Ever put off a project until the very last second? It could be waiting ‘til the day-of to pay the electricity bill, or maybe you’ve switched the laundry into the dryer right before it encroached on mildewy territory. We’ve all been there. 

As the weather cools and winter gets closer and closer, building up your firewood stash is one thing you don’t want to fall behind on, especially because firewood needs time to season. Whether your primary heating comes from a wood-burning stove or you enjoy your nights cozied up by the fireplace, you’ll need to be prepared.

One of the reasons we love firewood season the most is because it gives us an extra excuse to start our John Deere tractors back up. Not only does it keep your tractor running year-round, but it also tremendously cuts down the length of time it takes to chop wood. Like a lot. Plus, more power from your tractor’s muscle means less work needed from your muscle. Sounds like a win-win to us. 

Getting Down to the Nitty Gritty

Cutting down the tree can be a pretty big task itself because it requires a lot of safety precautions and planning. So read up and be prepared for anything. 

Cutting Down the Tree

After you pick out the chosen tree, you’ll want to be sure you have enough open space around, ideally with some escape routes that have been cleared out. Take appropriate precautions, like sizing the tree and making sure it’s suitable to cut. 

Bring a chainsaw and a mallet, and have a couple of felling wedges ready on standby. Decide which direction you want the tree to fall, and cut about one-fifth of the way into the trunk’s width on the side you want it to fall. Let this cut act as the center of your notch. 

After cutting out the rest of your notch, you can cut into the tree on the opposite side of your initial cut. This is where your wedge comes in handy. Cut just deep enough to pound the wedge into the slit. Now you won’t have to worry about getting your chainsaw pinched. 

You’re ready for your final cut. Cut from the wedge to the center of the notch on the other side. Once the tree starts to lean, pull your saw out of the tree, set the chain brake, and walk away into a safe zone. 

Transporting the Log

Once it’s fallen, there are a couple different ways to get your log where it needs to go. Start with delimbing the tree and cutting it into log-sized pieces using your chainsaw. This way, you can easily carry the logs to where you plan on chopping using either a grapple bucket or a front-end loader on your compact utility tractor. 

You could also try skidding the whole log using a skidding attachment hooked up to the rear end of your tractor. This will allow you to easily drag each of your logs out of the woods and to where you plan on chopping. 

Hauling logs isn’t the easiest thing in the world, but it is made easy with the help of a tractor you can rely on. 

Chopping Up the Firewood

You’ll want to follow all safety precautions, like wearing safety glasses or a face shield to protect against any flyaway wood chips. You should also consider wearing protective attire, like long, heavy-duty pants and boots. Splitting wood can be a very dangerous task, so don’t forget to read up on firewood cutting safety tips.

If there’s anything we’ve learned besides the obvious, it’s that there are always multiple ways to do anything. The easiest and most efficient way to split firewood is by using a 3 point log splitter. Hook it up to the back of your John Deere tractor. Using power and versatility from the hydraulic flow of your tractor, you can get to work splitting. You’ll be able to save a lot of time and energy while chopping wood. 

The alternative to this is of course splitting wood by hand. There’s a couple things to keep in mind here. When you set your log on your splitting surface, try to make sure that you face any knots down. Because knots go against the grain of the wood, you can increase your chances of getting a clean split when you cut into a knot. 

When you have your log steadied and ready to be split, get your splitting ax and get into position. You’ll want to keep enough distance between you and the log that allows you to keep your arms straight. Aim for the center of the wood and swing your ax down to chop. Keep in mind that you don’t have to put all of your energy into each swing. Raise it above your head, drop it down, and let the tool do the rest. If the ax gets stuck halfway through, turn it over, and try splitting the uncut side. 

After you’re done chopping your wood, use your John Deere tractor or a Gator Utility Vehicle to transport your split firewood to where you plan on storing it. You can also use a grapple bucket on the front of your tractor to pile up small limbs for burning outdoors. 

While it may not seem rewarding yet, you’ll look back and thank yourself in a couple of months.

Here’s what you need to know about storing firewood

Burning firewood is a great source of heat, and it calls for a pretty warm night. While it’s a relatively straightforward process, there are a few logistics to keep in mind when you are storing firewood to burn.

1. It’s better to store firewood outside. For a couple of different reasons. Before your firewood can burn, it’ll need to completely dry out. Storing outside provides a better airflow, which allows the wood to age more quickly. Plus, with wood comes all different kinds of creepy crawlers. Termites, ants, spiders, and any other pest you wouldn’t want to see in your living room. 

2. Properly stack your firewood. You might see stacking firewood as a splinter-filled game of life-size Tetris, but don’t jump the gun just yet. When stacking, you should stack your pile loosely to allow for enough air circulation. Try and keep the cut ends exposed to the air. Keep in mind that you’ll want to keep your wood off the ground to keep away unwanted moisture. 

3. Limit exposure to your firewood. When you’re storing firewood outside, it’s important to keep rain and snow from damaging your wood’s ability to burn efficiently. And you worked way too hard not to use up every last bit of your firewood. There are a few different ways to go about keeping the weather off. If you are using a firewood rack, throwing a tarp or a firewood cover over the very top will do the trick. We don’t want to lose that airflow, so make sure to only cover the top of the stack, leaving the sides exposed. To keep the cover in place, set some blocks or bricks out along the top. You can also look into installing a seasoning shed that will protect against all weather AND keep your wood warm. Using this method should lessen the time it takes to dry out. 

4. Dry out firewood indoors right before you burn it. There is an exception to storing outside. Keeping a supply of firewood spread out indoors for a couple of days before you use it will allow the wood to dry out even more.

Have any questions about how your John Deere tractor can help out in every season of the year? Give us a call and we’ll be happy to get you some answers. Be sure to check out our Facebook for more tips and tricks!