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Changes in Smokeless fuel composition


frangar

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Ive been using Burnrite branded smokeless supplied by Housefuel for the last few years with good results..stayed in overnight and produced a low ash content. However the in the latest batch Ive found produces a massive amount of ash.

 

I have queried it with the supplier only to be told that the composition of the fuel has been changed!...this is with no indication of this happening....I have voiced my displeasure and suggested they might have renamed the product or at least put a note on the website etc. I have also found that Housefuel used to be the online trading name of a family run coal merchant in Lancashire but seem to have been brought out by CPL and now are based with the rest of CPL in Chesterfield.

 

It does seem slightly wrong that a product can be fundamentally altered yet retain the same name.

 

So just a heads up really....It might be worth asking your solid fuel supplier if any changes have been made since your last order if you have a fuel you have been happy with...I understand a few might have changed for some reason recently.....I now have a tonne of fuel that wasn't quite what i expected!!...and need to find another supplier/fuel!

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49 minutes ago, frangar said:

Ive been using Burnrite branded smokeless supplied by Housefuel for the last few years with good results..stayed in overnight and produced a low ash content. However the in the latest batch Ive found produces a massive amount of ash.

 

I have queried it with the supplier only to be told that the composition of the fuel has been changed!...this is with no indication of this happening....I have voiced my displeasure and suggested they might have renamed the product or at least put a note on the website etc. I have also found that Housefuel used to be the online trading name of a family run coal merchant in Lancashire but seem to have been brought out by CPL and now are based with the rest of CPL in Chesterfield.

 

It does seem slightly wrong that a product can be fundamentally altered yet retain the same name.

 

So just a heads up really....It might be worth asking your solid fuel supplier if any changes have been made since your last order if you have a fuel you have been happy with...I understand a few might have changed for some reason recently.....I now have a tonne of fuel that wasn't quite what i expected!!...and need to find another supplier/fuel!

 

I was going to raise this on here too as we noticed exactly the same with our first batch of this winter and it has continued through out. Particularly on the issue of ash. We get a lot more than we ever have before. We raised this with our supplier and they too told us the composition changed last year 'in order to meet new emissions standards'. Suspecting he was BSing us I tried to find any reference to the need to change on the internet, but couldn't so I suspected it was just a cost saving exercise.

 

I spoke to one another supplier (we don't have a great choice of them) and they confirmed the same so for now we are putting up with it. He gets his from the same manufacturer so there would be little point in changing anyway.

Edited by The Happy Nomad
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9 minutes ago, The Happy Nomad said:

 

I was going to raise this on here too as we noticed exactly the same with our first batch of this winter and it has continued through out. Particularly on the issue of ash. We get a lot more than we ever have before. We raised this with our supplier and they too told us the composition changed last year 'in order to meet new emissions standards'. Suspecting he was BSing us I tried to find any reference to the need to change on the internet, but couldn't so I suspected it was just a cost saving exercise.

 

I spoke to one another supplier (we don't have a great choice of them) and they confirmed the same so for now we are putting up with it. He gets his from the same manufacturer so there would be little point in changing anyway.

Apparently not all the fuels have changed....I asked about "Stovemaster" which I have used from the same company but found it didnt always stay in overnight....they said that hadn't changed...but its also costs more....and isnt/wasnt worth it in my opinion....maybe it might be now given the ash! It was suggested I could reduced the ash by adjusting the vents but I pointed out that reducing ash by reducing heat output isnt really a win.

 

I was told that Burnrite is still Heatas approved but thats not a lot of consolation!

Edited by frangar
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Just now, Batavia said:

We have started using Phurnacite again (after a 35 year gap and in a cottage, not a boat) and have been surprised at the huge amount of ash which it produces.  I am certain that it didn't used to be like that.

I used to use it way back too....and you are right...it didnt produce mush ash....It does seem that something has changed and not for the better!

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Just now, frangar said:

I used to use it way back too....and you are right...it didnt produce mush ash....It does seem that something has changed and not for the better!

 

See my post above.

 

This would be what has caused the change IMHO.

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2 minutes ago, The Happy Nomad said:

Some further googling found reference to 'ready to burn' which I thought just applied to wood.

 

But some solid fuels now meet this apparently so my guess is this is the change that applied last year.

