Just a note, I did add my old flare top the increase air supply and lower pressure and I tried a 70mm pipe end too.
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Do you have air holes for the flaring pipe? I had this issue a few times because the gas wasn’t mixed with enough air to sustain a flare.
Also you said this is adapted from a FEMA? Did you add nozzles?
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Yes, the gasifier has air nozzles, initially two but I was getting a little back fire so I’ve blanked one for now. I got a few idea from the fema version but it’s not built to any fema specs as such.
The flare top I used has plenty of holes drilled out, I’d say at least 30% of it but again, I’d just blew out.
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Does it seem like the flare is retreating into the pipe, or just simply going out?
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I did notice a couple of times it looked to be going back in, it’s hard to tell properly as the flame is pretty hard to see.
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Well at least you seem to have clean and quick lighting gas. That’s a great sign. I can’t exactly remember what a retreating flame means, it was either an air leak or your fan not pulling enough gas, and the flame is consuming it all.
Are there any hot spots that you can tell? It would be very localized. That’s a sign of a leak where the gas is still hot enough to autoignite when oxygen is introduced.
I would go ahead and try to run an engine with it.
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Nice looking unit Ashley. Not maintaining a flare doesn’t mean you aren’t making good gas. If you are making gas then it would be good if you had something to hook it up to and run. Always a miniature thrill.
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Thanks, I’m very pleased with it over all (minus the bad joinery and paint tins!). Went I’m happy with it it will be going on a proper framework.
I’m fairly confident that the gas is clean so I’ll try to get it hooked up to something this week
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Hi Ashley , I wonder if you could talk your electricity provider into lowering your bill if you threaten to climb one of there transmission towers 
Hope to see a engine or generator video running soon you will have a lot of fun for sure its a great feeling being in control of a part of your everyday needs
Dave
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That guy looks like Charlie Bronson 
, reminds me of him because of the roof thing. Watched a documentary about the guy.
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IF you use that generator, you cannot connect it to you existing wiring without a transfer switch to disconnect the grid power. You can use either grid power or the generator. The electric company will come knocking at your door if you try to run them at the same time. It will cause issues for you or them, or both.
IF you want to integrate the generator so you can use both the generator and the utility at the same time or not worry about having enough power. What you want is a “solar off-grid inverter” that has built-in electronics to sync the power with the grid. then the Power company isn’t coming after you, and if your gasifer stalls out or isn’t quite producing enough power, you can still get your business work done.
It looks like Schneider made the context sw series to accept two ac inputs and would run off a generator with battery assist, and automagic transfer switch, stackable, etc. (which is -exactly- what you want except it wasn’t stackable (use two together) and only 4kw not 6kw) but they discontinued it in favor of the xw pro series. You need 230vac 50hz for your power and we use 60hz in north america so google nor their website is giving me the right information. And I am not plugging Schneider it was just the first one I found with the right features.
I know there is a bit of a fight over solar in the UK especially incentives, but adding solar panels might help you out a bit as well. If they did finally add incentives, then add one panel and the huge inverter and battery storage or whatever they give you.
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If its anything like here then you cant just put solar on and connect to the grid , it has to be certified by the company that installs the panels and then the power company will put a new smart meter in and then change your tariff rates that suits them ,( i actualy pay more per KW than a house with no solar panels ! ) if you try connecting old meters they do not go backwards they in fact add on and so you will be getting charged for feeding in , the Tossers who connected my system up did that , they forgot to inform the power company so i had 2 months of losses .
You can how ever use a certified sparky to install a change over switch in your meter box without any problems from the power company , Its a 3 way switch that isolates the mains incoming and as you switch it down it goes through a middle position that is isolated from everything and then through to the lower position that connects a male input plug that feeds into the premises . i had one fitted to my house so that if grid goes out i can throw the switch down and it will allow me to not only run my generator/ batterys back up but it will also allow the solar panels on the roof to carry on working and help with power usage .
Dave
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There are work arounds
He could add some wiring independent to utility mains powered by the generator only.
A 16 amp 220 volt circuit is a considerable amount of power
( trying to remember is it 16 or 32 amp rings you folks use for an outbuilding )
Cocktail napkin math here
But that about 5000 watt electric
10,000 thermal assume a 40 percent efficient gas plant
I’m not not sure he can go much bigger
What might help Ash is if you took some pictures of your consumer unit and let’s see how much power you have
Then let’s find out your loads
Calculate some duty cycles and let’s see how much power you need to generate
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We are talking about someone who was thinking 220v batteries could be directly plugged into the mains. I am not going to recommend they start doing wiring.
A transfer switch it probably 1k. The inverter is more expensive, but easier and safer.
The inverter boxes are like 4k and include battery charge controllers and are stackable. They may need 2 of them. Because you are on the right track, you need to do it by circuit. I believe the circuits are 8a @230v 50hz in the UK. So 6000w is 3 circuits, and they may wish to have more circuits converted, but they can just add another inverter and they will sync. Given the age of the building, they may only have 3 circuits.
If the inverter actually does rectifying for the ac input to sync the ac circuits, then the place to skimp is actually the generator. because that is the most likely part to fail with dirty gas.
There are certainly other ways to do it, but it is the cleanest, and easiest way to do it, and fits inside the electric codes.
In really we are talking about the ability of a business to function or not. Being able to create product is more profitable then the money saved from the electric, which is why a lot of businesses have onsite backup generation.
