Is it Necessary to Have a Wood Splitting Machine – Points to Consider
Log splitters are a kind of power tool. If you are a home or informal wood cutter, you might be wanting to know whether you can live without getting a log splitter. If you don’t have a wood splitter, you are most likely using an axe to chop wood. However that is a bit of a simplication. A double bit axe is going to be used for limbing. Single bit axes can be used for an assortment of tasks. Splitting wood is going to be done with either a splitting maul, or a sledge hammer and a wedge.
There are several great benefits I can think of for chopping and splitting wood manually. I am a traditionalist, and there’s something metaphysically satisfying (to me) about these kinds of activities. It’s the same with cutting food by hand versus a food processor. Number two, it is a killer exercise. Chopping wood, splitting logs, or sledgehammers burn an extremely high number of calories, at some measurements greater than 500 calories per hour. You will get extremely strong forearms, shoulders, and upper back muscles by repeatedly doing these activities. There are actually people who don’t have any wood to chop, but still do work outs with sledgehammers. Several martial artists do, and there is even something called a Shovelglove.
Manually splitting wood also permits you to be outdoors more, away from TV and computer. It can be beneficial to get outside occasionally. It’s also tranquil and can be relaxing. You focus on a single task, splitting wood. Finally, with regards to the task at hand, you will still sometimes need a splitting maul, or wedge for tasks which a powered splitter is unable to handle.
So with all these great benefits of manual chopping and splitting, why would you need the machine power? It’s about scale and scalability. Some people may have too much wood, some people may have health concerns, or some people don’t have any time. A number of reasons exist of course. You want a powered saw like a chain saw, and you will need to get smaller pieces with the splitter. If you are working with large diameter wood like 12 inches or larger, you may likely need some machine power.
Simply how much wood will you need in the winter? People in the areas of the United States will colder winters deal with around 3-8 cords of wood for heating in the winter. (That’s an informal estimate, for example 3 cords in Missouri or Texas, and 6-8 in Montana). A cord of wood measures 4 feet high by 4 feet wide by 8 feet long (128 cubic feet). This is a lot of wood. Based on how much you have to do, you could get this ready in a day or two. It depends how difficult the tree is to fell, the number of trees, and so on. Single home heating will take one or two weekends. You may probably do 20-30 logs in an hour, depending on the wood, the equipment, along with your body.
A gas or electric splitter may be up to twice as fast as a manual splitter. Consider cycle time as one of the key characteristics, with 10 seconds being a very good cycle time. There are horizontal or vertical splitters as well, and power ranges commonly from 5 tons up to 30 tons, and even more. A vertical log splitter is considered a bit safer, and easier to use because the log is easier to get into position. There are mechanical problems that can occur, obviously, and these should be considered as well both in terms of ease of usage, and cost of ownership.
If you decided you want a lot splitter, take a look here –
10 Ton Log Splitter. You can read more about log splitters at this site:
http://www.squidoo.com/10tonlogsplitter.
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