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DIY Charcoal

Started by metalspinner, February 15, 2012, 06:54:08 PM

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metalspinner

I'm not sure the best place for this discussion...

Charcoal is getting expensive.  We usually buy Kingsford briquettes because they reliably start and burn.  But the "big" bag is pushing $10 now.  Sometimes Lowes might have a buy one get one free, but that is rare.

The last bag I picked up was Royal Oak Natural Charcoal.  This appears to simply be fired wood that's been snuffed out, filtered and bagged.  My burgers are grilling over the coals as I type this. ;D  So it got me to thinking...

I have plenty of hardwood -  just about any Appalachian hardwood, an outdoor firepit, a match, a bucket of water, and a solar kiln.

Is it more complicated than this?  This sounds like an interesting Saturday morning project.  What do you guys think?
I do what the little voices in my wife's head tell me to do.

Mooseherder

I have been buying the bags of oak and hickory firewood at the store to use on the grill.
A five dollar bag lasts twice as long as a ten dollar bag of charcoal.
I split them into 2 inch slices and use my radial arm saw to cut them into chunks.
Use a little charcoal to start and when the coals are ready put the wood on top.
Cooks great! :)

metalspinner

Mooseherder,
I've got so much scrap around, your plan has crossed my mind, too. 

Using a charcoal chimney got these bagged natural coals fired up really fast - under 10 minutes. My usual process is to light briquettes then make my patties in the 20 minutes it takes them to get briquettes going. But tonight, I almost got in trouble because the natural coals were ready to go in under 10 minutes.

The burgers were pretty tasty cooked over the natural coals, BTW. food6  I did notice the fire was not as hot as usual.

I do what the little voices in my wife's head tell me to do.

zopi

making charcoal is stupid easy...getcha a fifty five gallon drum...cut both ends out and set it up on blocks where a fire can be built under it..think of the barrel as a chimney..poke four holes in the lower third of the barrel...run two pieces of heavy rebar through..this is to the 20 or 25 gallon grease drum on...you need one with a close fitting top. poke about a dozen sixteen penny nail holes in the lid of the little barrel..pack the little barrel about half full of hardwood chunks..no bigger than two by two or so..little chunks convert easier...flip this mess upside down, and lower it onto the rebar in the big barrel...now build a nice hot fire under the big barrel and let her sit...pretty soon you will see jets of steam out of the nail holes which will soon catch fire as the woodgas comes out of the wood..if all works well, these jets will self sustain and burn until the wood is charcoal.  let it burn out and cool to ambient without disturbing the retort..if you have a coal in the retort and oxygen hits it your whole batch will go up quick...once it has cooled, flip the little barrel over and sort your charcoal..any still woody chunks need to go back through, although I am not too picky about it. I made about thirty gallons of softwood charcoal last week for the foundry...need to make a batch of white oak charcoal..am feeling bbqish..
Got Wood?
LT-15G GO chassis added.
WM sharpener and setter
And lots of junk.

metalspinner

Thanks, Zopi.  I just noticed your mention of making charcoal in your "foundry" post.

As with most of my wonderings, though, things are a bit more complicated than I originally thought. :D

Check this guy out...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHiyOP0PqMY&feature=related

At some point in the video, he's smoking a cigarette.  Seems kinda strange - like giving a drowning man a glass of water. ::)
I do what the little voices in my wife's head tell me to do.

Norm

Well I'm the lazy kind and buy lump by the pallet.  :D

Looking forward to what you come up with Chis.

gspren

Quote from: zopi on February 15, 2012, 08:12:30 PM
making charcoal is stupid easy...getcha a fifty five gallon drum...cut both ends out and set it up on blocks where a fire can be built under it..think of the barrel as a chimney..poke four holes in the lower third of the barrel...run two pieces of heavy rebar through..this is to the 20 or 25 gallon grease drum on...you need one with a close fitting top. poke about a dozen sixteen penny nail holes in the lid of the little barrel..pack the little barrel about half full of hardwood chunks..no bigger than two by two or so..little chunks convert easier...flip this mess upside down, and lower it onto the rebar in the big barrel...now build a nice hot fire under the big barrel and let her sit...pretty soon you will see jets of steam out of the nail holes which will soon catch fire as the woodgas comes out of the wood..if all works well, these jets will self sustain and burn until the wood is charcoal.  let it burn out and cool to ambient without disturbing the retort..if you have a coal in the retort and oxygen hits it your whole batch will go up quick...once it has cooled, flip the little barrel over and sort your charcoal..any still woody chunks need to go back through, although I am not too picky about it. I made about thirty gallons of softwood charcoal last week for the foundry...need to make a batch of white oak charcoal..am feeling bbqish..

