Red Ash Vs White Ash Coal

Can anyone please explain? Does one or the other have a higher heating value per lb?

Hello Frank, the ash color is determined by the iron content in the coal. So the color of the ash does not always mean that the coal has higher BTU content or not.

However, in certain mines that have been producing coal for many years, certain characteristics of the ash have become connected with that coal's BTU output. So there are some mines who's coal has red ash that has a little bit higher BTU conten that some of the coat that has white ash. But this can vary from year to year or even month to month.

Reason for the variation is that the coal veins are not all consistant, these are a product of nature, geological changes in the earth, time, and many other factors.

One mine that consistantly produced white ash coal, now is pulling out coal that is more 'pink-to-red'. Minor variations in BTU content are hard to track, there are too many other variables when burning to really track this.

Best advice?? But Deep-Mined coal, not stripmined, from a know good source. You will be much happier.

Hope this makes sense. Greg L

Just one or two things to add to Gregs replay Red Ash coal is red because it has a higher content of iron in the coal vein
I know of 3 maybe 4 coal vein that Produces red ash coal because it has more Iron content in it like Greg mentioned
why because it is the way it was formed what it come down to in certain Area's of the Athracite coal fields There are more Iron deposit then the other's so you will get red ash However it does intend to give more B.T.U's per lb and a lowe ash content

For example I buy from three Deep mine coal breakers Two are red ash one is white ash The one red ash is in one vein of coal the ash runs from a pink to a redish brown the ash content is from 5 to 6 % The other deep mine breaker are in 4 different veins of coal so the ash is always red ash and the ash content runs between 8 to 12% ash content
The deep mine white ash breaker are in 5 different coal veins the ash is always white the ash content runs between 8 to 10% ash content the B.T.U 's are lower in the white ash then the red ash The white ash runs between 12.800 to 13.000 per lb The red ash runs between 13.000 to 13.800 per lb Now there are only so many coal veins the Strip mines and The deep

mines are in the same veins of coal the differents is how there get the coal out strip mine has around 50% reclaiming of coal the other 50% is waste The Deep mines can reclaime 80% of the coal and only have 20% of waste So with deep mine coal you have more coal then stripping coal it is all in the meth it of getting it out of the ground And how the Breakers Separate the coal from the waste Well I hope this all makes sense Also the ash content & The B.T.U.'s Can Change in the same vein of coal

Thanks for the explanation.
btw anyone know which if any of these brands of coal are are strip mined or deep mined?
Blashak (the brand I used last year and using this year)
Jeddo
Reading
Kimmel

LsFarm wrote:Hello Frank, the ash color is determined by the iron content in the coal. So the color of the ash does not always mean that the coal has higher BTU content or not.

However, in certain mines that have been producing coal for many years, certain characteristics of the ash have become connected with that coal's BTU output. So there are some mines who's coal has red ash that has a little bit higher BTU conten that some of the coat that has white ash. But this can vary from year to year or even month to month.

Reason for the variation is that the coal veins are not all consistant, these are a product of nature, geological changes in the earth, time, and many other factors.

One mine that consistantly produced white ash coal, now is pulling out coal that is more 'pink-to-red'. Minor variations in BTU content are hard to track, there are too many other variables when burning to really track this.

Best advice?? But Deep-Mined coal, not stripmined, from a know good source. You will be much happier.

Hope this makes sense. Greg L

Hi Frank.B all of them are strip except kimmel witch is a mixed poor Quality Here is the list of underground mines 3 of them are closed in schuylkill county where I was born & raised and still live the second two list are stripping mines
**Broken Link(s) Removed**

**Broken Link(s) Removed**