Remember his make DIY woodgas power is tied directly into his business activities woods scraps generation. No back properties owned woods to fall back onto.
So yes Ashley make your wood-to-power system match your best expectation to that.
Keep your Grid option live and available.
Some active feed back into the Grid with PV solar if possible feasible, beneficial . . . .affordable.
And I am with Wallace. Easiest to just parallel feed your shop equipment’s with your woodgas power. Your circuits. Your control. Right down to individual saws, planers, lathes, individually corded sockets swapped if that is the most expedient. Permitting and electricians labor wise.
Local factors and conditions over-ride a lot of easiest, most direct practical.
Such as . . . you are a business. Mandatory Insurances? Then they will wag your tail. The residence house on a loan mortgage? They will demand Insurances. Then, again those will wag your tail.
And the more you play their games to their rules the less you will have left over for yourself.
I am personally skipping the battery bank for now. Pre-stored wood fuel is my “battery”.
Always have enough set back for your inevitable Grids-outs.
#1 be able to make independent electrical power first. Generator and some pump spec fuel for it.
#2 then with your wood make fuel for that electrical generator.
#3 start with having lots of cords with contractor grade portable socket distribution boxes.
Then. Only then. Imho go with the expenses, permitting, insurances to hard wiring intertying.
But hey. Remember I am the wild scofflaw shit-kicker wild mountains American guy.
Not 3rd world, no-no. They use bribes and "little-bites’ $ payoffs, to get things done. Successful scofflaws are quiet, out of sight . . .catch me if you can. Humble when caught.
Do pay their fines. Do serve their times. Mouth shut, quietly.
And learn to be sneaker the next time.
Regards
Steve Unruh
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Thanks Guys,
For now I think it’s going to be two generators and a breaker, even if this is just a test run for a few months. Long term I would like a better but it is quite expensive and isn’t a quick solution.
In regards to the electrics, I’m fairly competent with the standard stuff (I’ve re-wired houses and fitted new fuse boxes before) but the battery and inverter side of things is where I struggle as I’ve literally never had anything to do with them. I’ll always be staying connected to the grid, if I run low on wood I don’t really want to be purchasing pellets or chipped wood. The whole idea was more of way to use our waste more efficiently and I’m just hopeful we’ll produce enough to run for 8-10 hours a day.
In regards to the kWh usage, it’s is high! We’re using around 25-30 kWh a day at the moment, the plan is to be energy conscious when we’re running on gas. I plan to use 3kwh at anyone time in the workshop, this will be larger tools, and an extractor but most of time I’m just sanding which is around 1.5kwh (including the vacuum). The house, to tick over uses around 1.5kwh (I think just over 2kwh if we have all the tvs, small appliances and lights on). So the tumble dryer will be out of the question when I’m in the workshop but can hopefully be used when the workshop is not in use. Other than that the dish washer and washing machine use around 1200W so we should be able to run the opposite each other.
Thanks again.
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Also, the fuse box currently runs a 63amp fuse, which are over kill for anyone time.
I’ve looked for generators with 50amp plug but unfortunately they don’t really sell them here unless your getting a house hold system which end up costing in excess of 10k (for anything half decent).
I’m guessing two generator running 30amps each in to a 63amp breaker would do the trick? But again, generators aren’t really anything I’ve had much dealing in before.
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Wallace put up some excellent engine-generator information on post #63 here. How to source what were once expensive parts.
Using DIY fuel gas feeding multiple generators is recently best actually show on a Matt Ryder video. Click on his avatar thumbnail here on this topic. Open up to most recent posts to find his video link.
Two or more, you will most always have at least one that works for safety.
Multiple using the more expensive modern Inverter-Generators is seamless as MattR showed.
Be aware that common synchronous generators MUST be rigidly held at 1500 or 3000 RPM to make and maintain your 50 hertz. The second unit must be cut into that phased synchronized to the first. I.
I’ve read of manual flickering light bulb techniques to do that. Wallace may have done this. Or former big power-man BobMac.
As I understand it not done well then things get opposing forces slammed broken. Engine or generator head. Connection coupling.
Common available Direct Current automotive/truck alternators will be too low in wattage for your needs. Uncommon Large DC alternator/generators can be Net found but are super expensive.
And back to a battery bank and stacked inverters for your AC power.
S.U.
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This is the part I am woefully uneducated on, if one where to fuel a generator on woodgas then figure in the wattage loss and if a older generator the destabilizing power hertz movement instead of a newer inverter Genny, how is that power best used? I have several older generators ranging 3500w max to 6500w. Very useful but I don’t trust for certain electronics that get pissy with unclean juice flow. Those are run off the battery bank/solar array. How would the generators capable full wattage be best used in charging the battery bank? I had played with a alternator 200amp big rig goodness on a small engine charging before, but didn’t seem extremely efficient to use a gasoline motor to charge batteries ( before I found woodgas) so I ditched that and would run sensitive electronics on the bank and all other on generator. But if the generator is producing 3500 watts, it seems drastically inefficient to plug in a 30 amp 12v battery charger to pump up the battery bank? Lot of power not being used as the engine is running
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I got a leese neville i was going too make HHO gas with, and never needed that alternater. ITS a 28v or 24 v DC, 200 AMP,would that make a good battery bank charger on wood gas power.
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