Mikexx Posted November 13, 2021 Report Share Posted November 13, 2021 4 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said: You have much to learn grasshopper : Coal ash is incredibly dangerous. Short-term exposure can bring irritation of the nose and throat, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and shortness of breath. Long-term exposure can lead to liver damage, kidney damage, cardiac arrhythmia, and a variety of cancers. Coal ash contains contaminants like mercury, cadmium and arsenic. Without proper management, these contaminants can pollute waterways, ground water, drinking water, and the air I'm hardly a grasshoppper, https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/coal-ash-in-soil/ Suggests fly ash is used for crops. Most artiucle I have seen say: 1) The soil already contains traces of the same contamiments and contaminents of fly ash is of a low level 2) If you are worried, then use on soil being used for ornamental plants and other non food plants 3) Use instead of salt / rock salt on frosty paths Given I don't snort any form of ash I don't suffer any of these ailments. In fact you're far more likely to suffer these if you over indulge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan de Enfield Posted November 13, 2021 Report Share Posted November 13, 2021 8 minutes ago, Mikexx said: Suggests fly ash is used for crops. Most artiucle I have seen say: You do appreciate the difference between 'fly-ash' and the ash from the bottom of your SF stove ? Fly ash is a fine powder recovered from gases created by the burning of coal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikexx Posted November 13, 2021 Report Share Posted November 13, 2021 2 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said: You do appreciate the difference between 'fly-ash' and the ash from the bottom of your SF stove ? Fly ash is a fine powder recovered from gases created by the burning of coal. Ok, so what is the difference of chemical composition between bottom ash and fly ash? I understood the chemical composition was dependent on the source of the coal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momac Posted November 13, 2021 Report Share Posted November 13, 2021 1 hour ago, Wanderer Vagabond said: It was a rhetorical question since I'm obviously not going to dump it, but it is getting increasing difficult to get into more and more recycling centres. Leaving a scrap microwave in a spare room at my postal address isn't quite the same problem as having to work around one on the floor of the saloon on the boat. Even the recycling centre at my postal address you have to book a slot and give the car registration of the vehicle you will be bringing the recycling in, not much help when you don't have a car, pedestrian access is not allowed. Plenty of people must be without a car . What do they do ? Do you not have any friends or relatives who have a house and a car who could help you out with the microwave disposal? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo47 Posted November 14, 2021 Report Share Posted November 14, 2021 Our local counciler is frustrated that the money-saving restrictions on what you can deposit at our local rubbish dumps, operated by the County Council, has lead to an increase in fly tipping, the cost of removal of which falls on the shoulders of the local councils. Re the toxicity of coal ash, the substantial tip heaps of ash from the old Beckton gas works in East London next to the A13, known locally as the Beckton Alps, were for a while repurposed as a dry ski slope. A chance testing of the subsoil established its toxicity and resulted in its closure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athy Posted November 14, 2021 Report Share Posted November 14, 2021 16 hours ago, Mikexx said: 3) Use instead of salt / rock salt on frosty paths Probably an almost-forgotten use these days. My Dad used to scatter the ashes from our (coal) fire to melt the snow and ice on our section of pavement. I tend to use salt, but have used (mainly wood) ash on occasion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackrose Posted November 14, 2021 Report Share Posted November 14, 2021 23 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said: Thre is no need to handle the ash - out of the fire with a shovel, tip it into the ash-bucket, tip-ash bucket down the outside of the lock gate to seal the leaks. So it's ok to chuck it into the canal then, as long as it's at a lock? 🤔 I thought that was the last thing we were supposed to do? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix_V Posted November 14, 2021 Report Share Posted November 14, 2021 https://narrowboatworld.com/3397-ashing-up-the-gates Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchcrawler Posted November 14, 2021 Report Share Posted November 14, 2021 1 minute ago, Phoenix_V said: https://narrowboatworld.com/3397-ashing-up-the-gates But when the next boat comes along it will wash out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan de Enfield Posted November 14, 2021 Report Share Posted November 14, 2021 59 minutes ago, blackrose said: So it's ok to chuck it into the canal then, as long as it's at a lock? 🤔 I thought that was the last thing we were supposed to do? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robtheplod Posted November 15, 2021 Report Share Posted November 15, 2021 On 13/11/2021 at 18:47, Alan de Enfield said: Thre is no need to handle the ash - out of the fire with a shovel, tip it into the ash-bucket, tip-ash bucket down the outside of the lock gate to seal the leaks. "Untouched by human hand" Not heard of this before, is this a recognised thing to do with ash Alan? Always learning! