Splitting big wood logs into smaller sizes for the fireplace is an essential requirement for most people who own a fireplace and would like to heat up their homes. Gladly, the wood splitting field has evolved, and you can now enjoy splitting logs effortlessly and quickly. A manual log splitter is one great machine that will help you break apart wood logs for your home use.
But before you can buy ones, it’s important that you go through the quick guide rolled out below
There exist a broad category of manual log splitters on the market today, and these are:
Splitting Maul
A 9-pound maul, an excellent 360-degree swing plus a solid body, can effectively 16” kindling logs of any nature. A well-developed swing, as well as accuracy, is the main factors that lead to success when using this piece of equipment. Over the long haul, this is your most reliable and highly portable decision.
Slide Hammer
The slide hammer is another manual log splitter model that’s also quite stable. However, its performance cannot match that of a splitting maul.
Knotted wood and hardwood can be hard to split with a slide hammer. The tool is completely safe to use, and you can store it conveniently when not in use.
Ratcheting
Ratcheting wood splitters offer you around 8 tons of mechanical advantage in regards to wood splitting. They can easily break apart any log species- including the toughest ones.
For the most part, they will effectively deal with logs longer than 16 inches. However, it’s good to note that ratchet mechanism suffers tear and wear with time.
Foot Hydraulic
For the foot hydraulic models, consider the 1.5-ton splitting capacity. Such will be useful for handling small logs that break off effortlessly. The best thing about this model is that your hands are completely free to steady the log when you’re operating the machine.
Hand Hydraulic
This is the most efficient manual wood splitter- delivers around 6- 10 tons of splitting force. The only drawback you’ll experience from it is that it’s not much portable.
How to Build Your Own Manual Log Splitter
If you’re a DIY enthusiast, you would want to know how you can come up with your manual splitter (and probably save some cash that you could have spent on buying a new one).
Good news- we’ll offer you some simple steps on how to come with a manual splitter that works just like the ones you see at the local home improvement stores.
Let’s begin
Things You’ll Need:
- Saw.
- Hoses.
- Welding torch.
- 5-gallon hydraulic tank.
- Adequately sized cylinder.
- Steel support and wedge system.
- A steel pipe (around 20” long and 2” thick).
- Four steel blades (10” long, 1/4” thick, and 4” wide).
Directions
Step 1 : Weld the four blades together
Weld the four steel blades together- in a cross shape. Make sure you put on the right protective clothing for when welding. Also, conduct the process in a well-ventilated location.
To weld your blades successfully, you might consider removing the internal corners in them. Begin by fusing the first two together at 90 degrees angle. Do the same for the other two. After that, weld the two sets together to make a cross shape.
Step 2: Weld the steel blades into the pipe.
The next step involves welding the cross you’ve just made above into a pipe. Cut around 20 inches of steel pipe, and slice indents toward one of its side to correspond with all your four blades.
Now weld your blades into the pipe, fortifying a tack-weld with a more grounded weld or filler bar for support.
Step 3: Set up a hydraulic pump.
You can easily find a basic hydraulic pump at your local home improvement shop. A working pressure of around 1,500 pound/square inch will be sufficient for a typical log splitter. Set up the hydraulic pump as per the guidelines offered by the manufacturer.
Step 4: Attach Your Blade System To The Hydraulic Pump
Fit your blade framework to the hydraulic pump. Make sure that your pump is deactivated when setting up your blades.
After the blade structure has been installed successfully, you can now test the log splatter with some practice wood log to ensure it’s working correctly. Make all the necessary adjustments to your blade/pump to make 100% efficient.
Final Thoughts
Manual log splitters are great wood splitting solutions for all homeowners who require a constant supply of firewood for their fireplace. The machine is not only affordable, but also easy to use, maintain, portable, and above all, it makes wood splitting an easy task.
By understating the different types of manual log splitters explained above, you’ll be able to make a wise choice when buying your machine. If you’re a handy person, don’t forget to check out the DIY section above on how to make your own manual log splitter.