Interesting. As it happens, there is a bunch of us at the dinner table and we started talking about wood (as I mentioned all that was going on with the fireplace right now). Anyway, the question about what a Rick is was brought up. About half of us said it's half a cord, and the other half said it's a third of a cord.

So we decided to go online and find out. THen we found your entry.

Most web sites are in agreement about a rick, being 1/3 of a cord. THey all define a cord as 4X4X8. They all describe a rick as 4X8Xyour average length of a piece of wood, which is 16". That would be a third of a cord.

The guys I called to sell me wood, both described a rick as 4x8x2 (which would be half a cord). Either way, the prices I was quoted are MUCH cheaper than what wood costs in Lost Angeles. So if I only received a 1/3 of a cord, I still feel I got a deal.

Thinking about it, the length of the wood is about 16" so my "rick" is about 1/3 a cord. However much it all is, it filled up this guy's pick up truck. And here's how much I paid . . . .

Got a rick of seasoned ash, delivered to my house, and stacked in my tool house (tiny building near the garage). When the guy delivered it, the wind chill must have been 25 degrees. I insisted on tipping him more and he refused. Cost for wood, delivery, and stacking was $50.

Sounds like a deal to me.

 

We have gas heat which I think is plenty toasty.
Still, I would hear, "Hun, build me a fire.".

After twenty years, I finally went with gas logs.

Now I just push a button.

 

Lazy bastard.

Kobi, man up, get a chain saw, an axe, and a splitting wedge. Or a good old hydraulic log splitter. You live where, in Kansas?? Go cut down your own tree for cripes sake. It's much more satisfying to see and feel the heat off that wood after cutting a tree down, then paying some schlep to do it for you.

If my camera weren't in my truck, outside in the cold, I'd take a picture of my nice cozy wood burning stove.

 

Ouch.
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Dude, the push button thing is sacrilege. If God had wanted us to burn ceramic logs he would have made ceramic trees!

Speaking of bush, ask yourself, 'What Would George and **** Burn?' The answer to this question is The Bill of Rights and The Constitution . . . which are made of paper . . . which is made from wood.

So the correct answer is . . . wood.

Hence, fireplaces are for burning WOOD.

And even though we disagree in this one instance, you still remain, my hero.

Now it's getting late, so go turn off your fireplace.

:santa:

 

Never. Never! Unless, of course, I sell this place and build a new one, out in the country, and decide to do the pellet thing. But as long as I live here (which may very well be my last place) then I shall use this beautiful fireplace.
While admittedly a novice, I have experienced numerous of these thing in this very first fireplace experience at this house.
Ashes . . . check.
Soot . . . check
Bugs . . . check (OK, this one kinda creeped me out. I pull the very first log and in the cracks of the bark are about 5 big old beetles (or some other disgusting bug thing . . .big and black, whatever they were). I have a problem with bugs, especially spiders. When I was a teenage Kobi™ I worked at the local grocery store. One of the jobs we did was sort bottles that had been returned to the store. Often times these were in bags, usually having been sitting in someone's garage for years. So one time I reach into the bag to pull out bottles and a Black Widow is on my hand when I pull it out of the bag. I about $het a cow, and ever since then I have had a thing about spiders and bugs.) Anyway, I figure I'm going to have to pay attention to what is on the logs when I pull them from the stack.
And what's up with this dry heat causing things to shrink inside the house? The Hell?!?!?
Between you and Raoul, I have become disillusioned.
Thanks dude. Try and stay warm in your extreme winter. As much as I like the cold, your posts over the years have shown me that you're a stronger man than I with regard to withstanding the elements. Bravo.

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A chain saw, an axe, and a splitting wedge in my hands would not yield cut wood, only the possibility of a self inflicted amputation. As I happen to like all my parts, and have no tolerance for pain, I'll pass on "manning up". Trust me, I would not get any more satisfaction burning wood I cut down myself, instead, I would be more than satisfied knowing that I helped the economy by employing someone, creating a job in the process, and possibly making someone's life a little bit better. I don't define my masculinity through manual labor. That's what God invented workers for! I'm just using God's tools. If that makes me less of a man, so be it.

