clennell on thu 7 mar 02
Sour Cherry Pottery
> were stoking from one side onto the grate with alot of flame licking out
> making this a toasty chore. are there any suggestions for any
> alternative way to feed the fire?
>
> are there any basic wood firing principles conscerning the airflow into
> the kiln vs. the air flow out?
>
> we burn hard wood rippings from a local pallete company. all of it is
> unseasoned green stuff. does this have anything to do with our troubles?
Dear Kevin: It is very difficult to diagnose the patient without seeing
him.
the friends that have built trains and experienced troubles almost
exclusively solved the problem with good wood. Why would you try to fire a
kiln with green wood????? You live not far from me in a humid area where
wood must be seasoned for a house wood stove at least a year and preferably
2. for a wood kiln you need the wood to give you every available BTU.
I also just talked to my students at Sheridan about - surface area- when
firing the wood kiln there. This would especially apply to flat pallet
wood. If you lay the pallet wood flat and neat and tidy on itself the only
surface area to burn would be the bottom of the wood by the coals. If you
criscross the wood when stoking it allows more of the surface area of the
wood to be exposed. Spitting the wood finer is another way of increasing
surface area. But if you don't criscross it, you have defeated the purpose
of spitting it in the first place. David Junkyard Dawg Hendley is a pallet
wood firer and will probably have some wisdom to add here.
If flame is shooting out the bourry box door at you there could be a number
of reasons
A. you did lay all the wood side by each and left no room for the primary
air to get thru. When you open the door it becomes the primary air.
B. We have our 5 primaries probably 3 feet above the hobs/grates to
eliminate flashbacks. When the firing is on the hobs, the primaries are full
open.
You said you are firing this week???? Before you head down the tracks go
to a fireplace wood dealer and spend $65 for a cord of seasoned hardwood.
Canadian maple will do it- so that would be about $20 Cdn.
bon feu!!
Tony
Tony and Sheila Clennell
Sour Cherry Pottery
4545 King Street
Beamsville, Ontario
CANADA L0R 1B1
http://www.sourcherrypottery.com
clennell@vaxxine.com
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