Decided to go out and do another test. Checked for bridge and suspect the flow cant keep up. So I think Im going to have to build charcoal processor to get my fuel size down. I think it could also benifit adding a simple hopper vibrator. That is fairly simple now, just a bracket and I just buy those 30 dollar units for sand blast capinets and simple cycle timer. That I have but will need to order the vibrator.
So what I did is I poked it down and I didnt see where there was like a bridge where you can poke through. But after I poked it down the fuel level moved signifacantly. So added more fuel and fired it back up. I was able to get a strong ignitable flare (but not quite sustaining) tried to engine run it fired up for about a minute and then it died. Turned the blower back on and hardly anything. Gave the hopper a few bumps with the deadblow and flare came right back. So that tells me the fuel isnt is flowing. So next steps are change fuel, make fuel smaller and possibly may need to add an agitator for the hopper.
So trying an experiment, rather than cube the charcoal post retort I thought Id give the ole LandWorks chipper a whirl and chip the fuel pre retort. Its not really an added process as I would normally chunk the fuel up with a chop saw post splitting. Its actually easier and would be prefered if it works. Plus I know I can run this chipper off the gasifier if need be.
I know I am not up to date on your builds, this must be a charcoal maker unit, are you blowing air down the center pipe and forcing air out through holes in the pipe.??
You will have to watch this video to wrap your head around it. That is a retort the center tube is direct the pyrolysis gas back to the fire box to be burned off for process heat.
Ive recently added a second stage kiln that is made like the retort. Its center tube feeds into the retort and then passes thru it. If you run seasoned fuel and use the second stage it takes very little feed stock to get the unit into gasification mode to provide its own process heat self sustaining. It is very efficient.
No it needs the lid to push the gas back down. It wont work without a lid on it the gas will just vent to atmsphere. So the gas will never be able to make it back to the combustion chamber to ignite, burn off and provide the process heat to sustain the reaction.
Oh yeah thats how its intended to run. You dont put a chimney on top only if you run it inside as a heater. Otherwise yeah that must be left open so it can vent.
Adding the second stage really adds a ton more draft as well. So it gets up to temp very quickly and then once its gasifying you throtle the valves back.
JUST being a slow learner, how long you think a good charcoal burner like the ones you designed will run a 10 horse Genset pulling 1000 and or 2000 watts grow lights, or would it be better to use 5 horse motor pulling 1500 watts.??THANKS MATT.
I can do my whole 10X20 greenhouse on 700 watts of lights Kevin. Figuring you would need to run those lights about 8 hours a day to supplement winter daylight it would be Best to run a generator to charge batteries to power those lights and do other electrical chores while the batteries are charging. At least thatās my theory since I have never had a grid failure that lasted more than a few hours since 2012.
THANKS TOM, do you mean 700 watts as a grow lights would cover the entire 10 by 20 green house, too keep growing happening. some solar panels and batteries sounds like good idea, and charcoal generator for charging batts when sun is not enough.
Yes. My greenhouse has a 3 foot by 17 foot RMH heated bed on one side and a 9 foot long 3 foot high tank on the other and then a heater for the tank and another 6 foot of grow space. I run 3 lights wide on the sides so 12 lights on one side and six on the other. Thatās actually 750 watts total for 18 lights, but I have never had the whole area planted to need them running at the same time. Iāll have to get a picture to make it clearer. Iām getting ready to set it up for winter now since I just harvested the last of my potatoes today and that was the end of the outside crops
IT would be interesting to see the set up, I been thinking of building a small green house, I got a big pile of round trampoline pipes I could probley get a 10 by 20 footer out of them, rather then letting them sit in a pile out back. And if the truckers strike donāt end , we might need micro greens just to get good nutrition. along with potatoās and organic eggs.
HI Matt I hope were not messing up your thread, getting off subject a bit, I have 2 questions, is the barrel inside of a barrel a good charco making set up or is there better way to make charco, I like your idea of building a unit that burns 50% water, that would be neat, maybe some sort of cataletic converter would build more heat to crack extra water affordable, I got a 100 plate 7 " square ss cell with niaprean and poly ethilene spacers about 1/8" it was making about 30 HHO letters minnut, at about 30 amps 220 volts, I tested it very little, then rinsed it out and shelfāed it, GOOD luck on your 50% charco 50% water designing.
If you donāt want to make a greenhouse. I have seen trampolines used as chicken tractors. You put a fence around the bottom, then you can more easily move it around. or you can build a greenhouse.
The dockworker strike as far as food coming in from mainly from brazil, but bananas and some fruits, a few vegetables but they are early spring right now. between the US and canada, I canāt think of a lot of ānecessitiesā as far as food goes. Maybe beef from argentina and brazil. maybe olive oil from europe? Chicken is processed a lot in China, it is cheaper to ship chickens there, have them process it and send it back last i heard.
i donāt think the shipping strike is going to have a huge impact on food other then speciality types of food. Usually Brazil has the out of season stuff. But canada has a large number of hothouses, and someone built an automated hydroponic lettuce facility. You could probably get leaf lettuce going in container hydroponics.
And to bring it back on topic. The barrel in a barrel is the method to get the most char per load, because you are supplying outside heat and not burning up potential char in the barrel itself. Im not sure what size barrel matt is using for the inside battel of his large versionā¦
THANKS SEAN sounds good on the strike posible not likely to cause a major shortages. I got 4 grow lights and 10 of them plastic tubs with strainers and lids/ I got 2 pounds of organic broccoli seeds and radish seeds and some russion kale to get started. Barrel in a barrel sounds good then thanks, I had some char in a barrel, though I think it was a little too fine to get are pulling through it. fixing leaks,done by next week Lord willing. a little great house out front of my trailer would be nice growing, certain times of the year.
Its been working for me so far. I have not found a better way yet other than the improvments Ive made to it so far. I plan to add more to it and will more than likely build a newer version of it. Im planning to add a water coil wrapped around the lower outer drum and then insulating it. The top could probably use insulation as well but that section you have to lift off along with the kiln pre stage. Because of this I may build a smaller version that will be easier to manage.
If you run pre seasoned fuel before going into the wood kiln pre stage it will knock all of the mositure out of the fuel. Then you move it to the retort it takes very little energy to get it going and gasifying on its own to provide its own process heat. The tables are turning here with both the gasifier tech becoming capable of water cracking along with this much more efficient way of producing the charcoal. The wood used to fire the retort; I use mostly woods that couldnt be gasified anyways so its really not a waste.
THANKS MATT how long would it take just to dry out a 30 gallon barrel of 40% moisture wood down to about 10 % moisture, it seems hard to get wood dry in cooler weather, we get a lot of in Michigan. I might just build me charco gasifier of sorts for my Toyota truck 22 re motor, unless I dry wood other than hot days on a trailer.If I had extra moneys I would buy one of your units, I am sure you got that baby well designed and well used and tested being off grid as you are.
If you can get it in the sun and trap the air in to keep it hot, it will still probably dry decently. Which you could do with your trampoline hoophouse.
I just think winter is too long to heat wood for drying, I could be wrong I never had green house to see how well they collect sun heat, MAYBE a solar pannels and electric heat tape would get hot enough and dryer, without any huge fans blowing the steam out. THOUGH your probley the better idea, WOULD mirrors help reflecting the sun, aiming at a barrel or shelf with wood on it.
