bituminous coal

 
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CoalJockey
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Post by CoalJockey » Wed. Sep. 04, 2019 8:48 pm

Nothing personal of course MG, I just feel bituminous coal gets a very bad rap here at times.


 
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Post by McGiever » Wed. Sep. 04, 2019 9:30 pm

Same respect due to you sir, but you are but one of many peddlers of Bit coal. Others may not choose the better sources.

I have no experience burning coal from Halls.

Whom shall we leave to educate others to the properties of Bit?

 
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Post by CoalJockey » Thu. Sep. 05, 2019 2:21 am

I just want to make sure it’s properly represented is all. You are right though MG, some contains enough soot to clog the flues of the Titanic, that high-vol coal is not very suitable for anything other than an outdoor boiler.

Some has virtually none, you will sweep more fly ash out of the stack from hard coal than you will soot from the bituminous.

I now relinquish my tree stump. :)

 
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Post by Sylvesterd101 » Thu. Sep. 05, 2019 5:02 pm

well you guys are lucky that can get the bit for like 60 bucks a ton. i can get a ton of it for 285 which is not worth it for me so sticking with anthracite and will burn wood in the beginning and end of the season

 
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Post by ratherbeflying » Thu. Sep. 05, 2019 10:25 pm

CoalJockey wrote:
Wed. Sep. 04, 2019 8:46 pm
Here we go again. I respectfully beg to differ, you guys blow this waaaaayyyyyy out of proportion every time.

To begin with, get the right seam of coal for what you are trying to heat. I have coal on stock here that smokes very little more than anthracite and that smoke all comes when you do your firing for a few minutes until it burns off the volatile gasses. After that, it smokes less than a wood fire. Yes, I have some that smokes ALOT, and it makes a TON of heat. These guys are out in the mountains and have no neighbors for miles, smoke means someone is home.

Not everyone can afford anthracite. For those who cannot, it remains a very cost effective way to heat. To those who had great reviews on our bituminous coal, I greatly appreciate that. We try very hard.
very interesting... so i would just burn bit the same way i would burn anthracite? theres no differences? i just treat it the same? i would really be interested in getting a ton for shoulder months i just always thought it was different for some reason.

 
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Post by CoalJockey » Fri. Sep. 06, 2019 6:42 am

Well, not quite the same as far as firing methods. The beauty in anthracite shows in its ability to tossed on the fire, draft set, and walk away. Bituminous has a much steeper learning curve and is a little more labor intensive, really only when you do your firing though.

Example- Any soft coal will “coke” after a certain amount of time in the firebox. This is a thick layer of coal that is lightly held together. When you wish to add more coal you would need to get some kind of a fire poker and bust up this layer of coke; if you are doing it right it will fall apart just as easily as partially burned wood billets.

Soft coal contains volatile gasses that must be burnt off in the correct manor. When you are adding fresh coal be sure to leave a live flame poking through the fresh coal at all times to burn this gas off. If you “snuff out” the fire with coal, that gas will continue to build in the firebox and I likely don’t need to tell you what happens when that live flame finally pokes through. Think something like “a little charge” in there...

It sounds a lot worse than all of it really is. I grew up firing with the stuff so I suppose it looks a lot easier to me, but it is a very reliable heat when used properly. Many customers burn mostly wood and then just use several shovel-fulls at night for banking purposes to hold over until the morning.

Any way I can help let me know.

 
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Post by ratherbeflying » Fri. Sep. 06, 2019 9:42 am

CoalJockey wrote:
Fri. Sep. 06, 2019 6:42 am
Well, not quite the same as far as firing methods. The beauty in anthracite shows in its ability to tossed on the fire, draft set, and walk away. Bituminous has a much steeper learning curve and is a little more labor intensive, really only when you do your firing though.

Example- Any soft coal will “coke” after a certain amount of time in the firebox. This is a thick layer of coal that is lightly held together. When you wish to add more coal you would need to get some kind of a fire poker and bust up this layer of coke; if you are doing it right it will fall apart just as easily as partially burned wood billets.

Soft coal contains volatile gasses that must be burnt off in the correct manor. When you are adding fresh coal be sure to leave a live flame poking through the fresh coal at all times to burn this gas off. If you “snuff out” the fire with coal, that gas will continue to build in the firebox and I likely don’t need to tell you what happens when that live flame finally pokes through. Think something like “a little charge” in there...

It sounds a lot worse than all of it really is. I grew up firing with the stuff so I suppose it looks a lot easier to me, but it is a very reliable heat when used properly. Many customers burn mostly wood and then just use several shovel-fulls at night for banking purposes to hold over until the morning.

Any way I can help let me know.
thank you very much i would love to try it sometime! i love anthracite but i feel like i have to experience bit at least one time haha i just dont know where i would get it from? im in north jersey! like wayy at the top in wantage


 
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Post by kpatterson » Thu. Dec. 12, 2019 7:25 pm

You're right-- bituminous can be nasty or it can be almost as clean as anthracite. It just depends where it comes from. Anthracite requires a hot bed of coals to start burning. Most bituminous will start with kindling and wood. Now, bituminous is harder to get because alot of the mines have closed and the use of house coal has declined.

