Charcoal

[MoDoug]

With coals building up this time of year, I got to thinking about how coals remind me of BBQ'ing. Maybe I was just hungry at the time, but I've got a lot of odd size pieces of oak and hickory laying around. When gathering wood I couldn't leave them behind just because they weren't cut to 20 inches. I've never made my own charcoal before, but after a little research it doesn't seem that difficult to do. It would be fun to be able to say I made the charcoal. Has anyone made their own?

 

[GENECOP]

Nope, not yet, but YT is full of good videos on the process, looks like fun, keep us posted.

 

[Caw]

Not on purpose but I've made plenty of charcoal accidentally!

I actually BBQ a ton in the summer. I smoke with cherry from my property. Homemade charcoal would be next level.

 

[stoveliker]

I have a face cord of that short oak too. I plan (2-3 yrs from now..) to stuff them in the stove vertically. I did that once a mk the ago or so with maple. Works (normally, not better than N-S).

 

[PaulOinMA]

There are threads on charcoal making over at a BBQ site I'm on: thesmokering.com.

 

[Stinkpickle]

Some of those guys build some crazy retorts.

 

[hickoryhoarder]

I just grill with three or four-inch chunks of oak.

 

[MoDoug]

Just skimming through some videos and how to's there's a lot of different ways to make charcoal. Everything from digging a hole in the ground, to using 55 gallon drums, to using 55 gal drums with a smaller drum inside. I'm going to try my hand at it this coming spring, I think it'll be fun, maybe get a couple neighbors involved.

This reminds me, we were at Death Valley National Park in 2015, and ran across what used to be a large charcoal making operation. It was built in 1879 and only in operation for 3 years. The kilns are 25 feet high.... zoom in on the picture of the plaque and read about it. It's interesting. Death Valley is a fascinating place.

 

[Sawset]

We were camping once, and of course started our fire in the fire ring that was available. Loaded it full, sticks all stacked vertical, tight as we could get it. What we didn't notice was that there were no air holes on the ring. So the whole affair started and ended very strangely. After an hour there was so much heat, a pot of beans boiled in about 10 seconds. The flames were a strange blue wave over the top. The next morning we expected it all to be burned and gone, but the whole unit was just as we left it the night before, with still the strange blue waves for flames. I bet at that point if we had covered it, the remains would have been a rim full of charcoal sticks.

 

[xman23]

I saw it on dirty jobs. I don't think Mike Rowe's ever been that dirty or sucked in more soot. He does go out of his way to embellish things.

 

[MoDoug]

Some of those guys build some crazy retorts.

I thought retorts was a typo, then after reading up on it a little more, I appreciated your use of it here.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

I'd take that wood and stuff it in the stove.. You could split it down and use it in your grill/somker. I start my smoker with some coles and use my wood to cook on..skip the charcoal making phase...

 

[SpaceBus]

I daydream about building or buying a charcoal forge and making stuff. In this daydream I would also make the charcoal myself.

 

[MoDoug]

I'd take that wood and stuff it in the stove.. You could split it down and use it in your grill/somker. I start my smoker with some coles and use my wood to cook on..skip the charcoal making phase...

Most will end up in the stove, and the new smoker I haven't bought yet, but I also enjoy learning new things and playing with fire. Of course by the time spring rolls around, I may need a break from wood and fire.... LOL

 

[Stinkpickle]

I use an old Weber kettle as a fire pit, and before we go in for the night, I load it up with wood and let it burn down for a while. I put the lid on to kill the fire, and then the next day, I dump the leftover coals in my kamado grill to supplement lump charcoal. It works really well.

 

[MoDoug]

I use an old Weber kettle as a fire pit, and before we go in for the night, I load it up with wood and let it burn down for a while. I put the lid on to kill the fire, and then the next day, I dump the leftover coals in my kamado grill to supplement lump charcoal. It works really well.

A kamado grill, I'm jealous! An old weber is a good idea, I have a 55 gallon drum with a lid, that I"ll try out a small batch to start.

 

[SpaceBus]

Also, softwood charcoal burns hotter, and faster, than hardwood charcoal. I've been reading about forge welding and it seems the only way to do it without real coal is to use softwood charcoal.

 

[Jay106n]

No i usually just toss a few chunks of cherry in.

 

[Woody5506]

dumb question here but couldn't you make it in a wood stove too, scoop the coals out then put them in a sealed drum?

 

[Seasoned Oak]

dumb question here but couldn't you make it in a wood stove too, scoop the coals out then put them in a sealed drum?

Charcoal is made by heating wood in the absence of oxygen until only pure carbon remains. Not the same conditons in a wood stove.

 

[davidmc]

Check out this wikihow link.
I've already got my barrels to do this, just have to get everything cut out and ready.

Make-Charcoal

 

[Stinkpickle]

dumb question here but couldn't you make it in a wood stove too, scoop the coals out then put them in a sealed drum?

Without an external heat source, the coals would choke themselves out and not fully carbonize.

 

[MoDoug]

dumb question here but couldn't you make it in a wood stove too, scoop the coals out then put them in a sealed drum?

Didn't seem like a dumb question to me, if you don't know, you don't know. I didn't know. Now we know, so we don't have to not know. Ya know!

 

[CincyBurner]

Dad made charcoal a few times with us when I was a kid. Loaded wood into an enclosed small metal barrel and set it on the outside wood grill.
It worked but from my recollection lots of smoke. So much the last time that we we worried a neighbor would call the firemen.

 

[JohnWW]

Didn't seem like a dumb question to me, if you don't know, you don't know. I didn't know. Now we know, so we don't have to not know. Ya know!

Was just thinking the other day that if primary air could be shut off at the coaling stage then charcoal could be collected when cooled down.