10th Year Anniversary at Coalpail

 
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Lightning
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Posts: 14659
Joined: Wed. Nov. 16, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Olean, NY
Stoker Coal Boiler: Modified AA 130
Coal Size/Type: Pea Size - Anthracite

Post by Lightning » Tue. Nov. 09, 2021 8:20 pm

My 10th year anniversary for being a member here is Nov 16th. Do I get a gold watch or something Mr Mayor? :lol:

I just wanna give a big thank you to all you great people that unconditionally offer your support and advice. I've come a long way, we've all come a long way, and I am so very greatful.

Here was my first post, to this day gets me a little emotional. Seems like a lifetime ago yet just yesterday..
Lightning wrote:
Wed. Nov. 16, 2011 9:57 am
MY story...

HI I'm new here and I would like to share the story that brought me to use coal to heat my home. I live about 70 miles south of Buffalo and just a few miles above the PA line. Last year I converted my 2 and a half car garage into a living room (and we love it!) bringing my square footage of living space up to about 2000 SQ feet. I ran duct work off my propane furnace in December to feed the new room. We kept it around 69-70 degrees. Things were going smoothly, new room, loved it - we gazed out at the frozen tundra thru the new bay windows smiling...

Then one day in mid January it happened. I stopped at the mailbox on my way home from work and there it was... The ominious propane bill. My eyes opened wide, I felt a rise in blood pressure, my heart thumped.. I knew we had been pushing that furnace hard. I opened the envelope, trembling. At the bottom I saw $452.35. I cringed and covered my mouth in denial. Then paid the bill.. From that point on I lowered the themostat at night, and my wife did during the day when she wasn't home. The cold spells outside got worse. Below zero at night. Mid Feb, there again the propane bill, this time $592.61.. I screamed in agony.. OMG I can't do this!!! I started using electric to help cut the propane bill.. BAD MOVE!! I was even burning wood pellets in the other part of the house to help.

I think you guys get the point.. By April I was totally disgusted and knew I had to completely redo my heating system. I never paid the final propane bill. The supplier showed up in July to take the tank. I told him get that thing the H*** outta my yard and good riddens too ya!! - (sorry propane guy) -

Last spring of this year I started my research. I looked at all the ways to heat and how many dollars per million BTU. I thought about my Grandpa who heated his camp with a nice little coal stove. I miss him. I remember sitting next to it, 31 years ago, feeling the radiant heat when I was 9 years old... Sorry I got a little emotional there :)

Wood, not bad but alot of work. Wood pellets still decent, I have a pellet stove in the other part of the house, I love it. Electric, $36.64 per million BTU, ouch. Propane at $2.99 gallon - $40.92 per million BTU. Are you for real!!! Then coal sits at a humble $11.72 per million BTU @ $211/ton. I was totally blown away. I must have done the figures wrong. Checked and checked again. It was right, and I was left wondering why everyone on this planet isn't using coal to heat with.

All summer I talked to freinds and family about coal. They probably got sick of hearing about it even lol.. I got some very awkward looking faces and responces. Coal was like some dirty little skeleton in the closet. My wife feared we would surely freeze to death this winter since I uprooted the propane furnace. I didn't understand but I knew in my soul I was onto something huge!! I thought about the cold winter days when I was a child at my Grandpa's camp...

Time for action!! I found a used Clayton 1537G on Craigs list for a very reasonable price. Its a hand fed, forced air unit with blowers designed to connect to duct work. The previous owners used hard nut coal in it. I wire bushed the front and re-painted it with stove paint. Looks nice! My freind and and I wrestled it into the basement and I spent a couple weeks redoing duct runs. We have had some cold and warm spells so for this year so I think the longest duration I had coal burning was about 3 days. I love it!!

I'm still learning how to burn coal, but I'm getting a grip on it now, thanks to the wealth of knowledge here written by enthusiastic coal burners!! The hardest part is leaving it alone to do its job.. The days I've had it running it was 25 outside, shorts and T-shirt weather in the house at 80.. Now we're smiling - again :) and I'm very excited to burn coal this winter!

In closing I hope I didn't bore anyone with my long winded story, I'm sure many of you have a similar reason for your coal coolness or should I say say holy heatness lol. I will return here with photos and things that I'm learning along the way. Thank you for all that have written to help us newbies get on the wagon with coal!

