petrified wood

[liz_stevo]

im after help as have found petrified wood on my property,in N.S.W is this common,im talking about a lot

[Jimnyjerry]

Hi Liz_Stevo welcome to ALF. 

Depends where your property is.

If it is in Sydney, then no. 
If your sitting on North Wollongong Beach then yes, it is lying around everywhere.
Other places then maybe.

Also depends if the pet wood is good enough to cut and cab.

So a bit of a location is helpfull

[Fullerton]

Just interested in knowing how common it occurs or want to know what to do with the lots you have found?

It is very common in some specific areas of Eastern Australia and I have picked up lots of pieces from several areas of western NSW and Qld.

Even if you find a lot ... it's not in high demand or very valuable as a lapidary material unless it is highly distinctive (bright colours, patterns and/or distinguishable parts of the tree). I have about 100kg of larger pieces scattered around the garden as feature stones.

[jasonr]

I have a boring little piece about 6 or so inches long that i found in the bin at the lapidary club = kept it as i dont have any on my specimen shelf
just looks like boring old wood on the cut end but it still has all its bark - also petrified.
Going by what Fullerton said im guessing thats why it was in the bin.

Cheers Jason R

[chookie2]

I brought a 12 gallon bucket at gemboree for $20. It had a lot of nice reds and some  other nice colours. Just to give you an idea. It is common and not in demand unless very unusual.

[Fullerton]

Don't get me wrong, cabbed pieces of petrified wood can be extremely beautiful. I have cabbed several pieces and the glossy polish is amazing. Some pieces with reds and yellows are particularly nice.

But it's plentiful so just not that valuable.  Many lapidarians like to cab pieces they have picked up in their travels while others without a local source can usually pick up some very cheap.

It is also is an excellent tumble stone ... that's probably one of its major uses come to think of it.

[Jimnyjerry]

  trust me to not see the word 'have' when talking of pet wood and your property. 

What the rest of the guys said about it being common (usually in coal areas) is true. It is not a money making commodity.  Our club has crates of it from various places.  Come to think of it I have a bit too. 

A picture of the wood and where it is from would give us an idea if it is OK for working with.  If you are in a lapidary club the people there can give you advise about it as well.

[liz_stevo]

im from around paterson,huntervalley area .N.S.W. they  have got lots of detail,they look exactly like wood with quartz running through ,they even have the bark on them

[Jimnyjerry]

Liz_Stevo the Hunter Valley is full of petrified wood. 

A picture would help so we could have a look at it. 

BTW what do you want to do with it?

[liz_stevo]

im working on photos, and i dont know what to do with it,bu if its not worth much i will probably keep it all,maybe make something out of them i dont know really
 

[Petrified Wood Hunter]

Hello,

I know this thread is old.
I live in the Maitland area and am wanting to find some petrified wood.
Am willing to travel around an hour.
Can someone point me in the right direction to somewhere around me where I can find some?

Your help is greatly appreciated.