  I am trying to picture exactly how you do this and it sounds like the nail holes will be on the bottom of the small barrel while burning so how can you see it? Maybe I am missing something.
Stihl 041, 044 & 261, Kubota 400 RTV, Kubota BX 2670, Ferris Zero turn

paul case

Here is an old thread about making charcoal that is well worth the read, it even has a video and some detailed instructions. PC https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,17666.0.html
life is too short to be too serious. (some idiot)
2013 LT40SHE25 and Riehl edger,  WM 94 LT40 hd E15. Cut my sawing ''teeth'' on an EZ Boardwalk
sawing oak.hickory,ERC,walnut and almost anything else that shows up.
Don't get phylosophical with me. you will loose me for sure.
pc

Al_Smith

If you have a slash/burn pile after you've burned a bunch of brush just dig through the ashes .You'll find enough charcoal to last you for a while . Pile the big pieces of whatever you want to coal up on the bottom of the pile and light off the brush .If it gets enough ash coverage you'll get plenty of coal .If not a majority of it will burn up .Lazy mans method .

Burlkraft

I just burned a 3 year accumliation of tops, some slabs and a bunch of stumps. We had have Oak Wilt pretty bad and I've had a few die.
Some of them stumps have been burned 3 or 4 times now. They are all oak so I have been makin' a harvest after each burn.
There's a lot a charcoal in them stumps yet.
Why not just 1 pain free day?

SPIKER

I saved a lot when I make syrup as I get 25 or 30 gallons a day and make a fire to give the NEW collected sap once prior to storing it for a day or two.   I burn good wood on somewhat closed up fire pit with the pan on top.   I get the batch going a real good boil after work I usually run out of time/daylight.   so often put out the fire with a bucket of water leaving 2/3 full fire pit of chard wood & charcoal.   close up the sap, and cover over the pit (sometimes it re-ignites even covered over & burns back to all charcoal or ash... :( )

I keep out a lot of the big natural charcoal hunks for summer BBQ.   I like to BBQ on wood fire as much if not more than charcoal anyway but still have about 3 5 gallon buckets left from last year...

mark
I'm looking for help all the shrinks have given up on me :o

Mooseherder

I'm thinking kiln dried wood chunks for cooking may be less work and actually better than charcoal.  Just a theory I'm leaning towards. :D

WDH

That is what Tom would do.
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Mooseherder

He sure knew what was good.  The flavor of a good steak on a hot oak wood fire is something worth raving about. :)

WDH

He sure did.  I miss him.
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Dodgy Loner

I had a dream about Tom last night. I only met him in person once, bet he certainly made a lasting impression on me. I miss him too :'(
"There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man's lawful prey." -John Ruskin

Any idiot can write a woodworking blog. Here's mine.

Dodgy Loner

Quote from: Mooseherder on February 15, 2012, 07:04:45 PM
I have been buying the bags of oak and hickory firewood at the store to use on the grill. A five dollar bag lasts twice as long as a ten dollar bag of charcoal.

Mooseherder, I just wanted to let you know that I tried your idea tonight, and it worked great! I'm in the middle of building a bed out of QSWO for my wife, so I just grabbed some appropriately-sized chucks from the scrap barrel and grilled a meal of chicken breast, steamed veggies, and garlic toast. It was a little different than cooking on charcoal, but I'm sure with a little practice I'll get good at it. Sure beats just burning all my white oak scraps on the campfire!
"There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man's lawful prey." -John Ruskin

Any idiot can write a woodworking blog. Here's mine.