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan de Enfield Posted November 15, 2021 Report Share Posted November 15, 2021 56 minutes ago, robtheplod said: Not heard of this before, is this a recognised thing to do with ash Alan? Always learning! Yes it WAS standard practice (in the "old days") Leaky lockgates, tip the ash down the outside and the flow of water drags the ash into the gap where it forms a thick paste and stops (or at least much reduces) the flow. It may well not work on some of the seriously damaged / distorted lock gates of today as the gaps are so wide the ash would just wash straight thru'. See Phoenix-V post above and the link : Ashing up the gates (narrowboatworld.com) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix_V Posted November 15, 2021 Report Share Posted November 15, 2021 15 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said: Yes it WAS standard practice (in the "old days") Leaky lockgates, tip the ash down the outside and the flow of water drags the ash into the gap where it forms a thick paste and stops (or at least much reduces) the flow. It may well not work on some of the seriously damaged / distorted lock gates of today as the gaps are so wide the ash would just wash straight thru'. See Phoenix-V post above and the link : Ashing up the gates (narrowboatworld.com) probably 2 reasons why it is not common now, 1) CRT has no corporate memory anymore 2) it probably doesnt work with ash from smokeless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tree monkey Posted November 15, 2021 Report Share Posted November 15, 2021 31 minutes ago, Phoenix_V said: probably 2 reasons why it is not common now, 1) CRT has no corporate memory anymore 2) it probably doesnt work with ash from smokeless CRT definitely used it to slow water flow through the stop planks on a recent planned closure on the ponty aqueduct Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchcrawler Posted November 15, 2021 Report Share Posted November 15, 2021 42 minutes ago, Phoenix_V said: probably 2 reasons why it is not common now, 1) CRT has no corporate memory anymore 2) it probably doesnt work with ash from smokeless And pointless if the lock is about to be turned. They do/did it on the Basingstoke after the booked boats had passed knowing the lock would not be turned again until the next booking, not as soon as the boat in front was out of sight. 2 hours ago, robtheplod said: Not heard of this before, is this a recognised thing to do with ash Alan? Always learning! Not something boaters should do to get rid of their ash on a routine basis, it was done for a reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momac Posted November 15, 2021 Report Share Posted November 15, 2021 9 hours ago, tree monkey said: CRT definitely used it to slow water flow through the stop planks on a recent planned closure on the ponty aqueduct That might have been Bentonite? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tree monkey Posted November 15, 2021 Report Share Posted November 15, 2021 1 minute ago, MartynG said: That might have been Bentonite? Nope it was definitely ash they scrounged it of the local boaters, eventually the planks became soaked and expanded enough the provide a decent seal 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maffi Posted November 17, 2021 Author Report Share Posted November 17, 2021 On 13/11/2021 at 22:17, JamesWoolcock said: Hey ho!! Hello James. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matty40s Posted November 17, 2021 Report Share Posted November 17, 2021 On 15/11/2021 at 09:09, Phoenix_V said: ...... 2) it probably doesnt work with ash from smokeless We use it to do the final seal on the dry dock when emptying it. Smokeless works just fine. All marina ash is kept in empty blacking containers(most of the boats in Winter have one at the walkway end of the pontoon). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steilsteven Posted November 20, 2021 Report Share Posted November 20, 2021 On 17/11/2021 at 17:35, matty40s said: We use it to do the final seal on the dry dock when emptying it. Smokeless works just fine. All marina ash is kept in empty blacking containers(most of the boats in Winter have one at the walkway end of the pontoon). I can second that having used it to stop the windows leaking when raising a sunken narrow boat. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maffi Posted November 30, 2021 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2021 I see a couple of boats in Banbury have resorted to dumping ash in the hedgerow! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john.k Posted November 30, 2021 Report Share Posted November 30, 2021 (edited) Fly ash is chemically identically to grate ash......to burn coal in a huge boiler,it is ground to powder and blown into the furnaces by steam or compressed air...the powder coal burns to ash in the furnace ,and is exhausted via a separator..Fly ash is akin to cement ,and is a valuable additive to concrete...............When the carbonaceous material is burnt out of coal ,whats left is a baked shale .....dried clay.........the harmful materials in coal such as tar, arsenic,phenol,aromatics,etc either burn,or go up the flue and are either exhausted into the open air,or in the case of arsenic and tar ,condense in the flue................Consequently ,the harmful material from a coal fire is not the ash,but the smoke................so you saturate the countryside with harmful particulates and gases,and worry about the disposal of a bit of hard dirt. Edited November 30, 2021 by john.k 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanderer Vagabond Posted November 30, 2021 Report Share Posted November 30, 2021 Compared to the real issue of fly tipping (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/nov/24/waste-dumping-uk-environment) a few Kgs of ash is a bit of a minor issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MtB Posted November 30, 2021 Report Share Posted November 30, 2021 50 minutes ago, Wanderer Vagabond said: Compared to the real issue of fly tipping (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/nov/24/waste-dumping-uk-environment) a few Kgs of ash is a bit of a minor issue. And further to this, if some other boaters putting ash under hedges is important enough to be posting about, life must be pretty good!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil. Posted November 30, 2021 Report Share Posted November 30, 2021 1 hour ago, Wanderer Vagabond said: Compared to the real issue of fly tipping (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/nov/24/waste-dumping-uk-environment) a few Kgs of ash is a bit of a minor issue. 58 minutes ago, MtB said: And further to this, if some other boaters putting ash under hedges is important enough to be posting about, life must be pretty good!! Every little helps, and to be fair, Maffi historically has done a lot to tidy up the towpaths, and is therefore entitled to be a bit cross when others start dumping their waste where they shouldn’t. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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