how do you dispose of your ashes?

[MNfarmer]

Once mine have cooled down I dump them out where I feed my cows. Gets mixed in with the hay and manure then gets spread on the fields the next summer.

 

[Jon E]

I burn a lot of pallets and the last time I emptied the OWB ash, I wound up sifting through all the ashes, ALL of them, trying to get the nails and staples and screws out. I figure I'll get one of those big magnets on a stick, but then I realized that it won't get the stainless steel nails that some of the pallets around here are nailed together with.

If I'm reasonably sure they're clean, I put 'em in the compost or the brush pile. After 4-5 years in the brush pile, any steel nails are probably pretty well rusted to powder anyway.

One time I set my compost pile on fire, that was :censored: fun.

 

[stihl sawing]

I put mine in an old wheelbarrow with a steel wheel on it. When it's full i will shovel them around the yard or on the fencerow.

 

[Slvrmple72]

Might sound crazy,but you can make good lye soap from hardwood ashes,and soft water. The left over ash is put on the garden,because of the potash content in the ash. My experience with wood ashes on the drive way is okay until spring comes and if too many ashes were dumped on the drive,you will get slush or mud. Coal ash is really good to stop slippage on ice because of the larger clinkers. But because of the sulfur in coal ash its not to good for gardens. That lye soap tends to burn your skin so be careful with it. But it does the job,especially in a pinch.

Great, so now I can combine it with the glycerine leftover from making biodiesel and make a really good cleaning soap!

 

[Echo-man]

I dump mine in corn field behind my house.

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

Last winter before I fed up with the idiots and left it, on another website after I suggested putting the ashes on the garden, some nitwit found a link to a site saying it was bad for the ground. The web is a vast repositry of nonsense.

Indeed it is!

 

[Laird]

In the road

I live on a gravel road and usually spread them around in front of the house if there is snow on it. Otherwise they go into a field or on the lawn.

 

[scattergun13]

Here's a twist. We have backyard chickens at home in a custom built elevated coup. (only about ten small cochin chickens for the kids and for the eggs) During the winter I clean the fireplace late in the evening and put the ashes into a five gallon steel bucket and set the bucket under the chicken coup to provide a few hours of warmth for them, also I cut noodles for them to nest in so I don't have to buy commercial chips. I will post some pics soon. I have really enjoyed the site since coming here and learned a great deal. Take care all and have a great Christmas and New Year.

 

[clawmute]

I have 5, 5ft x 25ft raised planting beds in the back yard. I just dump em' there, till em' in in the spring. Veggies like it!

 

[JBinKC]

Great, so now I can combine it with the glycerine leftover from making biodiesel and make a really good cleaning soap!

Why not attempt to use the lye from wood ash as the catalyst in the biodiesel process. I am sure if you desiccate it it will not saponify.

 

[ak4195]

Like many who have winter have posted,I put most on the driveway,but not to thick,dont want to insulate the ice.Alot goes out along the ditchline,same place i toss the dog turds.A small amount goes into the compost pile,and a small amount goes into the veggie garden.
And of course we grow the greatest veggies in the world here,just incase you were wondering....

ak

 

[MrDrift]

+ 1 for the garden. Haven't really used them in the driveway yet.

 

[KH-1958]

For the garden

+ 1 for the garden. Haven't really used them in the driveway yet.

I would agree, my garden gets them and I can't wait to see what happens when the growing season starts.

 

[J.W Younger]

dump em in a sinkhole, don,t know where they go from there china maybe

 

[BlueRidgeMark]

How do I dispose of my ashes? I won't be able to. That'll be up to my wife, unless she dies at the same time I do.

That ain't ashes.



What you get back is ground up skeleton. There are no "ashes" left when the crematory gets done. If you were to take a look at it you'd see white granules, and some of them would be blackened on one side.


It takes waaaay to much energy to reduce the skeleton, so they just burn it clean, grind it up, and give it back.


Enjoy.

 

[mtfallsmikey]

Garden and flower pots.

 

[darren_nh]

That ain't ashes.



What you get back is ground up skeleton. There are no "ashes" left when the crematory gets done. If you were to take a look at it you'd see white granules, and some of them would be blackened on one side.


It takes waaaay to much energy to reduce the skeleton, so they just burn it clean, grind it up, and give it back.


Enjoy.

I didn't need to know that.

 

[Marc]

Same way I dispose of bodies...

Right into the garden.


...wait what?

 

[Zodiac45]

I use them for the gardens and most of them go too the ever expanding brush pile I have on a lot I bought ajoining mine. There was a house there years ago that was torn down. The cellar hole was filled but settled some so I started using it for a brush pile, bark and chips from the splitter. I would burn it off once a year but this year mssed the opportunity and now it's a bit too big too do safely. I might ask the local Vol fire dept. too have a go and do a controlled burn excersize. So that's the dump spot for ashes. Up here the soil is naturally acidic, so beyond the rodadendrons and azalias that like the acidic soil, I'm mostly liming every year too the Ph less acidic in the vegetable patch.

 

[Rookie1]

I just Googled fireplace ashes and found this. I found it very informative. Check it out and let me know what you think. http://www.emmitsburg.net/gardens/articles/frederick/2004/ashes.htm