I burn about 1.5 - 2 cords during the winter so I don’t have as much ash as others who burn a lot more. I don’t have much so I just dump it in the woods on my property. 4 or more cords worth of wood ash I imagine could be difficult to dispose of. So how are you disposing of your wood ashes?
Disposing Of Wood Ashes
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Bad LP
Minister of Fire
Das Jugghead
Burning Hunk
After sifting ash from the coals and embers I store it in a steel trashcan with a steel lid until I spread it on my lawn. Sometimes I spread the ash directly on the lawn if I have decent snow coverage on the lawn.
Metal can to get them outside and dump them in backyard fire pit. Clean the pit out in the spring.
Small metal garbage can set on top of bricks. When it gets full I distribute the ashes around our lilacs and gardens (but not around acid loving plants like rhododendrons and blueberries).
Throw them in the rut in front of my mailbox because the road dept. won't repair it.
Grizzerbear
Minister of Fire
I throw them in my garden or lawn before a rain that way kids dont track it back in on front porch before kicking shoes off.
MagdalenaP
Burning Hunk
Put them in a metal trash can. Fill the can with water, let it sit for a few days, then bury them. This is, of course, after already having a fire from ash that I "thought" was out. I kinda go overboard now. But my insurance would go overboard if I filed another claim. Soooo......
Sawset
Minister of Fire
I've burned 1/2 cord already, and haven't cleaned the ash out yet. When the front glass gets fogged over with fly ash, that's the time to clean everything up. Usually 3wks or so.
When I do, I'll trowel it into a 5gal metal pail propped in the side door, lay a towel over the door and bucket to keep ash from escaping, then carry the pail outside on the brick patio.
At some point it gets spread onto the gardens. There are several 20 x 20 plots, so little chance of too much ash.
One time I used a 5gal metal pail with a tight fitting lid. When the embers cooled, it sucked the bucket into a pretzel. Didn't do that again.
At one point I was dumping some on the driveway as an ice melter. It did work for that, but tracked an equal amount right back into the house. I quit doing that too.
When I do, I'll trowel it into a 5gal metal pail propped in the side door, lay a towel over the door and bucket to keep ash from escaping, then carry the pail outside on the brick patio.
At some point it gets spread onto the gardens. There are several 20 x 20 plots, so little chance of too much ash.
One time I used a 5gal metal pail with a tight fitting lid. When the embers cooled, it sucked the bucket into a pretzel. Didn't do that again.
At one point I was dumping some on the driveway as an ice melter. It did work for that, but tracked an equal amount right back into the house. I quit doing that too.
Put them in a steel drum along with chicken manure. When the drum is full I dump it in my neighbors back yard under the cover of darkness. Next day when I hear him screaming I join him and blame the kids who live on the other side of the tracks. It’s been working well up to this point. He grows some awesome vegetables once he moves the stinky mix into his garden.
And that is exactly how my fire started. $8,000 later, lesson learned. Never throw them into a plastic container. It WILL catch fire. Even when u think they’re cool.
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True - if they are hot, I do the same as @Sodbuster and haven't' had any issues. In my case I wait about a week to transfer from the closed metal can to the plastic trash can so they have plenty of time to cool.
My plastic bin is no where near my house. It can start on fire and nothing will be in danger, I wouldn't even call the fire department.
blacktail
Minister of Fire
Mine mostly get dumped in the woods on the back of my property. It's usually wet enough around here during burn season that fire isn't a concern. The rare times it is dry outside, I can leave them in the metal ash pot until it rains, or dump them in the fire pit.
kennyp2339
Minister of Fire
I have a large metal can I store them in, I keep the ash in the can until the end of the season, my reasoning, incase of another ice storm, last time the salt truck couldn't make it up the hill, I happily slid the can down the street and shoveled ash into the roadway to give the truck traction.. it worked (don't do this if you burn pallets, or scrap wood with nails)
All ash both at the cabin and the house get saved in buckets until the driveways get icy then they are spread out over it. Works great, just wish I had more of it!
Into a metal pail for a week or until I remember to dump them and then into the garbage. I might start bringing them back out to the forest and dumping them when we get wood. Return the nutrients back to the source.
It may be a subjective observation on my part . . . but after 29 years in the fire service, the last 24 being in fire prevention I think I can safely say most woodstove-related fires either can be attributed to a) chimney fires, most often due to improper burning techniques (i.e. burning unseasoned wood, not burning at the proper temps and not cleaning the chimney) and b) the improper disposal of wood ash (i.e. not realizing there is a hot coal(s) in the ash and scooping the ash into a paper bag, cardboard box, plastic bucket, etc. and then placing it on the deck, covered porch, garage, etc.)
I tend to treat all ash as if there may be a coal buried in the ashes.
Ashes are dumped outside into a covered, metal pail. It sits in the pail for 2-3 weeks typically until I either dump it in the woods in an ash pile or on my driveway. I would guess most of the ash ends up on my gravel driveway as it provides a good place for disposal, helps in traction as there is a slight rise in my driveway, promotes some melting of the snow and ice and I figure any ash that gets plowed on to the lawn might actually be a bit beneficial.
I tend to treat all ash as if there may be a coal buried in the ashes.
Ashes are dumped outside into a covered, metal pail. It sits in the pail for 2-3 weeks typically until I either dump it in the woods in an ash pile or on my driveway. I would guess most of the ash ends up on my gravel driveway as it provides a good place for disposal, helps in traction as there is a slight rise in my driveway, promotes some melting of the snow and ice and I figure any ash that gets plowed on to the lawn might actually be a bit beneficial.
I have a small metal trash can they sit in on a cement floor for a while, then they get spread in the garden, on the lawn and even in the compost sometimes. Just not too thick any where. I use a 1/2 inch screen so any big chunks can go back in the stove to finish burning.
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