Construction costs are currently skyrocketing

Then there's also the illusion that heating with wood is sustainable and everyone is happy. But if everyone did that, our forests would only last until mid-2025. That's the catch with a niche. It only pays off as long as it's a niche.

Don't worry about firewood or the forest. Sure, right now an above-average number of new people are starting to make firewood, but I'm pretty relaxed about it. Let them process the first 3-8RM of wood, then most will be sore all over and give up. In the last 25 years, I've seen so many come and go. Only very, very few stick with it long-term, over years.

There are 2 categories of new "self-firewood gatherers."

a) The hardcore penny pincher, buys a saw at the hardware store for €100 or finds an old one in great-grandpa’s attic. Of course, only self-mixed fuel goes into this powerhouse of a saw; it’s cheaper, and sometimes even used oil is used for chain lubrication. He chases every little twig and is very motivated at first, but nothing is allowed to cost anything—after all, he wants to save money. Despite his increased motivation, he soon realizes that progress is difficult this way and after the first season he goes back to dismantling one-time pallets from the local tile dealer and collects all the old wood he can get from within a 300m radius in the neighborhood. That works quite well with his toy saw and is even cheaper than buying firewood bundles.

b) The well-earning middle-class guy with some thriftiness, but not quite so stubborn. He usually owns a house, has a family, and as the man of the house, now has to make his own firewood too. Since he tends to do things properly, he mostly buys his equipment after advice in the specialist trade. Saw, fuel, axe, protective gear, etc. are all included, top quality, almost exemplary. In the forest, the still-originally packaged saw is unpacked from the box first, and the search for the holy grail, uh, the power button begins. After some starting help, he actually manages quite well, processes his 3-4RM, and is proud. By the end of his work, previously unknown muscles and bones start to complain. Everything hurts; for the next 2-4 weeks, physical strain is out of the question. He recovers by the warm stove at home and decides that he has now made firewood, and since he can do it and knows how, that's enough. For the coming season, he gets it delivered at a reasonable price through newly made contacts, and that's good.

So category a) can sometimes be annoying. They think they know everything better and mess around, sometimes doing things that even look dangerous. Category b) is actually quite nice, grateful for tips or help, and generally very amicable. I get along well with them because you can sometimes buy their saws after the first season and 10 operating hours super cheap. :-D

So, now you may stone me; my stove runs all day in winter and I think that’s cool :cool:

Since he tends to do things properly, he usually buys his equipment after prior consultation at the specialist retailer. Saw, operating materials, axe, protective gear, etc. are all included, top quality, almost exemplary. In the forest, the still originally packaged saw is first unpacked from the box and the search for the holy grail, uh, the power button begins.

Your text is great and it is so pleasant to read something amusing in this thread for once. :) :) Just for completeness: Type b) usually "studies" the operating manual and safety guidelines for a long time and very thoroughly and first answers all still open questions in his head; especially the safety guidelines are a sensitive topic; whether the concluded insurances are sufficient for all possible material and personal damages? :) (This is a joke; of course it is correct to read the operating manuals before use and thus ensure that in case of damage one can fulfill one’s responsibility towards third parties. I am only completing the contrast to type a).)

you forgot category 3, types like you ;)

I know that too, for decades they have been using their contacts "in the forest" or at the community. If something is felled somewhere, they usually drive there directly in the evening and saw it with Stihl and transport it away. Stored in front of the door until grandpas, uncles, sons, and whoever else come to warm up while chopping wood. (just for completeness: so far no woman has been seen with us while chopping wood). Occasionally, if it’s really cheap, a few SRMs are also dumped in front of the door for around 50€.

In the man's family, there is a really great sense of togetherness. The grandparents (~ 90) have 3 children who are local residents and have built/lived there, with a total of now around 20 grandchildren who are all about 30 years old. Some have already built there or are renting – all within a radius of one kilometer in the same village. When wood needs to be chopped for the grandparents, a dozen young people immediately pitch in for half a day, someone brings a pot of soup and someone else two crates of beer – job done. Completely natural... I am always more than speechless – something like this is hardly imaginable nowadays. If it weren’t completely in the middle of nowhere, I would want to build there too :)

Spiegel online just has a small article about excessive price increases at the moment. It's not very content-rich, but the construction industry was also mentioned.

"According to this, many companies have raised their prices significantly more in the following industries than would have been expected based solely on the increased costs for intermediate goods: agriculture and forestry including fishing, construction industry, trade, hospitality industry, transport."

I would have liked to see the underlying statistics (aka what does "many" mean, what does "significantly more" mean) but I don't have time to google right now... maybe someone else finds more.

you forgot category 3, guys like you ;)

I know them too, for decades they have been using their contacts "in the forest" or at the municipality. When something is cut down somewhere, they usually go there directly in the evening and saw with Stihl and transport it away. Stored in front of the door until grandpas, uncles, sons and whoever else warm up while chopping wood. (just for the sake of completeness: so far no woman has been seen chopping wood with us). Occasionally, if it’s really cheap, a few RM are also dumped in front of the door for around 50€.

Oh, I suspected that, but then let’s also correct the half-knowledge.
Well, contacts, you just have them if you’ve been doing this for a very long time, people know each other, they help each other, that’s just how it is in a village with more cows than inhabitants. Sure, something always comes up somewhere through clearing, firebreaks, etc. The power lies in patience, no one rushes there, why should they, no one else is taking it away from us. The nice thing is that we already know beforehand where it will come up and the harvester driver places it accordingly by the path.
The time of bark beetle wood was bad. Believe me, you don’t want that stress, we were almost overwhelmed with that stuff and then the question where to put it, oh dear, the stacks got high.
Splitting is done in the forest, otherwise it would be way too messy in front of the house if you process around 100RM.
Women take part too, but full agreement, they usually have no interest in splitting. Here the youngest girls drive the biggest tractors.