10/22/2017 Mechanical automation finalized

[@mikerovira2807]

You are a badass engineer! I appreciate you taking the time to share how you make your gasifier. You are by far the foremost authority on designing, building, and teaching about wood gasifiers.

[@flash001USA]

Hey thank you for those complements but this was all experimentation and due to asking questions to people who build gasifiers professionally for profit who were willing to throw me a few bones of information. There are a lot of great builders on KZbin and I'm sure you have probably checked out their channels. The automation was my baby and I must have built it up in my mind a million times before I actually went for it but it pretty much worked the way I envisioned it so I got lucky. The gasifier is still a job in motion as myself and others try to think of other ideas to try improve it. There are quite a few you should check out here like All Power Labs and those guys are great and even answer questions if you ask them then you have the Thrive Energy Systems channel and he's a walking encyclopedia of knowledge too. There is also the DriZzler channel and he is very much outside the box in his designs and last but not least, there is CNCmachiningisfun who brings his electronic and mechanical designs to KZbin. That guy is good at what he does because he is totally off-grid with his setup. Check out his channel. He's a really smart guy on this topic! If this interest you feel free to visit www.miniwoodgas.com and join the blog and if you have any questions there are a lot of us there who may be able to answer any you have should you want to try your hand at building a gasifier.

[@allanseagrave8132]

Just found your videos last night, stayed up til 0340hrs here watching and making notes. Thanks so much for documenting and sharing your experiences, I've been toiling with my first build for over 8 months and having no luck, gonna rebuild based on your "Flashifier" thanks again mate👍👍

[@wadebrewer7212]

Did you build one?

[@allanseagrave8132]

@@wadebrewer7212 I tried, but it didn't work out for me - have given up on em now.

[@benreber2277]

Love the design upgrades. I am still working on designing and building my first prototype and then I will be automating a lot of the components like your system has.

[@EverhardVideos]

Flash, you do a great job of explaining details.

[@JohnSmith-il4wi]

I couldn't help myself, I had to watch this one before your newest automation video :) That shaker setup is fantastic.

[@keesverhagen9227]

Hello Sir, At first i must be saying that you have done a fantastic job. Yesterday by accident A.I. from KZbin let me see a video about woodgassifiers. Probably because i'm into working with woodstoves. Also in building systems for central heating. I build my own woodstoves. Just from when i was ten years old. Times were different back then and i was lucky that my dad was working with a dredging company. We lived on a houseboat so we could always be close to the place where the job had to be done. So luckely i had all the tools i would need. Needles to say at that age i had a lot of failures. Once made a woodstove that used a steamturbine to generate electricity. Used the condensor also as a heatexchanger to heat up a large boiler. From there on it could heat up radiators and with the help of a heat plate exchanger and a simple pump it could also be used for showering. Minimising the risc of legionella and not using a boiler that had to be over 62 degrees constantly. But the steamturbine did not have so much power. And looking back on it, it wasn't without any risc completely. Until yesterday did not had the concept of a woodgassifier given any thought. But after watching a few minutes i thought " what the heck, it doesn't hurt to take in some information over a certain time". Maybe when getting to a certain level of knowledge i will try to build my own woodgassifier. If you would use the gas and lead it back into the house to cook on. Are there not some elements in the gas that are very poiseness ? Eating out the braincell ? After you build the burnchamber the gas goes into somekind of purifier ? The gas is also cooling down in it ? Yesterday someone in another YT video told that the gas in that purifier needed to create somekind of vortex ? Is that because the heavier particels need to go outwards ? If the gas has to cool down is it then not much easier to place that gaspurifier in water ? When steam makes contact to a cold metal surface it will start to condensate. That is why modern dishwashers are doublewalled. Cold water is after the cleaning process let in the double wall and cooled down. A proces that will start to dry the dishes, cups and other stuff much quicker and better. The cooler walls will condensate so all the steam will pull towards them. Is this not a kind of process that can be used in a purifier to cool the gas and also distract all the water from it? I'm very interested in your thoughts because you are very expierenced in this kind of thing. I only started to think about all of this since yesterday when i saw your video. Thanks for that already. It would be great if i could prevent a lot of mistakes because you already made them.😈 I also see that the wood that you are using is very small. I can understand that you need as much surface as you can get. But for sawing my logs into that kind of tiny pieces it would be a hell of a job. My logs are as big as 5 a 6 bricks. Would it be impossible to use logs as big as that ? And would it be dangerous to use wood like pieces of OSB and underlayment ? Because of the large amounts of glue in it ? I think that it would be better to use it in a gasifier like yours then to just burn it because of the toxic gasses will be burnt completely. I have subscribed to your channel and will be watching as much as possible. Greetings, Kees (Holland)

[@TheAlexanderpiano]

Fantastic videos! Would a larger generator require a larger reduction cone aswell as air intake. Is there a ratio like 3 inch for 2kw 4 inch for ?? 4 kw?

