I enjoy a
fire burning in the fireplace during the winter here in Northeast
Florida . Yes, it does get cold here where the winter temperatures are
cold enough (20f) to freeze over puddles outside. Fortunately it only lasts a few
weeks then its back into the 40’s+.
I
normally burn 1 to 1½ cords of wood per winter at a typical cost of $125 a cord.
I don’t have a wood stove but do have a see-thru fireplace between the living
room and the dining room. I am not much for a dining room because the kitchen table
can seat up to 6 so I use the dining room as a TV and reading room. This works
out very well especially when a fire is burning in the fireplace.
I live in
a timber rich area where 4-6 inch diameter limbs fall off regularly and where I
can take my chainsaw, buck them up and take them home. Also many trees are cut
down or pruned regularly and the large branches 4 to 8 inches in diameter are
free for the taking. The problem I have is I need to split them for firewood. I
don’t want to spend $2,000+ for a gas powered log splitter for the small amount
of wood I need and at my age splitting by hand with a splitting maul is not a
good choice!
So what
are my options?
It was a
low cost electric log splitter! I purchased this one from Northern Tool for $249.00
http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200422062_200422062
Yes, I
had many reservations about a 5 ton electric log splitter when gas powered ones
are 20-27 tons but after reading many glowing customer reviews I bought one.
What could I loose? If it didn’t work I would just take it back for a refund.
Wow, this
splitter was a surprise, it is extremely well built and very strong! This is
not a light weight piece of equipment at 120 lbs.
My
neighbor cut down two hickory trees and I had the tree cutter buck the 50 foot tall
trunks into 18 inch pieces and drop then into my yard. This electric powered
splitter just breezes through them!
What are
the benefits of this splitter?
If you
are a person who cooks on a wood stove this is a splitter you can use inside
your home, in the basement or on the porch splitting wood into smaller pieces
that are appropriate for wood stove cooking without any gas engine poisonous exhaust
and problematic maintenance issues. Just plug it in and split wood. I will also
use this splitter to split regular size fireplace pieces into smaller pieces
for use in my rocket stove.
Summary:
Well your
probably thinking, what happens if the electric grid goes down? Not much
because if the grid is down I can power this splitter with my generator. It
doesn’t make much difference if I had a gas powered splitter or power my
electric splitter with my gas powered generator.
Is this a
splitter for everyone? No, if you heat your home with wood this is not the
splitter for people who need 3-8 cords of wood a year. It is for 1-2 cords a
year or people who use a wood cook stove.
