[Stoves] stove test

[Ray Menke]

On Sun, May 29, 2016 at 6:56 PM, kgharris <kgharris at sonic.net> wrote:
> The designs are being put into the public domain.  I hope that the various
> principles used in the stove, for turn-down and improved efficiency and
> emissions, will benefit some new stove designs in the future.

Kirk, thank you for sharing this stove design.  I have been following
your posts closely because my TLUD charcoal making stoves certainly
lack the turn-down capability.  To compensate, I carefully load my
hardwood slices/sticks fuel over insulating charcoal brands at the
grate, finished off with sliced paper and cardboard as starter.  Then
I cook in three or four different pans/pots by bringing them to a boil
and then removing the hot pot, and setting it aside.  By shuffling
items over the stove, everything gets cooked.  At one time, I did use
a insulated hay box to retain heat, but I'm cooking outdoors in the
sub-tropics, and my 7 KW max stove has plenty of heat.  I also have a
3000 watt solar concentrator oven (Helios) with 54 square feet of
mirror, but I often cook in early morning or late evening to avoid the
searing sun, so the concentrator sits in the barn.  (Besides, it needs
constant attention to adjust the tracking, whereas the TLUD, if
heating water, is "light it and forget it").
The insulated riser in my stove has a very short life, so it will be
interesting to see how the diffuser blade assembly holds up.  When I
build a copy of your stove, I should maybe build two of the assembly
above the fuel chamber.  I also noticed the double cylinders around
the fuel chamber, which I sort of discovered by accident when I was
inserting a sacrificial piece of used steel sheet inside my chamber in
an attempt to extend it's life. With this liner, I am able to
completely shut off primary air on low humidity days with very dry
fuel.  During wet-rainy days, I sometimes have to use a small computer
fan.
I guess pellets are being used as a standard fuel for testing various
stoves, but I'm too cheap to buy them (not sold here anyway), so I use
small pieces of hardwood invasive species, and hoard the really fine
engine grade charcoal that is a by-product.
Looking forward to more information...



-- 
Ray  Menke