Splitting firewood can be an exhausting, time-consuming endeavor. An axe may strain both your back and arms when splitting large logs.
This plan uses a hydraulic heavy-duty bottle jack to build 4-way wood splitters that will ease stress on your body. Plus, Wood Splitters assembly should be straightforward as long as you can manage welding equipment safely.
Axe Splitter
Trying to reduce home heating oil costs? Cutting firewood yourself may be an economical and sustainable solution, but doing it without proper tools may prove tedious and time consuming. Instead of grappling with an axe until it splinters in half, using a log splitter may make this task much simpler and save yourself from physical strain and strife.
Starting the job of splitting wood requires several key items. These include an ideal chopping block (such as a stump or piece of wood), a sharp axe, thick work gloves and eye protection such as steel-toed boots for optimal safety. You will also require an ample work area such as an area of grass or backyard clearings to complete this process successfully.
To use a splitting axe effectively, stand with feet a few inches apart and firmly planted on the ground. Holding both hands firmly around the handle with your dominant hand near its head and another near its base, grasp it firmly with both hands before raising and dropping your axe above your head while using hip energy as additional momentum for swinging motion.
Strike a log just ahead of its shoulders to produce a crack down its middle. Repeat as needed but take care to avoid hitting either its sides or any knots that have formed within it.
If you have the time and effort, you can build your own homemade axe splitter that uses hydraulics instead of your own power to operate. While there is no written guide provided with this video creator, the project should be fairly straightforward as long as you know your way around welding or cutting metal. The basic idea is taking two axes, cutting their handles off, welding them onto steel bars for stability, then using one swing to split logs.
Hydraulic Log Splitter
Hydraulic Wood Splitters are pieces of machinery that use hydraulic power to do much of the splitting work for you. Once a log has been loaded into it and secured against its baseplate, all it takes to activate its splitting action is to press down on a lever and activate its splitting mechanism.
Once the log has been split into pieces, you are free to pick them up and use them as firewood. Depending on how powerfully you choose to operate the machine, adjusting its pressure may require moving its control handle back and forth for effective cutting action.
Ideal, logs should be cut into splitting lengths before loading them onto a hydraulic splitter as this will make the process simpler and quicker. If working with large pieces of wood, protective chaps should also be worn over pants in order to prevent any injuries during splitting.
When shopping for a hydraulic log splitter, look for one with an appropriate cycle time for you. Some models boast three and five second cycle times - however this might prove too fast unless you are an experienced operator or an exceptionally fit individual.
Consider both the power and usability of the hydraulic ram, as well as ease of use and maintenance when selecting your log splitter. Manually retracting its piston after every use can become time consuming; look for one with a quick release mechanism that makes removal simpler; for transportability purposes look for one equipped with rear wheels so you can easily transport it around your yard or driveway - you'll find these types of splitters at home improvement stores, hardware centers or department stores specializing in tools - while online purchases offer great cost savings!
Spring-Powered Log Splitter
Spring-powered log splitters utilize a long lever with an ample surface area to push a massive cleaver into a log and split it into smaller pieces. While these devices may not be as efficient as hydraulic or electrical ones, they require fewer resources and are easy to operate - an ideal option for those seeking an effective device without resorting to gas engines for splitting logs.
Spring-powered log splitters feature a lever connected to a steel plate - the base - that supports the piercing element (cleaver or cutter). When used, simply place a log on the plate, and it will be split using its spring power; after cutting through its edge using the cleaver's blades, its edges will catch and tear it into usable firewood pieces.
This log splitter is both effective and affordable, making it an excellent option for those on a tight budget. Unfortunately, however, it does have several downsides; one being a difficulty for people without much physical strength in using it due to needing to push hard against the log to split it apart; also the spring can wear quickly requiring frequent replacement.
Log splitters of this type offer many advantages. Notably, they're user-friendly and suitable for splitting a variety of wood types; however, larger logs will require greater force to split. Therefore, before buying such an instrument it is vital that you understand which size logs it can handle.
Although this project involves some technical details, the process should be relatively straightforward if you have experience welding. As shown in this tutorial, the creator uses an old log splitter as a guide and adds metal bars for improved design. When complete, this improved version features hydraulic pumps, oil tanks and other features which make operation simpler than most manual log splitters.
Mechanical Log Splitter
Firewood preparation requires processing logs into usable sizes for use in fireplaces and wood stoves, which some homeowners can accomplish using only basic hand tools. A powered splitter, however, often provides greater splitting force than handheld options on this list.
However, if you're uncomfortable investing in either an electric or gas log splitter, building your own mechanical splitter may still allow you to process logs. This DIY project involves building an old axe as the cutting head; though requiring quite a lot of construction and welding effort. Still possible for those willing to put in the effort.
To construct this mechanical splitter, you will require iron pipes, steel sheets and welding supplies. Additionally, an axe with its handles removed should be cut in order to use just its blades - these will need to be sharpened before being welded onto metal bars in your splitter for easy use - once complete simply place a block of wood on top and swing your axe to split it!
Careful use of this mechanical splitter can be an extremely efficient solution for processing large numbers of logs quickly. While getting acquainted with how it works may require practice, and it should not be left running unsupervised while it operates - however it offers a much safer alternative than wielding an axe, and can still provide equal efficiency as power splitters.
An experienced woodworker can customize an existing mechanical splitter to increase its effectiveness, such as this plan for a hydraulic log splitter. By adding an extra pump and expanding the hydraulic ram, they give their machine more splitting power than standard units.