Monday, November 21, 2011

DIY Log Splitting

Yes, you read that title right...Mr. and Mrs. Fanatic have been busy splitting wood this weekend instead of working on decorating a bedroom or working on a project for our foyer.

Way back in April, I told your about the 85 ft. tall oak that had to come down. We hired someone to drop it, but it would have been several hundred dollars more to take haul it away, so Mr. Fanatic would cut it up with his new manly chain saw when ever he got a chance. Problem is, most of it still needed to be cut up and it would have taken forever using a chain saw, so....

We rented a gas powered, 27 ton log splitter...Gotta love more power!






This powerful machine had no problem splitting the massive wood logs




And, yes, I actually got in there and split logs.(Always remember to wear your safety equipment!)



We would just split them in half, then split them again and again, until they were it useable pieces.

The pile in the foreground is oak and we split all of that, plus 1/2 of the stack behind it. There's also another stack the same size right behind the one you see, but Mr. F. cut that before this weekend.
Now y'all know why we want to get a wood stove!



We also split a couple of small cedar trees. This wood smells sooooooo good! I might have to have Mr. Fanatic cut some of these logs up smaller to put in my drawers.


The grain in some of the oak closer to the trunk was pretty amazing.


Some small poplar trees were split, as well.

The diameter of the tree at the trunk is 3 feet across. It's hollow inside, so I thought I would use it as a container and grow some plants in it.

We saved five of the cut pieces of the logs and set them along the path to the creek. They make a nice place to sit and rest on the way back up the hill to the house.





When we were all finished splitting logs, we built a small fire and sat for a few...





Our Sammy came out to say hi. He's sitting on the deck stairs in the previous photo.

Lots of leaves to blow still, but they will have to wait til next week.


Our Japanese Maple has turned a beautiful shade of burgundy and is one of the last deciduous trees to lose it's leaves in our yard.


I'll leave you with my favorite photo of the day...The ajuga growing next to our patio looks so gorgeous among the fallen leaves.

(All photos were taken with Mr. F's Android.)


Hope you had a terrific weekend!


Pam



14 comments:

  1. Great job Pam! That's a LOT of work. Yes, you definitely need a wood stove, or lots and lots of nights out by the firepit.

    I bet it feels great to have that big job done.

    Happy Thanksgiving!
    Pam

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  2. Some lovely Fall shots in that post. The outdoor fire looks lovely. So relaxing even Sammy was in!!!!

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  3. Nice job on the firewood! We always chop what we cut down, but we live in an area where the trees are often chopped down and mulched.

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  4. Amazing shots! What a colourful post! Thanks for sharing.
    Hope to see you on my blog:)

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  5. Hey Pam! You go girl! You are both so cute! That must have been fun to do! Oak is hard so I can imagine it was a big job and a chain saw would have been really really hard to do! I'll bet you are super glad it's done! The adjuga does look lovely! That's one plant I've never tried! Surprise! You guys remind me of me and Dan- So many projects done together!

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  6. I am so impressed. It's one thing for your husband to get pumped about a mega-power tool, but you look just as excited. AND, you manage to look lovely, too.

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  7. Ahhh, you are bringing back memories, Pam! J and his brothers cut dead trees around the farm. We all had some form of wood heat or other, log splitting was an annual event.:-)

    Love the view of the back of your house! Gorgeous!

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  8. Hi Pam, you have a beautiful home! And such great tips! How long will that wood last? Also the idea of the little pathway logs is wonderful!

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  9. You rock Pam! That pic of you was fantastic! :-)
    Vanessa

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  10. Joe would be so envious of that splitter. He just split some sweet gum which is real hard. He has a lot more to go. We are burning ours on the weekends when we are there. Have a joyous week. Olive

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  11. That looks like a lot of work! I really love that last picture. It's sooo pretty!

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  12. That was a HUGE tree! You're sitting on a furniture landmine now! :) Thanks for stopping by! I'm new to your place and LOVE it! I'm your newest follower!!! Happy Thanksgiving new friend!!!

    Hugs, Aimee @ ItsOverflowing.com

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  13. You and your husband make a cute couple. I enjoy working with my husband too.

    Have a wonderful and Happy Thanksgiving!
    xo,
    Dee

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  14. Thanks for telling me about this post! The log splitter and chain saw will be the way to go for us I'm sure. I'm glad you got to sit and enjoy the fire after all of that work. I love the idea of using some of the pieces as a path. I might use some as seats for a firepit back in the woods!

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