Soaking. I started off with hydrolyzed fish then decided to add some variety so I tossed in some ewc and a bit of buffaloam. Did some more reading around and added a bit of kelp, alfalfa and neem meals.
I'm kind of stuck on how long to soak it, though. I found one paper that said 72 hrs gave best results, others go a couple weeks, some add molasses and bubble like an ACT. Not sure what's best or if it really matters all that much.
charred rice hulls are of very little value due to carbon density but many have a differing opinion. We modelled our furnace
I tried posting this earlier today but got disconnected when uploading. Dontcha just hate it when that happens??
Be aware that if you make char without a pyrolizing furnace that you generate more smoke/pollution.
According to these guys
http://www.biochar-international.org/Newenglandbiochar (New England Biochar) charred rice hulls are of very little value due to carbon density but many have a differing opinion. We modelled our furnace
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after their's in this video except our's is 4 times larger. I am dissapointed with the amount of smoke we generate and am seeking to build a more efficient model. Adam retort?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXMUmby8PpU
If you've got much char to bust up borrow or rent a cement mixer.toss in a half dozen or so fist size rounded rocks with your char & in 10 or 15 min. it's done.But beware,it's dirty!Everything downwind will be blackened.When I did mine the dust covered my pile of 5yr. old horse shit.Such a pity.how are yous guys breaking it up?
i used a sshovel to chop the hell outta it in the barrel and screened it to get about 20 gal of fines.
the vid MM posted reccomends innoculaing prior to addition. i had spread half before seeing that...
always next year.
Probably a good idea generally but in this case I wanted to get it broken,screened & bagged for later use while I had a good weather day.Since then I soaked it in a strong AACT and included it in the nucleus of my ROLS mix which is now cooking in my grow room.Should end up about 5-10% char.Somewhere in my research I've seen it recommended to break wet char to prevent all the dust.
Self sustaining Biochar Kiln.
http://greenyourhead.typepad.com/files/backyard_biochar_kiln_instructions.pdf
Pretty simple bad ass design.
MM,
so the rice hulls are probably better off as aeration. good to know before i roasted them. thanks.
what kind of wood do you use? i watched that video and it looked like there was scrap lumber in that barrel. my commercial charcoal is oak and hickory wood, but i was gonna use maple and apple tree branches because they are right outside of my house. does wood type really matter?
also what was your soaking/inoculation procedure? do you use any EM with the PNSB's or do you brew a tea? do you make a nutrient solution for a pre-soak?
DDG
Glad you're happy with your purchase since too many times that doesn't happen - unfortunately.