Lee :)


 
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warminmn
Member
Posts: 8108
Joined: Tue. Feb. 08, 2011 5:59 pm
Location: Land of 11,842 lakes
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Chubby Junior, Efel Nestor Martin, Riteway 37
Coal Size/Type: nut and stove anthracite, lignite
Other Heating: Wood and wear a wool shirt

Post by warminmn » Tue. Nov. 09, 2021 8:45 pm

Thats quite the 1st post! I had to look and Im going on 11 years. Yes, we all learn from one another. Your secondary air posts from your past stove helped me a lot, that I know.

The gold watch is after 20 years so keep posting!

 
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freetown fred
Member
Posts: 30293
Joined: Thu. Dec. 31, 2009 12:33 pm
Location: Freetown,NY 13803
Hand Fed Coal Stove: HITZER 50-93
Coal Size/Type: BLASCHAK Nut

Post by freetown fred » Tue. Nov. 09, 2021 9:14 pm

Hey Lee, that story was boring then & it still is!!!! LOL Good Lord man, do you plan your own belly button B-days???? double LOL

 
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Lightning
Site Moderator
Posts: 14659
Joined: Wed. Nov. 16, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Olean, NY
Stoker Coal Boiler: Modified AA 130
Coal Size/Type: Pea Size - Anthracite

Post by Lightning » Tue. Nov. 09, 2021 9:38 pm

freetown fred wrote:
Tue. Nov. 09, 2021 9:14 pm
Hey Lee, that story was boring then & it still is!!!! LOL Good Lord man, do you plan your own belly button B-days???? double LOL
I thought it would be be a good conversation starter.. sorry if you didn't. :roll: how does that saying go? If you can't say something nice then... You know how it goes.

 
franco b
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Posts: 11416
Joined: Wed. Nov. 05, 2008 5:11 pm
Location: Kent CT
Hand Fed Coal Stove: V ermont Castings 2310, Franco Belge 262
Baseburners & Antiques: Glenwood Modern Oak 114
Coal Size/Type: nut and pea

Post by franco b » Tue. Nov. 09, 2021 10:53 pm

Happy tenth. Your observations along the way have been equally happy. Easy for a super hero though with the light of truth.

 
lincolnmania
Member
Posts: 2684
Joined: Fri. Jan. 26, 2007 9:55 pm
Location: Birdsboro PA.
Stoker Coal Boiler: EFM 350
Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: reading allegheny stoker
Hot Air Coal Stoker Stove: alaska kodiak stoker 1986. 1987 triburner, 1987 crane diamond
Coal Size/Type: rice

Post by lincolnmania » Tue. Nov. 09, 2021 11:37 pm

Been here like 15 years.....thanks everyone!

 
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Hambden Bob
Member
Posts: 8535
Joined: Mon. Jan. 04, 2010 10:54 am
Location: Hambden Twp. Geauga County,Ohio
Hot Air Coal Stoker Stove: Harman 1998 Magnum Stoker
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Blower Model Coal Chubby 1982-Serial#0097
Coal Size/Type: Rice-A-Roni ! / Nut
Other Heating: Pro-Pain Forced Air

Post by Hambden Bob » Wed. Nov. 10, 2021 12:48 am

Well,Breadman,Many Conflatulations On Hangin' 10 At "Der' Coal Board"! You've always been one Helluva Good Guy to be with here!! I'm still enjoying Your "Coal-It's What's For Winter" T-Shirts!! I'm looking forward to You being here for many Moons to come! Thanx for being a Great Contributor all along! You keep that Memory Alive of Grampa's Camp Coal Stove!!


 
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freetown fred
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Posts: 30293
Joined: Thu. Dec. 31, 2009 12:33 pm
Location: Freetown,NY 13803
Hand Fed Coal Stove: HITZER 50-93
Coal Size/Type: BLASCHAK Nut

Post by freetown fred » Wed. Nov. 10, 2021 7:20 am

Soooo, ironically ya missed the LOL's. Sorry if my addition didn't meet up to your expectations!! quadruple LOL
Lightning wrote:
Tue. Nov. 09, 2021 9:38 pm
I thought it would be be a good conversation starter.. sorry if you didn't. :roll: how does that saying go? If you can't say something nice then... You know how it goes.

