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bd3
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Post by bd3 » Fri. Nov. 06, 2009 6:26 pm

burn coal in a wood stove if you install a coal grate?

This is because I'm trying to understand what the differences are, not because I want to burn coal in a wood stove. If you have a cast iron coal stove and a cast iron wood stove other than the grate what are the differences? Especially if they are made of the same thickness iron. If this has been discussed before please forgive me. I'm still new around here.

Thanks
Bill

 
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Cap
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Post by Cap » Fri. Nov. 06, 2009 6:46 pm

Air intake for coal has to come in from below. The grate has to be 100% full of coal so the air cannot swirl pass the coal nuggets.
Think about how your barbecue stove works. But the grates will need to be cast iron to take the heat of the hot coals making direct contact. Carbon steel would warp. You also need a way to dump the ash without losing the burning coals on top. Remember, coal burns from the bottom up. I wouldn't see a problem using a very heavy duty wood stove if you can meet the necessary criteria.

 
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ggans2
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Post by ggans2 » Fri. Nov. 06, 2009 8:55 pm

What kind of wood stove do you have?


 
bd3
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Post by bd3 » Fri. Nov. 06, 2009 9:32 pm

ggans2 wrote:What kind of wood stove do you have?
I do not have a wood stove. This is a learning lesson for me on stoves, how they work, and what their differences are. I grew up in a family that heated strictly with wood. With my familiarity of burning wood, knowing these differences will teach me a lot about using coal as a heating fuel. I am currently contemplating getting a coal fired stove. Yes, it will be one made specifically for coal. I'm just trying to learn.

Bill
Last edited by bd3 on Fri. Nov. 06, 2009 9:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.

 
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ggans2
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Post by ggans2 » Fri. Nov. 06, 2009 9:34 pm

Why not buy an old stove? then you can burn both.. plus they are very nice.

 
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LsFarm
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Post by LsFarm » Fri. Nov. 06, 2009 11:20 pm

If you take a couple of burning logs out of a wood stove, and set them on the ground, they would continue to burn. Wood burns with any oxygen from any direction. If you take a shovelfull of coal from a coal stove, it will start go out while still on the shovel. I've tried to transfer burning coal from one firebox to another to start a new fire, and the coal fire never survived the transfer.

Coal needs a steady airflow from underneath, the fire burns from the bottom up. In a hand feed stove, it is normal to see only a red glow from the fire, through the gaps in the upper layer of fresh, unburnt coal. As the coal burns, the ash in the lower level of the fire needs to be 'shaken down' through the grates into the ashpan below.

With a wood stove, the fire sets on the bottom of the stove, the wood burns in it's own ashes, untill the ash level gets too deep, then the firebox needs to be shoveled out. Usually this requires letting the fire go out. With a coal fired stove, many people start the fire in the fall, and keep the same fire burning all season.. the "one match per season" plan.

Take a look at the cut-away diagrams on the stove manufacturers' websites. These will help you see the differences between the wood burners and coal burners.

BTW: A hand fed coal stove will burn wood, since wood isn't fussy about where the air comes from.. But a wood stove won't burn coal, because coal is VERY fussy about where the air it burns comes from..

Hope this helps.. Greg L


 
bd3
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Post by bd3 » Sat. Nov. 07, 2009 9:42 am

LsFarm wrote:If you take a couple of burning logs out of a wood stove, and set them on the ground, they would continue to burn. Wood burns with any oxygen from any direction. If you take a shovelfull of coal from a coal stove, it will start go out while still on the shovel. I've tried to transfer burning coal from one firebox to another to start a new fire, and the coal fire never survived the transfer.

Coal needs a steady airflow from underneath, the fire burns from the bottom up. In a hand feed stove, it is normal to see only a red glow from the fire, through the gaps in the upper layer of fresh, unburnt coal. As the coal burns, the ash in the lower level of the fire needs to be 'shaken down' through the grates into the ashpan below.

With a wood stove, the fire sets on the bottom of the stove, the wood burns in it's own ashes, untill the ash level gets too deep, then the firebox needs to be shoveled out. Usually this requires letting the fire go out. With a coal fired stove, many people start the fire in the fall, and keep the same fire burning all season.. the "one match per season" plan.

Take a look at the cut-away diagrams on the stove manufacturers' websites. These will help you see the differences between the wood burners and coal burners.

BTW: A hand fed coal stove will burn wood, since wood isn't fussy about where the air comes from.. But a wood stove won't burn coal, because coal is VERY fussy about where the air it burns comes from..

Hope this helps.. Greg L
Thanks Greg, this is the kind of information I was looking for. That has helped me quite a bit.

Bill

 
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envisage
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Post by envisage » Sat. Nov. 07, 2009 12:21 pm

I am very fond of my Fire Boss wood/coal hybrid. It is the reason that I am burning coal now, although I have "graduated" to a Warm Morning Model 500 coal furnace which is really meant for burning coal, although it handles wood just fine. The reason for all this is to say that I would strongly recommend you get nothing less than a hybrid, because that will allow you to shake the wood ashes down into the ash pan without ever needing to shut the stove down. Actually, the wood ashes usually just fall through the grates by themselves or as I am adding wood, so I don't ever lose my nice glowing red bed of embers! The only type of coal stove that does not allow you to burn wood is a stoker, because its firebox is very different from other types of stoves.

 
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Post by grizzly2 » Sat. Nov. 07, 2009 4:23 pm

The firebox needs to be deeper than that of a woodstove, because coal likes to burn in a deep bed of at least 6 inches. You keep a coal stove filled up with coal all the time, and regulate heat output with the amount of air you allow to enter the stove. Coal doesn't form creosote so you can keep a very low fire without gunking up the stove pipe.

 
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Post by Cyber36 » Mon. Nov. 09, 2009 1:25 pm

ggans2 wrote:Why not buy an old stove? then you can burn both.. plus they are very nice.
You don't need an old stove to be able to burn both. My Logwood is made to handle both, & oil too.......

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