I Have Coal and No Clue.

My husband and I recently purchased a very old (1852) house. While exploring all the nooks and crannies we found a coal room in the basement. The room is about 10 x 10 and the coal covers about half the ground and is three feet deep. We have no idea what type of coal it is. The previous owners said it has been down there for at least 75 years. What do we do with it all?!

Purchase a stove and Use it

Buy/install a stove and burn it, or sell it, or live with it. If it's been there for 75 years, apparently it isn't getting in the way of anything too awful important.

mamaduck60 wrote: We have no idea what type of coal it is. The previous owners said it has been down there for at least 75 years. What do we do with it all?!

If your not planning to burn coal, take a picture of it so we can view what you have. Then either try to sell it or give it away. Remember it's in the basement so who ever takes it will have to bucket it out.

lsayre wrote:Buy/install a stove and burn it, or sell it, or live with it. If it's been there for 75 years, apparently it isn't getting in the way of anything too awful important.

It wasn't get in the way of previous owners but we would like to enjoy all of our property. It seems wasteful to just let it sit down there so I would rather not just live with it.

Where do you live? you don't need to be too specific. That is a very good judge on what kind of coal it is.

Wiz wrote:

mamaduck60 wrote: We have no idea what type of coal it is. The previous owners said it has been down there for at least 75 years. What do we do with it all?!

If your not planning to burn coal, take a picture of it so we can view what you have. Then either try to sell it or give it away. Remember it's in the basement so who ever takes it will have to bucket it out.

If I only want to burn what we have how do I go about doing that? Do I need to know what kind I have in order to burn it? Is there a specific kind that most homes used 100 years ago?
We live in southwest Ohio.

mamaduck60 wrote:If I only want to burn what we have how do I go about doing that? Do I need to know what kind I have in order to burn it? Is there a specific kind that most homes used 100 years ago?
We live in southwest Ohio.

In Southwest Ohio there is a very good chance that it is bituminous coal. How big are the chunks on average? Are they relatively consistent in size? If it is bituminous there are stoves designed (optimized) for that type, and ditto if it is anthracite. Some stoves can handle both types.

The pieces are all about a inch in size. I'll try to add a photo.

I'll take a guess and that is Anthracite. I'm probably wrong though as I've only been burning for a few seasons.

If I were you, I'd buy a stove and burn it.

That might be anthracite pea coal.

Perhaps someone here knows of an easy test to distinguish between bit and anthracite.

Schnicky! Is there any way to burn the coal without investing in a $$ stove and doing a major home renovation?

mamaduck60 wrote:Schnicky! Is there any way to burn the coal without investing in a $$ stove and doing a major home renovation?

You will certainly need a coal burning stove. They are not very expensive. Anthracite will not burn in a wood stove or a fireplace. Bituminous might, but if it doesn't have an ash grate system it would be a nightmare to manage the ashes and maintain the fire for the long haul.

Since there is coal in the house there is a near 100% chance that there is a chimney that can be used as well. With a little looking around you can find a good used coal stove for under $300. Once installed you will really take the sting out of heating your 1852 house.

So I agree with Anthony7812 and others, buy a stove and use it! I can almost guarantee you that you will glad you did. Who knows you might find the stove that goes with the coal!

We do have six fireplaces but they are all bricked up and impossible to use. I'm thinking a more realistic option is to sell it. Soooo, how do I do that?