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  • From: Thomas Allen <thallen@nwlink.com>
  • To: permaculture <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [permaculture] Fwd: Biochar
  • Date: Tue, 15 Nov 2011 21:01:15 -0800

Here in Seattle, SeaChar seachar.org has held several stove workshops to make pyrolyzers. They've made them in sizes ranging from #10 tins to 35 Gal. oil drums. I made one from a 5 gallon bucket with a #10 tin riveted to the bucket lid for a chimney. I have watched Art Donnaly bring a 3-gal. pot of water to boil for pasta in less than 10 minutes. With a flat plate on top he makes tortillas and elephant ears at local events about as fast as people can eat them. The stoves make no smoke and leave behind charcoal that you can do with whatever you like.

Rich Haard, Prof. emeritus WWSU in Washington State, has done field trials of the biochar made from such stoves, as has Art Donnaly. The result for crop production in normal, un-abused soil is inclusive in our maritime temperate climate at 48 deg. North.

On Dr. Haard's advice I applied activated charcoal to soil contaminated with herbicide from straw mulch, probably aminopyrlid. I posted about this last spring. I could not grow pulses at all and other plants were stunted. After the charcoal application (which I was careful to amend with aerated worm tea and fungi) I have successfully grown beans and outsized cardoon, chard and kale. Otherwise the garden has been generally productive since.

Draw what conclusions you will from this.

--Tom Allen
Seattle


On Nov 15, 2011, at 7:11 PM, christopher nesbitt wrote:

We are working on a new design, and I will be updating our web page, soon. Will share pictures as soon as I get a camera!



On Nov 15, 2011, at 7:46 AM, Jay Woods wrote:

On Monday, November 14, 2011 11:48:12 PM christopher nesbitt wrote:
Lawrence,

...
We are working on developing a home stove at low cost for families who burn
wood for cooking here in southern Belize. This is an alternative for rural
people who cannot afford the natural gas/propane/butane/fossil fuel that
people in more developed countries use. We have a design that uses a 55
gallon drum and a welded old propane tank. Total cost? About USD75, less
than the price of two full tanks of propane, and it gives heat for
cooking, has fairly complete combustion, and leaves us with carbon to bury
in the soil. This is not an industrial byproduct, or a way to make money.
It is a way for small farmers to improve their soils while sequestering
carbon (generated in natural gas/propane/butane/fossil fuel run stoves,
for example), while getting the heat they need to do their cooking.

I checked your website for more information (esp., construction) without any
luck. Can you guide me on this?

In addition, I need to set up a solar water pump (in the few gallons per day
range). Do you have any further information beyond the name "Outback Power"?
(I assume that this is http://www.outbackpower.com/ people.)

Again, I suggest anyone considering the merits, or lack of, of biochar, to
read Albert Bates book, "The Biochar Solution". That is one way to become
an informed person on the subject.

Christopher

On Nov 14, 2011, at 11:01 PM, Lawrence F. London, Jr. wrote:
On 11/14/2011 5:31 PM, John D'hondt wrote:
They don't yet know how it works? But they are already telling everybody
how to make it? Burning the planet to cool it?
If it were not for the very name which comes under the heading of
"new-speak" in Brave New World more people might wonder if it worked at
all as do I. Bio means life and char means coal and freedom is slavery
and war is peace.

Its all about using an industrial (probably wasteful and polluting
processes) byproduct to create another product to market for high dollar.

It does not make any sense to char biomass to make charcoal that then
must be pulverized and field spread (often using fossil fuel) when all
that needs to be done is to allow weeds to control weeds, crimp or roll
them to make a semi living mulch that controls weeds, adds seeds and
organic matter to soil to increase OM and eventually humus while
significantly building soil quality and productive capacity.

Thumbs up for notill agriculture (and minimum till).

LL
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_____________________________
Christopher Nesbitt

Maya Mountain Research Farm
San Pedro Columbia, Toledo
PO 153 Punta Gorda Town, Toledo
BELIZE,
Central America

www.mmrfbz.org



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_____________________________
Christopher Nesbitt

Maya Mountain Research Farm
San Pedro Columbia, Toledo
PO 153 Punta Gorda Town, Toledo
BELIZE,
Central America

www.mmrfbz.org



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