air flow?
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So I bought the 2 tons of pea coal and we're using it - I've got a pile of fine ground coal under my auger base (concerning), but my big concern is that I smell sulfur in the basement and we're barely burning any coal. My ash tub is half full, when normally it is full and on second tub. I set my gauge (air flow) to 4 - it was on 5.5.
S20 EFM furnace
S20 EFM furnace
- Rob R.
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Your stoker is not designed to burn pea coal. The auger will crunch/grind the coal, and the air will blow back down the auger and into the bin (causing the smell).
Buck size is the largest you can get away with, and even then you can have some problems with odors if the air and draft is not quite right.
How much auger do you have sticking past the pipe and into the coal?
Buck size is the largest you can get away with, and even then you can have some problems with odors if the air and draft is not quite right.
How much auger do you have sticking past the pipe and into the coal?
- davidmcbeth3
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Is pea coal like a waste product almost ? I burned it once but never saw it as being the size-to-go-to when nut works just fine for the same times that pea is supposedly good for.
I'd burn pea again if its cost was lower than nut.
I'd burn pea again if its cost was lower than nut.
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You can get more pea in the firebox vs nut. Always been same price as nut here.davidmcbeth3 wrote: ↑Sat. Apr. 01, 2023 1:49 amIs pea coal like a waste product almost ? I burned it once but never saw it as being the size-to-go-to when nut works just fine for the same times that pea is supposedly good for.
I'd burn pea again if its cost was lower than nut.
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Your not in Kansas anymore!
This is the stoker boiler section. Pea coal is about the smallest you would run in a hand fired unit. But it's the largest size you would run in a stoker. I only know of 2 stoker boilers that you can run Pea in, Axeman Anderson and AHS.
In an EFM???
That will not go well. The auger is way to small for Pea and the larger air gaps between the pieces of coal will allow the combustion air to travel down to the bottom of the pot and into the auger. The fire will eventually follow the combustion air and cause damage. This will also cause combustion gas to be forced out of the end of the auger into your house where it can kill you in your sleep. Please make sure your CO detectors are working.
-Don
- davidmcbeth3
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- Lightning
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What's really nice about pea size is that it will work well in an Axeman as well as a hand fed appliance. Although, in a hand fed appliance the BTU output will be lower because of combustion air resistance in the fuel bed.
Pea size is a viable size for particular applications. If it wasn't useful they'd just break it down into buck or rice.
Pea size is a viable size for particular applications. If it wasn't useful they'd just break it down into buck or rice.
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StokerDon wrote: ↑Sat. Apr. 01, 2023 8:59 amYour not in Kansas anymore!
This is the stoker boiler section. Pea coal is about the smallest you would run in a hand fired unit. But it's the largest size you would run in a stoker. I only know of 2 stoker boilers that you can run Pea in, Axeman Anderson and AHS.
In an EFM???
That will not go well. The auger is way to small for Pea and the larger air gaps between the pieces of coal will allow the combustion air to travel down to the bottom of the pot and into the auger. The fire will eventually follow the combustion air and cause damage. This will also cause combustion gas to be forced out of the end of the auger into your house where it can kill you in your sleep. Please make sure your CO detectors are working.
-Don
I posted here and asked if it was okay to burn it in my EFM before I purchased it (I didn't have $600 to buy another 2 tons of rice coal - this was $400 for 2 tons of coal plus 3 ash tubs). I was told I'd likely have to adjust my air flow, but it would be fine... :/
- nepacoal
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I'm pretty sure you asked about buckwheat, not pea... buckwheat would have been okay but would likely need less air and have more fines from grinding in the auger. Pea is just too big for an EFM and allows exhaust to flow down the auger between the larger pieces of coal.
- Rob R.
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You asked about buck, not pea. It can be tough to tell the difference, especially if the coal is a bit large or small for the intended size.CNoecker71 wrote: ↑Mon. Apr. 03, 2023 2:00 amI posted here and asked if it was okay to burn it in my EFM before I purchased it (I didn't have $600 to buy another 2 tons of rice coal - this was $400 for 2 tons of coal plus 3 ash tubs). I was told I'd likely have to adjust my air flow, but it would be fine... :/
Substituting buck coal
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Sorry, it is buck coal. I recently started a new medication for ADD and it's making me mix up words (which is why I'm slowly stopping it - I can't go around using the wrong words and not even realizing it until someone else points it out. It's making me feel like an idiot! )Rob R. wrote: ↑Mon. Apr. 03, 2023 6:38 amYou asked about buck, not pea. It can be tough to tell the difference, especially if the coal is a bit large or small for the intended size.
Substituting buck coal
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It is buck, not pea. I'd edit my post, but I'm not seeing how to. My apologies - between the new medication and increased stress, I'm not wording words well.nepacoal wrote: ↑Mon. Apr. 03, 2023 5:14 amI'm pretty sure you asked about buckwheat, not pea... buckwheat would have been okay but would likely need less air and have more fines from grinding in the auger. Pea is just too big for an EFM and allows exhaust to flow down the auger between the larger pieces of coal.
- nepacoal
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- Coal Size/Type: Buck
What are your current feed and air settings? For buck, I would try 5 feed and 4 air to start (then adjust the air during a long run to get a 2" ash ring). To check the feed, just count the number of strokes it takes for one revolution, then divide 60 by that number.
20 is 3
15 is 4
12 is 5
10 is 6
Are you using just the short pot auger or does your tube/auger have the coupler with the bin extension? If you're using a 55 gallon drum, you could put a cover on the drum to prevent the exhaust coming out through the auger/drum.
20 is 3
15 is 4
12 is 5
10 is 6
Are you using just the short pot auger or does your tube/auger have the coupler with the bin extension? If you're using a 55 gallon drum, you could put a cover on the drum to prevent the exhaust coming out through the auger/drum.