Hmmm.
I been thinking the best way to put this one into words.
Ha! Sat back and let others do it.
This same question was seriously posed to me back in about 2010.
As happens I still had 4 of 6 big old grouse roosts ( local/yokel means stand-alones, limby, knoty, wind twisted pitch split filled) Doug Fir trees put on the ground back in 2008. Well the head tops of these is easy, pleasie like a 2nd growth DF at 30 years. I went to the head ends and chainsaw cut a pickup bed level load of 2-3 inch wide discs with my narrowest kerf saw. Thats a LOT of cutting. A LOT of chain chips wastes (chicken litter then). Consider in 18" normal woodstove lenghs I could have cut up the WHOLE tree with the number of cuts it took me to do a couple of three 10 foot top sections. Each cut there is a risk of grounding out your chain on a rock. Might do that bad luck ONCE in a whole tree cut as 18" lenghts into 3-6 CORDS of fuel wood. This grounding dosn’t just dull your chain but bend over teeth if rocked. Takes a LOTs of resetting, filing and grinding to even this “rocked” hit damage out then on ALL of the teeth to even then up to cut straight. I “rocked” hit TWICE on single bed level pickup load discs. HALF the chain life then used up in these groundings.
On our light Doug Fir wood you actually CAN get a full CORD measure at 2200-2400 pounds on a HD pickup with overloads and the right tires.
This at current market at 18" lenths, split, still uncured would sell for $160-200. Plus a delivery fee. Air dried cured only existes for 1-1 1/2 months of the year. Then ALL is either green uncured, or rain soaked wet. You buy, dry and then dry store your own raw cut fuel wood. With out regional 11-12% annual property tax rate on buildings ain’t nobody here building and paying taxes for blowing sideways rain proof dry wood commerical storage for others. Hay yes. Wood no.
Said I’d never, ever do that disc cutting for any kind of money again. Could not afford the filing/grinding time and the wear and tear on the equipment and my patience.
This is when I determined for sure that woodgasing was for those with thier own trees, their own time and own determination.
I would, and will, gladly cut and chunk for any DYI woodgasser passing through out of friendship with the hopes of them passing the wood goodwill forward to someone else.
Ha! Cost you a woodgas ride, some underhood learing time and some conversation.
I’d woodgas transport my Nursie wife. My Dentist. Any local doctor for future pay back services for services.
Urbans, with Urban devaluing of everything is for sale ways can just keep buying thier enabling Dino juices.
Rurals feeding Urbans woodfuels and wood charcoals is what deforested great swaths of France and Germany in the 1940’s.
When you really dig into the cause of a lot of the US West barrenness dry areas it was wood charcoal making anything woody no matter how slow, dry climate growing to smelt for 1840’s to 1880’s silver and gold until rail developed and brought in eastern coal. Whole books on this with old before and after pictures.
Fellas’ we can be out own worst enemies with sloppy condnesate and tar dumps, and appearing to get greedy for fuel woods.
Your own use fine - you’ll just be written off as excentric. Go visible commercial on anything in my state and they will make up regs to control and regulate. Means get thier $, $, $, cuts. Road use frees. Weights and Measures inspections. Seriously. “Wood heating”, “Fire wood” here can ONLY be advertized and offered for sale to the public in full cord amounts of a true measured out 132 cubic feet. No face cords. No ricks. No part cords. Then we have a 7-8% general sales tax we’re supposed to register to collect and pass up forward.
I see no market for gasifer fuel wood here in Washington State.
Dino juices are too operating turn key easy. Why it took back over again even in Europe in the late 1940’s and early 50’s as soon as they could get it again. Japan in the 50’s and 60’s. Korea.
Face it. Woodgasing is for the really hard core hearty who will be willing to make up thier own fuelwoods.
Just my opinions from 40 years of wood cutting for fuels. Mostly “illegal” in one way or the other. No fist in the air doing this. A sneeky quiet snicker only. Ya’ have to look poor, desperate using really ratty road side trucks to pull it off. Shiney will get you fined by someone for somthing here thinking you can afford to pay up.
Steve Unruh