WDH

If I burned scraps from my workshop, I could save a fortune  :).
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Mooseherder

I wish we lived closer to you guys.  I'd buy your scraps. :D
We cooked some smoked sausage and burgers tonight over wood chunks I had cut.  They were good. :)

WDH

Stop by on your next road trip and I will fix you up. 
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Mooseherder

Sounds like a great plan.  :)

LeeB

I prefer wood over charcoal myself.If I don't have enough scraps from the shop, I just split down a couple of sticks of firewood. When I do use charcoal, it's a local made lump charcoal made just up the road a couple of miles.
'98 LT40HDD/Lombardini, Case 580L, Cat D4C, JD 3032 tractor, JD 5410 tractor, Husky 346, 372 and 562XP's. Stihl MS180 and MS361, 1998 and 2006 3/4 Ton 5.9 Cummins 4x4's, 1989 Dodge D100 w/ 318, and a 1966 Chevy C60 w/ dump bed.

Dodgy Loner

The food smelled amazing after cooking it on the oak fire. Mmm, rich, smoky, delicious. I may have to grill another meal tonight. I should have enough scrap wood from this project to last me through the year :D
"There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man's lawful prey." -John Ruskin

Any idiot can write a woodworking blog. Here's mine.

WDH

This project should fatten you up  :D.
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Dodgy Loner

Yep, I may actually have an incentive to build something with hickory now - just for the scraps :D

I did have grilled hamburgers tonight. Delicious :)
"There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man's lawful prey." -John Ruskin

Any idiot can write a woodworking blog. Here's mine.

DanG

I used to cook with wood, but it was labor-intensive and I've become lazy.  Now I just use storebought briquets and just throw a couple of chunks of oak and cherry on top of the coals.  The price of charcoal is getting to me though, and I've been thinking about making my own.  It suddenly remembered to me this evening that I have an old 10 gallon milk can over in the barn with a good tight lid.  It would make a good chamber for the coals.  Maybe I'll try it before long.
"I don't feel like an old man.  I feel like a young man who has something wrong with him."  Dick Cavett
"Beat not thy sword into a plowshare, rather beat the sword of thine enemy into a plowshare."

LeeB

I know a gal that would likely buy that can from you.
'98 LT40HDD/Lombardini, Case 580L, Cat D4C, JD 3032 tractor, JD 5410 tractor, Husky 346, 372 and 562XP's. Stihl MS180 and MS361, 1998 and 2006 3/4 Ton 5.9 Cummins 4x4's, 1989 Dodge D100 w/ 318, and a 1966 Chevy C60 w/ dump bed.

DanG

That ol' can came from my Grandpa's dairy farm, so I have resisted selling it.  I'll have to do some serious cogitating before I mess it up making charcoal, but I do like the idea. :D
"I don't feel like an old man.  I feel like a young man who has something wrong with him."  Dick Cavett
"Beat not thy sword into a plowshare, rather beat the sword of thine enemy into a plowshare."

JohnW

Hey DanG, you don't necessarily have to smoother charcaol out when using the direct burn method.  I've seen a Jack Daniels video where they start with a stack of maple 2"x2"s, light it with whiskey, of course, burn it down til there's nothing but coals, then put it out with water.  Then they wash it down with water.  I don't know what their method of drying is.

In my opinion, either way that you put out the fire, it's important to sift out the ashes and small particles, or wash them out.  You can take a pretty worthless looking pile of ashes, and shift a good bit of charcoal out of it.  Also, if you're smoothering out a batch of charcoal, you really have to get the air supply cut off.  Just a little leak can burn up the whole batch.

Mooseherder

We cooked some Chicken Drumsticks on Oak chunks tonight for a couple hours.  They were real good but I think another half hour would have been better.  I had some Brandy and was enjoying the seat time.  You can't ruin drumsticks or thighs if you keep the fire down or far enough away from burning.  It is hard to mess them up.  They are very forgiving.  My wife ate 2 of them.
She commented on my taking pictures of our food being pretty weird. :D


 

WDH

A man has to relax  ;D.  That is one fine way to do it, even if you don't feel compelled to capture it on pixels (film went bankrupt with Kodak  :)).

(I enjoy the pictures so stay the course ::)).

