James Drescher Posted May 16, 2017 Share Posted May 16, 2017 Hello everyone, I am in the process of building a coal forge to begin my journey in blacksmithing and had a question as to the blower I chose for it. I picked up a *cheap* ventilation fan, and now I am unsure it will be sufficient to provide not only proper airflow but also necessary pressure for the burning of coal for my new forge. I was thinking about purchasing the 3" coal forge blower from Blacksmith Depot instead because it has an actual pressure rating for it (780 pascals, 79.54 mmAq, 180 CFM) vs 50 CFM (only info I can get from the fan I have now) Am I better off with a cheap hair dryer, vacuum cleaner, or shop vac vs the ventilation fan? Or, just go for the more pricey Depot blower? Any help will be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C-1ToolSteel Posted May 16, 2017 Share Posted May 16, 2017 At about $1 per hair dryer at the thrift store, you could pick up five of them which would come to....man, I need one of those math people to help me out. By the time you go through all of them, you will probably have a "real" forge blower. I had someone give me my champion blower while I was on my second hair dryer... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted May 17, 2017 Share Posted May 17, 2017 Use what you've got for now. Depending on what kind of coal you have, you may not need so much air anyway, at least not for starters. Also, if you eventually switch to charcoal (as ThomasPowers recommended in your intro thread), you'll find that it takes a LOT less air than coal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Drescher Posted May 17, 2017 Author Share Posted May 17, 2017 2 hours ago, C-1ToolSteel said: At about $1 per hair dryer at the thrift store, you could pick up five of them which would come to....man, I need one of those math people to help me out. By the time you go through all of them, you will probably have a "real" forge blower. I had someone give me my champion blower while I was on my second hair dryer... Thanks for the input! 16 minutes ago, JHCC said: Use what you've got for now. Depending on what kind of coal you have, you may not need so much air anyway, at least not for starters. Also, if you eventually switch to charcoal (as ThomasPowers recommended in your intro thread), you'll find that it takes a LOT less air than coal. Thank you very much! I decided to stick with coal for now since my forge is nearly complete and it would take alot of time switching to charcoal since I would need to redesign my forge and create a kiln to make charcoal..it is definitely something ill look into making in the future. Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glenn Posted May 17, 2017 Share Posted May 17, 2017 If you make the forge walls taller, you can use wood as a solid fuel. Pallets should be available behind many businesses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irondragon Forge ClayWorks Posted May 17, 2017 Share Posted May 17, 2017 When I first built my forge I used a Dayton blower motor. It worked great and had an air gate to control air flow. I switched to a hand crank blower because it gave me greater control and used less coal. http://www.globalindustrial.com/p/hvac/blowers/draft-inducer/shaded-pole-blower-1-25-hp-60-cfm?infoParam.campaignId=T9F&gclid=CJLfkrnv99MCFQkpaQodnR8HFg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lou L Posted May 17, 2017 Share Posted May 17, 2017 I just got the PSC version of that same blower for my side draft, anthracite purposes. It was about $15 more but PSC motors are preferred according to what I've read. At first I ran it and feared the 50 CFM would not be enough. Got it on the forge and it blew me away. The attached intake plate was quite effective and gave me fine control of the fire. I didn't need the aluminum gate I bought. It is QUIET. For the control and quiet forging it offers me I consider it totally worth the added cost. The small Dirt Devil I had been using was deafening...hair dryers aren't much better. I imagine that a blower with over 100 CFM would be overkill...especially for bituminous coal or charcoal. The Blacksmith Depot blower is overpriced in my opinion...it just might be that much better...but for less than half the price you can get something good. If you have a long run of duct work or are using flexible 4" you may need more.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Drescher Posted May 19, 2017 Author Share Posted May 19, 2017 On May 16, 2017 at 11:24 PM, Glenn said: If you make the forge walls taller, you can use wood as a solid fuel. Pallets should be available behind many businesses. Will consider it thank you! On May 17, 2017 at 5:32 PM, Irondragon Forge & Clay said: When I first built my forge I used a Dayton blower motor. It worked great and had an air gate to control air flow. I switched to a hand crank blower because it gave me greater control and used less coal. I took a look at the blower..I will consider it thank you! On May 17, 2017 at 6:21 PM, Lou L said: I just got the PSC version of that same blower for my side draft, anthracite purposes. It was about $15 more but PSC motors are preferred according to what I've read. At first I ran it and feared the 50 CFM would not be enough. Got it on the forge and it blew me away. The attached intake plate was quite effective and gave me fine control of the fire. I didn't need the aluminum gate I bought. It is QUIET. For the control and quiet forging it offers me I consider it totally worth the added cost. The small Dirt Devil I had been using was deafening...hair dryers aren't much better. I imagine that a blower with over 100 CFM would be overkill...especially for bituminous coal or charcoal. Thanks for the input! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lou L Posted May 19, 2017 Share Posted May 19, 2017 A corollary to my last post. JHCC stopped by yesterday while he was on a work related trip to CT and we pounded some metal. My forge underperformed for some reason. I had constant issues with airflow that I didn't have the last time I ran it. I had some serious clinker form right in the path of the airflow and it just seemed like the blower wasn't up to it. There is the strong possibility that it has to do with my forge design as well and I am seriously considering changes there. I currently don't use a fire pot of any sort to shape my fire and I think adding one will help dramatically. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.