Where do you get your smoker fuel from?

Equipment
21

I’m in Western Aus. I peel a bit off the trunk of my paperbark tree (malaleuca somthingorother) to get the fire started in the bottom then I add hakea needles (hakea buculenta, but probably any needly hakea would do). I squash heaps of needles into the smoker (along with the odd banksia leaf caught up among the needles) with my hive tool and it stays lit long enough to inspect 5 hives and beyond. Glad to have finally worked it out, because it was stressful running out of smoke in the early days.

I like the lavender idea though, I’ll give it a go sometime adding some into the mix.

22

I recently discovered a beautiful fuel for the smoker, & it works really well. It’s dried dejuiced sugar can stalks. Here is my video of making the fuel.

23

Jeff, ripper, I was going to ask has anyone tried sugar cane mulch in their smoker? its available at Bunns, then I found your Video, but I still ask the question has anyone used sugar cane mulch, I am a bit concerned about any chemical residues in the mulch. thanks.

24

Ive been using pine needles, have a few about the farm and if ever run out there is about 100,000 trees just over the boundary fence, sing out if you need some.

25

Yea mate, me too and paper bark, just saw the sugar cane at Bunns today and thought. got a wheelie bin full of pine needles from neighbour, but I don’t like em.

26

Hi Bruce, I have some dry sugar cane stalks that have been dejuiced, that works fine & lasts a while. However I can’t find anything that works & lasts as long as wood shavings. It actually shocks me to find it still going after quite a while. To keep it going I just add a little handful. It doesn’t leave much tar either.

27

Hi, @JeffH, I know a couple of chippies, might hunt up some wood shavings, I have two Flow Hives so don’t need a truck load.

28

Hi Gunners,

I live in a pine forest if you want to use pine needles and willing to pay post from Beerwah I can send as many as you wish.

:evergreen_tree: :slight_smile:

Cheers Bruce

29

Yes, that would be good Bruce, you could give them an empty 20 liter bucket with of nice jar of honey, I’m sure they’d be pleased to fill it for you.

Sometimes you see bits of wood in skips, all you need is a few bits, coupled with an electric planer, & you’re away.

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30

Was working bees with a neighbouring beekeeper last week. His smoker produced loads of smoke and lasted for ages.

Dried horse dung is what he uses. Dried cow dung works well to, he says.

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31

The pine needles I collect from the paddock always have a bit of cattle dung mixed in, cant say I have worried about pulling it out.

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32

Bought a bag of ORGANIC !!! sugar came mulch today, lit the smoker , got it going, then packed it tight, smoked like a steam train, cool smoke, lasted as about as long as a train trip from Coolamon to Junee, will do me.

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33

I get about 1hr out of the pine needles before I need to add to it. In my experience is the smoker is billowing smoke without the bellows being worked I need to add more fuel and pack it tighter.

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