[@flash001USA]

Yeah. A system like this can be geared up to handle a larger system. A single air nozzle system probably wouldn't be practical with a bigger engine setup. You would want to Google gasifier nozzle and hearth requirements vs engine size but you would find the information. The larger the engine the higher the air intake. How big are you looking at building? How many cylinders is your engine? Better yet, what is the Hp of your engine?

[@flash001USA]

Almost forgot, these guys are the king cat daddy when it comes to the math for larger engines. If you reach out to them they will actually give you feedback. kzbin.info/door/4E_vZftsMPmFfzTTlHW5Ag

[@TheAlexanderpiano]

@@flash001USA I'm looking at 999cc 4stroke 17Kw 3 phase Gen. 230/415v

[@flash001USA]

@@TheAlexanderpiano So you're looking at a pretty big engine that's almost 70 Hp. Yeah you will need to do some major mods to make this system work. You may want to use that link I sent you and see if those guy's still have the engine chart they drew up. That will tell you the size of hearth and what air nozzles you will need for the build.

[@TheAlexanderpiano]

Thanks for the info! Just bought a whole lot of stuf for the build. I'm very keen to get this underway

[@armyleegreen]

Do you have a complete walk through of this gasifier? Didn’t see one in your videos! Would love to see one!

[@caseyjo2566]

Thanks Flash! I haven't been able to view the downloads you were sending. This all looks good! Great video

[@jrlvarghese]

Great work and detailed videos. I did watch all those 4 videos of making gasifier. How frequently this grate shaker mechanism works?

[@flash001USA]

You can set it up to activate in seconds up to minutes.

[@jrlvarghese]

@@flash001USA Thanks for the response. 😊

[@sandaalmaddinah5044]

Thank for all your videos ،، And thank you for your wonderful efforts

[@EricNovak-s3z]

Mr. Flash I do enjoy watching your gasification videos. I have been working on building myself one a little bit at a time. I am wondering what for blower you use? And where can I get one I would appreciate the info. Thanks in advance.

[@flash001USA]

OK, the blower can be a bit of a tricky one. I found mine at a junkyard and I literally rescued it from being covered up with dirt from a bulldozer and I cannot make that one up. The best place is a surplus shop. Google surplus blower fans and you will find them online. Here is one that runs on 110 VAC. www.surpluscenter.com/Electrical/Blowers-Fans/AC-Centrifugal-Blowers/160-CFM-120-Volt-AC-Fasco-70639814-Blower-16-1548.axd

[@EricNovak-s3z]

Thank you

[@TheDomin8rr]

Excellent work!

[@Canadianduke23]

Hey flash what don’t think about the wet scrubber to pull tar out if the smoke.

[@pakistangeographicchannel529]

Which metal is most suitable for manufacturing a woodgas gasifier??

[@flash001USA]

Some people build the hearth out of stainless steel because it can resist the higher temperatures and it's recommended to use stainless steel in the hearth but at the time I built this gasifier, I didn't have the tools or the experience to work with stainless steel so I lined my steel hearth with high temperature cement and it worked like a charm. As far as the body of the gasifier, you use whatever you can find at a good price which is why I used a 55 gallon drum which also worked out like a quite well. I fabricated the frame out of electricians half slot channel strut.

[@newageautotechnology]

That is called unistrut. For hanging pipe. Sweet build.

[@flash001USA]

That is also called a slip of the mind on my end... lol! Thanks...

[@markfloyd7042]

What do you use to time the electric on and off with short bursts to the high saw timer?

[@flash001USA]

I have a quad timer system designed using 555 timers. Simple and old school.

[@TheWynch]

how much did it cost to build the gasifier and do you use it just to charge your batteries or do you have it connected to your home

[@CNCmachiningisfun]

Oh yeah. Let's start the music, so we can shake, rattle and roll :) . Yer woodgas bugs are gonna have a lot of fun as they party up in there, my fellow woodgas addict. It seems to me that your system is more efficient than the ones that shake the entire gasser frame, so that wood surely add to the overall longevity of the components that make it all up. The shaker on mine uses a vertical action that shakes the entire gasser trolley up and down. This works, but it loosens my fillings if I am leaning on it when it is triggered ;) . Looking forward to further developments on your journey to full automation.

