We heat our house exclusively with wood. So I brought the whole family with me to help and learn how to fell a tree, cut, split and stack the firewood. There's no better feeling than working with your family to mutually sustain each other. Here are some quick snapshots of our weekend adventure.
Found a nice sized standing tree that was dead and dry. You can tell it's ready and good to burn if the bark is falling off, but still solid when you give it a knock.
My little man helping me mark down the log to get consistent 16" pieces
Cutting it up
Teaching my daughter how to swing an axe. Not the best axe for the job, but my maul was deep in the woods by another pile I was working on.
Splitting it up
Stacking like a boss!
If you're interested in this type of thing, you can check out my Modern Lumberjack Starter Pack post, where I list 12 essential tools for the wood cutter.
That’s great! I have two boys and am trying my hardest to teach them the value of working for the family! They’re 13 and 15 so it’s a rough go but I know when they get older, they’ll remember the lessons I taught them! I wish I had learned the art of splitting wood when I was younger and more limber🤩!
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I’m sure that’s a tough age. It’s not always easy to get my kids involved, but there’s something about knocking down trees, chainsaws, and axes that they find exciting, go figure 😜. I never learned any of this stuff when I was young either, so it’s been a fun experience starting from a place of no experience.
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So cute! I'm loving these animated gifs, showing your family in action.
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We love homesteaders and learn a lot from their posts, including this one. It's highly unlikely I'll ever fell a tree but good to know just in case! Happy Steeming!
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Thanks! It's a great skill to learn, you never know when it may come in handy. I'll be posting some felling how tos sometime within the next few weeks.
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Looking forward to that! Thank you
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We (adults) used to haul the wood in from the woods then the kids would help cut, haul and stack. We never took them out in the woods, but it is definitely a learning experience about proper safety when cutting down trees.
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They were far far away from the tree when it fell. We live in the middle of the woods, so it's kind of hard not to take them into it :D
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Smart idea to stack the wood on logs so it will not pull moisture from the ground.
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Thanks! It's much easier and cheaper than building some sort of rack or using 4x4s. I always try to use what's readily available. It's set up to accommodate 4 rows 24' wide. So I can store 4 cords here, which will get me through the coldest of winters.
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Thanks a good amount of wood! We use about the same amount as you, and yes we live in a warmer climate. I try to keep 2 years worth cut and covered so in case anything would happen the family would be ready for the following year. My son is getting older so I am expecting some additional help in the years to come! Shalom!
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