Sawdust Paper Log Press Project

[Ahmed]

Yes, that's a good point: what was once a "wildly" burnt waste is now reconsidered. Either it is sold to an external processor, or it is recovered internally for sale as pellets or for heating professional premises (case of joinery).

But there is always a way to obtain it for limited needs: thus, my initial source has dried up a little but was enough for me. Let me explain: it was a carpentry that burned its waste in the winter to heat the workshop (condition for setting the glue + working comfort). Due to a lack of sufficient storage space, the waste was also burned in the boiler in the summer, but the heat was rejected outside. They have since equipped themselves with a second-hand press which produces "corks" in a reduced volume and which are kept for the winter. But I was left with the residual sawdust which is not picked up by the vacuum cleaners and which is swept up manually, therefore easy to redirect... I had to change my strategy, however, because my "mole" no longer works there Since then, I have found impeccable sawdust from a small (very) artisanal sawmill not far from my home... It does not produce enough to consider the solutions mentioned above, but much more than my modest needs since neither my objective nor my mix involves a large amount of this waste...

[Ahmed]

New test today of the new configuration with "ablation" of the dynamic compensator which tried to compensate for the insufficiency of the jamming of the lifting arm (by using the weight of the pressing water): I see that it now works perfectly without. I'm almost sorry, because it was a pretty smart trick, plus the bucket holder was also very successful... It must be considered, however, that these modifications (which I hope, with some reasons, will last) simplify and make the whole of this press more reliable and therefore make it more easily reproducible by possible and welcome imitators.

I take this opportunity to come back to the remark of Christophe on the laborious side of making briquettes compared to classic logging. First of all, not everyone has access to this last resource (moreover limited and all the more so as it would spread) or is not necessarily in a physical condition to take advantage of it, on the other On the other hand, the quantity of time/briquette strongly depends on the logistical and technical environment of this practice and a semi-industrialization remains more possible, even on a limited scale than the previous one. It is obviously in this direction that my future efforts will focus.

[Ahmed]

Regarding a point discussed in the previous message, ie the scale, it seems to me that if operating individually remains possible (it's relaxing and less expensive than yoga classes!), a quasi-industrial stage does not is not desirable, since generating considerable energy losses (transport of raw materials and finished products, energy-intensive process, etc.), a median compromise of individuals who use equipment collectively would be particularly interesting and therefore desirable. In this way, the incoming and outgoing flows of materials would remain individual (good management of dispersed waste by definition), but the availability of suitable tools with a certain efficiency (ratio of production capacity/quantity of energy expended) would optimize the time to devote to it (not to mention here the convivial aspect and sociability which would be very appreciable).