[@flash001USA]

Steve the next time you invite a date over be sure to let her lean on your gasifier when it's shaking. She'll really like that! Yep this crazy idea has been in my mind for quite a while now so it's nice to finally see it starting to come together.

[@CNCmachiningisfun]

LOL, funny you should mention that. One of my Donkeys comes into the Wattage Cottage, and holds her fuzzy little rear against the gasifier frame while the engine is running. Methinks she is getting something out of this that should not be mentioned in the presence of children ;) .

[@georgestover1801]

I have a suggestion and a Question. First the suggestion. You could use a screw hose clap to control the speed of your saw. that way you could set the speed to what you want and just have a on off switch for it. Now my question. when you burn off the gas from your hopper could you install piping with a pop off valve (Like on a pressure air tank), into a burn pipe with a spark plug to ignite the gas?

[@dushyantsingh5215]

Its great work... i loved to watch detailed information about gasifier.. But kindly make a video about blower placing video in gasifier... Thank you..

[@bobbylong4443]

Awesome idea

[@fraid5508]

How much does this system cost you overall for this project approximately?

[@jay90374]

Very cool, Just FYI, those lock nuts are called nylocks, the heavier C shaped metal is called channel iron and the lighter stuff we call unistrut.

[@flash001USA]

Yeah I knew what the steel was called but as always during recording a video I drew a complete blank but I just continued with the video because I figured everyone would know what it was. Nylocks is a new one for me. I've always seen them sold as stop nuts... Thanks for the feedback.

[@jay90374]

LOL, that would be me too but way worse.

[@jessehall9010]

Hey Flash, been watching your videos on the gasifier , or should I say flashifier build. I am starting a build myself with a different goal for the end product.I want to heat water with it which in turn will heat my home through my existing baseboard oil fired boiler system. It seams your goal is to run gasoline engines ,which is great , but it also seams you're letting a lot of useful heat go unused. Just wondering if you have given any thought to a heating system. Thank you for all of the information you have shared. It has changed my whole thought process on building my outdoor wood fired boiler.

[@flash001USA]

Jesse you would be amazed at just how much heat is NOT produced by a gasifier. The ember zone in this build is around the equivalent of a Pint Mason jar in size and there is no blazing fire in the ember bed. You only have a red hot ball of mass and the only place to harvest the heat from the gasifier itself would be from the output. If you try to add copper pipes or any kind of heat exchanger on inside the gasifier it will rob heat from the gas producing process plus it would be covered in tars and fine ash which would eventually insulate it away from the heat and defeat the purpose so you can only extract heat directly from the output which isn't enough to heat a small room much less a house. Think of a soldering iron. Yes it gets very hot up to 750 Deg F on it's tip and it can start a fire but that heat is accumulated heat over time and once you blow across the soldering iron tip or even touch it to a surface it cools down quickly until it can build heat back up on the tip again. This is what you are dealing with in a gasifier. The other place to harvest heat would be from a heat exchanger on the engine exhaust. People see a gasifier and the first thing they think of is a wood stove but it is far from a wood stove. You "technically" could heat a room with it if the gasifier was running inside the the room you were trying to heat but that would be impractical, messy and unsafe. There are other builds suited for boiler setups so this build may not be the route for you to go.

[@jessehall9010]

Thank you for that information. I guess I'll pursue some other avenue. There are some other builds on youtube for down draft wood boilers which include a secondary burn . Just looking to get every BTU from my wood since it is kind of labor intensive. I thought maybe the gasifier held the answer. Again thanks

[@mazdalorean]

Looking good Mike. Thanks for sharing. Joe

[@flash001USA]

Thanks Joe I thought you guys might get a kick out of this.

[@markbunn5021]

Looks really good man hope you can give me some tips when I get to build my gasifyer

[@elijahowens8507]

Awesome videos flash! I just discovered gasifier's around a month ago and I'm in love. I can't believe it's not talked about more. It's neater than hell to me. I own a small tree business here in Missouri and have a field full of wood and wood chips so I have an endless supply of fuel. I'm excited about building a gasifier! I've already been to the junk yard a couple times gathering supplies. I really wanna build one that mounts in the bed of a truck and fuels a truck first. I'm trying to learn as much as I can about them. Your videos have been very helpful in learning and I thank you. It's harder to find videos teaching how to run vehicles on gasifier. Do you know what would be the best build for fueling a truck? So far I've found Wayne Keith's type for a truck. I seen Ben Peterson's model as well but not sure if it's meant for a truck. Do you have any pointers? Thanks again for the great videos!!!

[@flash001USA]

First most thanks for the positive reply. Wayne Keith is one of the main people driving on woodgas and he knows his craft. My build is geared up for small engines so I would not be able to help you on a larger design other than anything past the basic theory of how they work. Good luck and when you get set up be sure to make a video for all of us to see.

