Is a hairdryer strong enough?

[Fire&Iron]

My current forge setup uses a hairdryer for air, but I am just using charcoal which doesn't require much air.  I was wondering if it put out enough air so I can use coal, or maybe even coke. (It's my understanding that coke needs more air than coal). I would love it if someone with more experience could give me their opinion.

[ThomasPowers]

Will a 4 cylinder engine power my vehicle?  Hard to answer without knowing if it's a smart car or a dumptruck...

Coke does not necessarily need more air than coal it needs constant air so it doesn't go out.  In general a blowdryer produces more air than is needed for a small to medium sized forge---for my personal values of small to medium.

[ThorsHammer82]

There are many people (myself included) that have used hair dryers successfully for forging. both with Charcoal, and coal.

[Shamus Blargostadt]

even my low setting (cheapest blow dryer I could find) sends way too much air. I need some kind of flu to cut it down. Too much air burns up the fuel too fast and burns up my steel. My son is constantly melting his pieces by turning on the air and getting distracted.

I use coal.

Edited July 30, 2015 by Shamus Blargostadt

[jacob's hammer]

I wired a dimmer switch to an extension cord so i just plug my blower into that to turn down speed.

[Frosty]

Set it up so you can aim the blow drier away from the tuyere by degrees to regulate the blast. Dimmer switches come with their own hazards and are easily avoided for this.

Frosty the Lucky.