Utilizing German Pellet Stove Ash
April 23, 2016
BY Karl Brunner
The rapidly growing number of pellet heating installations in Germany—from several hundred appliances in 1998 to nearly 280,000 pellet stoves and boilers at the end of 2012—illustrates an increased interest in environmentally friendly heating systems. Although pellet boilers represent the larger part of pellet applications market share, pellet stoves are gaining significance in the German marketplace.
Most of German pellet stoves are equipped with an automatic cleaning system, which is the most appropriate choice for ash utilization. Today, residential wood pellet ash levels are very low, less than 1 percent. According to statistics, the amount of pellet ash produced in each German household is less than 20 kilogram per year. Of course, the amount of leftover waste depends on the intensiveness of pellet stove usage.
The majority of German pellet stove models provide an automatic ash removal function. As a rule, appliances are featured with devices that compress the ash in the ash container, which allows for emptying in several-month intervals. Depending on the size, the ash drawer must be emptied at intervals that vary between one and several weeks. Some models of wood pellet stoves are equipped so that the ash is also discharged via a screw from the heater in an adjacent, moveable ash container. In the process of pellet stove de-ashing, bottom ash and flying ash must be removed from the heat exchanger through the ash drawer.
An amendment to German regulations that concern the use of ashes from the incineration of uncontaminated wood now recognizes the material as a fertilizer in the country. This has resulted in the option of using pellet ash as a fertilizer in gardening, or disposing of it as household waste.
When utilizing ash, its quality must be taken into consideration. It should be high enough to prevent contamination. Most European countries, including Germany, have implemented legislative changes to control the recycling of biomass ashes for forests and agriculture. These laws mostly concern industrial biomass ash utilization; it would be ideal if the laws also defined a more coherent and smart utilization of pellet stoves ash, as this kind of installation is gaining traction in European households.
Apart from the abovementioned applications, pellet stove waste can be used in gardening. For the time being, ashes from wood pellet stoves are broadly used as a free garden amendment along with regular garden amendments such as coffee grounds, potato peels, etc. However, there is a substantial difference between wood stove ash and all other amendments used in gardening. Besides the fact that pellet stove ash contains a particular set of elements and nutrients—it is especially rich in potassium—that are favorable for soil, it can also help to correct and improve acidic soil. More than that, wood stove ashes are applied in order to control the amount of pests as well as compost supplement.
Ash should not be used unless a soil pH test has been done. In regard to acidic soil correction, wood stove ash as a garden amendment is a much more convenient means than the traditionally used ground limestone, bearing in mind that it is an absolutely costless resource. However, one should pay attention to the type of wood used, as well as the size of ash particles, as it influences the precise effect of wood stove ash on the pH level of soil.
Wood stove ash used for pest control is by no means a new tendency. For that, ash has long been used both in dry and liquid form.
One more application of wood stove ash in gardening and fertilizing is as a neutralizing ingredient in piles of compost. Ash is extremely helpful in countering dry materials rich in carbon such as pine needles and sawdust, which are highly acidic. Furthermore, ashes by themselves have influence on the amount of carbon in the compost pile, thus, they can be placed in thin layers between other waste materials such as grass clippings and vegetable scraps, which are rich in nitrogen. Wood stove ashes also have the ability to neutralize odors.
All in all, the best choice is for wood pellet ash usage is as a fertilizer. The combustion chamber of a pellet stove should always be free of ash residues, as an overfilled ashtray leads to disturbances in the operation of the pellet stove. Therefore, the ash container should be emptied very one or two weeks, and the ashes can be used as garden compost or fertilizer, or simply bedisposed of it with household waste.
Author: Karl Brunner
Media Partnership Coordinator
Most of German pellet stoves are equipped with an automatic cleaning system, which is the most appropriate choice for ash utilization. Today, residential wood pellet ash levels are very low, less than 1 percent. According to statistics, the amount of pellet ash produced in each German household is less than 20 kilogram per year. Of course, the amount of leftover waste depends on the intensiveness of pellet stove usage.
The majority of German pellet stove models provide an automatic ash removal function. As a rule, appliances are featured with devices that compress the ash in the ash container, which allows for emptying in several-month intervals. Depending on the size, the ash drawer must be emptied at intervals that vary between one and several weeks. Some models of wood pellet stoves are equipped so that the ash is also discharged via a screw from the heater in an adjacent, moveable ash container. In the process of pellet stove de-ashing, bottom ash and flying ash must be removed from the heat exchanger through the ash drawer.
An amendment to German regulations that concern the use of ashes from the incineration of uncontaminated wood now recognizes the material as a fertilizer in the country. This has resulted in the option of using pellet ash as a fertilizer in gardening, or disposing of it as household waste.
When utilizing ash, its quality must be taken into consideration. It should be high enough to prevent contamination. Most European countries, including Germany, have implemented legislative changes to control the recycling of biomass ashes for forests and agriculture. These laws mostly concern industrial biomass ash utilization; it would be ideal if the laws also defined a more coherent and smart utilization of pellet stoves ash, as this kind of installation is gaining traction in European households.
Apart from the abovementioned applications, pellet stove waste can be used in gardening. For the time being, ashes from wood pellet stoves are broadly used as a free garden amendment along with regular garden amendments such as coffee grounds, potato peels, etc. However, there is a substantial difference between wood stove ash and all other amendments used in gardening. Besides the fact that pellet stove ash contains a particular set of elements and nutrients—it is especially rich in potassium—that are favorable for soil, it can also help to correct and improve acidic soil. More than that, wood stove ashes are applied in order to control the amount of pests as well as compost supplement.
Ash should not be used unless a soil pH test has been done. In regard to acidic soil correction, wood stove ash as a garden amendment is a much more convenient means than the traditionally used ground limestone, bearing in mind that it is an absolutely costless resource. However, one should pay attention to the type of wood used, as well as the size of ash particles, as it influences the precise effect of wood stove ash on the pH level of soil.
Wood stove ash used for pest control is by no means a new tendency. For that, ash has long been used both in dry and liquid form.
One more application of wood stove ash in gardening and fertilizing is as a neutralizing ingredient in piles of compost. Ash is extremely helpful in countering dry materials rich in carbon such as pine needles and sawdust, which are highly acidic. Furthermore, ashes by themselves have influence on the amount of carbon in the compost pile, thus, they can be placed in thin layers between other waste materials such as grass clippings and vegetable scraps, which are rich in nitrogen. Wood stove ashes also have the ability to neutralize odors.
All in all, the best choice is for wood pellet ash usage is as a fertilizer. The combustion chamber of a pellet stove should always be free of ash residues, as an overfilled ashtray leads to disturbances in the operation of the pellet stove. Therefore, the ash container should be emptied very one or two weeks, and the ashes can be used as garden compost or fertilizer, or simply bedisposed of it with household waste.
Author: Karl Brunner
Media Partnership Coordinator
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