Coal Dust?

Hi all, I am rather new to burning coal, and have a question I know you guys could answer for me. I purchase my coal in bags by the ton, and have a bin that I dump them into as I need them. When I get to the bottom of the bin, I always have a couple of shovels worth of coal dust (sand). In the past I have just sprinkled it over the burning coal with mixed results. Sometimes it doesn't effect the burn, but other times it seems like I'm just clogging the air gaps between the coal. So the question is, what do I do with the dust? Is there a technique for burning this stuff, or should I just get rid of it?

Good question Caesar, I have the same set up, I've always just thrown the sandy coal on the fire, haven't really noticed any difference. The amount usually is only a 1/4 shoval full at best. I wouldn't put any more in than that at one time.

Those black crumbles are called "fines" and they shouldn't hurt the fire unless you have a boatload of them. I'm curious as to why you'd be emptying your bagged coal into a coal bin before you put it on the fire. That seems like extra work to me and depending on where the bin is could be spreading black coal dust through out your living space. Prior to this year I had a major black dust problem because I was dumping my bagged coal into a plastic garden tub right next to the stove. This year I'm just placing the unopened bag in the tub and not dumping it all. I just cut the bag open and take the coal directly from it. The number of fines and amount of black dust have drastically been reduced. This season my husband brought me a "plant mover" to put my coal tubs on so now the work is even less. We just roll the empty tub to the door by which our coal bags are stacked, throw a new bag in and roll it back to it's spot near the fire. So far I haven't noticed a black dust issue this year. Continued good luck with your stove, Lisa

Don't forget that the 'Manly Man' hand fed users save them for breakfast treats called 'NEPA Grits'. Your Dentist may advise against using them over cereal, and since I burn stokers, I don't have them available like you guys.
It's a fact of coal life to have fines, and as the experienced hand fed folks advise, use sparingly if they smother your fire too much. Enjoy the weekend...and stay warm. The damned bear was here again last night, hope he will soon take a nap for a few months. They don't smell too nice, so they will not make good house pets.....oh well. he doesn't jump in the coal bins anyway.

Lowfog,
Thank you for the proper term for that stuff, I didn't know what to call it. To answer your question of dumping the coal out of the bag, I keep my bags stacked in a unheated storage area. The bin I dump it into is near my stove, and will hold about 6 bags worth. I have personally found it to be very user friendly to shovel from this mini coal bin, rather than bring in one bag at a time and draw from the bag. As for the black dust, that hasn't been a problem for me. The coal I buy looks like it has been washed or something prior to bagging. There is only a little dust that quickly settles into the bin when I empty a bag. This process seems to work well for me, but I'm sure there's room for improvement. Thanks for the info, and the tip on how you move your coal around.

I can see how have a larger coal bin close by the stove would be a great thing to have. I know my 15 year old son and chief coal mover would love to have it but I don't have room for something like that - maybe in my next house which will be designed around my coal heating appliance. Have a great day!

I have a friend who burns coal in a homemade stove from his finished basement and he does very well with this stove. What he does is package his coal outside the house in paper grocery bags...15-20 pounds...then brings them into the basement. These bags are stacked up nicely in a closet. To refuel open stove door and put one or two of these bags on the fire. A little laborsome but no dust. I put my coal in a covered hod and do have a bit of dust issues...I will start to mist lightly before re-fueling.

hyway61