How to make cheap charcoal with your own hands

People who do blacksmithing usually use coal in their furnaces, others use gas, and still others use charcoal.

I read that the good thing about charcoal is that it is environmentally friendly, cheap, and you can make charcoal at home.

I read several tutorials on how to make your own charcoal and chose the easiest and cheapest method.

Main advantages

Charcoal is produced by pyrolysis, the raw material for which is wood. During pyrolysis, wood is heated to high temperatures in an oxygen-free environment. The finished product is delivered to factories and store shelves for mass consumption. It is sold in packaged form and is used in everyday life to replace firewood when cooking on the grill or as fuel for a bio-fireplace.

We buy ready-made charcoal in the store

Product benefits include

absence of harmful substances (sulfur, phosphorus) in its composition;
almost complete absence of emissions into the atmosphere: this is why fuel can be used in decorative fireplaces without a chimney;
complete combustion: no large amount of ash is formed;
high calorific value;
renewability: plant materials are renewable in nature.

In a barrel

In order not to bother with digging a hole, you can use a solid iron barrel with walls of sufficient thickness, but for this there should not be any residues of flammable substances in it.

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If the barrel is too deep in depth, several bricks are placed at the bottom for volume. After this, you can start lighting the fire. It is advisable to place a grate between the layers of firewood, which will allow the flame to pass through.

The procedure is repeated until the barrel is filled and the top layer of firewood is ignited. After this, the barrel is covered with a metal sheet, leaving a small gap on the side.

When the smoke coming from the barrel turns grayish, you need to completely close the tank. It is better to remove the finished coal when the barrel has completely cooled down.

Scope of application

Charcoal is used in industry for the following purposes:

for use as part of filters;
for melting crystalline silicon;
for use in metallurgy (saturation of steel with carbon, production of pure alloys);
for the production of glass, some types of plastics, paints;
for the production of natural dye for the food industry;
for the production of activated carbon;
for use in agriculture;
for use as a convenient household fuel for stoves, fireplaces, barbecues.

When burned in stoves and fireplaces, this type of fuel burns with virtually no flames, providing even and intense heat. The most highly valued product is grade A, which is made from hardwood.

Important! If charcoal is used indoors (for heating or cooking), it is recommended to light it without using chemical kindling agents. This will avoid the appearance of an unpleasant odor and harmful substances falling into the food. In this case, coals are ignited using paper and dry splinters.

Kinds

Today, it is customary to distinguish several classes of charcoal, indicated by special markings for each class.

As for the types of coal, all material can be divided into two large groups:

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Coal from maple, oak, birch, elm, beech, ash.
Coal from alder, linden, aspen, poplar.

By pyrolysis of materials of the first type, coal is obtained, which is subsequently marked with the letter “A”. This coal is very rich in carbon and minerals.

The product labeled “B” is obtained by a mixture of pyrolysis products of the first and second groups, and it has about 88% carbon in its composition.

There is also group B coal, which contains about 77% carbon. The more carbon in the composition, the better the quality of the product.

Charcoal stove

To make charcoal, special burning furnaces with different capacities are used. Using large stoves produces more coal than mobile stoves. But they require high performance indicators for environmental safety. Mobile stoves produce little coal. They are often used where raw materials are available or on construction sites.

Charcoal stove

Author of the publication

offline 3 years

Nika

I am interested in hiking and traveling, photography and videography. I have been going hiking since childhood. The whole family went and went - sometimes to the sea, then to the river, to the lake, to the forest. There was a time when we spent a whole month in the forest. We lived in tents and cooked over fires. This is probably why I am still drawn to the forest and, in general, to nature. I travel regularly. About three trips a year for 10-15 days and many 2 and 3 day hikes.

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Nika Fire, warmth