do yall do with the milled wood? I don't need/want it....

I could just burn the trees on the ground, but that seems to me to be a crime. It is old growth wood.

thanx

[cowboyjg]

Well.....you DO have a few questions [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img] but all are good ones. Not knowing how many trees are involved could give as many choices as questions.

If I were in your shoes I would first find someone who would want the trees with all they have to do being to come, cut and remove. A trip to the nearest sawmill or even your local hardware store may provide you with a contact if nothing else. There is always the classified section in the paper. A call to someone listing firewood for sale may the ticket. You could place an ad listing the wood for free if they come and take it.
I'm sure you could find enough info here or on TBN if milling the wood yourself becomes your choice.

As far as cutting for fire wood is concerned typical lenght before splitting is 18 - 24" and yes you could rent a splitter, although I think you'll need more than a couple days if you have enough trees. Another scource might be your local BBQ/rib shack or even Cracker Barrel. They may be able to give you the name of their supplier who might come and take down and take away the trees.

Hope this helps some.

Happy Holidays...... [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[Twistedtree]

Before you relegate the tree to firewood, see if it has value as saw timber (that's wood that gets cut up as boards). If it's straight and as big as you say, the straight part might be worth some $$. The most valuable part is the main trunk provided it's straight, and doesn't have side branches. At a minimum, you should be able to get someone to cut down the tree in exchange for the wood.

[roujesky]

To clarify a bit, the trees are already felled to make room for a pond. There are a total of about 6 LARGE trees. There are also some Hackberries that I am burning. I am cutting off the branches and burning them. My chainsaw is not big enough to cut through the base trunk [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
Anyway, I would love to find a local sawmill to take the trees. The trick is I don't know of one. How do I find one? I have asked around a little with no success. Who would know the local sawmills, or if they exist?

thanx

[GareyD]

A good place to look for a portable sawmill is this link

The Forestry Forum

Look in the upper right hand corner of the page for "Find a Forester/sawmill" and it will lead you to a data base of sawmillers in Texas...a quick search listed 6 portable bandsaws in Texas....one of them might be close enuff to help you out [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[roujesky]

Thanks for the link. Unfortunately, Texas is a BIG state and none of those mills were close.

I put a call in to my extension agent. He is going to look around some.