How To Split Firewood With A Chainsaw

Looking to start cutting logs for firewood on the homestead? Learn here how to split firewood with a chainsaw for less strenuous processing.

By Kevin Gleaves
Updated on December 10, 2022
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by AdobeStock/Parilov

Looking to start cutting logs for firewood on the homestead? Learn here how to split firewood with a chainsaw for less strenuous processing.

At 98 years old, economist and activist Scott Nearing said, “Well, at least I can still split and carry in the wood.”

Unlike Scott Nearing, most of us mortals find out well before our late 90s that we’re aging, and cutting firewood just emphasizes that fact. I’ve been burning wood ever since Mother Earth News published plans for making your own woodburning stove out of a discarded hot water heater in the January/February 1978 issue (you can also view the plans). It seems like every year since then, I find a new ache or pain when cutting wood. As my orthopedist says, “Everybody over 60 years old has degenerative disc disease. It’s just that some folks have it worse than others.” If you, like me, are the “some folks” who have it worse, cutting wood definitely gets harder and harder as the years go by.

To find easier ways to process firewood, you should take a look at all the steps that you now perform to turn a tree into heat. It should quickly become apparent that many steps involve lifting and transporting. Moving firewood is usually more work than actually cutting and splitting, and is definitely hard on your back.

So, the first step is to review how you cut firewood and write down all the steps you perform. Then, you should analyze what tools you have available to help with or eliminate each step. Don’t limit yourself to the tools I’ve listed, because you may have tools that aren’t available to me.

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