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#228688 Aug 16th, 2008 at 07:02 AM
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When I started piling up the brush I was cutting I ran into a question. When does a branch go from being compostable to being kindling for the fireplace?

Thankyou for your help.


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you only want to put certain types of wood in your fireplace. pines or 'trash' trees shouldn't be burned in the house. I guess that would be a way to distinguish where the branches should go. was that your question, or am I way off?


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Hi Cricket,

What I'm wondering is how big around is the point where it stops being compost material and becomes kindling.

And you know I'm from Washington State and we always burned pine with no problem. You just have to dry it and watch it so if anything pops you can catch it. Of course I'd never leave a fire alone anyway even if I weren't using pine.


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Jiffymouse
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tammy, the problem with eastern pine (i can't speak to western) isn't the popping, although that is a problem. but the pine smoke leaves a thicker creosote on the chimney walls.

as for the thick, i'd say smaller than your pinky is compost.

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Have you ever used those creosote logs? Dad said that back in the old days they didn't work well because the stuff came down the chimney and then became a solid mass. Are they any better today?

We do have the chimney cleaned every year. If I don't use pine will I not have to do it as often?

As small as that huh? Ok, thanks for the information. That means most of what I got out of the area is going to be kindling for next year. I can't afford to have it cleaned this year grrrrh tires.


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Are you allowed to burn in a burn barrel Tammy? I mean for outside clean up? that way you can just burn what you can't use..

Here we clean our chimney once a month. I'd never trust those 'burning blocks'.


~~Tam~ You can bury all your troubles by digging in the dirt.
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We can burn here but I don't. What won't go in the compost pile I'll use as kindling. I need so much compost it's going to take me years to make it all even using every scrap of raw material I can find. No reason to waste any to my way of thinking. And what is burnable I'll put in the fireplace to cut down on the heating costs. Wow I couldn't afford to do that. Chimney cleaning costs close to 100.00 per visit.

I did finally get the white adheisive off of the fireplace insert. Why someone would glue hooks on to it is beyond me but I got it off. Took some work but it's done now. I also cleaned up the vents and the glass doors. It's looking fine now. I'm so excited to have a fireplace. I loved them as a kid.


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TK I clean my own chimney with a long extendable chimney sweep brush...only cost $25 or so for the brush and a few extra dollars for an extension pole. I just climb the roof, swish it up and down a few times then open and scoop out the chimney outlet outside.

I leave DH clean the stove pipes though...i find it to hard to take them apart.


~~Tam~ You can bury all your troubles by digging in the dirt.
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That's great. But there is no way I'm getting on a roof. If I didn't fall off the roof would cave in lol. I'm such a chicken.


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