Dann757 Good for you on getting some free coal. It is a little hard work but well worth it in the long Run . You can't beat
Free. Just get yourself some 3/4 or 1" mesh sreen or steel slag to clean the coal. Use that metal can you have or a ash
tub Put the sreen or slag over it and run the coal threw it. It will help take out the crap out of the coal a little more work
but you will have nice clean coal. You will want to wet the coal down to It will keep the coal dust down. Have Fun and good luck with your coal .Well now that I seen youur other photo of the coal yo got Forget the 3/4 or 1" mash screen or
steel slag You need 2 7/16" to 1 5/8" for stove size coal & 1 5/8 x 13/16 for nut size Pea would be 13/16 x 9/16 Some of that coal looks like lump coal and Egg size coal I would say try to get some steel mesh slag for a sreen 2 " to 2 1/2 " holes you should get some good BTU's out of that size coal have fun
Need Coal Information Urgent!
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coal berner
- Member
- Posts: 3600
- Joined: Tue. Jan. 09, 2007 12:44 am
- Location: Pottsville PA. Schuylkill County PA. The Hart Of Anthracite Coal Country.
- Stoker Coal Boiler: 1986 Electric Furnace Man 520 DF
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Eric L
- Member
- Posts: 31
- Joined: Tue. Nov. 04, 2008 4:33 pm
- Location: Sunny Maine
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Chappee 8033
- Coal Size/Type: Nut Antracite
Dann -
Looks like you got your coal already - just wanted to add my experience -
I've brought coal out of a basement (yard sale, family moving out said, "Take it, it's yours.").
I found that spackle buckets can be good, but depending on the width and curves of the basement stairs, milk crates lined with garbage bags may work well, too.
If you've bought bagged coal in the past, the empty bags can be tied with nylon zip ties and stacked on a handtruck and rolled out. You can also load it into garbage cans (...ash cans?) and roll them on a handtruck.
The trick is to save your back for unloading when you get home.
Glad you got the coal - I've always got my eyes peeled for basement coal, myself.
Looks like you got your coal already - just wanted to add my experience -
I've brought coal out of a basement (yard sale, family moving out said, "Take it, it's yours.").
I found that spackle buckets can be good, but depending on the width and curves of the basement stairs, milk crates lined with garbage bags may work well, too.
If you've bought bagged coal in the past, the empty bags can be tied with nylon zip ties and stacked on a handtruck and rolled out. You can also load it into garbage cans (...ash cans?) and roll them on a handtruck.
The trick is to save your back for unloading when you get home.
Glad you got the coal - I've always got my eyes peeled for basement coal, myself.
Thanks again!
Now I'm worried that I'll be too warm this winter! My stove is pretty big for the small space I've got. I've got some learning to do and some experimenting. If it gets way too hot I might try to add more firebrick to reduce the combustion chamber size.
I was thinking of screening the sandy stuff somehow so thanks for that advice. The maintenance guy that organized this deal was a standup guy. I think the three other guys got a kick out of the work; not something you do every day. One more load to get on Monday. All this taking place on the large campus of a hundred year old exclusive private girls prep school. Kind of surreal. I found an old ink bottle in the pile, completely intact! Nice souvinir.
I don't mind messing around with this stockpile of BTU's and if I have to break some of this coal into smaller pieces I can deal with it.
I worked for a painter a long time ago and we got a job in a small factory that was developing an industrial hospital waste disposal system. The machines were about the size of a small cargo container and accepted the hospital trash and masticated it with these big steel rollers with interlocking teeth; and then sent it up an enclosed auger that blasted it with microwaves to sterilize it! I wish I had some of those parts; I could make my own breaker and make my pile all uniform size!
I know a lot of you guys have this down to a science, so thanks for the patience and enthusiasm! It's balmy here in NJ today, I'm sure I'll have a grin in the coming winter months!
I pass that anthracite museum area when I go up to visit family in Binghamton-- definitely have to see that next spring.
