Felling for Firewood

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The wedge is removed before making the back cut.
The wedge is removed before making the back cut.
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The typical
The typical "conk," or rotten area.
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Be sure to always have a safety procedure when felling trees.
Be sure to always have a safety procedure when felling trees.
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Felling trees for your own firewood can be a very rewarding experience.
Felling trees for your own firewood can be a very rewarding experience.
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The felling or back cut finishes the job
The felling or back cut finishes the job
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Logging is, in the words of a Michigan court, “an inherently dangerous occupation.” And while this ruling has some legal implications, it also serves as an important warning to those people who would attempt to fell trees with a chain saw. I make my living from trees and have done so for the past 25 years. I plant them, I cut them down and I saw them up-and of all of these, the felling of a tree is the most hazardous.

Even so, cutting down a tree is a relatively straight forward procedure. Dangerous yes, but not all that complicated, provided you observe the proper techniques and precautions. What follows are safe and easy guidelines for harvesting your winter wood.

Finding the Right Tree

When harvesting fuel wood, I’ll choose standing dead trees over live trees every time, as they contain good sound, dry firewood. Even better is if I find a healthy tree that is already on the ground.

Good firewood trees are generally hardwoods with large crowns, but a lot of these trees are notorious for rot and hollow spots that are almost impossible to detect until it is too late. You can sometimes tell if a tree is rotten by checking for shelf fungus, growths loggers refer to as “conks.” The problem with cutting a rotten or conked tree is that it may very well break in half, sending the top dropping back on you. So even if there are no outward signs of rot, be alert. If you’ve already started felling the tree, watch for any change in the color or texture of the sawdust or any easier-than-expected sawing. With this kind of work, you can never keep too careful an eye out for anything that can go wrong.

  • Published on Oct 1, 1999
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