So, you just load up a chimney starter with 2x2 chunks and light it off?  What is the preferred method to use real wood, not prepared charcoal without having to build a big camp fire first?
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Mooseherder

I load the chimney starter about a third of the way with Kingsford charcoal and light er up with a little lighter fluid and let them get ready for about 15-20 minutes.
When it's ready I'll dump it into the grill and put a few pieces of wood on the charcoal to get the grilling area hot and I'll clean the grates off with a brush after they have been on the hot fire for a few minutes.
Put a few more chunks of Oak on the fire and put the meat on while tending so it doesn't burn.
I have been controlling the heat 2 ways.  Raising the grates or letting the fire receed. :)
When you coming down. ;D

WDH

I will need a tutorial.  But, it is too hot now to come down there now.  In fact, it almost always too hot to come down there  :D. 

I do love your set-up, and I plan to see it in person one day if there are not any alligators!  (Wait.......alligator on the grill is OK  ;D).
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Dodgy Loner

I just piled up my chunks like briquettes and poured lighter fluid to light. It started right up. The fire was still going pretty good when I spread out the chunks and put the food on. I just turned down the damper for a short while til the flames went out, then opened it back up and let it cook. The wood in the middle of the pile had turned to charcoal and basically cooked just like briquettes. The wood on the outside smoldered, imparting a fabulous smoky taste to the chicken :)
"There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man's lawful prey." -John Ruskin

Any idiot can write a woodworking blog. Here's mine.

Al_Smith

On the rare occasion I get in the mood to fool with it I just build a wood fire in the grill and heap on the chips and scraplings  from the wood lot .It might take a couple of hours to get a good bed of coals then off to the races .

Usually it's just  the gas grill but every so often I get the hankering for a steak cooked over hickory coals .Nothing like it but it isn't something you do in 15 minutes .Takes about 3-5 cans of beer to get the fire right .So that portion of the wait is not really a total waste . ;)

WDH

Al,

Like I said, a man has to relax  ;D.
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Mooseherder

I'll have to try the lighter fluid on da wood and eliminate the Charcoal. :)

DanG

I'm using briquets and starting them in a charcoal chimney, but I don't put the starter fluid on them.  I pour a bit of it into a cat food or tuna can and put it under the chimney.  It starts real quick that way, and doesn't impart any petroleum flavor into it.
"I don't feel like an old man.  I feel like a young man who has something wrong with him."  Dick Cavett
"Beat not thy sword into a plowshare, rather beat the sword of thine enemy into a plowshare."

Mooseherder

I'll have to try that Dan.  There was an instructional wrap around the chimney starter when I bought it.  It said to use paper under neath. I wasn't keen on that recommendation but like your idea.

Norm

Lighter fluid....hah...here's how real men do it.  ;D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxUggtfghFs

metalspinner

Norm,
Why don't ya skip the middle step and just throw a piece of meat in front of that jet engine? :D

JohnW,
I remember seeing that Jack Daniels footage and is what prompted my original questions.  They use their charcoal for filtering the whiskey.

After watching a number of videos of others making charcoal, there's no way I could do that here at the house - too much smoke.  But I will begin saving up all off cuts in the shop to suppliment my grilling.

Dang,
Your can method sounds efficient.  I'll give it a try the next time.  Thanks for the tip. :)
I do what the little voices in my wife's head tell me to do.

paul case

Hey fellas,
If you can get one good coal started, a hair dryer will add enough air to make that fire get going. I do this in our wood stove sometimes. Just blow it in the air inlet in the bottom and about 2 minutes you have a good fire going. I am cheap. That is cheaper than any lighter fluid. PC
life is too short to be too serious. (some idiot)
2013 LT40SHE25 and Riehl edger,  WM 94 LT40 hd E15. Cut my sawing ''teeth'' on an EZ Boardwalk
sawing oak.hickory,ERC,walnut and almost anything else that shows up.
Don't get phylosophical with me. you will loose me for sure.
pc

Dodgy Loner

DanG, I used to have a charcoal chimney, but I haven't been able to find it since we moved to MS. I keep putting off buying another, because I know that as soon as I do, the one I already own will turn up!
"There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man's lawful prey." -John Ruskin

Any idiot can write a woodworking blog. Here's mine.

metalspinner

Dodgy,
Our local Lowes and HD carry the chimneys. I think I've even seen them at Kroger's before.  They are nice to start the coals...
I do what the little voices in my wife's head tell me to do.