[@victormercado6757]

You are brilliant!!!

[@puftyork1040]

nice explanation sir. i have a question, is it the same reactor works for rice husk?

[@flash001USA]

I've never ran rice holes but as long as they're not too small it would probably work even if there was some basic modifications that needed to be done.

[@puftyork1040]

@@flash001USA thankyou sir. i hope i could use it

[@danconser6709]

Nice work & some good practical mechanics :-)

[@nasanction]

Hey Flash, you should put a counter weight on that washer/motor shaft.

[@flash001USA]

I completely understand your logic on your statement but as small as the diameter of the cam is and for what we are doing it's not really needed. Thanks for the input.

[@rayraymcdoogle5542]

dude i watched just about every clip on these builds and decided yours is best by far so im going with your program to me its best system out there esp the perfect gas it produces is amassing hoping you have instructions in on of your clips im catching up with them now,damn rite impressive,who knows yours might end up .....way a certain printing press with the very know statement......is that a/the real McCoy....as the story goes so who knows,,,,,,good job,,,,, hope to follow your path but to enjoy your wisdom from trail and error

[@flash001USA]

Hey thanks for the positive feedback. There are a lot of us that can help you with the build once you get into it. You should also join our blog at www.miniwoodgas.com

[@SuperHurdman]

Could this unit be put in the back of a truck and power the vehicle?

[@flash001USA]

Although this is a large build the internal hearth was not built up large enough to run a vehicle. This build was designed to run small generators. Check out Driving on woodgas by Wayne Keith. He has the art of using a gasifier for a vehicle worked out quite well.

[@nasanction]

Probably don't need the grate shaker with the hopper shaker. Looks like it would settle the whole gasifier down for a long winters burn. ;)

[@flash001USA]

Actually you need both. When the hopper shaker activates it could cause a sudden settlement into the grate which would possibly restrict the gas flow to the engine.

[@fraid5508]

Have you seen the ben peterson design? if so what do you think about it?

[@flash001USA]

He kicks butt! Very professional designs for sure.

[@jackruska5686]

Hey flash...Outstanding once again. Been following your build for quite a while. Starting my build after the holidays. Quick question. Looking back thru all the video's I was wondering how you fabricated the air intake valve on top of the gasifier? Not sure how to screw it in and out? Keep up the good work, and great information. One other question if you have the time. Is there any reason why you couldn't use a smaller drum than a 55 gal? Say a 30 gal? Thanks again, Looking forward to your reply. Tator Tot

[@flash001USA]

Jack all I did was to take a piece of 1/8 inch steel and I cut a strip out about 3/8th's wide then I cut two grooves centered into the 2 inch elbow opposite from each other where the steel strip could fit flush it it. In the center of the steel strip I drilled a 1/4th inch hole and on the back side of the strip I welded a 1/4th inch nut to it then I welded the strip to the 2 inch elbow. After that you make a wooden cap or even a steel cap then you weld a 1/4th inch threaded rod that allows you to screw in the choke cap to shut the air flow on or off simply by screwing the choke cap in or out. You can use a smaller barrel but the most common and simple builds can be made with a 55 gallon drum.

[@tinderboxcreations]

Mike, can I just offer a massive thank you for your efforts and generosity in sharing all this inspiring and valuable info. Like many who have seen your videos I am inspired to start building my own system. One thing has occurred to me and that is the need to cool down the gases directly after leaving the reactor. Well, a radiation system whereby the gasses are cooled by ambient atmosphere via the expansion tanks and steel pipes seem like a whole waste of heat energy to me. How about running the hot gas through a copper coil or matrix of some design which is submerged in a sealed water tank. Much like a regular copper hot water tank which comes ready insulated. I live on a boat in the UK and the excess heat from our engine's coolant system is ran the exact same way. it's called a 'calorifier'. The engine coolant is fed through a copper coil in our domestic water tank and can that hot water can then either be kept in the tank for showers etc, or it can be piped throughout the 65ft length of boat to feed central heating radiators using just a low powered 12v hot water pump made by Jabsco (I installed it). My thinking is you get snow, you need heat. Why not use use the as yet unwanted heat from your gasifier in this same way?

[@flash001USA]

Thank you for your input. You can cool the gas down with the method you described too. Keep in mind that the heat from the gasifier isn't as much as you would think because unlike a wood stove this only has a small hot zone that is about the size of a softball and there is no actual fire but instead a red hot mass that burns like the end of a cigarette with no actual flame if that makes sense. You could combine the heat from the gasifier and the exhaust heat from an engine running off of the gasifier to heat water or a room with. I hope this helps.

