This is a stupid coal burning question.

[JSUnlimited]

I've read about coal burning in other threads and saw the term "clinkering" (sp?). What exactly does that mean?

 

[Dutch445]

ok,,
I'll take a guess,, since I'm a newbie coal burner myself.
(seems to be working great by the way!)

I would think "clinkering" would refer to shaking the coal,
which is necessary to keep the proper draft. Some have
said to shake until some "clinkers" drop into the ashes, which
I took it to mean some red small pieces of coal. Obviously
being careful not to fill the whole ash tray with the live bed of coals!

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[scott_vt]

Hi Dutch,
Sounds like your doing good.

I take the word clinker as, the fusing together of the coal, as Dutch was doing with his poker /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Sorry Dutch, I never could keep a secret /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

scotty

 

[Dutch445]

that's allright,,

it's been burning great, i think for 3 , maybe 4 weeks now..
load it in the morning, then i shake and add a little
coal when i get home from work at 5,, then fill er up
before i go to bed at 10 or 11... good to go. i've been
running it a lot cooler than that first couple weeks,, temps
have been rather mild... so i go thru about a bag of coal a day,, a bit less actually. not too bad. love the even heat, although it's still warmer in the house than i've ever had it, 70-74 most of the time! if i was running the boiler, i'd have t-stats at 65 or 68 when we were there, and 60-62 at nite and
when we leave for work.

went and bought my first batch of coal 2 weeks ago,,, bagged it, 170 per ton. (i only bought 1400lbs that day)
will need to go back in a couple more weeks i would imagine.

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[scott_vt]

Dutch,
Thats not bad /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif Just curious where your gettin it???

Thanks,
scotty

 

[Egon]

Clinkers are formed from the uncombusted minerals present in the coal. They fuse together in the heat of the furnace.

Egon

 

[Dutch445]

There are 3 or 4 places within a half hour drive from where I live,, and the place I've gone to is Dennis Coal & Stove, outside Fabius NY...
(South of Syracuse).
I believe the other places are similar priced...

 

[JSUnlimited]

Dutch,

Thanks for the info. All of Dec. I burned wood and just yesterday I tried some coal. Knowing nothing about coal burning, I placed a couple of 3-4" pieces in a good bed of hot coals left by the wood and they took right off and lasted a couple of hours. My plans are to use wood during the day and load with coal at night so as to maybe get a good nights sleep.

BTW, I too have had the warmest house ever....USING NO NATURAL GAS!!!!

 

[Dutch445]

Is that a hand fired furnace?
Whether it's wood or coal,, you need to load it by hand
ever few hours?
That's the way my Mark 3 Harman is.;.. I almost wish
it was a stoker that fed itself,, but I don't mind throwing a few
shovels of coal in here and there...

I would bet a good load of coal at nite and you'd be good
to go for the nite!
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[JSUnlimited]

Dutch445,

Yep, hand fired. /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif

We bought it at TSC as it is made by US Stove Co. I'm very pleased with it so far (momma is too!). As far as wood burning goes, 3-4 hours and I need to be checking it, sooner if the T-stat is calling for heat. It heats 2500+ sq.ft. great, sometime too much (good for me cause she dropping off clothes!) Tonight I'll load it with coal and see what happens /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif.

 

[Dutch445]

cool,,, let us know if things "heat up" tonight!


/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[scott_vt]

Mega Me,
I understand tequila works quite well also /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif According to a song I listen to on a local country station!

I see in your bio, career firefighter/ paramedic, my youngest son just graduated college with a degree in fire science, and is an EMT IV working for a local ambulance company. I told him with all his free time to get his paramedic license until he can find a fire fighters position, it can only help. Sorry didnt mean to hijackl your thread /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

scotty

 

[6or7dazeaweek]

Dutch445: Where are you getting your coal from? I just paid $225/ton delivered....up from 185/ton a year ago. Ouch!
/forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

Jon

 

[Dutch445]

Down near pompey/fabius area,, Dennis Coal & Stove.
But, I haven't had any delivered, just picked up myself..
and I bagged it, which seems much easier to manage for me.

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[JSUnlimited]

She doesn't drink tequila....maybe thats her problem!

Tell your son that getting his paramedic certification in addition to his firefighting training will be the best thing he can do. Fighting fires is slowly going to the wayside and EMS is a majority of FD business anymore.

 

[Bird]

Scotty, you know a number of departments, such as the DFW Airport Public Safety Department, as well as some cities, are cross training so their employees are both police officers and firemen.

 

[To20Chris]

Mega_Me - which model did you get? I got the US Stove "Magnolia" - I'm very happy with the performance, especially for $775. I won't be trying coal in mine, as the airflow is from the top, and that's not going to work with coal I don't think. But it kicks butt as a wood stove. 3-4hrs is what mine will burn too, although it will go a bit longer if I load it up with big pieces of ash or oak and stop it down real hard. Unfortunately, I've got a lot of poplar, which is only half the BTU per log. But what the heck, I've got loads of it, it's free, it splits easy, stacks nice, dries fast, and burns hot. So I try to save the good stuff for the night time loads!

I rigged up a thermostat to turn on the blower for my hot air system, and modified the duct work. So when the basement room the stove is in gets to about 78, it turns on the fan. It beats just turning on the override, because now if the fire goes low, it won't just blow cold air around.

 

[JSUnlimited]

To20Chris,

I bought the 1600G at TSC for $1499.00. I and the Mrs. are pleased with the performance. I was hesitant to make a large purchase from TSC as some things in the past were "sub-standard." However a little research of US Stove Co. and the fact that it was union made I thought what the heck. It's well on the way to paying for itself as our first gas bill came and we had a CREDIT! Usually the bill runs well over $200.00 for the month. We did a pretty extensive install with a new brick chimney and automated dampers, etc. I posted pics and info a while back. I have an abundance of oak and cherry. I don't really care for the cherry but like you say it's free and splits easy!

 

[scott_vt]

Mega me and Bird,
Thankyou both for your helpful input. I will be sure to pass all that info to my son.

scotty

 

[Dutch445]

If you are still interested in more coal questions,
I found this forum, and it's quite helpful.
coal burning forum
I think it was started by a coal dealer, who wanted an easy way to answer customer questions without taking so many phone calls at his company!
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