If you run a tree crew around Columbia, bring us your good saw logs. A straight hardwood trunk is worth more as lumber than as chips or firewood, and dropping it at our yard can save you a trip to the dump. We also mill logs for your removal customers who want to keep their tree, so you can offer them more than "we'll haul it off."
Logs we want
The logs worth bringing are the ones that will give clean lumber. Logs that usually make good lumber:
- Hardwoods with lumber value. Black walnut, white oak, red oak, cherry, hickory, ash, sycamore, maple and elm, plus eastern red cedar.
- Size. About 12 inches and up at the small end, inside the bark. Bigger is better, especially for walnut and white oak.
- Length. Straight sections of 8 to 12 feet, plus a few inches of trim. Shorter clean pieces of walnut and cherry can still be worth bringing.
- Sound wood. Some center rot is fine. Logs that are punky all the way through aren't.
If you're not sure about a log, send a photo of the end and a tape across it before you load it. We'll tell you whether to bring it.
How to cut a trunk so it's worth milling
A few habits on the job make the difference between a saw log and firewood. None of them slow a crew down much.
- Buck long. Cut the trunk into the longest straight sections your equipment can handle, in lumber lengths (8, 10, 12 feet) plus 4 to 6 inches of trim allowance.
- Cut at the defects. Put your cuts at forks, sharp bends, big knots and damaged sections, not in the middle of clear straight wood.
- Keep the crotch. On walnut and cherry especially, a big fork cut as one piece can show valuable figure.
- Square ends. Cut ends square to the log, not at a steep angle.
- Keep it clean. Skid with the log off the ground where you can. Dirt and gravel driven into the bark wreck saw blades.
- Flag metal. If you hit a nail or see wire, a fence line or an old treehouse, spray-paint a mark on that spot. It tells us where to look.
- Move it soon. In summer, logs that sit in the sun for weeks check at the ends, and light-colored woods like maple, sycamore and hackberry can stain. Fresher is better.
Drop-off hours and yard access
Our mill is stationary and our log deck is at the yard. Message us before you come with what you're bringing (species, rough count, sizes) so we can tell you where to unload.
Tell us how you'll unload when you message us. A truck with a knuckleboom or grapple, or a trailer you can roll logs off, makes drop-off quick.
What to send before you bring a load
A quick message before you load saves everyone time. Send us:
- The species, or a photo of the bark and the cut end
- How many logs, with the small-end diameter and length of each
- A photo of the pile, so we can see straightness and condition
- Anything you know about metal in the tree
- When you'd like to drop them
We'll reply with which logs to bring and where to unload them.
Offering milling to your removal customers
A lot of homeowners hate to see a big tree go. When you're bidding a removal on a walnut, oak or cherry, ask if they'd like to keep the wood. If they do, the job changes only a little for you:
- Buck the trunk in long, straight sections (see above).
- Drop the trunk at our yard, or leave it on blocks for the homeowner to haul.
- Send the homeowner to our custom sawmilling page, or have them send us photos through our quote form.
We mill the log for the homeowner and they pick up their lumber, slabs or mantel from us. It's a way to set your bid apart, and the customer remembers who saved their tree. Our storm-downed trees page is written for homeowners in exactly this spot; feel free to share it. Our guide to tree removal when you want to keep the log is a good one to send customers before the job.
It helps to set expectations with the homeowner up front. Fresh-sawn wood is wet, so a table or mantel from their tree is a project for a year or more out, not next month. A straight trunk 16 to 20 inches across gives enough wood for a real project; a short, forked or hollow one may not. If they're unsure, have them send us photos before you cut, and we'll give them a straight answer.
What we can't take
Some logs aren't worth sawing, and some we can't handle. In general:
- Brush, limbs and small trunks under about 10 inches across
- Logs that are rotten or punky most of the way through
- Very short pieces of low-value species
- Logs full of metal (ask first), like trees that grew around fencing, chain or signs
- Stumps and root balls, which carry rocks and dirt
- Logs too big for our mill
Most low-value logs are better as firewood or chips, and that's fine. We just want to see the good ones before they go that way.
Get a Quote
Have logs to drop, or a customer who wants their tree milled? Send us photos and sizes, and we'll get back to you.