Show us your ash pails

[mass_burner]

After buying my insert, I looked at ash buckets at a store and thought they were ridiculously overpriced. So I walked to the housewares section and found a stockpot for significantly less.
It gets dumped 20ft from the back door at the edge of my woods. If it's raining out, I just set it on the BBQ by the back door and dump it later. View attachment 174798

Lowe's sells an airtight, galvanized bucket that's pretty tough for about $15. I bought one for used cat litter and one for ashes. You can sleep next to the can full of cat litter and not smell it.

 

[Easy Livin’ 3000]

You must be single with all that wood in the house.

You'd think so! The wood inside the house is just the tip of the iceberg.

 

[blacktail]

You can sleep next to the can full of cat litter and not smell it.

No, I couldn't do that.

 

[becasunshine]

Yanno, the more I think about it, the more I think we *are* going to go with the two galvanized trash cans outside solution.

I like the idea of filling one can with ash and sitting it aside for however long (weeks, at least, most probably months) then starting on the second can. After the second can is filled, we can empty the first can. Given that our burn season is no more than 6 months long, realistically (November through the first part of April, more like 5.5 months on a typical year) we may not make it through a complete two can cycle before the burn season ends. Or we may *just* fill two cans. But two cans will give us enough room to store until stone cold. We won't even be tempted to shorten holding times/cut corners.

I'm thinking about putting a brick in the bottom of each can to keep the cans from tipping over, and using a bungee to keep the lids on securely. Yes, I know, bungees can burn but I *hope* that the ashes holding in the can won't be so hot as to cause a nylon bungee cord on the outside of the can lid, in the cold weather, to spontaneously combust.

Although I'm sure weirder things have happened. We'll keep an eye on it. <:3~

We're now discussing appropriate locations for the galvanized cans outside. We could put them at the end of our gravel driveway but that seems, random. We could also install paver pads and put them somewhere, anywhere else. Everywhere we can think of that's no where near anything flammable seems so, random and just stuck out there.

I know I'm splitting hairs but where do y'all put your outside ash storage cans so they aren't sitting randomly in the middle of your yard? Or do they sit proudly and randomly in the middle of your yard for the season?

 

[ElmBurner]

I have a galvanized pail that I use when I clean out the stove that goes directly outside. It just sits on our concrete porch. After it is full/cooled, I dump it into a 30 gallon steel trash can with a lid that also sits on the porch. Once I fill the first trash can, I start another. Don't use bricks or anything. Just tuck it all back into a corner to keep it out of any strong wind.

I sift the ashes for all the charcoal, so there really isn't much heat in my bucket. Just ash. It cools quickly and can't maintain enough heat to start anything on fire, for sure.

 

[becasunshine]

I have a galvanized pail that I use when I clean out the stove that goes directly outside. It just sits on our concrete porch. After it is full/cooled, I dump it into a 30 gallon steel trash can with a lid that also sits on the porch. Once I fill the first trash can, I start another. Don't use bricks or anything. Just tuck it all back into a corner to keep it out of any strong wind.

I sift the ashes for all the charcoal, so there really isn't much heat in my bucket. Just ash. It cools quickly and can't maintain enough heat to start anything on fire, for sure.

We do need to be mindful of the wind here, Elm, but we are in a specific situation. It's not unusual to get wind off of the water at over 60 mph hitting the back of our house and rolling through our yard.

We are thinking about putting a couple of paver pads in the front of the house and putting the galvanized cans on those, using the house as a wind break. I don't really like the idea of sitting two 30 gallon old school galvanized trash cans in the front yard but I don't like the idea of setting our stuff on fire (or setting the wooded lot next door on fire) even more than the aesthetics of the situation.

If we choose to use the driveway, we'll have to put some sort of anchor in the cans and on the lids to give some additional assurance against the wind. Heck, I think we'll probably put a brick in the bottom of each can even if we do set them in the front yard. We are on a peninsula. Wind comes out of *everywhere.*

It's been howling here for days, on the coattails of Matthew. We may even light a fire tonight. It's going into the mid-40s here tonight without a wind chill factor. If the wind keeps up like it has, there *will* be a wind chill factor. =/ =/ <:3

 

[Sprinter]

Lowe's sells an airtight, galvanized bucket that's pretty tough for about $15. I bought one for used cat litter and one for ashes. You can sleep next to the can full of cat litter and not smell it.

