You Can't Get the Wood (Really!)
I am promoting replies to well-intentioned people suggesting what to do about the firewood here. I contacted Lignetics, who make Press-to-Logs, and learned:
Most importantly: Lignetics' log-making machine is broken and they are having difficulty repairing it. Consequently, they have been unable to fill orders to their customers.
Regarding us purchasing multiple pallets when they are available and loading multiple pallets on the rental trailer:
1. The largest U-Haul utility trailer (the one we rented) physically can hold two pallets, but it would overload the trailer's rated towing capacity. This would be dangerous and would void our towing contract, making us liable for any damage or towing failure.
2. If we can get multiple pallets delivered to the local Big R (possible if Lignetics gets their machine fixed), we can get the pallets one at a time using the small utility trailer, which we can use at slow speed for short distances. (3 km / 2 mi @ less than 40 km/h / 25 mph).
Regarding the idea of doing a direct purchase from the manufacturer:
1. A full truckload of Press-to-Logs is 24 pallets. (At retail prices, that would cost more than $9000.)
2. They do not bring a forklift with their deliveries. The purchaser must have a lift with which to unload the truck.
3. They do not sell to individual retail customers. They sell only to retailers or distributors.
So I think that's it for this season. We have to hope that we have enough wood to last until it warms up and that the manufacturer is able to get their machine repaired by next season.
There is one other type of fire logs sold through a retailer in Fallon and Yerrington. We have purchased from them in the past, and they do have a truck that can hold two pallets, and they've been reluctantly willing to deliver to us in the past, and we have been able to ask one of our industrial neighbors to use their forklift to unload the pallets in the road (they won't take the forklifts off the paved surfaces). This makes unloading harder for us (we use a wheelbarrow to shuttle logs between the unloading location to the wood box), but possible.
Paving a strip of the East Lot is possible, but not something we're considering in the short term, because we would then have to fence the property to put a gated on the pavement to prevent people from using it as a cut-through road. We know they would do so, because when we first moved here, there were signs of people doing so on the dirt surface. We dragged some concrete logs and part of a fallen tree over to discourage people from doing so.
Every proposed solution has its own complications, and so far, nobody has proposed a solution that we hadn't already considered. Owning the East Lot helps, but does not solve all problems.
Most importantly: Lignetics' log-making machine is broken and they are having difficulty repairing it. Consequently, they have been unable to fill orders to their customers.
Regarding us purchasing multiple pallets when they are available and loading multiple pallets on the rental trailer:
1. The largest U-Haul utility trailer (the one we rented) physically can hold two pallets, but it would overload the trailer's rated towing capacity. This would be dangerous and would void our towing contract, making us liable for any damage or towing failure.
2. If we can get multiple pallets delivered to the local Big R (possible if Lignetics gets their machine fixed), we can get the pallets one at a time using the small utility trailer, which we can use at slow speed for short distances. (3 km / 2 mi @ less than 40 km/h / 25 mph).
Regarding the idea of doing a direct purchase from the manufacturer:
1. A full truckload of Press-to-Logs is 24 pallets. (At retail prices, that would cost more than $9000.)
2. They do not bring a forklift with their deliveries. The purchaser must have a lift with which to unload the truck.
3. They do not sell to individual retail customers. They sell only to retailers or distributors.
So I think that's it for this season. We have to hope that we have enough wood to last until it warms up and that the manufacturer is able to get their machine repaired by next season.
There is one other type of fire logs sold through a retailer in Fallon and Yerrington. We have purchased from them in the past, and they do have a truck that can hold two pallets, and they've been reluctantly willing to deliver to us in the past, and we have been able to ask one of our industrial neighbors to use their forklift to unload the pallets in the road (they won't take the forklifts off the paved surfaces). This makes unloading harder for us (we use a wheelbarrow to shuttle logs between the unloading location to the wood box), but possible.
Paving a strip of the East Lot is possible, but not something we're considering in the short term, because we would then have to fence the property to put a gated on the pavement to prevent people from using it as a cut-through road. We know they would do so, because when we first moved here, there were signs of people doing so on the dirt surface. We dragged some concrete logs and part of a fallen tree over to discourage people from doing so.
Every proposed solution has its own complications, and so far, nobody has proposed a solution that we hadn't already considered. Owning the East Lot helps, but does not solve all problems.