:santa:

 

My Grandpa and I have busted and stacked enough wood this past year to last three long winters. Probably over 10,000 pieces sitting in his backyard. We went to this one place to get a few loads of wood that had little black fury spiders running around all over the place. I even got a nice little bite on the finger from one of them.

 

Nice fireplace. Nothing like a good fire to relax a man.

 

Reminds me of my great grandpa, he use to like to cut in June/July/August. He claimed you got twice the heat from it. I believe it! Got hot cutting it, and then get hot burning it.

This is now my new philosophy in life. I LOVE IT!


BTW Kobi, besides the wood chip mess, having to clean out the ashes and find something to do with them, soot, smoke, creosote, flu fires, and bug. I can live with all of that! Been dealing with it my entire life, it's all I've ever known! Yet the one single thing that does really get to me and I absolutely hate!!!
Snakes that hibernate in the wood......
Then I bring the bastards into my house!!!!
When I was a young little toddler Mag, my grandma inadvertently scared the shista out of me while I was exploring a, what I now know was a snake. Ever since then PSS-Mag does not like snakes at all. In fact PSS-Mag is not to man to admit that most snakes still scare the shista out of him and any snake that surprises me, can scare PSS-Mag sh1tless for a week.

 

Wood heat is a very dry heat, it removes moisture from the air. Which in turn removes moisture from the house and the things in it. They will be shrinking from loss of moisture. Wood objects, tend to crack from drying out.

Invest in some Murphy® Oil soap.

 

Damn it! Dude!!!! What did you have to tell me that for? Snakes? Maybe there, but not here . . . no way. I hope not. Snakes give me the ******* big time. While you may be man enough to admit a dislike for them, I am super man enough to admit I turn into a screaming 12 year old girl when I see them.

I HATE SNAKES.

I almost stepped on a rattle snake once in the rough, off the 12th fairway at La Purisima. Damn near died of a heart attack, and even though that was more than 10 years ago, I still break out in a sweat just thinking about it!

(If you really want to hear a funny story, just ask me about the time I encountered an entire herd of scorpion spiders in the Santa Monica Mountains.)

Spiders and snakes and Kobi do not go well together and never will. And now I gotta find out that these seem to be a big part of having a wood pile. Damn!

And with regard to cleaning up ashes and stuff . . . I have a very cool feature to my fireplace . . . an ash pit. There is a hole in the back of the FP. Just push all the ashes into the hole and it all drops down into a pit in the basement. Open the steel door at the bottom and shovel the ashes out. Easier to remove and no mess on the living room carpet! How cool is that?!?!?!

 

If I wasn't to scared to pick one up, it would almost be worth it to see that!

Alright, I'll bite.... "Humorous pun intended."
Tell us.

That is awesome!
I've got fireplace doors and 5 gallon buckets.
Not quite as sophisticated or well thought out.....

 

BTW I just had to go out to the wood pile and get the night logs. I was thinking about this damn thread and the post I made seconds before, as I was picking up the wood in the dark damn it! Three sticks caught my attention out of the corner of my eye, they looked like snakes and I dropped my arm load of wood all 3 times!!!!

 

Yeah, that sounds like a neat fireplace kobi. You lucky bastid. We have to wear gloves and carry the tray of glowing red ashes outside and dump it in a 50 gallon steel drum.

 

I have to scoop it out of the fireplace and into a metal bucket...... then it goes out to the 55 gal drum to be spread on the driveway when it ices or snows.

 

Yep!!



It's not quiet done yet. We need to permanently locate the thermostat and replace some mortar around the opening but it works!!

BTW, it really is a nice fireplace Kobi and if we didn't need the pellet insert for heat, we might have opted for a good old wood burning fireplace for ambiance. We decided that this was the way to go because we're using it as the main source of heat for the house.