Loaded up some chunking wood and oil change this AM.
Planted gardens and packed up the rest of my stuff this evening.
As you can see the inspector gave me approval. My Son will be up here around midnight tonight to pick up some stuff for his house so I don’t know when bedtime will be. Meeting my business partner in Eau Claire, WI to sign papers. Then I’ll be on my way.
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Looking good there Bill…I tore my unit down this evening removed wood hopper and cleaned the funnel slots and around the spacer where the tar collects. Removed heat exchanger and give it a good cleaning. Had ash all the way up the the 2 inch in the 8 inch cross over. Used the shop-vac and sucked out around 2 gallon of fine ash (char) from the bottom of exchanger. Changing Hay in filter tomorrow and some other things that I have been putting off. You drive on wood long enough you can get by with out some gadgets that you think you can’t do without. I need to replace a vacuum hose that rubbed against drive shaft and rubbed a hole in it. A couple thermo couples are not reading so am going to see if I can find the problem there too. I have just been driving it without the luxuries…lol
I also need to change one of my blowers that hasn’t worked for a while. I hope to have that all done before 5 p.m. tomorrow which is when my daughter will be here to pick up my youngest grandson and my oldest grandson Coleton will be home from school. He will be attending with us just like 2 years ago. We are hoping it all works out and can leave at that time. Plan to drive for around 6 hours and make it the rest of the way getting there hopefully around noon Friday. Might just drive through the night Thursday making it there early Friday morning. We’ll see how it goes.
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I have the wood burner as ready as she’ll ever be. Spent yesterday chunking up some wood, hard to tell from the photo but the bags are 4 deep from the back wall, I just about filled the old chicken coop! I didn’t count them but should be around 75 bags or so (top rows not full).
I’m headed south at first light Friday morning, I should arrive in time for lunch 
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Not sure if I am going to make it or not, if I do it will be Saturday morning and I will have to leave later that night. I will be solo.
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I know your feeling Paul. I had given myself until 5;00 to make up my mind. This morning I woke and KNEW my problem had to be my ash door. I took it apart and I see not white char. Darn. I am modifying the ash door right now, but do not have any hopes of that solving my high temperature problem.
I wish you the best of luck getting things straightened out. I was looking forward to meeting you. I have seen you at a couple but was to shy to talk with you. That was one thing I wanted to do this year. TomC
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I can’t help wonder what would happen if I showed up at the US border pulling my trailered atv and generator… Have fun in argos this weekend I will be glued to my screen…
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Loading up tonight.
Will remember what I forgot half way to Argos.
Decided to drive the big dodge, so have room to bring the charcoal gasifier and generator and about 30 gallons of charcoal.
Lord willing, will see you fellows tomorrow evening.
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Hi, Tom!
22.05.2016 03:36
If the ash door blows in air into the ash bunker gas, there will be no white ash what so ever ! White ash will only appear if the air beam hits char! The gasflame makes it hot like H… but gas develops no ASH!
Good luck!
Max
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Thank you Max; I have wondered about that and that opens up a lot of possibilities. Had to go to the woods and try to cut fire wood for next winter, but I did take a few minutes to sit on the bed of the truck and let my imagination run on any places where the leak could be. I believe I just have to pull it all apart YUK! TomC
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Tom, I would think you could put a 4th of July. Smoke bomb or something that would make smoke like fog machine at the air intake to the Gasifier. Turn on your pusher blower. Let it fill with smoke then plug it off on the other end where it goes into the engine. Start looking for the smoke coming out, and Mark the spots. My 2 cents worth.
Keep on Gasifiing. Bob
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Well, I made it home without loosing my rear end, but she’s really screaming at me now.
Also blew a brake line not long after leaving, but who needs brakes when you’ve got air horns?
I guess it’s time for a little maintenance, but really glad i got to be there.
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I made it home at 3pm this afternoon with a 4 hr nap.
Getting 2 new tires on the wife’s car so we can leave tomorrow morning for Phoenix. She dove 1½ miles on a flat yesterday getting the mail.
I got home and all the trees are pushing out their leaves now. Sure looks nice.
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Made it home, 3:45pm. truck surprised me, 2 detours, round trip almost 1000 miles avg. mpg 19. Bill; Glad to hear you didn’t have any more problems.
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I made it home about 1 pm and after having constructed a WK myself, the learning just magnified from looking at and talking to the other accomplished builders. I think that Wayne spent more time with me than anyone else, thank you. Each time on the road, he made the char bed breathe more until I could actually drive on wood myself. Thanks to the ladies as we would starve after finding out that the sun was going down. Thanks to the Lemlers for hosting and wood fueling. Next year will be even more fun. Doug D
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Well we made it home just fine, we went 530 miles on just smoke NO GAS!!! We even let the truck idle for 23 minutes while in Steak and Shake. Had a great time this year at Argos and cant wait for Argos next year and the possible Missouri meet, anyways hope everybody makes it home okay.
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Home about 415 fought cross wind most of Iowa figured the guys going South would have a hard time. What everyone else said . The high lite of the trip for me was watching the youngers with the paint cans and a couple of pipe fittings trying to make a gasifier. Dragging Mr Gilmore to explain the gasifier from top to bottom… Drawing plans on graph paper. Means there is some up and comers out there.
Thanks to all
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We made it home around 7:00 PM. Of course, we were running on diesel. But it’s still more of an accomplishment than it sounds like, given our recent luck with vehicles (and engines in general).
Had a few adventures at Argos, met some great folks, and learned a lot.
See my charcoal generator thread for details.
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Thanks everybody for making this year one of the best ever! Special thanks to the Lemler crew - You guys are the best!!
I got home safe and sound, but headed right back out to a job in Virginia (just arrived). I’ll try to post pictures and videos when I get time.
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