 
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Post by ratherbeflying » Fri. Dec. 27, 2019 6:21 pm

where can i find bituminous?

 
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Post by BigBarney » Sun. Dec. 29, 2019 12:56 pm

I have burned hundreds of tons of bit coal and can do it almost as easy

as anthracite , but you need the proper equipment , manly a down flow

stove or boiler. You have to burn all the volatiles or you waste a lot of

heat up the flue as soot and that causes problems.

Most of these heating appliances come from Europe where they were

developed and perfected.

I have very little soot and clean my chimney every three years and get about

a five gallon bucket of fly ash/soot , and I burn 24/7/365 .

BigBarney

 
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Post by corey » Sun. Dec. 29, 2019 1:36 pm

CoalJockey wrote:
Wed. Sep. 04, 2019 8:46 pm
Here we go again. I respectfully beg to differ, you guys blow this waaaaayyyyyy out of proportion every time.

To begin with, get the right seam of coal for what you are trying to heat. I have coal on stock here that smokes very little more than anthracite and that smoke all comes when you do your firing for a few minutes until it burns off the volatile gasses. After that, it smokes less than a wood fire. Yes, I have some that smokes ALOT, and it makes a TON of heat. These guys are out in the mountains and have no neighbors for miles, smoke means someone is home.

Not everyone can afford anthracite. For those who cannot, it remains a very cost effective way to heat. To those who had great reviews on our bituminous coal, I greatly appreciate that. We try very hard.
Big +1 from me!

 
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Post by warminmn » Sun. Dec. 29, 2019 2:46 pm

BigBarney wrote:
Sun. Dec. 29, 2019 12:56 pm
I have burned hundreds of tons of bit coal and can do it almost as easy

as anthracite , but you need the proper equipment , manly a down flow

stove or boiler. You have to burn all the volatiles or you waste a lot of

heat up the flue as soot and that causes problems.

Most of these heating appliances come from Europe where they were

developed and perfected.

I have very little soot and clean my chimney every three years and get about

a five gallon bucket of fly ash/soot , and I burn 24/7/365 .

BigBarney
I disagree. That is in a perfect world. Most people are burning bit to save money or not to cut wood, or maybe they enjoy it. Most do not want to spend 10K or more on a stove before they start burning it. Many people would get no benefit, cost wise, with a boiler either. Large families is when they help more. There are plenty of used stoves under $200 that will burn bit ok. Its about saving money, not spending it.

 
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Post by BigBarney » Sun. Dec. 29, 2019 7:35 pm

But you have to be able to burn reliably and not have all kinds of

out fires and having to spend all your time tending a fire. Most

people have to work now a days and have no one home all day

to tend a fire some are gone 10-12 hours so you need that burn.

Your price for boilers and stoves are way out of line with

current prices.

A boiler is one of the best ways to heat especially over a wood

burning appliance which is trying to heat with one of the best

insulators ( air ). It provides steady heat and a more comfortable

environment, also it can be easily used to heat multi unit buildings

with out the need for large ducts and complicated balancing of

heat to all rooms.

BigBarney

 
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Post by warminmn » Sun. Dec. 29, 2019 10:00 pm

yes, a boiler does all the things you mention BB, but is not needed by most people. Not everyone heats an outbuilding, nor do they have a place for the boiler in their home or nearby outbuilding. They just arent useful to everyone and their cost is so much more to start. There are plenty of used stoves under $200 if you look on FB or craigslist. i got mine for under $25 at a sale and had to put about $30 more into it. Efficient, heck no, but I can buy many years worth of coal for the difference in price. I imagine there are cheap used boilers out there too, I dont follow them. I was high saying 10K for a boiler but am not low on the $200 used stoves. Installing a boiler cant be cheap either if your not a DIY'r.

Warm Morning stoves are a great example of a cheap used stove that will burn anything you want to feed it. Outfires are caused by having too small of a stove or not knowing how to use it, or other crappy things that happen. Almost any coal will burn 12 hrs if you know how to use your stove. I can even do that with the lignite Ive been playing with this year with air control. Its about learning to use your stove.

Heating a home comfortably is not hard, i dont agree with that either. I guess a boiler would have an edge but it is not hard at all to do with a handfed. If you have many rooms in your house, and/or a few children, or it is a large house, then yes probably/possibly a boiler but they are not a one size fits all stove. Not everyone needs them, or even wants them.

I'd love to see you post a bunch of pics of your setup you always speak of. Ive never seen european boilers mentioned on the site except by you. They have a different way of building stoves and I bet it would be neat to see.

 
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Post by BigBarney » Sun. Dec. 29, 2019 10:37 pm

Here's a page that should keep you occupied for awhile...
Many different designs and all being sold today...

https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1CAEOHR_enUS878 ... 36&bih=706

Not all as advertised...

BigBarney


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