Crane 404 - Our First Coal Burner

windyhill4.2 · Post by **windyhill4.2** » Sat. Nov. 12, 2016 10:26 am

This is my first experience with the super sacks,can't say I am thrilled by them but needed to get 2 sizes of coal on the load.I can buy coal locally,but even if I pick it up loose,dumped on my truck,i will pay in excess of $200/ton.My price for this coal picked up at Gale was $140/ton +$20 handling charge & then the truck & tractor rental. Final cost per ton = $164/ton which to me is far better than the $235/ton locally.

ddahlgren · Post by **ddahlgren** » Sat. Nov. 12, 2016 2:21 pm

Lucky you I pay double that for Blaschack nut

Post by **dcrane** » Sat. Nov. 12, 2016 2:34 pm

ddahlgren wrote:Lucky you I pay double that for Blaschack nut

Lucky you, keep driving east and watch even your price double, I see some gougers like Williams trying to get $9.00 per 40lb bag (good god, oil has to be cheaper that that

)

windyhill4.2 · Post by **windyhill4.2** » Sat. Nov. 12, 2016 3:58 pm

dcrane wrote:
ddahlgren wrote:Lucky you I pay double that for Blaschack nut
Lucky you, keep driving east and watch even your price double, I see some gougers like Williams trying to get $9.00 per 40lb bag (good god, oil has to be cheaper that that )

Maybe so ,but oil is boring !!

Oil $$ end up over there in those battle ground countries too.
$9/bag is robbery too,just more local.

blrman07 · Post by **blrman07** » Sat. Nov. 12, 2016 5:30 pm

Darn. Turkey Hill charges 9.95 for a 40 pound bag. I get it for 3.60 for 40 pounds bulk in buckets.

ddahlgren · Post by **ddahlgren** » Sun. Nov. 13, 2016 8:11 am

At 6.35 a 40 lb. bag and 2.40 a gallon for fuel oil it is a wash for me if you use realistic efficiencies. The defaults in the calculator are way off the mark for 2016 oil heat and pretty optimistic for coal at least with my 404. With weather averging 60 during the day and high 40's to low 50's at night it is not worth the work to me to burn coal.

Post by **Rob R.** » Sun. Nov. 13, 2016 8:16 am

windyhill4.2 wrote:Wednesday I sent my farmer friend to Gale Mining for more coal. I have now bought nearly 30 ton of rice from Gale,this time they filled 2 super sacks with nut & then finished the rest of the truck with rice for my EFM boiler. Tonite my neighbor came over with his big John Deere backhoe & unloaded the 2 super sacks. I have never burnt nut from Gale b4,i am anxious to try it,but not sure when I will lite my 404. I have been thinking about this all summer as to how I can fit stove tending into my schedule,especially in the am when I seem to always run short on time to get things done b4 8 am when I open my shop. When my wife was still living,she could watch the shop for me to do the stove if needed during business hrs. When outside temps drop into the 30's I will certainly need the 404 firing to keep the concrete slabbed living room comfortable. The 2 super sacks total weight @ 4800# + about 1,000# of coal in buckets from last season yet. I will have more than enough to get thru even a brutal winter as it is unlikely I will run this stove quite as hard as I did when my wife was alive & often used this stove for cooking & other food preparation .

You are fortunate to have access to that equipment. Same for me, I depend on my brothers skidsteer to handle theverything coal.

Have you ever considered two nice cast iron radiators for that back room? it would be pretty simple to pipe off your existing pex loop.

windyhill4.2 · Post by **windyhill4.2** » Sun. Nov. 13, 2016 9:38 am

Rob, I have often thought about cast iron radiators for this room. I have been following Stokerdon's radiator thread & so this summer have been thinking about how cast iron radiators would work for the whole house. That is the downfall of following some of these threads.

I really like that the 404 creates a very warm spot in this room along with humidifying the house with up to 3-4 gallons of water daily added to the big stainless kettle on the stove top. I also like the fact that this stove is capable of keeping my house at near comfortable temps should the power go out or the EFM system has an issue.

Post by **Rob R.** » Sun. Nov. 13, 2016 9:49 am

I wasn't suggesting you should remove the 404. keep it for emergency power, and an extra punch in bad weather.

windyhill4.2 · Post by **windyhill4.2** » Sat. Dec. 10, 2016 7:47 pm

Thurs nite I decided the time had come to have a WARM spot in my house,so I got a few scraps of thin wood,some cardboard,some paper,lit the fire & when the wood lit I sprinkled some Gale nut on top. I gradually added coal until the stove was full,filled the big stainless kettle on top of the stove with water & adjusted the air intake.
Since then I tend the stove every 12 hrs,it runs @ 400*,burns about 30# in 24 hrs & adds about 3 gal of water to the air in 24 hrs.

I have my WARM spot again.

Took the following pics after an all nite burn,i did not touch the stove this am b4 taking the pics.
I am liking this Gale coal very much so far

Goody22 · Post by **Goody22** » Fri. Dec. 16, 2016 10:05 pm

What is this gale coal you talk about?

windyhill4.2 · Post by **windyhill4.2** » Fri. Dec. 16, 2016 10:38 pm

Goody22 wrote:What is this gale coal you talk about?

Gale Mining Company of Ginther,Pa.owned & operated by forum member fifthg ,a fifth generation family member who runs the business.I have burned 15+ tons of Gale rice & have been very pleased with it,so I thought I would try their nut coal too.Very happy with everything about their nut coal too.

ddahlgren · Post by **ddahlgren** » Sat. Dec. 17, 2016 11:18 am

windyhill4.2 wrote:
Goody22 wrote:What is this gale coal you talk about?
Gale Mining Company of Ginther,Pa.owned & operated by forum member fifthg ,a fifth generation family member who runs the business.I have burned 15+ tons of Gale rice & have been very pleased with it,so I thought I would try their nut coal too.Very happy with everything about their nut coal too.

How does the sizing run? I have to laugh every time I open a bag of Blaschack it has every possible size with some fines and some water. Not that I expect to find Gale coal in CT. Even get the occasional piece of what looks like shale or rock of some kind. It makes every load after tending a new experience with no set it and forget it.

windyhill4.2 · Post by **windyhill4.2** » Sat. Dec. 17, 2016 11:56 am

dd, My experience with Blashack was the same,their nut was every size in the book. The Gale nut is basically 2 sizes,pea & nut,could be called peanut. I like to have only nut size,BUT, this coal is working very well. I was really disappointed when I first saw the amount of pea mixed in,but I have been very happy with the performance from it.I guess the other brands of coals I bought had so much buck,rice & fines in it that I thought if only it was all nut I would get better performance. So even tho I would call this Gale nut more of a peanut , I will definitely buy more from them if it all works as good as it has so far.Just this am,i cleared the ashes & had 1/3 bed of coals left,i filled & heaped the coal in ,closed the door & walked away. It makes tending the stove easy when fines are minimal.

windyhill4.2 · Post by **windyhill4.2** » Thu. Dec. 22, 2016 2:04 pm

Because I have complained about the peanut sizing of my nut coal,i decided to update my feelings on it. I REALLY like this Gale nut coal,even tho I call it peanut coal. It is doing a fantastic job of burning,no complaints from me anymore. Very little fines in the bottom of a few buckets,not much rice or buckwheat mixed in either as some other brands had that I used previously.

I love to see all the blue flames when I walk up to the stove about 5:45 am,this is after last tending at 6-7 pm the night b4.
SO, unless something drastically changes with future buckets of this coal,i will certainly buy more nut coal from Gale Mining Co.

Crane 404 - Our First Coal Burner

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