Wanted: A stoker to burn chicken manure pellets

I had a serious call from a chicken farmer who wanted to know if our efm worm feed stoker could feed dried manure pellets for heat.

I told him that we had no idea if it would work. Anybody ever hear of such an operation?

Google tells me it can be done: http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/528550/

Must stink pretty bad and I'd venture to guess there is law somewhere against it.

I would think that the ammonia in the chicken crap would destroy a furnace in short order. Stainless steel would last longer but I think it would rot out also.

Alternative Heating Systems manufactures a boiler, available in Stainless Steel, that might be applicable. They also offer automated feed systems that might be applicable.

http://www.alternateheatingsystems.com/woodboilers.htm

I don't think smell would be much of an issue for the chicken grower or neighbors. The chicken farms in Maryland and Delaware already smell like, well, chicken fuel.

A guy in England ran his car, truck and heated his home on methane from chicken manure. It is a clean burning fuel that has more power than gas.

Check out Bate's ride.
http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel_lib ... _bate.html

All you need is a manure cooker. At 80* the manure has two microbes that eat each other and make methane, run your car or heat your house. All you need is a herd of chickens.

Next thing is Chicken Wings will be $700 a dozen.

cat poop burns in the efm mixed with coal......kittys get jailed lately when they come in the garage.....the smell is what bothered me

Yeah, I found that I locked the cat in the workshop where I had a barrel holder full of coal, Yippie, new black litter to dig in! Next time that cat's gonna be out in the cold!

Bob wrote:Alternative Heating Systems manufactures a boiler, available in Stainless Steel, that might be applicable. They also offer automated feed systems that might be applicable.

http://www.alternateheatingsystems.com/woodboilers.htm

Jeff at AHS told me they had such a customer. I can't remember if it was a stoker or not, but it was a special stainless boiler.

gambler wrote:I would think that the ammonia in the chicken crap would destroy a furnace in short order. Stainless steel would last longer but I think it would rot out also.

I would think so too. I once walked into a large commercial chicken coop that was abandoned for years and the place was still acrid and triggered my allergies and asthma.

yikes!

I would think so too. I once walked into a large commercial chicken coop that was abandoned for years and the place was still acrid and triggered my allergies and asthma.

It's sad really, I raise chickens and they don't smell. As long as they have enough room there is no odor, when you smell "farm" that is an indication of overcrowding and is bad for everything involved. I realize that in commercial chicken farms it isn't possible to give each bird 5 square feet of space but I've seen some places that are nut to butt chickens and you won't eat store-bought chicken anymore if you ever see it.

I saw a "Dirty Jobs" show where they were at a industrial chicken or turkey farm and it was quite repulsive to say the least... wish I never watched it. They had him cleaning manure and I swear it was 2 or 3 inches thick and every so often they'd find a dead bird embedded in the manure.

e.alleg wrote:It's sad really, I raise chickens and they don't smell. As long as they have enough room there is no odor, when you smell "farm" that is an indication of overcrowding and is bad for everything involved. I realize that in commercial chicken farms it isn't possible to give each bird 5 square feet of space but I've seen some places that are nut to butt chickens and you won't eat store-bought chicken anymore if you ever see it.

Yeah, I had a white leghorn rooster when I was young. He never smelled nor his pen. Got a peep from the 5&10 like millions of other kids at easter before they required the sale of lots of six chicks. My mom never let me maul it like the rest of the kids. Started buying 10c bags of cracked corn at the dime store and soon my father was buying fifty pound bags at the Agway. One day after school I was told that "chicken little" died. Later, when I became an adult, mom confessed the farmer down the road had Chicken Little for some Sunday dinner.


LOL

anyway, is the chicken poop burning idea valid?

Maybe you had it for Sunday dinner...