 

https://www.hetas.co.uk/ready-to-burn-what-consumers-need-to-know/

Once again the consumer suffers I guess in order to meet some pointless regulation.....The new bags do indeed have that logo on them.....I guess more ash is better for the environment!

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2 minutes ago, frangar said:

Once again the consumer suffers I guess in order to meet some pointless regulation.....The new bags do indeed have that logo on them.....I guess more ash is better for the environment!

I think we will wait for Maffi to comment on that one.....

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9 minutes ago, Batavia said:

We have started using Phurnacite again (after a 35 year gap and in a cottage, not a boat) and have been surprised at the huge amount of ash which it produces.  I am certain that it didn't used to be like that.

Phurnacite has changed we used to use it in both the cottage and the boat, does seem to have more ash.

We now use Ecoal 50 which is low ash and even in our small Hobbit stove stays in for up to  18 hours. Having said that it appears that it has been renamed Ecoal and droped the 50

https://www.homefire.co.uk/ecoal50.html

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Im guessing that from new "Ready to burn" standard that there is less petcoke in the mix to reduce the sulphur output....which as petcoke doesn't produce much ash means the replacement product is higher in ash content....bit like running an electric car....just shifts the pollution issue!!

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1 hour ago, frangar said:

Ive been using Burnrite branded smokeless supplied by Housefuel for the last few years with good results..stayed in overnight and produced a low ash content. However the in the latest batch Ive found produces a massive amount of ash.

 

I have queried it with the supplier only to be told that the composition of the fuel has been changed!...this is with no indication of this happening....I have voiced my displeasure and suggested they might have renamed the product or at least put a note on the website etc. I have also found that Housefuel used to be the online trading name of a family run coal merchant in Lancashire but seem to have been brought out by CPL and now are based with the rest of CPL in Chesterfield.

 

It does seem slightly wrong that a product can be fundamentally altered yet retain the same name.

 

So just a heads up really....It might be worth asking your solid fuel supplier if any changes have been made since your last order if you have a fuel you have been happy with...I understand a few might have changed for some reason recently.....I now have a tonne of fuel that wasn't quite what i expected!!...and need to find another supplier/fuel!

 

Try telling Sainsburys that. Nearly every week another regular "own brand" product is changed detrimentally with no packaging change

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The constant tinkering with any fossil fuel make up will continue to frustrate all until they are phased out at consumer level. It all started with the introduction of unleaded petrol and has flourished ever since. It is convenient to ignore the fact that it just shifts the source of pollution. You only need to look at the fiasco of the imported wood chips to make our power stations green.

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2 hours ago, David Schweizer said:

 

Try telling Sainsburys that. Nearly every week another regular "own brand" product is changed detrimentally with no packaging change

Almost all the changes do have a packaging change - they reduce the weight of the contents!

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3 hours ago, Loddon said:

Just looked at my stock of Ecoal and it appears to be the old stuff with  50 on the label. Will be interesting to see what the newer stuff is like.

More ash Julian I am afraid we the new stuff still burns well though. On the boat I am still burning anthracite which allegedly came from Wales, it's hot, clean and cheaper than Ecoal. Front stove is wood only and produces little ash most must go up the chimney I think?

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4 minutes ago, peterboat said:

More ash Julian I am afraid we the new stuff still burns well though. On the boat I am still burning anthracite which allegedly came from Wales, it's hot, clean and cheaper than Ecoal. Front stove is wood only and produces little ash most must go up the chimney I think?

As we no longer live on board I've possibly got enough in the shed and on the boat to do all of this winter and most of next ;)

It was low ash anyway so might not be so bad.

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Thanks for the useful information in various posts.

I’d noticed that this seasons SuperTherm had deteriorated drastically in terms of ash compared with my recollection from last winter, so It’s good to understand why - it is on the approved list.

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On 09/01/2022 at 12:43, Loddon said:

Just looked at my stock of Ecoal and it appears to be the old stuff with  50 on the label. Will be interesting to see what the newer stuff is like.

 

I bought some from Wickes a few weeks ago. 

 

I'd say it produces much the same volume of ash as the unburned Ecoal in the first place. 

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2 hours ago, MtB said:

 

I bought some from Wickes a few weeks ago. 

 

I'd say it produces much the same volume of ash as the unburned Ecoal in the first place. 

Yes it produces lots of very fine ash Mike, Jayne likes it as its easy to light and burns for a long time, I supply her with wood so she uses a shovel full a night on the boatman stove 

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