Al_Smith

You can use a quart tin can or a metal coffee can and make a chimney .Short section of stove pipe works too .

SPIKER

The Jack Whiskey they make the charcoal on-site.

saw a documentary on it a long time ago.   If I remember right they used the first cut that had chances of methanol as a fuel and the old oak barrels to make the charcoal originally and after they used it for a filter for a while they would give the old charcoal away to workers at the plant.   Not now they bag it and sell it for some pretty big bucks I see it in the store here about 2X cost for the store brand...

Mark
I'm looking for help all the shrinks have given up on me :o

Dodgy Loner

The wife and I grilled pizzas over white oak coals on Saturday night. Homemade sourdough crust. We cooked them for a few minutes on a pizza stone, then put them straight onto the grate to for a couple of minutes to crisp the bottom. I woulda taken pictures, but they didn't last long enough 8)
"There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man's lawful prey." -John Ruskin

Any idiot can write a woodworking blog. Here's mine.

scsmith42

Earlier in this thread Paul Case posted a link to a previous FF topic about making charcoal, where Jim Buis had attached a file about making charcoal in a 55 gallon drum.

Last week we built the drum mechanism, and made some charcoal.  Yesterday I tried it out; it worked great!  Making the drum was quick and simple, and it was very effective as well.

Thanks all for sharing this great info.
Peterson 10" WPF with 65' of track
Smith - Gallagher dedicated slabber
Tom's 3638D Baker band mill
and a mix of log handling heavy equipment.

brdmkr

If you want to really make charcoal the easy way....

Get a 55 gallon drum.  Make holes around the botton rim for air.  Do not put holes in the bottom.  Keep them just above the rim.  Get a 25 - 30 gallon drum.  Does not need a top.  Fill small drum with wood to be charred.  Turn this drum upside down inside the larger drum.  Build a fire in the larger drum.  The wood gas escapes from the small drum where the open top of the small drum fits against the bottom of the large drum.

The trick is to get the small drum in the large drum without spilling the wood.  I put the small drum on a concrete block (top up).  Turn the large drum upside down over the small drum and then flip the whole thing over.  I have made about 40 lbs of charcoal for cooking and no telling how much biochar for the garden this way.  I think there are more efficient ways, but I can't imagine an easier set-up.

Also, I think this post uses 'drum' more than any other ;D

DanG, come see me and I'll send you home with some charcoal!
Lucas 618  Mahindra 4110, FEL and pallet forks, some cant hooks, and a dose of want-to

zopi

I went back and added a 30 gal metal trashcan to my set up, and while it was not the perfect setup, it certainly works well enough to make my own cooking charcoal...I have some white oak slabs out back it think will go in pretty quick...
Got Wood?
LT-15G GO chassis added.
WM sharpener and setter
And lots of junk.

JohnW

Zopi, a 30 gallon trash can sounds like it would be galvanized.  Careful, that zinc gives off a white smoke that can make you sick.

zopi

Yup..it is, it was and it did. the charcoal I was making is not for cooking, but the warm up fuel for my foundry furnace. I start it on charcoal, and get the chamber warmed up enough to sustain waste oil combustion...
So, zinc melts a seven or eight hundred degrees or so...and aluminum pours arounf fouteen hundred....but if you put a piece of aluminum into molten zinc....it will melt below the melting point of aluminum....now how does that work? lol

Got Wood?
LT-15G GO chassis added.
WM sharpener and setter
And lots of junk.

JohnW

Okay Zopi, thanks for the info.  You must be casting aluminum.

zopi

Yep...that zinc aluminum reaction is the alumonum dissolving in the zinc...and yeah, casting aluminum.
Got Wood?
LT-15G GO chassis added.
WM sharpener and setter
And lots of junk.

Weekend_Sawyer


Made my first batch of charcoal.
Since my new grill demands lump charcoal and it really does seem easy to make
I thought I'd give it a try.

First try is with a 5 gal tin I found in the garage. loaded it up with oak, put 3 screws around the lid to hold it on, drilled 3 3/8 holes in the lid and dropped it in a 55 gal drum that I use for a burning barrel.


 

It's burning now! You could really hear it blowing out of the holes and you can see the vapor at the top of the picture, every now and then this would light off, really cool!


