Preparation

*Fire safety

-use a solid metal fire rake to remove ground debris at least 5 metres around the kiln and make sure no overhanging branches are above the kiln with a clearance of less than 5 metres. If you've got a wheelbarrow, place the raked debris in the wheelbarrow and shift to a burn pile at least 10 metres from the kiln

-Have a pile of soil in case of emergency fire snuffing

-Get a backpack sprayer filled with water on standby in case of spot fires OR if near a water tank, attach a small pump and get an adequate length of green line 1" rural pipe that will attach to the pump outlet and reach around the circumference of the kiln

-Buy or borrow a pair of welding gloves for operation (the long blue ones) - the kiln flame has been known to 'jump out' of the kiln and reach your hands

-Clothing - don't wear any synthetics - preferably heavy organic cotton

-Work boots - If you're in Oz, Rossi or Blundstone are always handy - just make sure they are steel capped

-Safety glasses - always good when dealing with fire and feedstock

 

*The base/foundation

An imperfect/uneven foundation may lead to an air gap between 2 or more panels. Choose a relatively flat area of ground within a 5 metre vegetation clearance next to and above the kiln spot and create a fairly flat 1.2m x 1.2m square eg. remove rocks, tufts of grass and smooth out the soil with a shovel or rake. Place the base plate on top of the fairly flat square. This will now provide a perfectly flat foundation for the kiln and reflect heat into the fire plus insulate and reduce heat loss during baking

 

*Snuff layers

-Have the snuff layer ingredients within 1 metre from the kiln for easy access - just shovel on top of the fire!

-This is definitely an experimental area. I've been using a combination of bentonite clay (layer 1) and Jeffries Veggie soil (Layer 2). Could even add some biochar on top once you've stockpiled enough

 

*Feedstock management

'Catch and store energy', 'Obtain a yield' and 'Produce no waste'.

 

Essential equipment

1- Chainsaw and related accessories

Good for initial processing of biomass eg. forestry waste, vineyard waste etc.

The Stihl brand is probably the way to go...a cordless electric if you can afford it! A cheaper option is the Ozito dual 18V 4.0Ah electric chainsaw. Spare chains can be bought from Bunnings or eBay. The batteries can be used in other Ozito power tools like the cordless electric circular saw (see #4) and jigsaw.

2- Curved handheld tree saw

Handy when you are collecting forestry waste eg. small dead branches that don't snap off cleanly or for pruning lower branches larger than 10-15mm that can't be easily cut with a chainsaw

The Spear & Jackson brand will do the job nicely

3- Loppers

Handy for pruning lower and higher branches less than 10-15mm.

The Fiskar brand is a little expensive but includes a high quality steel cutter and extendable handles

4- Cordless battery-powered circular saw.

I only use the saw on feedstock that can't be broken with two hands or across my shin. If it's more than a couple of inches thick I tend to stack it separately for cutting with a chainsaw and use it in my pyramid kiln or combustion heater.

The Ozito brand does the job very nicely and they're relatively cheap - worth buying the 18V 4.0Ah battery as it lasts longer in the field and can also be used with other Ozito powered tools. It's a bit dodgy but I removed the safety so you can have one hand operation and hold the feedstock with the other hand. I also updated the blade so it now has 36 teeth which works better on smaller diameter branches

5-Moisture meter.

Ensure the feedstock is less than 20% moisture content - can use a pronged moisture meter from China eg. MD-4G. The less moisture the feedstock has the faster and more cleanly it will combust

Solar drying

-Create long windrows of feedstock along East-West so they are North or South facing

-Cover the windrows with heavy duty tarps if bad weather approaching and secure with anything heavy you've got eg. Besser blocks, long wooden poles, bricks, rocks, logs etc.

Shed drying

-When the feedstock is dry, if you've got a large shed then move it by wheelbarrow into the shed - This will remove a final percentage of moisture in addition to the solar drying. Only bother to shed dry if the shed is within reasonably close distance to the site of the kiln so there is efficient transportation of the feedstock to the kiln

 

Kiln assembly

-Careful moving panels - don't drop them as the keys might distort on impact (however the V3 keys should be strong enough to take a fall)

-Assemble on top of the base plate

-Assemble with panel folds on outside, use to secure 7 x 1.8m star droppers for balance during assembly and use

- 2 person assembly is much easier than 1 person (can be done but not as fun)!

Here goes:
3,2,1
3
Assemble first 3 panels. Keyed panel in middle first (logo panel), lean against a fold on base plate to steady and support with 2 star droppers. Drop in second and third slotted panels on either side and add star dropper support to each panel centre top
2
Attach one keyed panel with star dropper support at centre top on one side and one keyed panel without a star dropper on the other side. May need to reattach star droppers on second and third panels
1
Drop in final (slotted) panel with 14mm slots - first side drop onto keyed panel without star dropper - probably will need to move both of the panels around a little for insertion. On the second and last side of the slotted panel, drop onto keyed panel with star dropper. Once the final panel is in place, add a star dropper at centre top to secure it. This slotted panel (opposite the logo panel) will b lifted and removed when emptying the kiln, hence the 14mm slots for easier access.

Operation

-When filling kiln before ignition, don't need to process feedstock - put it straight into the kiln

-Follow the Kon-Tiki operating instructions Here

-Burn until biochar is up to the top of the top key/slot. This will provide enough space for the snuff layers. The fire doesn't get too hot as well as it would if it was filled to the top.

-Baking? Experimental. The closer you get to Terra Preta de Indio (or rather, Terra Preta Australis) the better it is for growing plants. I've got to do some testing but I'm thinking at the moment that 24 hours should be long enough. The baking breaks the biochar into smaller pieces which increases the overall surface area which is good for almost every application. I'm also going to try baking without soil on the outside since the 3mm steel should provide adequate insulation for 24 hours - needs to be tested (maybe at 6 hour intervals with a laser 'infrared thermometer', also available from China for a low cost eg. The 'dodocool' GM900 works well and cost about AUD$30

-Snuffing will not use water i.e. these kilns will now be 'water-free' (with the exception of a backpack sprayer for spot fires/dousing the biochar after emptying). This saves on water, allows more remote field deployment and protects the 3mm hot rolled steel from corrosion and rusting.

Emptying
-Ensure original 3 panels assembled are still supported by star droppers
-Remove star droppers on keyed panels adjacent to the last panel (14mm slotted) assembled

-Remove star dropper on last panel
-To empty kiln,  lift up the 'last panel' that was assembled and remove.

-If using the 'Carbon' in a semi-permanent/permanent setup:

• scrape off the snuff layers and shovel into a pile 1m from the kiln for the next burn. This will economise the use of snuff ingredients and reduce transportation demands, OR
• transport snuff layers to TPM
• unmilled biochar for biochar aquifers eg. PKG, TPS
• milled biochar for TPM, TPV

If using the 'Carbon' in a mobile setup:

• separate the snuff layers and biochar then shovel onto trailer, ute or bag it up for car transport.

• Can use a backpack sprayer filled with water (and inoculants - bonus) (or 1" rural pipe 'gravity fed' from a nearby water tank - or even water from a 'Furphy') to water down the biochar (after removal from the kiln) before transport  or bagging in order to cool it down and prevent 'spontaneous recombustion' (biochar goes up in flames again).

 

I think a good rental service will provide the following equipment to the customer:

-Kiln and base plate

-Star droppers

-Sledgehammer

-Welding gloves

-Backpack sprayer

The customer could provide:

-Ingredients for snuff layers

-Water for backpack sprayer and inoculants

-Shovel

-Wheelbarrow/bags

-Firelighter/newspaper