Firewood Bundles Not a Good Deal if You Do the Math – and We Did

It's summer in Sioux Falls.  That means highs in the +80s or +90s. And at just about every gas station in town you can buy these bundles of firewood.

For about $6 a bundle you get around 7 or 8 hunks of wood. That's just under a buck a hunk.

Now hang with me and follow this math. A full cord of firewood is 4'x4'x8'.  If each bundle of $5.99 ea. wood is 1 cubic foot, it would take 128 of them to make one cord of firewood. That means that each cord of Sioux Falls gas station firewood generates around $770.

Now here's where it gets interesting. You can have an average cord of fireplace firewood delivered to your house for around $250.00 or $1.95 a bundle.

Which means whoever is selling these bundles of wood is clearing about $4.00 a bundle or $550 a cord.  As my grandpa used to say: "That's not too shabby."  Good for them.

OK you've followed me this far. Stay with me just a little bit longer.

According to the Yellow Pages, Sioux Falls has about 70 gas stations. If each gas station sells 20 bundles of wood on average per week that's about $33,600 worth of bundled firewood sold in Sioux Falls per month (trust me, I did the math ... I think it's pretty close). And I'll bet the real numbers are higher.

Unless a lot of people have wood fired cook stoves at home, or are orchestrating tons of pagan ritual sacrifices, my guess is that this is all firepit wood.

That's a pretty fair chunk of change to spend for an excuse to drink beer outdoors after dark.

So... here's my summertime money saving idea for ya: Pull out your bag chair, crack open a Grain Belt, and punch up the 'Fire Pit App' on your cell phone. Yes there is one.  Sure you can't roast a wiener, but with the firewood money you are saving you can have a tasty pizza delivered.

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