[TheForge] Re: charcoal question

[Mike Spencer]

Frosty> Anyway, keeping the wood of uniform size means 
Frosty> basically having at least one uniform dimension. For 
Frosty> instance length and width don't matter as long as it 
Frosty> all has about the same thickness. For the backyard 
Frosty> collier 3" or less is the magic number.

I have several tall, fairly large poplar trees that have to come down
because of the risk of them breaking off and falling on the
shop. (Yes, that tall) Makes pretty poor firewood and only a little is
suitable for boards.  Rots too quickly to be good for anything outdoors
as posts or baulks.

So if I slice these up into 3" thick slices and heat them up in a 200
gal oil tank, will I get good stuff? 

I racall a demonstrator at DePere (84) saying he used a two-tier
arrangement with a firebox under the retort part.  The fumes from the
wood were piped to the fire box where they burned to provide external
heat. 

- Mike

-- 
Michael Spencer                  Nova Scotia, Canada       .~. 
                                                           /V\ 
mspencer at tallships.ca                                     /( )\
http://home.tallships.ca/mspencer/                        ^^-^^