It's tree removal time!

[EddieWalker]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

Wild pig tastes nothing like domestic pig. It's very lean without any fat marbleing. There is no gamey taste like in deer or even elk. After wild sheep, it's probably the best eating wild meat.

Here's a picture of the creek she crossed just before I shot her. The middle of the creek is my Southern border. I own the left side.

 

[LBrown59]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( In the future, this will be a nice looking pasture. The trees left standing in this shot will probably all remain. The rest will end up in my burn pit.

I'm thinking I need more diesel the next time I try burning them. I had a one gallon jug that got things good and hot, but nothing spread. I also have some pines from last year that I knocked down and have kind of ignored. I think I'll drag them into the pile and see it they can help generate enough heat to get this green stuff to burn.


)</font>I use old tires to start brush fires.

 

[have_blue]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

The secret is to build the pile high and pack it tightly. Try to align the trunks in the same direction. If piled high enough and packed tightly enough, just a little straw or paper on the windward side will make an inferno. The wood doesn't even have to be real dry. Just 3-4 days of dry weather will usually do it. I've even succeeded on the same day I cut the trees.

Diesel and gasoline won't help much if the pile is not packed tightly. I've seen my neighbor waste 15 gallons of diesel with no luck. You see, when diesel burns on wood, it actually cools the wood it's on as it evaporates. You can nearly put your hand on a tree trunk that has been soaked with diesel and just stopped burning.

It takes only a few minutes more to "build" a fire than it takes to throw it together higgeldy-piggedy, and the results are a pile of ashes that don't reek of diesel.

 

[oliver28472]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

I burned some green pine after a hurricane but I cut it in firewood lengths beforehand. Actually I was burning some older stuff with pinecones and limb debris in it. The pine blocks were sitting a few feet away and caught fire along with the handle from a splitting maul. Grass caught fire too. Put that out with 2 gallon pump sprayer filled with water. Pushed everything up tight like have_blue said and it took off. I would recommend kerosene over diesel for quick starts. With all those pines you could probably rake up a big pile of needles pretty fast. They will work as good as the kerosene. Use what you got.

 

[JimMorrissey]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

Eddie,

Soak a square bail of hay in diesel for a couple of days; ignite the bail with a propane torch....fire you shall have. It works great on soaking frozen piles here in VT.

 

[WVBartMan]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

Stevenf: Concerning the fan for burning, we use a blower that is powered by the pto on the tractor. The blower is rated at 200+ mph so you can keep away from the fire and use your rpm's to provide the adequate speed of air to the fire. The blower will allow you to burn anything combustable. See attached picture, sorry it would not let me attach because it was to big, if you would like, I can email it to you. It is made by Agrimetal, model BW360 (http://www.agrimetal.com/eng/products_blower_p1.htm).

 

[EddieWalker]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

It's still too muddy to add more trees to the fire. I tried to drive around the area on my fourwheeler, without any luck. If it gets stuck, then my backhoe doesn't have a chance.

The dozer is also broke down. A small, very flexible, pine tree squeezed between my bottom plates and broke off a brass 90 degree fitting that supplies oil to my fuel injector pump.

It looks like a basic brass 90, but there's a restrictor, or as the guys at Case called it, a "snubber," in the fitting. It would appear to severely restrict the amount of oil that goes through the line.

Cost for the fitting is only $2, but its such a unique, specialized item, that I have to wait until Tueseday for it to arrive.

 

[EddieWalker]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( The secret is to build the pile high and pack it tightly. Try to align the trunks in the same direction. If piled high enough and packed tightly enough, just a little straw or paper on the windward side will make an inferno. )</font>

I think this must be the ticket. I've tried just about every other method without any succes.

The part for the dozer came in yesterday, and I got her up and running with no other issues. We knocked down some more trees and started building up the pile.

I thought I had it pretty good, but five gallons of diesel later, the fire didn't take. It was going good and hot for a little bit, but then it would just die off.

