Burning aluminum cans?

[MechanicMatt]

Just to see if it would work, cleaned out the trap. Threw 10 empty coors lights cans on top of the hot coals. Next day cleaned trap again, amazed how much cr@p had fallen off into the bottom of the stack. Always considered whitespider above average intel, now im convinced..... maganesse ehh?

 

[Whitespider]

...maganesse ehh?

No... its manganese not maganesse.
Next time use Budweiser cans... everything is better with Bud

The history of manganese is interesting if your care to study it... what ores its found in, how it got its name, how it was discovered and isolated, what parts of the world it comes from, and what it has been used for. None that I know of comes from the USA, but South Africa, Australia, and the former lands of the USSR produce a lot (and I believe South America). Its been used for coins, a gasoline additive (that eventually developed into law suits with the EPA), and alloying with different metals a a corrosion inhibitor... just to name a few.
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[user 122190]

how many cans do i put in
im up to about a 30rack and now it is glowing hot
there is lots of black stuff shooting from chimney like tornado from dorothy wizard of oz
and occasionally a poof of blue flame like dragon
the glowing black snow is drifting over to the neighbors yard as well
i am afraid for his huge piles of leaves
they may catch on fire

I'm burning 1 or 2 a day. The stove is getting better each day.

 

[MechanicMatt]

Read a lot on the web about it last night, sadly most went over my head except the part about aluminum cans. Not much in them, wonder where I can get more in concetrated form..........

 

[firebrick43]

I tried it last night, silver bullet ended up as a gray puddle in the ash??? Since I spread wood ash on my pastures and garden that will not do. Not like I have a creosote problem anyhow. Maybe get a quart from my chimney when I brush in the spring.

 

[gary s]

If you got a puddle of melted aluminum your fire isn't burning hot enough, give it more air once in a while.

 

[huntindog1]

Roll up 4 or 5 pieces of paper towel into a roll about the size of a corn cob.

This is great for dipping and holds liquid well with little dripping.

Dip your homemade corn cob into full strength bleach. Let it soak up as much as it can. Use more paper towels for a bigger corn cob if needed.

Throw the bleach soaked paper towel corn cob into a hot stove and the liquid will evaporate and steam the flue and break down the creosote.

I have a Masonry Flue.

Some times I mist the chimney from the top with a spray bottle of bleach when the stove isnt being used and the mist falls down the flue.

Dont use bleach if you have a catalytic combustor in your stove.

Not sure if a stainless steel liner can take bleach but creosote is so dang corrosive I would not think stainless would be harmed by bleach if creosote doesnt bother it.

 

[Chris-PA]

what about build up in an owb? mine is choked down alot cause it hardly runs which builds alot of creasote!

Just crank it up and nature's chimney sweep will visit.

 

[Motorsen]

Throw a wheel rim on the fire. Preferably an alloy wheel allthough a steel rim will last a little longer. Maybe with a worn tyre mounted to get things going. Should keep things in mint condition for while!

Motorsen

 

[Whitespider]

I tried it last night, silver bullet ended up as a gray puddle in the ash???

Yep... fire not hot enough.
It needs to be hot enough to burn the can, just melting it ain't worth sour owl crap.
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[user 122190]

Soft woods here. I put a crease in the can and lay it over a burning log, then another log piece on them both to hold the can in place. It pretty much does the trick.

 

[TdiDave]

I use a compound painters use to clean greasy walls before painting.
It's called TSP, main ingreatent in Rutland cleaner.
I got mine from Lowe's paint dept. Be carfull, there's TSP and EPA TSP, you want the former.
It turns the creosote into a crisp crunchy that flakes off and falls into the clean out.

Warning, I have had the creosote flake off in large sheets and clog the flue, killing the draft.
Checking the flue with a mirror, didn't see any daylight, I dropped a short length of chain on a rope and broke up the larger pieces and removed them out the cleanout.
IIRC, I had been burning green wood. This hasn't happened since, as I now try to have seasoned wood available.
That was when I was newb wood burner learning about burning wood. Low air , lots of smoke and green wood.
Now I also monitor the stack temp. Keeps me from overfireing and/or makeing creosote buildup.
YES, I burn pine and my flue is clean. Live and learn and a couple scoops a week keep my flue clean.
TSP is not a cure all, I still clean out about a five gal pail of crunchies each season. They fall into the cleanout and not stuck to the flue.
May have to try the alum can trick, my boys are beer drinkers and never return the empties, got a large pile.

Think it would work if you filled a aluminum can with TSP ?

 

[user 122190]

Think it would work if you filled a aluminum can with TSP ?

I'm going to find out. Ordered a 4.5lb box of TSP, and will add a few ounces to my can burning.

 

[wudpirat]

I'm going to find out. Ordered a 4.5lb box of TSP, and will add a few ounces to my can burning.

I used to full empty TP tubes with TSP, but a couple scoops works fine.

 

[benp]

I use pulverized/barn lime religiously. I put a scoop in each filling

It does the same as white spider described.

Turns everything to flake.

 

[dancan]

Well , since the temps up here have been all over the map but 27 as the occasional low and highs of 40's to 50's the draft has been closed more often than not so since it's around 30 tonight I threw some small splits of pine , opened the draft past the WOT and threw in a 6-pack of empties .....
Sure heard some noises like a lot of flakes falling down the pipe and I got that real hot smell but no flames out of my chimney so all is good
30 cents of recyclables up in smoke LOL

 

[user 122190]

Mines still not flowing the way I like. Much better, but I'm anxious to get the TSP into the fire.

 

[Whitespider]

...threw in a 6-pack of empties...
...30 cents of recyclables up in smoke LOL

Yep... it's a nickle deposit here also.
A lot of my pistol and revolver targets cost me nickle... LOL
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[hotrodusa]

I'll have to try the can trick, been burning wood for 20 years and never new that aluminum cans were so useful.

 

[Chris-PA]

I like the idea of burning Stihl crankcases. The pro ones burn hotter, but the plastic ones burn longer.