I may be insane

Post by **mikepepler** » 10 Feb 2011, 15:10

Well, that is an exciting development! As Catweazle said, check our SWOG (which my other half runs), and post your questions on the forum there.

I'd be wary of the distance though, unless you plan to build your TEOTWAKI retreat there!

We faced exactly the same problem when we lived near Oxford, and our solution was to buy a wood first, and then move house to be near it. But we were renting then, so it was easier to do.

Having said that, my parents and a friend own plots of wood that adjoin ours, and they live many miles away - but they have us locally to manage and watch over the land.

I assume you've been to visit? If you go again, it's worth counting and measuring any significant trees that you think might have some timber value. However, be aware that if you sell them standing you won't get much - the value is to be had in felling them yourself and doing at least some of the processing. But then you need contacts to sell the produce to...

woodburner · Post by **woodburner** » 10 Feb 2011, 17:41

Andy Hunt wrote: Although I am going to use the woodland for firewood, I don't actually plan to keep much cut wood on the site. My log store at home when full of cut logs can hold around 4 cubic metres which is about half to two thirds of my winter requirement. So my plan is to cut wood every time I am there, bring it back in a van and transfer it straight into my store at home. I may leave a stack of seasoned 'poles' on site which are more difficult to move in a hurry but which I could go down and saw into short lengths for the stove and bring back in a weekend.

If you need 6 cu m a year, you really need a store of at least 12 cu m. I know ash will burn green, but the heat output is low.

Catweazle · Post by **Catweazle** » 10 Feb 2011, 19:39

the mad cyclist wrote:Catweazle, have you come across any unforeseen overheads in owning a wood?

Nothing major so far ( since 2005 ), just third party insurance at less than £150 per year. I've never had a claim and forgot about it completely one year.

My biggest expense has been an articulated 4x4 tipper truck, modified by removal of the bucket and addition of lifting arm and forks. I bought it from a farm who used it to stack hay-bales, cost £450 delivered.

Second expense was two chainsaws. If I was buying again I would buy two the same so as to be able to keep less spare parts. I heartily recommend the Husqvarna 346xp for general and coppice work.

There are all sorts of smaller sundries, chainsaw safety trousers, gloves, helmet, pruning saws, felling lever etc.

Log lifting tongs are worth their weight in gold - buy two the same and you will be able to walk balanced with a big log in each hand, it really helps.

I've found the wood a very good investment, but I bought it at auction, it has great private access from the road - no shared gate, and commercial neighbours who don't moan when I shoot there, in fact I have permission to shoot on neighbours land now too.

I would be nervous about buying a part of a larger wood split into sections, having a shared path might sound OK but what if the neighbours tractor turns it into a mudslide ? Or they leave it unlocked and someone fly-tips a load of rubble in the entrance ?

Ted · Post by **Ted** » 10 Feb 2011, 20:35

Good luck Andy, can you afford redundancy insurance to cover the cost of the mortgage if you do lose your job?

Check the regulations on fishing in estuaries. AFAIK a license is required if you are fishing for freshwater fish - no matter where you happen to be standing. And a more expensive game license if you are after trout.

the mad cyclist · Post by **the mad cyclist** » 10 Feb 2011, 22:05

Thanks for the advice Catweazle.

Catweazle wrote:Just about now is when all the pre-Christmas credit card debt begins to bite people, so you might find a bargain

Woodlands.co.uk sold off several plots near here, right at the height of the credit boom. I keep thinking, surely one of the new owners must be strapped for cash by now, but non come up for sale. Problem is, the 4wd’s in the local town keep getting newer and bigger and the houses keep getting fortunes spent on them. I don’t understand it, is the country in a financial mess or what?

