Wine Press=Pressed Logs

[valley ranch]

Greetings, When I moved into the mountains years ago I brought the wine press. I've made a good deal of wine with it. But!

I just thought of another use for it. Pressed Logs. I wouldn't use the round baskets. I'ed make a rectangle basket or even a small round on like daddy made for small batches, that would make a true log. There is so much duff, chips and chunks after splitting firewood, I sometimes burn a coffee can full at a time. Should make nice logs.

What think yee?

 

[Jags]

What think yee?

Me thinks that you are not going to get nearly enough pressure to make it happen.

 

[valley ranch]

I'm talking about a big arbor press. When you press grapes you end up with a wheel that dries solid. But you can be right too!

 

[Jags]

I'm talking about a big arbor press. When you press grapes you end up with a wheel that dries solid. But you can be right too!

I believe that the pressure required to compress wood to the point that the lignens (sp?) can flow and coagulate into a pellet or log form is about 100 Tons of pressure.

 

[mesuno]

If you are thinking about making an oversized pellet I think you'll be disappointed - the pellet milling process (squeezing chips + dust through a metal die) produces really high pressure, temperature, and sheer stress which chemically alters the wood. I think, although I'm no chemist so I may be a little off, the lignin softens and then when it cools again sets in the new shape gluing the fibres and bits together.

Pressure alone won't make this gluing effect happen so your blocks won't have any structural integrity.

As an alternative I've heard you can make excellent firestarters using sawdust and candle wax. Melt the wax and mix in lots of sawdust until it has a texture like stiff cake mix - lay it out on tin foil to set, then break it into pieces with a hammer. Use the pieces like you would shop bought paraffin blocks.

Mike

 

[mesuno]

I'm talking about a big arbor press. When you press grapes you end up with a wheel that dries solid. But you can be right too!

I believe that the pressure required to compress wood to the point that the lignens (sp?) can flow and coagulate into a pellet or log form is about 100 Tons of pressure.

Plus the sheer stresses due to squeezing through the die

 

[blades]

don't know about the pressure but temp wise either from friction or external needs to be close to 170- 200 f range ifrc to get it self binding. Otherwise need to add binding agent or add other material that will act as same. Basicly any very starchy plant material would help. Most of what I have read is a modified corn starch, corn being real pricy, maybe some ground up potatoes , cow patties ect.

 

[brian89gp]

As an alternative I've heard you can make excellent firestarters using sawdust and candle wax. Melt the wax and mix in lots of sawdust until it has a texture like stiff cake mix - lay it out on tin foil to set, then break it into pieces with a hammer. Use the pieces like you would shop bought paraffin blocks.

Mike

The paper based egg cartons work better. Fill the egg carton with sawdust, fill with wax, then rip an "egg" off the carton each time you need it.

 

[DanCorcoran]

Cow patties in the wine press...yummers!

 

[fossil]

As an alternative I've heard you can make excellent firestarters using sawdust and candle wax. Melt the wax and mix in lots of sawdust until it has a texture like stiff cake mix - lay it out on tin foil to set, then break it into pieces with a hammer. Use the pieces like you would shop bought paraffin blocks.

Mike

The paper based egg cartons work better. Fill the egg carton with sawdust, fill with wax, then rip an "egg" off the carton each time you need it.

I don't think the OP is talking about firestarters, I think he's talking about stove fuel...like a home made bio-brick sort of thing. Rick

 

[fossil]

This is one among many outfits who produce compressed biomass products for use as woodstove fuel (and, of course, that's what all wood pellets are). I got a few samples of these "logs" and burned them. The ones I got were made from Douglas Fir sawdust. They were very dense...significantly heavier than an equal sized piece of Doug Fir. They burned pretty much as advertised. The folks who manufacture them explained the process to me, and I'll simply say that nobody's gonna rig up a DIY home-made machine that's capable of producing the pressures, and resulting temperatures, involved in binding the raw material together. Rick

http://www.homefirelogs.com/About-Our-Logs/development.html

 

[Jags]

and I'll simply say that nobody's gonna rig up a DIY home-made machine that's capable of producing the pressures, and resulting temperatures, involved in binding the raw material together.

Well...somebody might. :cheese:

 

[fossil]

and I'll simply say that nobody's gonna rig up a DIY home-made machine that's capable of producing the pressures, and resulting temperatures, involved in binding the raw material together.

Well...somebody might. :cheese:

OK, I'll qualify my statement...Nobody in their right mind who has anything else to do. Of course, you'd be the first person I'd expect to tackle it. %-P

 

[Jags]

and I'll simply say that nobody's gonna rig up a DIY home-made machine that's capable of producing the pressures, and resulting temperatures, involved in binding the raw material together.

Well...somebody might. :cheese:

OK, I'll qualify my statement...Nobody in their right mind...

No, your qualifier worked. :lol:

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Greetings, When I moved into the mountains years ago I brought the wine press. I've made a good deal of wine with it. But!

I just thought of another use for it. Pressed Logs. I wouldn't use the round baskets. I'ed make a rectangle basket or even a small round on like daddy made for small batches, that would make a true log. There is so much duff, chips and chunks after splitting firewood, I sometimes burn a coffee can full at a time. Should make nice logs.

What think yee?

All that duff, chips and chunks you get after splitting firewood still has moisture; just like the wood still does. That has to be dried before you would start anything. Usually it works well just to rake it together and put it into some sort of a container then just dump some in the stove from time to time. My wife is great for this. I split wood in the spring and the following fall she rakes (or I do) the chips and crap together then shovels them into buckets or barrels. When we want just a small quick fire, they work well for that. Early fall when you don't want much heat. But if you need more heat, just put in some more or some of those odd shaped pieces you seem to end up with every year.

 

[LLigetfa]

I guess this guy was not in his right mind. This is using a 2 tonne press. Imagine if you used a 35 ton log splitter as a press.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Bio-fuel-briquettes-compress-paper-pulp-and-sawdu/?ALLSTEPS
http://www.instructables.com/image/...-briquettes-compress-paper-pulp-and-sawdu.jpg

 

[valley ranch]

I would have thought one of you guys would have already mastered this. I have seen videos of blocks for burning done with hand pressure. In these small contraptions they put wet paper/or wood chips and came out with these blocks. There was no extreme pressure. Maybe thoes guy are smarter the we are. Come on, We all can't have gotten to the Beer Belly it can't be done stage.

Remember what Gen. Patton said!

 

[valley ranch]

Wow! Good find.