ReInventing the VersiFire!

Small Engines Charcoal Gasification
#1

Happy Spring everyone!!

Ok so yeah its that time of year again and Ill be picking back up on gasser I was working on last year. However that design will be completely re worked into a new design that I am working on now. The original VersiFire concept with the gas storage is getting scrapped Ill explain more.

So the idea of the versifire was to build a system that could make charcoal, while storing the pyrolysis home apliance usage. The gas produced was moved to storage gasometer to settle and scrubb out tar and debris while making engine grade charcoal. This then evolved to just a gas storage system that ended up with a very complex automation system. The idea was to have versital gas producer that not only supplied engine fuel gas but gas for hot water heaters, gas stoves, gas refridgeration etc and do so with out any tar making its way to the end appliications. However after a lot of consideration Ive decided this machine concept and development has not met design critirias to make the cut to productoin level. So this concept is getting complete scrapped. There are liability issues with home gas distribution as this gas is loaded with carbonmonoxide. There are dangers with storing gas in a tank and the automtion on this machine became extremely complex and finicky as it used its own gas for auto re ignition systems for autonomouse opperation. So this is beyond the end user picking up a wrench and fixing it when things go south. So this development is now discontinued.

Inflation cost plus adopting some stainless steel components have driven up cost to produce the CFX RTR. I have not raised our pricing since Covid. However this year I have had no choice but to re evaluate and adjust the cost but unfortunatly this is now premium level pricing. Although the CFX is now at a premium level of build quality with the new stainless steel parts and also its water cracking performance.

So now to combat this, we simply need a lower cost system to get on the market. (Believe me Ive been trying to do this for a decade; this isnt easy to do at comercial level. These machines have to work)

Last fall I started development work on a brand new charcoal gasifier concept. It has a centralized air feed with direct water boiler. This design worked quite well but unfortunatly the fuel must be highly processed for it to work. So it failed design critieria. So I am going to rework this design and ultimatly it will be run on both wood fuel or charcoal fuel or any combination of the two. Thus allowing it to be Versitile hence re inventing the VersiFire!

2025 VersiFire Design Criteria:

  • Must be DIY friendly

*Welders Builder Kit - No Support Systems

*Pre Welded / Un Assembled Base kit - No Support Systems

*Pre Welded / Un Assembled Base kit - With Support Systems

*Fully Assembled Base Gasifier - No Support systems

*Fully Assmbled VersiFire RTR - Ready to Run

  • Simple Construction Using Off the Shelf Components*Main Shell will use 12 inch diameter Propain and Air Tanks (widely available)*Use minimal manufactured components. Although the majority of the components will be vendor supplied we will need to produce some components that you simply cant buy. But we will keep this to a minimum. Specifically with grate sill and reduction tube we will need to manufacture those items or the user will need to create these parts from scratch. We have CNC machine so its easier for us to make those parts.

  • Make it Versitile!!!

*Ideally the new VersiFire concept will have the ability to run on either wood fuel or charcoal and of coarse any mixture. If your wood fuel is not making clean gas you can alway mix in some charcoal to give it a boost in temp and also aid with the water shift. Or you may just not have one or the other fuel ready to run but have the alternate available. Good to produce both fuels and use what you have when its ready.

Machine stacking can scale a system easily with a single build platform. You can team multiple VersiFires and feed them into a shared filtration system to a single output.

Based on simalar design work we have done recently I am confident we can build this new system to meet this cryteria 100%. Ill will be working on updating the CAD work on this machine in the next few days and parts are already on order and on the way. So new engine run videos will be coming soon!!

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#2

That is great to hear. I was very untriaged when you came out with the last model of the VersiFire. It seems viable to use the woodgas in place of propane or natural gas. Especially if there is a way to store the gas so it does not need the to run 24/7.

I will be looking forward to updates.

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#3

Yeah it was a cool concept but its simply not a viable product. If the automation goes down it wont work and its so complex there is no fixing it over the phone. Beside that using a simple wood stove is easier and way more efficient. Gasification is not efficeint at all plus all the complexity. Wood boilers that use all the heat are ok but they lose in the heat to water exchange. There are better solutions for hot water like simply wraping a coil around a stove or retort. Everything else can just run on electric produced form the engine gasifeir system.

I am winding my life down so I can retire. Although Ill never fully retire I need to get this where my old worn out body can do this without employees and also downsize prioduction. I am working on an engineering services and prototypiing company speciallizing in 3D printing, lost investement casting technologies, Carbon Fiber Technologies and 3D Scanning / CAD services. I have been investing into this the last 6 years.

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#4

Hi MattR.
Great truths you wrote in that first paragraph.
I will fix that writing in my mind and in the future refer others back to it.

Yeah. Wind-spitting hopes and dreams can be forced only with much constant personal energy expenditures, costs and and chained single failures points layers built up complexities.
A fellow get tired pushing Others hopes/dreams/beliefs roll-back crushing rocks up hills for them.
They-Them need to up-off-keyboard get out and do real things for themselves.
Get the wood splinters and work made blisters; themselves.
Get the wood chars and soots blackened hands; themselves.
Smell the smells; themselves.
Learn the realities of using woods for power; themselves.

Whole different culture we live versus even as recent as back in the 1950’s with all of the DIY woodworking; radio-making; car maintaining; cooking and baking popular magazines.
Now most all addicted to shop-buy instant-gratification’s. In all things.
Best Regards
Steve unruh

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#5

My belief is that if you could fuel a gasifier with smart phones then a real use could be found for the billions of them and all of a sudden people may look up and notice that there is a whole real world surrounding them waiting to be explored and learned from. Old geezer babbling, grumble, grumble.

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#6

Non-input activities like TV watching are far worse. Phones can be interactive to some extent to get synapses firing. I agree with the sentiment, you have to set it down and walk away from it. I don’t usually take mine outside with me.

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#7

I must say i like smartphones, well, no, i like MY smartphone, because it keeps me in contact with you guy’s, at DOW.

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#8

Looking forward to the evolution of the VersiFire Matt. What are the capabilities of the base unit? Is the picture above a prototype? I bit the bullet and ordered a cheapie stick welder and will start practicing. I have access to better welders with my brother but need to develop those skills myself. Buzz

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#9

It should run 500cc and bellow on either wood or charcoal or mix. I just got done re working the shells today Ill have up later this week. Yes that is the first version of this proto but its totally different now.

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#10

Here is a little teaser for now. So I have the tanks reworked and set up on wheels this time. Now I need to punch the holes to install the jet couplings, build the manifold to distribute primary air to them via SS flex hose, build the boiler nozzle and finally build the reduction bell/skirt and grate system. Then it will be ready for its first fire up.

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