Catweazle · Post by **Catweazle** » 10 Feb 2011, 23:10

If you can't find a plot at auction you can view a likely candidate on the Land Registry website and for a small fee find out the registered owner, then visit and make an offer.

vtsnowedin · Post by **vtsnowedin** » 10 Feb 2011, 23:20

Being a wood burner myself I have to agree with Woodburner on hauling wood over a hundred miles. No matter what your driving that is a lot of wear and tear on the axles and shocks etc. and will show up in a big repair bill when you can least afford it. It will eat up fuel to as the engine has to push more weight up the hills. I'd look to either getting a big lorry to haul you one big load a year home or sell your wood to someone local to it and buy other wood closer to the stove.
Also I agree with Catweazle on the Husqvarna saws. Mine is a 455 rancher with a 20 inch bar 3/8" pitch. The longer bar saves a tall man a lot of bending over and reduces the chances of kickback quite a bit.
I'd cut your wood log length and pile it on skids to keep it off the ground and let it get pretty dry before cutting it up to stove length just before hauling it. Thieves won't go to the trouble of cutting it up as they are a lazy lot. Hauling it dry saves a third on the weight and the wear and tear.
Here people get log truck loads of log length fire wood delivered and buck it up in the door yard. Average load about five cords when cut up. The truck has a cherry picker log loader on it so they can stack the logs on the lawn or in the driveway any way you want.
There is no shortage of forest here or log trucks and skidders so that might not be as easy to find where you are.
It sounds like a nice bit of woods. Spend the weekend camping, cut some logs, do a little fishing and forget the rest of the world for a while. enjoy.

JohnB · Post by **JohnB** » 11 Feb 2011, 00:49

The only way to get logs out of my wood is in a wheelbarrow, or carry them a handful at a time. Except the ones that get stacked by the gate while I go back to the house to collect the trailer, and drive a mile down the road to turn it!

My Husqvarna's sick. The exhaust broke recently, and it's decided it doesn't want to start at the moment, but it's only a weedy 141. I've got loads of hazel to coppice urgently, before it starts growing

.

vtsnowedin · Post by **vtsnowedin** » 11 Feb 2011, 01:07

JohnB wrote:The only way to get logs out of my wood is in a wheelbarrow, or carry them a handful at a time. Except the ones that get stacked by the gate while I go back to the house to collect the trailer, and drive a mile down the road to turn it!

My Husqvarna's sick. The exhaust broke recently, and it's decided it doesn't want to start at the moment, but it's only a weedy 141. I've got loads of hazel to coppice urgently, before it starts growing .

Do you Brits. have ethanol in your gas? It is murder on two cycle engine carbs and fuel lines. Ruined my last saw.
Even with the best stabilizer you can find you must only use fresh mixed gas and never leave the saw with any gas in it for more then a day or two. I dump what I can back in the can then run it until it's dry. The biggest crock they have come up with in years.

Post by **mikepepler** » 11 Feb 2011, 07:26

Catweazle wrote:
the mad cyclist wrote:Catweazle, have you come across any unforeseen overheads in owning a wood?
Nothing major so far ( since 2005 ), just third party insurance at less than £150 per year. I've never had a claim and forgot about it completely one year.

My biggest expense has been an articulated 4x4 tipper truck, modified by removal of the bucket and addition of lifting arm and forks. I bought it from a farm who used it to stack hay-bales, cost £450 delivered.

Second expense was two chainsaws. If I was buying again I would buy two the same so as to be able to keep less spare parts. I heartily recommend the Husqvarna 346xp for general and coppice work.

There are all sorts of smaller sundries, chainsaw safety trousers, gloves, helmet, pruning saws, felling lever etc.

Log lifting tongs are worth their weight in gold - buy two the same and you will be able to walk balanced with a big log in each hand, it really helps.

I've found the wood a very good investment, but I bought it at auction, it has great private access from the road - no shared gate, and commercial neighbours who don't moan when I shoot there, in fact I have permission to shoot on neighbours land now too.

I would be nervous about buying a part of a larger wood split into sections, having a shared path might sound OK but what if the neighbours tractor turns it into a mudslide ? Or they leave it unlocked and someone fly-tips a load of rubble in the entrance ?