 

A couple of hours later I had about 3 gallons of lump charcoal.
Unfortunatley it looks like this tin is shot. I am looking for a 25 or 30 gal drum.


 
Imagine, Me a Tree Farmer.
Jon, Appalachian American Wannabe.

shelbycharger400

QuoteUnfortunatley it looks like this tin is shot.
thatt'l happen.

Atleast you found a second use for that holiday popcorn tin  ;D

woodhick

Well I am interested in making some charcoal now.  I will add that I took a starter to my local rebuild guy last week and he was showing me his "contraption".  Looks very similar to what you guys are using to make charcoal and he said small charcoal pellets are a by product of his thing.   He is capturing the escaping wood gas and running a generator off of it!   He is burning wood chips from a large chipper (tree service) and with about a 3lb coffe can size "load" of chips he can run a 12hp generator for about an hour.   Gets me to thinking (which is dangerous).  If you capture the gas to run a generator and the by-product is charcoal ??? ??? ???.  Cant be too bad.
  Off to build me a burner.
Woodmizer LT40 Super 42hp Kubota, and more heavy iron woodworking equipment than I have room for.

Weekend_Sawyer


I made 3 batches of charcoal over the 4th. The first batch I made I didn't wait for it to cool down enough, opened the top so it would cool faster and 1/2 hour later noticed the charcoal had lit off and was burning in the bucket. I slapped the lid back on and let it sit for a couple of hours and it was ok after that. Didn't loose too much charcoal to the learning experience.  ::)

You might as well laugh at yourself, everyone else is...
Jon
Imagine, Me a Tree Farmer.
Jon, Appalachian American Wannabe.

woodsteach

I welded up 2 coffee cans end to end and added a handle for a charcoal chimney starter.  Punched some holes in the side towards the bottom for air intake.  Fill half full with crumpled newspaper and pile on the charcoal.  10 minutes later dump into the grill.

One of the methods of home made charcoal I've tried is the brush/slab pile burn then cover with dirt.  Well 3 weeks went by Monday so I thought I'd open up the pile.  Well after 5 minutes with the skidloader I decided that that wasn't dust it was smoke and the Dang pile catches on fire again.  So I covered  it up again and will wait another week or so. 

Brand X Swing Mill, JD 317 Skidloader, MS460 & 290, the best family a guy could ever dream of...all provided by God up above.  (with help from our banker ; ) )

shelbycharger400

every time i fire up the wood chunks in the brinkman grill,  i pile them in their, throw in a half cup of gasoline, take a paper shop wrag, tie in a knot, stand about 10 ft away, light the knot,  and throw it in the barrel.. lights up nice and good.  and kinda fun too  :D let er burn till the blues or more so the greenish blues dissapear .. this happens about 10 to 15 minutes.

Weekend_Sawyer

I made a retort out of an old 110 lb propane tank.

Before I cut the tank I took the valve out, let it air out for a day, filled it with water, drained it half out, dumped in about a cup of dawn and kicked it around the yard for a while, it still smelled of propane but I felt it was ok to cut. Guess I was right.

 
I was going to torch cut it but an angle grinder worked pretty good. I wrapped a piece of flashing around it to use as a guide, struck my line with soap stone and went to work. It took a while and the grinder got so hot I swapped back and forth with my 2nd grinder but it made a nice straight cut.


 
I cut the lid out of 3/8 steel about 2" bigger than the cylinder and attached these tubes to it to blow the gasses back down around the retort.


 
the tailgate of my old truck makes a good workbench and chalkboard. ;D

I welded 1" angle iron in 6 places around the rim of the cylinder, drilled holes in them and matching holes in the lid to bolt it on.



  
My first burn went very well.


 
20 gallons of hardwood chunks produced 15 gallons of charcoal which keeps me grillin for a while.
Imagine, Me a Tree Farmer.
Jon, Appalachian American Wannabe.

Patty

You guys are amazing!  8)
Women are Angels.
And when someone breaks our wings....
We simply continue to fly ........
on a broomstick.....
We are flexible like that.

