Can Kentucky Coal Approach the Properties of Anthracite?

Are you burning the unscreened lump/ROM in an airtight stove that is also suitable for use with anthracite, or in something else?

Check my post from a while back in this thread:

Ashless Coal (Hyper-Coal, HPC)
**Broken Link(s) Removed** Maybe some day....

lsayre wrote:Are you burning the unscreened lump/ROM in an airtight stove that is also suitable for use with anthracite, or in something else?

If this was directed at me, I screen it with a coal fork:





Virtually nothing smaller than 1-1.25 inch goes into my stove. Yes I run an airtight stove with a bi-metal thermostat primary air control. If you're concerned with puff backs due to fines, the egg is more prone than lump. Neither presents any real problem once you get the hang of it.

Stephen, how large are the largest chunks that go into your stove?

The first year I burnt coal,i burnt Ohio egg coal,and yes I had some large puff back's and it burnt very hot.I almost gave up burning coal,but once I switched to Ky coal,what a big difference.I hand pick all my coal so not to get fines and xtra large chunks.

Primarily baseball/softball with a football size piece occasionally. Now, the KY bit I get doesn't break out round by any means. I generally cleave the big lumps along the seams:



Then flip the axe and break into usable size "sheets" of coal. Often there will be more football size pieces in the load than the large blocks. After breaking, I always have quite a bit of egg size left that goes into that pile. I'm not physically able to load my own, so I get a mix of sizes including some fines that I throw away.

Your right about the sizes.The place I get my coal from they don't call it lump,but block coal.It does split easy along the seams.

Berlin wrote:kentucky coal and cannel coal are not the same things - totally different. bituminous coal is not the same thing as cannel coal. as far as KY coal vs. anthracite, it's not just the cost per ton, but the cost per BTU to consider - KY coal can have as much as 2000btu's MORE per pound than anthracite, and with less ash (often less than HALF) you can go longer before taking out the ash pan. If you're going to burn bituminous coal, the Kentucky lump coal is what you want. Don't assume that because the prices are close that you should automatically go with anthracite - anthracite is NOT necessarily "better" than a good bituminous coal. yes, it would be a mistake to bother with stoker coal when you have access to some of the best coal in the world - KY lump coal.

Berlin, do you have any experience with burning Eastern Ky "egg" coal? Why would "lump" be the preferred size here? Intuitively it seems that egg would have more surface area and make more heat.

lsayre wrote:I just found a source that claims that "Lump" should pass through a 5" screen and "Run of Mine" should pass through an 8" screen. What I'm seeing in your photos appears larger than this for sure. How much larger is it? Is there an available size that sits generally between lump and egg?

Actually Run of Mine is just that , big size , middle size and fines all mixed together as they load it during mining. It is not screened at all and the proportion of what sizes depends on the characterists of the coal and what it was loaded with plus how many times it was handled.

distillation of certain chemicals in coal gasses as a byproduct of certain coke production does produce coal tars; this requires controlled processes to achieve. You will NOT produce any flammable creosote or tar from burning bituminous coals in any boiler, furnace or stove- only powdery soot. Lump coal is better because it produces a nice, even burn that's easy to control, as was mentioned - during the combustion of the coal it will gradually split apart and form smaller pieces and finally ash. surface area/ heat production concerns are irrelevent for a hand-loaded coal stove; this is not a locomotive or other industrial boiler that you will be firing every few seconds/minuites to achieve a certain amount of steam production with a given grate area and fuel depth. what you want is an even, controllable burn with as little "messing around" as possible and lump size coal produces more than enough heat for any residential stove for a given fuel box size and air supply.

Well stated. I understand now. Many thanks Berlin!!!

With the lump coal, do I shake the grates about every 12 hours as for anthracite, or is there a different mode of ash removal as well as a different mode of burning?

Half the ash? Would be worth every penny. Any sources in central Ohio

Thanks, Josh

I have never tried KY coal but burn several Ohio coals, This is just a general question, being you guys are promoting KY coal so much. Is Ky coal so much better that someone should buy KY coal at nearly twice the price per million BTU instead of local coal? Or just learn how to burn local coal and take the ashes out a little more often. I get all my coal for free at work so I was just wondering what eveyone else thinks

I'll be honest, I like just about any good coal. Whether it's worth it depends on a number of factors including cost, for some people cost is by far the biggest concern. There are many good bituminous coals, but the one place where the best bituminous coals are located is eastern KY. A good eastern KY coal will be "better" than any other north american bituminous coal for home use. It's high volitile and easy to burn and light, but releases it's volitiles more slowly than other bituminous coals, it generally has substantially less ash than other bituminous coals, it often has a few thousand BTU's more per pound than other bit coals and perhaps most importantly, it is a "non-caking" or low to 0 coke button coal, which is unusual in eastern coals with high BTU's and low ash. A good bituminous stove or stoker and a seasoned coal burner will be able to enjoy burning any GOOD bituminous coal, but for people (most) that don't have a very good bit stove or a stoker, or for those just starting out or trying bit coal for the first time, the learning curve is much, much easier with a good KY coal than any other north american bituminous coal.

"Half the ash? Would be worth every penny. Any sources in central Ohio"

This is my supplier, I'm burning it now and am having good results in my OWB

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