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Hazard reduction burning #technology #workshop #forestfuels #ring_of_fire

Michael Krell
 

Is there an optimal method to increase char production/remnants when doing hazard reduction burning?

I'm talking about small scale around the house, with water available to douse the flames at any given time.

Flames no higher than 2m, a mix of gum leaf litter, grasses and shrubs and small tree saplings from the bush re-taking the defendable fire protection zone.

My impression is that a fair bit of char is being produced when I extinguish the center of the burned area often, while the periphery continues to burn.
Tom Miles
 

Th Kon tiki and Oregon kilns do a good job of burning off gases. Kelpie Wilson can comment on a mix. She has some good pictures on her website for the Oregon kiln she uses. She did a great workshop in Paradise California recently and has good pictures of debris similar to the defensible space fuels you describe. I wonder show a large volume of pine needles would behave in those kilns. You can see pictures and videos of her training posted Jan 10 on the USBI Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/USbiochar/

http://wilsonbiochar.com/


Tom

 

From: main@Biochar.groups.io <main@Biochar.groups.io> On Behalf Of Michael Krell via Groups.Io
Sent: Monday, January 20, 2020 1:21 PM
To: main@Biochar.groups.io
Subject: [Biochar] Hazard reduction burning

 

Is there an optimal method to increase char production/remnants when doing hazard reduction burning?

I'm talking about small scale around the house, with water available to douse the flames at any given time.

Flames no higher than 2m, a mix of gum leaf litter, grasses and shrubs and small tree saplings from the bush re-taking the defendable fire protection zone.

My impression is that a fair bit of char is being produced when I extinguish the center of the burned area often, while the periphery continues to burn.
Paul S Anderson
 

Michael,

 

I am  very interested  in your request and situation.    “Gum leaf litter” says you are an Aussie.   Please tell  us more about the general situation of you and your  neighbors.   How much biomass do you need to “process”?   Where in Australia are you?  Are you connected to other Aussies who are active with biochar?

 

Please include your direct email address.

 

Paul

 

Doc / Dr TLUD / Paul S. Anderson, PhD --- Website:   www.drtlud.com

     Email:  psanders@...       Skype:   paultlud

     Phone:  Office: 309-452-7072    Mobile & WhatsApp: 309-531-4434

Exec. Dir. of Juntos Energy Solutions NFP

     Go to: www.JuntosNFP.org  to support woodgas (TLUD) projects

     incl. purchase of Woodgas Emission Reduction (WER) carbon credits

     and please tell you friends about these distinctive service efforts.

Author of “A Capitalist Carol” (free digital copies at www.capitalism21.org)

     with pages 88 – 94 about  solving the world crisis for clean cookstoves.

 

From: main@Biochar.groups.io <main@Biochar.groups.io> On Behalf Of Michael Krell via Groups.Io
Sent: Monday, January 20, 2020 3:21 PM
To: main@Biochar.groups.io
Subject: [Biochar] Hazard reduction burning

 

[This message came from an external source. If suspicious, report to abuse@...]

Is there an optimal method to increase char production/remnants when doing hazard reduction burning?

I'm talking about small scale around the house, with water available to douse the flames at any given time.

Flames no higher than 2m, a mix of gum leaf litter, grasses and shrubs and small tree saplings from the bush re-taking the defendable fire protection zone.

My impression is that a fair bit of char is being produced when I extinguish the center of the burned area often, while the periphery continues to burn.
Tomaso Bertoli - CISV
 

As a good starting point you should look at the brilliant work by the Warm Heart Foundation

 

https://warmheartworldwide.org/flame-cap-trough/

 

it’s a variation of a basic concept (flame cap) that makes “burning” branches and long material easier, typically these fire pits are made round or square requiring more cutting … a longer trough makes operation easier

 

You and your neighbors could source one of these iron baskets from a local ironsmith and share it to burn waste material prior to the

 

You could go simpler https://warmheartworldwide.org/beyond-the-trough/ … just dig a hole in the ground

 

But if you were in larger community you could go bigger and get a larger community machine that can recover the energy from the wood like we do here in Italy http://www.biokw.it/en/home-en - assuming 4000 hours of energy use you can take 1000 ton of chipped wood waste and make the equivalent of 200000 cubic meters of natural gas (biosyngas has more volume but burns clean like other gases) and 200 ton of biochar

 

Tomaso

 

Da: main@Biochar.groups.io <main@Biochar.groups.io> Per conto di Michael Krell via Groups.Io
Inviato: lunedì 20 gennaio 2020 22:21
A: main@Biochar.groups.io
Oggetto: [Biochar] Hazard reduction burning

 

Is there an optimal method to increase char production/remnants when doing hazard reduction burning?

