What's the Difference Between a Cone Style Log Splitter and a Traditional Log Splitter?

Posted: 2020-08-04

In this day and age, when people are looking for a renewable energy source, wood should be on everybodys list. Wood is common in our everyday lives, as it is found in homes and furniture, fence posts, and firewood. Heating by solid fuels such as firewood is an excellent alternative to gas and electric heating, especially now that running electrical energy and gas is at an all-time high.

The Problem

But theres one major problem anyone can face when deciding to use wood as a renewable energy source: splitting it. Wood is a complex polymeric structure consisting of lignin and carbohydrates, and bending or crushing it can be quite challenging, depending on the density of the wood. The rule of thumb is, the denser the wood, the stronger it is.

The Solution

Splitting wood is a lot of work and requires the right tools and equipment to deliver the task successfully. To address the problem of cutting wood, you can use a log splitter, which turns a dangerous chore into a safe, effortless, and automatic operation. A log splitter takes the pressure off your back while allowing you to split wood in the most efficient ways effectively.

A log splitter is perfect for anyone who has an open fire or a log burner. To make logs easy to stock and burn and make them ready-to-use, they have to be of a specific size. While owning a chainsaw for cutting wood is a great thing, you still need a log splitter to split big chunks of wood, which will break the logs to the right diameter.

Cone Style Log Splitters vs. Traditional Log Splitters

There are more types of log splitters than these two, but we will only focus on cone log splitters and traditional log splitters for this article.

Cone Style Log Splitters

This type of log splitter achieves a high degree of efficiency because of its shape and weight. The cone has a tapered conical shape extending from a pointed forward end to an enlarged diameter base. The log is positioned adjacent to the sharp end of the funnel. As the cone rotates, its threads draw the wood onto progressively larger diameter portions of the cone, causing the log to break apart.

A cone style log splitter prevents logs from becoming stuck on the base part, helping the operator to save hours and hours of work. Because of its compact design and sturdy build, a cone log splitter is an indispensable machine for people working with timber.

For your safety, avoid supporting logs manually during the splitting process and ensure that no one else is near the machinery during operation.

Traditional Log Splitters

In its purest form, a traditional log splitter works in a manner that is very similar to a person using an ax to split wood. Standard log splitters are based on a hydraulic pump system, which either pushes a log of wood into a blade or the hydraulic pump swings a blade through the wood. For the most part, operating a traditional log splitter is as easy as placing a log in the specific spot on the machine. The log splitter starts when you turn on the engine, which pushes fluid through the pump. Then, the pump adds pressure and pushes the fluid through a valve, which connects to two different pipes, which are connected on either side of the hydraulic piston. This process generates power to push a wedge through the log, splitting it.

Conclusion

Whether it is a cone log splitter or a traditional log splitter, using one can save you tons of hours and helps ensure your safety — not to mention it saves your back from a terrible pain after swinging an ax!

A log splitter allows you to cut logs of a similar size, making stacking wood and burning much more efficient. Using wood instead of fossil fuels is a great way to help preserve the environment, and using a log splitter to break down large pieces of timber is an effective means to manage your time and energy. A log splitter takes your time and resource management to a whole new level!