When I looked into the hole it made, there was nothing there. It was like the fire hollowed out my pile, but didn't spread.

Next move was to make the pile larger and pack it tighter.

 

[EddieWalker]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

A few months ago I knocked over these trees to build a road. They are all small pines that got themselves all twisted up.

 

[EddieWalker]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

The pile is just about under control. I wanted to protect the trees behind the ones I knocked down, so I pulled them out one and two at a time with a chain hooked to my loader bucket.

 

[EddieWalker]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

It's just about done, but there's always that stuborn one that just wont go with the flow.

I have a special tool that I like to use just for those occasions!

 

[EddieWalker]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

It's not real clear, but there is a creek bed along the road. It's huge with three fingers feeding it, so water drainage will never be an issue. What will be an issue is the amount of material it will take to fill in this finger.

Before I start that project, I need to get all the material out of there that will break down over time. This is the third pile that I have to dispose of in an area the will never get built on.

When I start filling it in, I'll get the last of those trees.

 

[JimR]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

That is a lot of work. Five gallons of deisel or kerosene will get your fires started.

 

[curt1]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

Very nice place you have Eddie. I bet you really enjoy using your equipment on it! I have always wanted a nice size farm with a dozer and backhoe to work (and play) with. Land is so expensive here its almost impossible. Progression as they (the County Leaders) call it!
I enjoyed the pictures you posted.

Thanks,
Curt

 

[EddieWalker]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Very nice place you have Eddie. I bet you really enjoy using your equipment on it! I have always wanted a nice size farm with a dozer and backhoe to work (and play) with. Land is so expensive here its almost impossible. Progression as they (the County Leaders) call it!
I enjoyed the pictures you posted.

Thanks,
Curt )</font>


Curt, your welcome and thanks for the kind words.

I grew up in California and finally realized that the only way I was going to have the chance to do what I wanted was to pack up and leave. I found Texas and I'm either gonna live my dream, or know that I tried.

 

[EddieWalker]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

I never imagined how hard it would be for me to get these pines to burn. I've tried everyones suggestions without luck. I really like the garden bottle with diesel in it. That gets things REALLY hot! But it just wont spread. I put four gallons onto it in this photo, and all it does is flame up, get really hot and then die down.

It smoked and smoldered all night, but that's about it. I really think I just need to wait for it to dry out some. Maybe next month I'll have better luck.

 

[EddieWalker]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

This photo is just to the right of the burn pile. It was one of those "every tree must go photo's."

I have most of them down now. A few on the right and the ones in the background will stay. The rest are history.

They are all just big enough that the dozer wasn't able to knock them down with a simple push. They are also on a small hill that is history. I'll move the dirt from the hill to build up a building pad that will be in the center of the picture.

When I've removed about two feet of dirt from around those remaining trees, I'll see if they're ready to lie down.

 

[EddieWalker]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

This is right after a tree flipped out and attacked one of my hose lines. Cracked the fittings that comes out of the front grill. Nothing tragic, just an $8 part and a quick trip to town. The really annoying part of it is that I lost control of the tilt function on my blade, and when I pushed something, the blade would give on me. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

The bull pine is about 2 feet across and is coming out real soon. I need to build a small service driveway right next to it, and unfortunately, these pines are extremely sensitive to damage. Cut a few roots, and it's dead. It's much better to remove it now then have to worry about it later.

 

[fireshawn]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

Eddie,

Just a thought on your burn pile there, mix some kerosene w/ your diesel and it will hook up better. I had a pile of cedar up here that wouldn't take after our torrential november rains, and a 50/50 mix took care of it. Just be careful, I would hate for someone to get hurt after one of my suggestions.

shawn

ps... I thought your container barn was pretty impressive. I have showed the pictures to most of the guys at the station.

 

[wroughtn_harv]

Re: It\'s tree removal time!

And here just north of Dallas I'm cutting up a crane and assorted equipment and fighting grass fires like a wild man.

Darn.

You can't get one started and I can't keep them from igniting. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif