Indoor Birch Tar

[Tipi]

Has any one tried to make birch tar in a conventional oven at all?

i have a good store of birch bark (collected form dead trees) but nowhere to light a fire.

was thinking of using the 2 pot method and putting it in a hot oven (200ºc+) but wasnt sure if it would get hot enough. thoughts and ideas appreciated.

TP

 

[Stew]

I suspect my wife wouldn't be too happy if I did and I'm guessing that if I did it while she was out that it'll leave a smell.

 

[bambodoggy]

I can't help with birch tar but I know you need over 400c to get the tar out of pine.....so possibly not a goer in a home oven.

Might be different with birch though, I simply don't know

 

[Toddy]

It'd be brilliant if it worked, but, and it's a big but….I'm not prepared to try it in my oven, and considering the things I'm quite happy to do with domestic stuff normally, that's kind of indicative of my thoughts on it.

I reckon it'll stink up the oven, the house, and I don't think the oven would get it hot enough to make much of it.
Happy to be proved wrong though, just not with my oven

M

 

[Monikieman]

I don't know much about this (well I've read about it but not done it) but I thought the idea was one pot underground to be cooler than the top one.

If both are in the oven the tar that come out will be at 400 or what ever the oven is.

Could be illuminating to watch.

 

[bambodoggy]

If both are in the oven the tar that come out will be at 400 or what ever the oven is.

Could be illuminating to watch.

Hey, I hadn't thought of that.....oil = fuel, heat = very hot oven, then you open the door and suddenly provide Air and that's the three for the triangle to work!!! Not sure what the flash point for hot birch oil is but I don't think I'd be taking the risk in my wife's kitchen!

 

[Tjurved]

I guess there is only one way to find out...:You_Rock_

 

[forrestdweller]

could you make the stuff on an ordinary BBQ somewhere?!

 

[Toddy]

You can, but the issue about trying to get the 'tar' to collect in the bottom tin still needs to be dealt with. Buried in the ground keeps it all stable, but if there's a bump or a burp of gas, then the whole thing can go up in flames.

M

 

[nephilim]

[video=youtube;3MWg8o_YY5A]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MWg8o_YY5A[/video] < this chap shows a good way to do it. I've found it works with this method provided you don't knock or disturb the tin when its in the fire.

 

[nephilim]

I do have a question, I have a small jar of birch tar, and was wondering what I can use it for beyond an insect repellant. Could it be used for a wood stain/protection? If so, how long would it last?

 

[Tipi]

it makes a good thermo-plastic glue that's sort of like natures epoxy.

cheers for the insights guys. i hadn't thought about the possibility of it producing gas, this worries me!

not too worried about the smell, the tar ive produced never smelt really before. i think i'm going to try and find the melting point of birch tar somewhere and then give it a try and let you guys know the results.

 

[Tipi]

perhaps i'll try making char cloth first see how that goes.

 

[Exbomz]

I'm afraid you need at least 350-400C for the whole length of the distillation, so your home oven is not up to it.

 

[Tipi]

Looks like it might be a no go:

"Chemists have discovered that distilling pitch from birch bark requires an oxygen-free environment and sustained temperatures of over 650° F"
source: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/evolution/defy-stereotypes.html

so that's 340°C - a tad beyond your normal oven unfortunately

that article is quite interesting actually, contains some experimental archaeology on how our ancestors used to produce tar with out metal pots, could be good to know the method, you know, just in case.

as for other uses, apparently you can make soap out of it too, any body tried?

 

[nephilim]

You could always do it in a BBQ...have the coals going around the box and such like. Might be an idea?

 

[British Red]

Birch tar can be included in soap but its not a primary ingredient, more of a perfume.

 

[nephilim]

Would it be good for staining wood and sealing it from the elements? If so, how often would it need to be restained?

 

[Grebby]

I'm think that in one of Rays programs he get some skis made and they are sealed with birch tar. The tar was warmed and so were the skis (with a blow torch) and then te tar painted on. Can't remember which episide or series though.

 

[nephilim]

I remember that, he was in Sweden wasn't he?