etpm
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Jun 30, 2021
- Messages
- 2,021
- Location
- Whidbey Island, WA
- Tractor
- Yanmar YM2310, Honda H5013, Case 580 CK, Ford 9N
We have had over the years the occasion to burn lots of green branches and the like. After windstorms bring down lots of branches for example. We have a pretty big fire ring that we use for burning this kind of stuff. The fire ring does double duty as it is also used for folks to stand and sit around on cold days to socialize and eat baby back ribs with beans or whatever elase is good on cold days.
But the point of this post is getting green stuff to burn. I used to use my weed burner to get the fire going and then I would leave the weed burner going with a smaller flame pointed into the mass of green branches to keep the heat up for a long time until there was enough stuff burning well to keep the fire going. Sometimes the weed burner would need to be kept burning for 1/2 an hour or so.
Then my son said to me "Why don't you use that squirrel cage blower in the shed?" I had forgotten about a relatively small squirrel cage blower I had bought for about 5 bucks at a garage sale years before because it was so well built and I figured I could use it some day. The blower has a 1/4 HP motor and was probably made no later than 1960. But from the construction and the weight and the original wiring I suspect it was made no later than 1950. All that is beside the point though. The little squirrel cage blower is perfect for getting a good burn pile going without using lots of propane or diesel fuel.
I still use the weed burner to get the fire going but after it starts to burn I use the blower and the weed burner together for a few minutes and then just the blower. I may use the blower for quite a while as I add more material to the 6 foot diameter burn pile, but it doesn't use much power and really helps to keep the fire going. I have used this method to keep the fire going during a pretty heavy rain. The extra oxygen really helps. Once the fire is burning well I turn off the fan but if the fire stops burning so well because I have added a bunch more green branches I start the fan again.
I point the fan so that the air stream flowing from the fan is directed at the base of the fire. It is amazing just how hot the fire will get. The reason the squirel cage fan works so well is because the air stream is fairly small and concentrated, so all that extra air can be directed at the center of the fire where it is needed the most. Kinda like a laser beam. An air laser. Maybe that's a little over the top. But the air stream is concentrated and can be directed at the base where it will do the most good.
Anyway, I have seen squirrel cage fans for sale cheap at garage sales several times. I think they must come from furnaces, I'm pretty sure mine came from an old oil furnace, give its age. Keep you eyes open and buy one if you need to get burn piles going and don't want to douse the wood with diesel. For a 6 foot diameter burn pile it doesn't take a big squirrel cage fan to get a good burn going.
Eric
But the point of this post is getting green stuff to burn. I used to use my weed burner to get the fire going and then I would leave the weed burner going with a smaller flame pointed into the mass of green branches to keep the heat up for a long time until there was enough stuff burning well to keep the fire going. Sometimes the weed burner would need to be kept burning for 1/2 an hour or so.
Then my son said to me "Why don't you use that squirrel cage blower in the shed?" I had forgotten about a relatively small squirrel cage blower I had bought for about 5 bucks at a garage sale years before because it was so well built and I figured I could use it some day. The blower has a 1/4 HP motor and was probably made no later than 1960. But from the construction and the weight and the original wiring I suspect it was made no later than 1950. All that is beside the point though. The little squirrel cage blower is perfect for getting a good burn pile going without using lots of propane or diesel fuel.
I still use the weed burner to get the fire going but after it starts to burn I use the blower and the weed burner together for a few minutes and then just the blower. I may use the blower for quite a while as I add more material to the 6 foot diameter burn pile, but it doesn't use much power and really helps to keep the fire going. I have used this method to keep the fire going during a pretty heavy rain. The extra oxygen really helps. Once the fire is burning well I turn off the fan but if the fire stops burning so well because I have added a bunch more green branches I start the fan again.
I point the fan so that the air stream flowing from the fan is directed at the base of the fire. It is amazing just how hot the fire will get. The reason the squirel cage fan works so well is because the air stream is fairly small and concentrated, so all that extra air can be directed at the center of the fire where it is needed the most. Kinda like a laser beam. An air laser. Maybe that's a little over the top. But the air stream is concentrated and can be directed at the base where it will do the most good.
Anyway, I have seen squirrel cage fans for sale cheap at garage sales several times. I think they must come from furnaces, I'm pretty sure mine came from an old oil furnace, give its age. Keep you eyes open and buy one if you need to get burn piles going and don't want to douse the wood with diesel. For a 6 foot diameter burn pile it doesn't take a big squirrel cage fan to get a good burn going.
Eric