Dan McNally
Now I'm worried that I'll be too warm this winter! My stove is pretty big for the small space I've got. I've got some learning to do and some experimenting. If it gets way too hot I might try to add more firebrick to reduce the combustion chamber size.
I was thinking of screening the sandy stuff somehow so thanks for that advice. The maintenance guy that organized this deal was a standup guy. I think the three other guys got a kick out of the work; not something you do every day. One more load to get on Monday. All this taking place on the large campus of a hundred year old exclusive private girls prep school. Kind of surreal. I found an old ink bottle in the pile, completely intact! Nice souvinir.
I don't mind messing around with this stockpile of BTU's and if I have to break some of this coal into smaller pieces I can deal with it.
I worked for a painter a long time ago and we got a job in a small factory that was developing an industrial hospital waste disposal system. The machines were about the size of a small cargo container and accepted the hospital trash and masticated it with these big steel rollers with interlocking teeth; and then sent it up an enclosed auger that blasted it with microwaves to sterilize it! I wish I had some of those parts; I could make my own breaker and make my pile all uniform size!
I know a lot of you guys have this down to a science, so thanks for the patience and enthusiasm! It's balmy here in NJ today, I'm sure I'll have a grin in the coming winter months!
I pass that anthracite museum area when I go up to visit family in Binghamton-- definitely have to see that next spring.
Dan McNally
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Gary L
- Member
- Posts: 102
- Joined: Mon. Oct. 13, 2008 11:27 pm
- Location: Forestburgh, NY
- Hand Fed Coal Stove: Russo #1
Just my opinion here but I think your stove ought to do fine with the coal you have.
I burn a Russo that is a good deal smaller then yours and the nut coal I get is generally no larger then a golf ball in size. Occassionally I get some larger chunks closer to the size of a tennis ball and they too burn just fine as long as I have a good bed going when I add them.
When starting the fire I try to stick with smaller and more uniform size pieces but once I have an established fire the larger chunks are a thing of beauty when they get to glowing.
Regulating the amount of heat in your room might be more of a problem if the stove is over sized for your area. You need enough air from below to keep the fire going so you simply can't throttle it down or you extinguish it. There is a very fine line between keeping it going and turning the fire off when you get too much heat for your area. Once you get the hang of it through trial and error you will decide the best technique or if necessary get a smaller stove. One thing I have learned for sure is that being too hot is just as bad as being too cold except in my house I can open an additional room or two and even the door to the garage when it gets too warm in the main living area. It sure is gorgeous when it is -20 outside with the winds blowing and I am on the couch in my skivies and toasty warm from the glow of american made coal.
It is also a very good idea to get a humidity meter and make sure you are not too dry inside. The first year I used the coal stove was very bad for my oak furniture and sinuses. I could hear strange cracking noises coming from the entertainment center and the next morning I found the raised panels in all the doors had shrunk and cracked from being too dry.
Gary
I burn a Russo that is a good deal smaller then yours and the nut coal I get is generally no larger then a golf ball in size. Occassionally I get some larger chunks closer to the size of a tennis ball and they too burn just fine as long as I have a good bed going when I add them.
When starting the fire I try to stick with smaller and more uniform size pieces but once I have an established fire the larger chunks are a thing of beauty when they get to glowing.
Regulating the amount of heat in your room might be more of a problem if the stove is over sized for your area. You need enough air from below to keep the fire going so you simply can't throttle it down or you extinguish it. There is a very fine line between keeping it going and turning the fire off when you get too much heat for your area. Once you get the hang of it through trial and error you will decide the best technique or if necessary get a smaller stove. One thing I have learned for sure is that being too hot is just as bad as being too cold except in my house I can open an additional room or two and even the door to the garage when it gets too warm in the main living area. It sure is gorgeous when it is -20 outside with the winds blowing and I am on the couch in my skivies and toasty warm from the glow of american made coal.
It is also a very good idea to get a humidity meter and make sure you are not too dry inside. The first year I used the coal stove was very bad for my oak furniture and sinuses. I could hear strange cracking noises coming from the entertainment center and the next morning I found the raised panels in all the doors had shrunk and cracked from being too dry.
Gary