Rocket stove using only concrete blocks

Posted here because I read this as "international"-  It could be??



I want to build a rocket stove in my backyard and cook beans, black beans.

In my neighborhood, people are hungry and don't have enough to eat.
If I could cook, outside, using the cord of wood I collect, the smell will draw in those who need to eat.

I have tried Rocket Stove, using concrete blocks---
In several locations:
there is never enough wind or air to do so:
For me-  at least.
I need to increase my air intake.
Only concrete blocks will do:  (or other LOCAL materials)
WHY?
Because if I can do it, everyone can:

There are beans here, but the propane is expensive to use to cook.
You see?

Help me change the world from here.


tim


PS:  Shout out thanks to Volunteer helpers on your email!  -smiles-   Seems to have worked.
Even if I just work it out myself, it still a big help for me to post.  ty

Hello! I like your idea. It is noble to help people feed themselves.

Are you able to look at the posts in this forum? https://permies.com/f/125/rocket-stoves

I am not an expert, but it seems that rocket stoves work best with a chimney that is at least 1 metre high, with small diameter pieces of wood sitting on a grate so there is air flow under it.

Keep experimenting and you will make it work!

Thank you for your good words.  

There is food- but it is low grade and expensive.  If I do figure this out, I will post a photo.

Thanks for the link!!

Douglas Alpenstock wrote:Hello! I like your idea. It is noble to help people feed themselves.

Are you able to look at the posts in this forum? https://permies.com/f/125/rocket-stoves

I am not an expert, but it seems that rocket stoves work best with a chimney that is at least 1 metre high, with small diameter pieces of wood sitting on a grate so there is air flow under it.

Keep experimenting and you will make it work!

So I did pop over there:

The best ideas:

1) eventually cement crumbles

2) lift the fuel supply (using grate) in the mid chamber.  

That is a great idea.  I would never thought of that myself.  TY!!

Do you have access to youtube? A search there for "rocket stove cement blocks" brings multiple hits explaining both 4 and 2 block versions.

Hi- there are also quite a few videos on youtube of people making outdoor rocket stoves using cinder blocks.

Hello Anne. Big Welcome to Permies!

Your intentions are very noble indeed and worthy of fellow rocket scientists to help point you in the right direction to feed those hungry people.

Perhaps just as common as cement blocks are those soft red clay bricks. They hold up to heat much better and make great inexpensive rocket stoves.
There are two variations of the rocket stove: The L tube or the J tube. Both shouldn't require eternal air to keep them drafting. One good blow into the fire should be all it takes to get the flames travelling in the right direction.
Also, an even more simpler and often free building material to make rocket stoves is local clay. Mix it in a ratio of 1 clay to 3 sand. Form it around a tube or homemade form in the shape you want and it will work great also.

Thanks for the kind words of encouragement and helping out:  Lets get the whole world on board!


You write:


There are two variations of the rocket stove: The L tube or the J tube. Both shouldn't require eternal air to keep them drafting. One good blow into the fire should be all it takes to get the flames travelling in the right direction.


Res:  Then I must be doing something wrong.

I set up three versions:  All were smoky, required constant "more air" and generally had poor cooking.

The version I use is the one on the YouTube showing a small number of concrete blocks.

Generally those are so common, anyone can find 4 or 5 just walking around.

Results were nowhere near the fiery blazes shown online.

Thanks!!

Perhaps you could try a different type of wood? Or cut it into smaller pieces first?

You're going to need to give us more to work with. Pictures or drawings of how you are setting yours up.
Properly set up, a rocket stove pulls enough air to provide a hot, clean combustion with no additional forced air.
Reasons why one might not work generally come down to restricted air flow.  This can come from putting too much fuel into the feed tube, blocking air flow. Many designs include a grate in the feed tube to prevent this from happening, fuel goes on the grate and sir us Fred to flow underneath, then up through the fuel and out the top. The vertical flue or chimney needs to be clear enough to allow the hit air to flow. This means a pot set on top needs to be raised up enough to allow air flow.
Rocket stoves generally need a little bit of priming/ warming up to get the draft started, so you start with a small amount of fuel and warm up the stove to get the draft going, then add fuel to increase the intensity of the fire.
Helping troubleshoot your specific problem requires seeing what your setup is in detail.

Mike Barkley wrote:Perhaps you could try a different type of wood? Or cut it into smaller pieces first?

Hey, Mike:  Thank you for your kind interest:

The three attempts so far included a group effort where we tried numerous combinations of wood fuel:  We did get a fire going, using "sticks" like in the vids, really small diameter 'sticks' like one would find and use.
Just seemed to smother itself and not continue and loads of smoke that made the neighbors room full of smoke.  Not a success.

At my house, I dried a bunch of wood, I cut from a particular tree that grows locally.  Same parameters:  little dry sticks.  

I cemented the blocks (made according to the pattern in the YouTube Videos) to give it a robust intake.  I must be doing something fundamentally wrong.

Which pattern in the you tubes? I have seen a number of configurations.

Joylynn Hardesty wrote:Which pattern in the you tubes? I have seen a number of configurations.

This is the improved design:  

This woman is just fabulous.  How could you not love to watch her and hear her voice?

I cut the brick just like she did.  She uses sticks (just everyday sticks and pine needles) and uses it every day, for her lunch.

She is all into the pressure cooker but I am not there yet.

So far, I can't make it work.

She lives in Tennessee, USA.  So the air is about the same.

Anne Cummings wrote:

Joylynn Hardesty wrote:Which pattern in the you tubes? I have seen a number of configurations.

This is the improved design:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=raoF2ZBvkyE&ab_channel=2usefulness

This woman is just fabulous.  How could you not love to watch her and hear her voice?

I cut the brick just like she did.  She uses sticks (just everyday sticks and pine needles) and uses it every day, for her lunch.

She is all into the pressure cooker but I am not there yet.

So far, I can't make it work.

She lives in Tennessee, USA.  So the air is about the same.

Are you following her construction and operating instructions exactly? What is your elevation? Unless you are so high that there's insufficient oxygen, that stove system should work if you are doing what she is doing and have the same set up.
Without seeing exactly what you are doing, there is no way for us to tell you where you are making a mistake.

Maybe your sticks are too wet, or the cinder blocks too wet. Do you get a fire going if you feed the sticks from the top?