I'm talking about small scale around the house, with water available to douse the flames at any given time.

Flames no higher than 2m, a mix of gum leaf litter, grasses and shrubs and small tree saplings from the bush re-taking the defendable fire protection zone.

My impression is that a fair bit of char is being produced when I extinguish the center of the burned area often, while the periphery continues to burn.
Kelpie Wilson
 

Hi all,
I just spent a week in Paradise and Concow, CA helping landowners make biochar on post fire sites from the massive amounts of debris left there. Here is a photo album showing our week's work, including a new kiln design, the Expanded Ring of Fire. We had two of these kilns that consist of 3 sheets of steel that are bolted together to make a 6 foot diameter ring. One day we had a big pile and decided to use 5 of the sheets to wrap around the pile. This larger kiln worked great and we had a tractor to load it. Pictures here:


There are a ton of pictures here, including many of the Oregon Kiln in operation, and also a rick burn using a wind screen. Towards the end, on the last day, we were at Big Chico Creek Ecological Reserve. We used a variety of techniques at the Ecological Reserve, but my favorite was very small top lit burn piles that were extinguished by using a shovel to toss the burning embers out onto the land. Because it is winter and the ground is wet, the embers quickly cool and we have accomplished quenching and biochar distribution with one motion.

Thanks to Steve Feher at Butte Community College who helped set this all up, and to all the wonderful people in the fire affected communities who came to learn and help.

-Kelpie

--
Email: kelpiew@...
Mobile: 541-218-9890
Time zone: Pacific Time, USA
Skype: kelpie.wilson
Ingelore Kahrens
 

Kelpie, you did a great job! Does the Expanded Ring of Fire have a bottom or is the wood put on the bare ground?

Ingelore

Am 21.01.2020 um 19:43 schrieb Kelpie Wilson:

Hi all,
I just spent a week in Paradise and Concow, CA helping landowners make biochar on post fire sites from the massive amounts of debris left there. Here is a photo album showing our week's work, including a new kiln design, the Expanded Ring of Fire. We had two of these kilns that consist of 3 sheets of steel that are bolted together to make a 6 foot diameter ring. One day we had a big pile and decided to use 5 of the sheets to wrap around the pile. This larger kiln worked great and we had a tractor to load it. Pictures here:


There are a ton of pictures here, including many of the Oregon Kiln in operation, and also a rick burn using a wind screen. Towards the end, on the last day, we were at Big Chico Creek Ecological Reserve. We used a variety of techniques at the Ecological Reserve, but my favorite was very small top lit burn piles that were extinguished by using a shovel to toss the burning embers out onto the land. Because it is winter and the ground is wet, the embers quickly cool and we have accomplished quenching and biochar distribution with one motion.

Thanks to Steve Feher at Butte Community College who helped set this all up, and to all the wonderful people in the fire affected communities who came to learn and help.

-Kelpie

--
Ms.Kelpie Wilson
Wilson Biochar Associates
Email: kelpiew@...
Mobile: 541-218-9890
Time zone: Pacific Time, USA
Skype: kelpie.wilson
Kelpie Wilson
 

Thanks Ingelore,
The Ring of Fire kilns are bottomless. So that means that you cannot flood quench them. However, if you just open it up and spread the char out thin and spray with water, it goes out easily. Another alternative would be to put sheet steel on top and dump dirt on that to snuff the char. Might take a day or more for it to cool completely so you can unload it. 
I would love to have some kind of fire-proof blanket to use as a snuffing lid.
Anybody have any ideas about that?
-Kelpie
Gordon West
 

I have snuffed out more than one hot party by being a wet blanket… maybe there’s a metaphor in that?




On Jan 21, 2020, at 4:52 PM, Kelpie Wilson <kelpiew@...> wrote:

Thanks Ingelore,
The Ring of Fire kilns are bottomless. So that means that you cannot flood quench them. However, if you just open it up and spread the char out thin and spray with water, it goes out easily. Another alternative would be to put sheet steel on top and dump dirt on that to snuff the char. Might take a day or more for it to cool completely so you can unload it. 
I would love to have some kind of fire-proof blanket to use as a snuffing lid.
Anybody have any ideas about that?
-Kelpie

Kelpie Wilson
 

Gordon you are hired!
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