[@phyolay-se1qv]

Can you provide any diagrams please?

[@flash001USA]

Go to www.miniwoodgas.com and contact the webhost which will be me and I'll send you the PDF files.

[@rickheska3333]

nice job flash I have watched all your videos. what did you use for your controller?

[@flash001USA]

I designed my own controller. It's finished but not mounted up. When I make the next video I will also have a PDF file with the complete build and the circuit board artwork along with a parts list for people who are interested in building it.

[@rickheska3333]

thank you.

[@ZahidHussain-mc3oq]

@@flash001USA Hi Flash I am very keen to build my own backup Wood gas generator backup. Got most of the bits to do such a build. Just need the plans please. Send em to [e-mail] Extremely greatful and very detailed explanations love the manometer set up. And auto riddle too good not to build. Wanted to get the woodgas builders bible but yours is a lot easier to make. Hats of to you. Keep going pal

[@fraid5508]

How long did it takes you to build this unit?

[@flash001USA]

It all depends on your skills and if you have access to a decent shop or even just the right tools. This took me a bit longer than it would have taken others because I did it outside with only the basic tools. You have to split the build up into sections as to not be overwhelmed.

[@fraid5508]

unfortunately I have no skill in wielding but fortunately my brother in law is very skillful. I live on a farm in québec (canada) and I have a decent workshop with all the tool to work with wood and for electronic but not for heavy duty wielding stuff. I want to motivate my brother in law to assist me in this project as he has all the wielding equipment so that is the reason why I would like to know how many hours it would take for someone who already work as a wielder in a factory since many years. For my part, I would like to know roughly how much I would spend on this. In the past I have done an hho torch that works with a dry cell, set up solar panel (1000 W) and now I would love to realize this project. I intent to run a generator 15 hp/8000W. I think that with your set up you run a 5 hp generator (I had to watched many time cos my english is far from being perfect and I still understand new stuff every time i watch again). I have downloaded the 4 how to build and the last one automation. I have really enjoyed them and I intent to translate them with french subtitle if you agree. Thx in advance.

[@nhhbbyloggr5022]

Mike, You said that this video was shot on Friday? I think I felt it vibrating up here in NH. You sure did head in a different direction and it looks like it works real well. From what I can see, the grate shaker is exactly the motion my system needs to keep the char moving. I'm using an oscillating motion right now but it does not shake out the char fast enough to keep the beast breathing freely enough to maintain the power demand. It is close but I still have to manually shake it once in awhile to ease up on the vacuum. Your method is really what's needed. Good job. It was worth waiting for.

[@flash001USA]

Hey Bill I'm not kidding when I say that I must have built this system up 1000 times in my head. Somewhere in my videos going back at least 3 years there is a video where I demonstrated this grate shaker set up where I made all the pieces out of cardboard and paper just for demonstration purposes. I'm just glad that it worked out.

[@nhhbbyloggr5022]

You have quite a knack for mechanical systems and makings things work efficiently. I was just down in the shop talking it over with the little fellows and they think it's a good idea, too.

[@timidater4803]

you sir Are a genius!!!!!!

[@mada94fxr]

Looks great Mike. I like the thumper. That really makes the wood chunks dance. I have never looked inside mine when it runs. I guess I need to do that some day. I know I haven't had a bridge since I put it on, so, it's doing it's job. I saw that one other video with the guy using a jig saw for the grate shaker. I believe you know him. Great concept on both. How long till you get the electronics set up?? Hint.. Great video as usual.

[@jasonmccorkle8760]

Thanks

[@caseyjo2566]

I really like the"Thumper"

[@flash001USA]

No doubt that's it's definitely a different approach from what you would expect people to put on a gasifier to shake a wood hopper with. I knew I had to put this video together so people could see what I was actually doing not only on the wood hopper vibrator but the grate shaker system too.

[@scrtyboy]

Nice going!

[@jerryball5534]

Can you make one for my house

[@gonefishing2012]

Jigsaw...... Awesome!

[@randytingle2416]

More interested in how and why it works the rest is the easy part. Stop nuts and such is not important

[@flash001USA]

Sometimes the devil is in the details and if you use standard nuts they will do one or two things on a setup like this. They will spin loose and fall of or they will self tighten and lock up the movable shaker arm so this is why I try to cover a bit of detail on the build.

[@catfish500mark9]

☆☆☆☆☆

[@rezonansimpulsa]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/g2nSmGqKir-djNk Оборудуй катализатором!

[@terrycoverly7342]

No coment

[@flash001USA]

That doesn't make sense.... You just left a comment saying "No comment"