Sawdust disposal - options?

[Big J]

It's the moisture content that is the issue. It will not burn - it's fresh sawn timber sawdust. Briquette makers all require low MC sawdust too.

[Graham w]

sell it to a farmer and they can use it as a bottom layer in cattle bedding which is then covered with straw, this acts like a sponge and maintains a dry shed. all the farmers up north love it

[agg221]

I can think of two options - build some form of drying shed to add value, or leave it wet to dispose of. You could either keep doing what you are doing - minimum effort - or try producing compost with it. Sawdust mixed with high nitrogen sources such as grass cuttings or fallen leaves rots down in about 3months, so fairly efficient and you don't need too much space. I suspect it all depends on whether you have a ready outlet or would need to invest more in sales/marketing than makes it worthwhile.

 

Alec

[NI Tree]

sell it to a farmer and they can use it as a bottom layer in cattle bedding which is then covered with straw, this acts like a sponge and maintains a dry shed. all the farmers up north love it

 

ditto

[se7enthdevil]

It's the moisture content that is the issue. It will not burn - it's fresh sawn timber sawdust. Briquette makers all require low MC sawdust too.

 

I always thought that a briquette maker would need the sawdust moist to help it bind together. how else are they bound???

[Ian Leach]

Thought it was bound by the trees own lignin (sp), I assume as it's been compressed the water will be squeezed out anyway.

[Paper Rustler]

Very interesting thread, managed to get rid of 14m3 bags of it today to two different farmers, both who came and collected it. One uses it his organic chicken houses for the birds to scratch about in, does not mind bark sticks etc in it, in fact the RSPCA assessor said it was better for them as they were kept occupied.

 

The other uses it for sheep sheds placing it under the straw to mop up any excess liquid. He wants another 10 next week.!

 

Payment 1 pays £5.00 per bag the other I get as many eggs as I want!

 

All return the bags and pallets.

 

Suits me just fine.

[openspaceman]

I always thought that a briquette maker would need the sawdust moist to help it bind together. how else are they bound???

 

It's a mixture of hydrogen bonding by forcing contact between particles and reforming the lignin as it platicises under heat (from friction) and then resets.

 

There should be no problem in burning wet sawdust with a bit of heat recycling, just that you get less heat out as some is wasted as water vapour.

[Eddy_t]

Mushroom farm?

 

 

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[Chippy]

Cheapest briquettes I have bought have been £4 for a 10 kilo bag, most are about £5-£6 a bag.

10 tonne would make 1000 bags.

Could you try drying it in your kiln?

Might take a few year before payback after buying briquette machine, but you can get them cheap second hand on the bay.