Probably like this one that I got from HD? Good size, lid fits tight, has handle. Just get one with a lid for safety and prevent ash flying out.
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Behrens-...nd-Trash-Can-with-Locking-Lid-00108/202264761

 

[becasunshine]

We went with two large, traditional metal trash cans from Lowe's. They are sitting on the gravel driveway. Both have paver stones in the bottom to keep them from tipping over in the wind, plus paver stones on the lids to keep the lids secured as well.

Been burning for a little over a week now. Still not ready to clean the stove, don't need to shovel it out quite yet, but I suppose we will sometime this week.

The plan is to shovel into the 6 gallon metal ash bucket, let that sit outside on gravel or pavers until the bucket is cool, then dump it into the first metal trash can.

 

[Jazzberry]

Picked this up at an antique store. I think its an actual ash pan. Lip extends into the stove and helps with ash spilling. Works great.

 

[velvetfoot]

I have a tip that I haven't tried yet. When my insert is stone cold I get a downdraft. Cleaning out the ash with a downdraft is not a great idea, although I've done it too many times. Light a piece of newspaper and/or crack open a window first to get the draft going in the right direction. This is more like a 'memo to me'-hopefully I'll remember.

 

[blacktail]

 

[velvetfoot]

I use a scooper:
http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200487338_200487338

 

[St. Coemgen]

Picked this up at an antique store. I think its an actual ash pan. Lip extends into the stove and helps with ash spilling. Works great.

Wow!

That is beautiful!

 

[chris5150]

I use a product called the ash dragon. Works great, most of the dust goes up the chimney and then you close it and pull it out of the stove and I walk outside and dump it into a metal barrel with a metal lid on it. The lid has a boat anchor on top of it so it does not blow off. Product can be seen here: (broken link removed to http://www.ashdragon.com/products/ash-dragon-scoop)

Besides my pickeroon, probably one of the best wood cutting/burning tool I own (outside of the saw and splitter).

 

[Easy Livin’ 3000]

Picked this up at an antique store. I think its an actual ash pan. Lip extends into the stove and helps with ash spilling. Works great.



View attachment 188102 View attachment 188103

Are you sure that its not a chamber pot?

 

[Sprinter]

Are you sure that its not a chamber pot?

That was my first thought, too.. But whatever works is my motto.

 

[Easy Livin’ 3000]

That was my first thought, too.. But whatever works is my motto.

Indeed- Ass pail to ash pail.

 

[Jazzberry]

It has a lightweight hollow base that definitely wouldn't support someone sitting on it. If I was back in the days where I needed a chamber pot the very first mandatory requirement would be a lid. No way for a lid on whatever the thing is I have so I am positive it was not a chamber pot. The thin hollow base elevates the the bottom off the floor for what would seem heat purposes. The handles are ceramic similar to an insulator. I don't know what it is but if I was going to design one it would have a few of the same features. I really have no clue. It was a magazine rack for many years before I turned it into an ash pail.





i

 

[Easy Livin’ 3000]

It has a lightweight hollow base that definitely wouldn't support someone sitting on it. The thin hollow base elevates the the bottom off the floor for what would seem heat purposes. The handles are ceramic similar to an insulator. I don't know what it is but if I was going to design one it would have a few of the same features. I really have no clue. It was a magazine rack for many years before I turned it into an ash pail.





i

Just having some fun! That said, I don't think anyone actually sat on their chamber pot, just sort of hovered over it on cold nights so they didn't have to make that long, cold walk to the outhouse. Different times, but I'm old enough to remember, it was still that way at my grandmother's house when I was a kid. The good old days!

 

[Sprinter]

The good old days!

It's quite normal to think of childhood days as "the good old days". However I sort of prefer things the way they are Except, of course, for the age thing...