Sifting Coal Fines

 
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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Wed. Feb. 17, 2016 9:10 pm

So it's about this time of year that I start to really get under the coal chute door. Since I lit the fire in mid October, I've been taking coal from the opposite side, as is probably the case for most people with a basement bin. As I take coal from the bottom of the pile, the bigger pieces roll down from the top while the fines and tiny stuff just sink downward making their way to the bottom. This is great in the beginning of the season, but now it's rearing it's ugly head.

As we know, fines clog the fuel bed and choke combustion air off from coming up thru it evenly. This results in slow recovery, sluggish response to combustion air changes, diminished heat output and just point blank, an inefficient use of oxygen verified by not so good pipe vs stove temps.

Well, I've integrated my own special seasoning of hillbilly ingenuity and came up with this. What I did here is take a bread tray and jacked it up about 4 inches on a couple scrap 2×4 pieces. I secured them to the bread tray with dry wall screws.

My method is to put two shovels worth onto the bread tray and just nudge the coal back and forth a couple times. Everything less than small pea size falls thru and I scoop whats left on top into my coal bucket for the stove.

No fines make for beautiful coal burning. In the pic of the two buckets side by side you can see the fines in the white bucket I separated from the coal in the black bucket.

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TLC lover
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Post by TLC lover » Wed. Feb. 17, 2016 10:28 pm

I typically work from the door in from the bottom. This decreases the amount of fines at the end. And what little fines are in each hod just get spread onto existing bed. Never had problems with it. But is is only maybe 1/4 small shovel full. Easy to spread on top of bed. On warm days, in hand fed, I sprinkle some rice coal I got for free. Helps slow down burn and it was free.....LOL

 
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Post by davidmcbeth3 » Wed. Feb. 17, 2016 10:30 pm

I just patented it .. you owe me $10,000 license fee. :D

Easy peasy !

 
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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Thu. Feb. 18, 2016 12:17 am

I have a few 55 gallon barrels outside. I think I'll start filling one with fines. Maybe I can use them for a landscaping project this summer.

 
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Post by Sunny Boy » Thu. Feb. 18, 2016 7:27 am

My bulk dealer washes the coal so I don't get much fines. Whatever winds up in the bottom of the coal bucket burns well in the stove.

There's heat in those fines that I paid for, so I don't like waste it. Anytime I get about a scoop full fines and small bits, the trick is to not put too much on and DON'T spread it all over the firebed. Put it in clumps like it was just a big piece of coal. Then air can get to it and the rest of the firebed without choking off the firebed. The clumps of fine burn just as well as a big piece, but turn to fine ash and shake down easier.

For the one time I cleaned out the bin, I have a 5 gallon bucket that I cut the bottom out of. Then I fastened 1/4 inch mesh galvanized "hardware cloth" screening over the bottom. I put that bucket sitting in another bucket. Put in a shovelful of coal and fines and then just, "kick the bucket". :D Dump the top bucket off to one side of the bin and dig out some more fines from the middle.

Paul

 
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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Thu. Feb. 18, 2016 5:03 pm

I really like your double bucket separator Paul! What a cool idea. I get what yer saying about trying to burn the fines, I don't love the thought of wasted heat either. I've tried in the past with mediocre results. I don't deny that they are useful for cooling a fire during warm weather burns.

I do love the behavior of a fine free fuel bed though. That sucker will run as hot as ya want it to and then some lol.

 
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Post by franco b » Thu. Feb. 18, 2016 5:15 pm

Sunny Boy wrote:There's heat in those fines that I paid for, so I don't like waste it. Anytime I get about a scoop full fines and small bits, the trick is to not put too much on and DON'T spread it all over the firebed. Put it in clumps like it was just a big piece of coal. Then air can get to it and the rest of the firebed without choking off the firebed. The clumps of fine burn just as well as a big piece, but turn to fine ash and shake down easier.


I never have a problem with fines, but that seems like good advice to me. In the past I have read of using a small paper bag twisted closed to put them on the fire.


 
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Post by scalabro » Thu. Feb. 18, 2016 6:14 pm

Lightning wrote:I have a few 55 gallon barrels outside. I think I'll start filling one with fines. Maybe I can use them for a landscaping project this summer.
That's a nice rig you made there Lee, good idea!

You know, you can have a lot of fun with the really fine stuff....just grab a high school chemistry book :idea: :blowup: :lol: :lol:

 
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Post by Keepaeyeonit » Fri. Feb. 19, 2016 3:30 pm

Thats good Lee :clap: This is what I made to sift all the fines I got with the Lehigh coal I bought a few years ago :mad:
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that stuff was way to dirty for me, I just put a bucket under the plastic bottom and the fines go into It and the coal into another bucket. I have since added a smaller screen to sift what you see in the pic and occasionally I will through a scoop of that (rice size) on the fire.

 
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Post by Lightning » Sat. Mar. 05, 2016 7:34 pm

I liked the smaller screen idea. Seems like I was letting some useful pieces thru with just the bread tray so I added some hardware cloth over it. Then secured the ends with some 1x2 inch wood. Now just buckwheat and smaller falls thru. It's much easier to scoop the coal off the top now too.

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Post by joeq » Sun. Mar. 06, 2016 12:21 pm

Like an STP "Double" oil filter, nothing gets by professor Lee. The EPA will be proud of you Lee. Talk about your "clean burn". Sweet. :)

 
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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Sun. Mar. 06, 2016 12:34 pm

joeq wrote:Like an STP "Double" oil filter, nothing gets by professor Lee. The EPA will be proud of you Lee. Talk about your "clean burn". Sweet. :)
Thanks Joe :lol: - you think they will mind if I use the fines for some landscaping projects?

 
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Post by joeq » Sun. Mar. 06, 2016 12:52 pm

Why should they Lee?
"Ashes to ashes, dust to dust" :D

 
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Post by tcalo » Sun. Mar. 06, 2016 2:41 pm

I have an outdoor bin that holds about 5-6 tons. I just hit a pocket of fines in the middle of the bin. It's bad, almost the consistency of sand! I decided to toss some in with the coal to see the reaction. NEVER AGAIN!!! The stove is usually back up to temp within minutes of tending. It took nearly 2 hours for the stove to get back up to temp with the fines dumped in! The stove wasn't delivering the heat that it normally does either. I usually run it with the mpd 100% closed without issues. I had to open the mpd some to get the draft flowing just so the stove would produce some heat. I needed a way to get the fines out. I took a 5 gallon pail, cut the bottom out and placed chicken wire in the bottom of it. I place the pail in a kitty litter tray, fill it, shake it and off to the stove. Works great! Now I'm left with some rice/pea coal. Wish I knew someone around these parts that burned this stuff... ;)

 
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Post by Lightning » Sun. Mar. 06, 2016 3:17 pm

Great solution tcalo! How's the dust? probably not an issue doing it outside. I'm fortunate that I get a little water in my basement where the bin is. This keeps the bottom couple inches of the bin moist so that when I screen fines I don't get much dust, since I scoop off the bottom against the concrete floor.. The only dust problem I have is when there is a "Coalvalanche" in the bin since anything above that couple inches is very dry, then I get a plume of black dust and I run for the stairs.. :lol:


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