Old timer told me to put ash in my forge and I laughed. Now I don't.

Guy named Walt who's been smithing since the 70s told me to toss wood ash into my coal forge to cut down on clinker. I thought he was pulling my leg, sounded like some folk remedy. Tried it last Saturday after a bad clinker buildup ruined a three hour session on a fireplace set. Mixed about a cup of dry ash into the coal bed and the clinker practically fell apart in chunks. Next day I did another run with plain coal and got clinker again within 45 minutes. Anyone else use ash or am I just getting lucky?

2 comments

2 Comments

kair6519d ago

Walt's spot on with that old timer trick. Clinker forms from impurities in the coal, and the ash acts like a flux to break up those silica bonds before they harden. You ain't getting lucky, that's straight chemistry right there. Just be careful not to overdue it with the ash, too much and you'll mess with your fire's heat output. Lot of the old guys swear by this, and they been doing it long before any of us were around.

the_logan19d ago

Jumping in here, just want to gently push back on the "too much ash will mess with heat output" part. Actually, a thin layer of ash on top of the fire can help reflect heat back into the work, not hurt it. I've been experimenting with this on my own forge for the last few months, and I find a light dusting right before adding a fresh scoop of coal keeps the fire hot and clean. The trick is to use dry ash and not pile it on like a blanket, just a light sprinkling. Walt's method works because the ash is basically potassium carbonate, a natural flux that melts and carries those silica impurities out of the way, just like kair65 said.