We've had similar expenses, though we bought a land rover which cost £5k. We didn't *need* it, but it's very useful and I'm not sure how we'd have done the work we have without it over the last year. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_-aVDVgMcJ0

We've got two 346xp's, definitely a good saw, and a good idea to have two identical for keeping spares, but at £400+ new they're not cheap. You can always start with one and add another later though. Then again, Tracy and I both use them, so we had a need for two. We have a husky 570 as well, for the bigger jobs.

I think the biggest ongoing expenditure is protective clothing. Chainsaw trousers are at least £60, more like £80 for decent ones, and never seem to last more than a couple of years due to wear-and-tear. I went through a lot of chainsaw gloves too before deciding they were a waste of money - I use £1/pair grip gloves now, which are much better than leather in the wet.

Regarding shared tracks, we've not had serious problems with the gate. In terms of the track getting muddy, we've been one of the culprits, due to a contractor's tractor, but we fixed it up again pretty quickly. Other people have also made a mess of it, and this was one of the reasons for getting the land rover - you can stop caring about the state of the track! We do only live 5 miles from the wood though, so the fuel consumption isn't a big deal...

Catweazle · Post by **Catweazle** » 11 Feb 2011, 08:05

I fancied a Land Rover Defender myself, but a couple of years ago when the petrol prices went up people around here started giving away big 4x4s, I ended up with a very cheap 4.6 V8 RangeRover HSE . It does 13.7mpg on the mud tyres, but my woods are only a mile away up the lane, so not a problem. It's actually a very capable 4x4, originally £55000, now £1500 due to that appalling mpg. BFG Mud Terrain tyres were another £400.

I use it as a tractor, if the tipper won't move it the RangeRover will

With the back seats folded down I can get loads of logs in it, and it can legally tow a 3.5 ton trailer too.

Post by **mikepepler** » 11 Feb 2011, 10:19

Catweazle wrote:I fancied a Land Rover Defender myself, but a couple of years ago when the petrol prices went up people around here started giving away big 4x4s, I ended up with a very cheap 4.6 V8 RangeRover HSE . It does 13.7mpg on the mud tyres, but my woods are only a mile away up the lane, so not a problem. It's actually a very capable 4x4, originally £55000, now £1500 due to that appalling mpg. BFG Mud Terrain tyres were another £400.

I use it as a tractor, if the tipper won't move it the RangeRover will With the back seats folded down I can get loads of logs in it, and it can legally tow a 3.5 ton trailer too.

What's insurance/tax/servicing like on it though? Not that any of them are particularly good on a Defender...

JohnB · Post by **JohnB** » 11 Feb 2011, 10:42

Catweazle wrote:I use it as a tractor, if the tipper won't move it the RangeRover will With the back seats folded down I can get loads of logs in it, and it can legally tow a 3.5 ton trailer too.

That's tempting. I'm currently collecting quite a few tons of stone acquired on Freecycle, half a ton at a time!

stumuzz · Post by **stumuzz** » 11 Feb 2011, 10:49

Brilliant Film Mike,the defender in it's natural surroundings!!

Andy Hunt · Post by **Andy Hunt** » 12 Feb 2011, 01:43

woodburner wrote:
Andy Hunt wrote: Although I am going to use the woodland for firewood, I don't actually plan to keep much cut wood on the site. My log store at home when full of cut logs can hold around 4 cubic metres which is about half to two thirds of my winter requirement. So my plan is to cut wood every time I am there, bring it back in a van and transfer it straight into my store at home. I may leave a stack of seasoned 'poles' on site which are more difficult to move in a hurry but which I could go down and saw into short lengths for the stove and bring back in a weekend.
If you need 6 cu m a year, you really need a store of at least 12 cu m. I know ash will burn green, but the heat output is low.

Planning to cut and store in the spring, for burning in the autumn.