WDH

Making the charcoal looks almost as much fun as the grillin'  :D.
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Don K

Lucky to own a WM LT40HDD35, blessed to have a wife that encouraged me to buy it.     Now that\'s true love!
Massey Ferguson 1547 FWD with FEL  06 GMC Sierra 2500HD 4X4 Dozer Retriever Husky 359 20\" Bar  Man, life is getting good!

hackberry jake

I live about 15 miles from where royal oak is produced. The sawmills send them their slabs. The slabs get loaded into big ovens a bundle at a time. The ovens are gas fired. The slabs get very little air, mainly heat. After a certain amount of time, they take out the slabs,bust em up,  sift them into certain sizes, and bag em. You are getting elm, sycamore, walnut, hackberry, etc. "royal oak" pish. I have a feeling if you make your own, you can control quality better.
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EZ Boardwalk Jr. With 20hp Honda, 25' of track, and homemade setworks. 32x18 sawshed. 24x40 insulated shop. 30hp kubota with fel. 1978 Massey ferguson 230.

WDH

That thing looks like it is ready to blast off  :D. 

"Houston, we have a problem.  Somebody stuck some sweetgum in the mix."
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

amberwood

 

 

ignore the excavator except for scale. The mill I am currently working at has 3 years of LT70 and LT40 slabs piled up. Estimate 600 tonnes. They were being taken for landscape mulch but there has been a few problems with the truck turning up to take it away etc etc.

I was considering medium scale charcoal production as a means of making it disappear. any experience out there?

DTR
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MS250
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Todd

I've never played with a large grinder/hog, but i've often thought if you could hog out slabs into 2-4 inch chunks they would work good for charcoal or just burning in a wood burner
Making somthing idiot-proof only leads to the creation of bigger idiots!

Dodgy Loner

I just wanted to add to this thread to say that I've been using wood chunks as opposed to charcoal for grilling for the past six months, and I don't think I'll ever go back to using charcoal! I even got a 55-gallon drum for making charcoal, and I haven't so much as cut the lid off yet.

A few things I've learned:

-I originally started off cutting my chunks about the size of charcoal briquettes. That works, but I've found that the coals will last a lot longer with bigger wood chucks. I shoot for about 2-3" cubes, and get excellent coals for up to an hour.

-I find that the most efficient way to cut the chunks is to split them to the appropriate thickness and cut up to length on my bandsaw using an old blade.

-I've used several different types of wood successfully. Red oak and white oak both work great, but I've also mixed in cherry, beech, and even elm (no, not pith-elm :)) with great success.

-You can start the wood chunks with lighter fluid, just like charcoal. But my favorite way to get them started is with a pile of hand plane shavings.
"There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man's lawful prey." -John Ruskin

Any idiot can write a woodworking blog. Here's mine.

Woodchuck53

I guess I'm just cheap. I can't tell you when or if we ever bought charcoal once we married and got on our place. With 51 Red Oaks and Post Oaks in the yard plus 3 Hickory's we have always used our blown down limbs for BBQ starter. I've always cut 3" cookies off my fire wood to keep my 2 drums in the fire wood shed full. I know some of this chunk wood is seasoned 10 years or better and works fine. Of course I can still find lighter pine to kick it off with. Just enough and a eating we will go. My kids have always said "Dad make fire." get it? get it?
Case 1030 w/ Ford FEL, NH 3930 w/Ford FEL, Ford 801 backhoe/loader, TMC 4000# forklift, Stihl 090G-60" bar, 039AV, and 038, Corley 52" circle saw, 15" AMT planer Corley edger, F-350 1 ton, Ford 8000, 20' deck for loader and hauling, F-800 40' bucket truck, C60 Chevy 6 yd. dump truck.

red

I just read Pecan makes VG Charcoal. . . lol
Honor the Fallen Thank the Living

WDH

It should, given where it comes from  smiley_devil  :D :D.
Woodmizer LT40HDD35, John Deere 2155, Kubota M5-111, Kubota L2501, Nyle L53 Dehumidification Kiln, and a passion for all things with leafs, twigs, and bark.  hamsleyhardwood.com

Weekend_Sawyer

I have 2 pecan trees and save any branches that i take out for smoking wood.
Mom was from the south and loved pecans. Unfortunately the squirrels get all of the nuts  ;D
Imagine, Me a Tree Farmer.
Jon, Appalachian American Wannabe.

