Heating With Wood

How To Buy The Best Gas Chain Saw

Many homeowners that heat with one of the efficient cast iron or heavy gage steel wood stoves want to save even more money by buying their own gas chain saw. This is an important decision because using a chain saw to cut your own firewood is a lot of hard work.

If you buy a heavy saw, for example, you will quickly tire from holding it. On the other hand, if you buy an undersized saw, made primarily for cutting small branches, you will never be able to cut the large hardwood logs needed to heat your home.

Electric chain saws are great for backyard pruning and such, but are not designed for cutting firewood. You need a well made, durable, reliable tough chainsaw to do the job right. There are many great saws available and with some education you can make a good choice.

You don't need to become a full-fledge lumberjack to cut your own firewood, but you do need an adequate saw and a few accessories. Besides the saw, you need some kind of hearing protection, a chain sharpening file, good gloves, boots, gas and oil. You can get leg protection chaps and hard hat and other safety accessories, but they are not essential.

Husqvarna makes a very good chain saw that will work very well for years to come. They have medium use saws, such as the 440 e-series, 435, 240 e-series, 235 e-series for the average homeowner If you are just using your saw seasonally, these are a good choice.

If you are seriously cutting a lot of wood, you should step up to the Husqvarna 359 or 353G-ETech. These saws are heavy duty, serious workhorses that can cut up a tree in no time at all. They also cost quite a bit more though.

Stihl chains saws are very popular and have a great reputation for dependability and performance. They are the largest manufacturer of chainsaws in the world. The Stihl MS 270 Wood Boss is very popular with homeowners who cut their own firewood.

If you are cutting hardwoods, such as oak, maple, beech, birch, cherry, apple or hickory, the Stihl MS 280 chainsaw has the features of a professional saw, but is designed for the wood heating homeowner.

Poulan has basic homeowner chain saws that are moderately priced and work well for the seasonal user. The P4018 and P4018WT are both quite popular saws that have a 40cc 3 2 Cycle gas engine. These saws are available with and 18 inch bar, which is adequate for almost all wood cutting.

Other saws that homeowners typically use are the Jonsered, McCulloch, Homelite, and Echo. Sometimes it is hard to tell just who made which saw because some manufacturers use other brands and just change the name.

To get the best chainsaw for home use, check out the actual saws at a dealer. You can ask advice and try out the saw before you buy. You also need some accessories in order to get the job done.

Chains, chain sharpening tools, hearing protection, bar oil and 2 cycle oil are just a few of the things required. A good splitting maul is also invaluable.