 
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Hambden Bob
Member
Posts: 8535
Joined: Mon. Jan. 04, 2010 10:54 am
Location: Hambden Twp. Geauga County,Ohio
Hot Air Coal Stoker Stove: Harman 1998 Magnum Stoker
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Blower Model Coal Chubby 1982-Serial#0097
Coal Size/Type: Rice-A-Roni ! / Nut
Other Heating: Pro-Pain Forced Air

Post by Hambden Bob » Wed. Nov. 10, 2021 8:03 am

Ahh,Freetown Fred! The Breadman knows You too well! I think he did a subtle chain yank on Ya' as a Pre-Emptive Strike!! Us Young Whipper Snappers are still eagerly awaiting Your first album release featuring You and Willie Nelson entitled " Crusty Country Tunes From Crusty Old Country Bastards"!! It'll be a Screamer!!🎯🤣😂🤯🙀💩👍😎

 
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StokerDon
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Posts: 7486
Joined: Mon. Nov. 11, 2013 11:17 am
Location: PA, Southern York County!
Stoker Coal Boiler: Gentleman Janitor GJ-5, Van Wert VA-600, Axeman Anderson130 X3.
Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Harman SF3500 reduced down to 3 grates connected to its own plenum
Coal Size/Type: Rice, Chestnut and whatever will fit through the door on the Harman
Other Heating: Noth'in but COAL! Well, Maybe a little tiny bit of wood

Post by StokerDon » Wed. Nov. 10, 2021 8:59 am

Congratulations on TEN Coal Fired Years Lee!!!

Also, thanks' for contributing your experiences to the general Anthracite burning community. You are one of the few people that made it from Hand Fed all the way to Automated, Self Feeding, Stoker Boiler!

-Don

 
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warminmn
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Posts: 8108
Joined: Tue. Feb. 08, 2011 5:59 pm
Location: Land of 11,842 lakes
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Chubby Junior, Efel Nestor Martin, Riteway 37
Coal Size/Type: nut and stove anthracite, lignite
Other Heating: Wood and wear a wool shirt

Post by warminmn » Wed. Nov. 10, 2021 9:16 am

Fred and Willie already recorded that song HB! :lol:


 
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freetown fred
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Posts: 30293
Joined: Thu. Dec. 31, 2009 12:33 pm
Location: Freetown,NY 13803
Hand Fed Coal Stove: HITZER 50-93
Coal Size/Type: BLASCHAK Nut

Post by freetown fred » Wed. Nov. 10, 2021 10:01 am

Ya know, I tried to get some royalties from Willy but he told me nobody could hardly hear my harmonica in the background! ;)

 
Hoytman
Member
Posts: 5997
Joined: Wed. Jan. 18, 2017 11:30 pm
Location: swOH near a little town where the homes are mobile and the cars aren’t
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 354
Coal Size/Type: nut coal
Other Heating: electric, wood, oil

Post by Hoytman » Sat. Nov. 13, 2021 7:44 pm

freetown fred wrote:
Tue. Nov. 09, 2021 9:14 pm
Hey Lee, that story was boring then & it still is!!!! LOL Good Lord man, do you plan your own belly button B-days???? double LOL
OMGosh...I just cracked three ribs. :lol:

Nothing like kicking a guy in the teeth, huh, Lee. Can you believe the old buzzard?!?! He cracks me up. God I’d love to meet him.

Congratulations, Lee. From my end you and FF have been outstanding forum members. Learned a ton from you both and plenty others. Still learning too.
Last edited by Hoytman on Sat. Nov. 13, 2021 7:52 pm, edited 1 time in total.

 
Hoytman
Member
Posts: 5997
Joined: Wed. Jan. 18, 2017 11:30 pm
Location: swOH near a little town where the homes are mobile and the cars aren’t
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Hitzer 354
Coal Size/Type: nut coal
Other Heating: electric, wood, oil

Post by Hoytman » Sat. Nov. 13, 2021 7:48 pm

Hambden Bob wrote:
Wed. Nov. 10, 2021 8:03 am
Ahh,Freetown Fred! The Breadman knows You too well! I think he did a subtle chain yank on Ya' as a Pre-Emptive Strike!! Us Young Whipper Snappers are still eagerly awaiting Your first album release featuring You and Willie Nelson entitled " Crusty Country Tunes From Crusty Old Country Bastards"!! It'll be a Screamer!!🎯🤣😂🤯🙀💩👍😎
Oh God I need help!!! Just cracked 3 more ribs. Geez Louis I needed this thread. :lol:

We gotta get some roll on the floor laughing emoticons, Mayor!!!

 
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Lightning
Site Moderator
Posts: 14659
Joined: Wed. Nov. 16, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Olean, NY
Stoker Coal Boiler: Modified AA 130
Coal Size/Type: Pea Size - Anthracite

Post by Lightning » Sat. Nov. 13, 2021 10:57 pm

I know right?
Ol prick :lol:


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