Woodchuck53

Crack a couple handfuls and toss them on the coals next time. When the pecan meat starts steaming it really adds to the flavor.
Case 1030 w/ Ford FEL, NH 3930 w/Ford FEL, Ford 801 backhoe/loader, TMC 4000# forklift, Stihl 090G-60" bar, 039AV, and 038, Corley 52" circle saw, 15" AMT planer Corley edger, F-350 1 ton, Ford 8000, 20' deck for loader and hauling, F-800 40' bucket truck, C60 Chevy 6 yd. dump truck.

Magicman

I regularly slice cookies from firewood using the miter saw.  I just use limbwood and slice up a bucket full.  Who needs charcoal when you have the real thing.   ???
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

36 coupe

I have books on making charcoal.The publisher is retiring next Feb..6 bucks postpaid.

Woodchuck53

Speaking of retiring. Lindsey publications is retiring also I hear. Any one else hear anything? They were a great source for these kind of books.
Case 1030 w/ Ford FEL, NH 3930 w/Ford FEL, Ford 801 backhoe/loader, TMC 4000# forklift, Stihl 090G-60" bar, 039AV, and 038, Corley 52" circle saw, 15" AMT planer Corley edger, F-350 1 ton, Ford 8000, 20' deck for loader and hauling, F-800 40' bucket truck, C60 Chevy 6 yd. dump truck.

36 coupe

The charcoal book was first published for tobacco growers that made their own charcoal for curing tobacco..I use some charcoal but not the formed stuff, its loaded with coal dust ,cornstarch and lime.Hardwood scraps cook food just fine.My grandfarther made charcoal for sale.My uncle worked at a sawmill that made charcoal from hardwood slabs.Im cutting some white ash now and will cut off a pile of 2 inch discs for next summers barbecue.May fill some feed bags for sale next summer.If you have hickory growing you could sell plenty.The high price of charcoal and propane will  make people go back to hardwood scraps.

DouginUtah


Just to follow up on the comments about Lindsay Books closing, here are a couple of links:

http://www.hobby-machinist.com/showthread.php/8838-Lindsay-Books-Closing-Feb-2013

The home page:

http://www.lindsaybks.com/
-Doug
When you hang around with good people, good things happen. -Darrell Waltrip

There is no need to say 'unleaded regular gas'. It's all unleaded. Just say 'regular gas'. It's not the 70s anymore. (At least that's what my wife tells me.)

---

muddstopper

Quote from: Weekend_Sawyer on July 30, 2012, 03:49:56 PM
I made a retort out of an old 110 lb propane tank.

Before I cut the tank I took the valve out, let it air out for a day, filled it with water, drained it half out, dumped in about a cup of dawn and kicked it around the yard for a while, it still smelled of propane but I felt it was ok to cut. Guess I was right.

While I dont really approve of your method of cutting the propane tank. it looks like you got away with it. I have removed the valve from tanks and the gas remain in them for days. The propane is heavier than air and just seems to stay in the bottom of the tanks rather than vent to the atmosphere. Actually seems to vent better if the bottle is turned upside down.

I do like how you vented the tank toward the bottom of your burner, letting the escapeing gasses help fuel the heating of the chips. Most just vent the gas to the atmosphere and wasting a potential source of good heat.

All of this has got me to thinking about making bio char. I already salvage enought charcoal from my wood stove to do all the BBQ'ing I want to do. I have tons of very good biomass, wood chips, sawdust/mixed with manure, brush, etc. that could be used for biochar. I think a burner such as yours would allow me to convert a lot of that slowly decomposting material to good use. Use of the methane gas from the char could help fuel the process in a self perpetulating sort of way so as to require less additional fuel or heat sources. Now to just figure out how big a rig i want to build and source the materials for it. I would want to do about a ton or so at a time so I am going to need something a little bigger than a propane tank and 55 gal barrel.

Weekend_Sawyer

Believe me, the tank was well vented before i started cutting on it. I let it sit upside down over night, rinsed it out and then filled it half up and added dawn soap. I really did roll it around the yard to wash out the remaining propane.
Imagine, Me a Tree Farmer.
Jon, Appalachian American Wannabe.

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